Kanaval (film)

Kanaval is a 2023 drama film, directed by Henri Pardo. A co-production of companies from Canada and Luxembourg, the film centres on Rico (Rayan Dieudonné), a young boy who has emigrated with his mother Erzuile (Penande Estime) from their native Haiti to a small town in Quebec, where they live with childless older couple Albert (Martin Dubreuil) and Cécile (Claire Jacques).

The cast includes Hana Sofia Lopes, Jean Jean, Marc Assiniwi, Christian Cardin, Carol Beaudry, Rykko Bellemare and David Biron.

The film's production was first announced in 2020, when it received support from the Netflix/Canadian Film Centre Project Development Accelerator project. It entered production in April 2022, with shooting in both the Dominican Republic and Canada.

The film premiered in the Centrepiece program at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival.

Critical response
Courtney Small of That Shelf wrote that "Kanaval may not land all of the sprawling ideas it has flying in the air, but there is plenty to appreciate here. Anchored by Rayan Dieudonné’s moving wide-eyed performance, Pardo crafts an engaging film wrapped in mysticism and hope. Kanaval understands that the road that Rico and Erzuile find themselves on is one filled with uncertainty. However, the challenges are far more manageable when they are tackling them together."

The film was named to TIFF's annual Canada's Top Ten list for 2023.