Ritual Distribution is stepping forward as the newest player in the Canadian distribution landscape.

The Montreal-headquartered company was founded by head of acquisitions Olivia Courchesne and head of sales William Gagnon in April. The distributor currently focuses on completed indie features and docs, including international and foreign language films.

Courchesne previously held the role of head of operations at Post-Moderne, a Montreal post-production and camera rental facility. Gagnon was a line producer as well as the director of Zoom Out, a VOD platform dedicated to experimental cinema and film essays.

Ritual holds Canadian rights for its slate of films which include Only the River Flows (pictured), from Chinese filmmaker Wei Shujun (Ripples of Life), which will be released in August. The fledgling company’s first documentary acquisition, the Vision du Réel International Competition feature, Fragments of Ice, from Ukrainian director Maria Stoianova, is set for a December or January 2025 release.

“While we do side with arthouse films in a way, what we really look for are compelling visuals and engaging storytelling,” Gagnon tells Playback Daily.

Courchesne and Gagnon (who are romantic partners in real life) both have degrees in film studies and share a passion for cinema. “Moviegoing cultures around the world vary tremendously and say a lot about time and place,” says Gagnon. “We’ve always seen it as a privileged way to dive into a city or a neighborhood’s character, whenever we’re travelling, and it has become our ritual to buy a ticket and see whatever’s playing.”

It was this shared passion that not only gave the company its name, but also exposed them to the global independent distribution landscape as well as a curatorial approach to distribution.

As for getting involved from the development stage on domestic films (both Quebec and English-speaking Canada), “this is definitely something we plan on doing within the next couple of years” adds Gagnon.

Image courtesy of Ritual Distribution