A Breach Within

Born in Lac St-Charles in 1984, Jean-François Leblanc has written and directed several short films and series, all of which have enjoyed varying degrees of success. In 2015, he wrote and directed *Le gars d'la shop*, which had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. In 2018 and 2021, he directed both seasons of the web series L'arène (Canne Series, Best Series at the La Rochelle Film Festival), which earned him nominations for the Gémeaux Awards (Best Series, Best Director). Following Le prince de Val-be in 2019 (Best Director at Fantasia), he directed Landgraves in 2020, written by Alexandre Auger. The film enjoyed tremendous success on the festival circuit with over 55 selections, where it won 20 awards, including Best Film at Fantasia and Cinémania and Best Director at Trouville and Brooklyn Horror. In 2023, Jean-François presented his eighth short film, Virga (written by Charles Dionne), which earned him the Best Film award at Fantasia and Horrorfest. It was finally in 2025 that he directed his first feature film, Vil & misérable, an adaptation of the comic book by Samuel Cantin, with whom he co-wrote the screenplay. Acclaimed by critics, the film was a huge box-office success, with audiences hailing it as a future “cult classic.” Nominated nine times at the Gala Québec Cinéma, it won three Iris Awards, including Best First Feature. The film was also one of five finalists for the Prix Collégial du Cinéma Québécois. His ninth short film, Une brèche, which he also wrote, had its world premiere at the prestigious Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Festival in 2026. Jean-François is currently developing several feature-length projects, including Deux semaines à tuer, which he is co-writing with Samuel Cantin, and Le larron, written by Alexandre Auger.