Denis Villeneuve 'wanted to do my part' for Montreal's indie cinemas

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Denis Villeneuve puts his money where his mouth is. The famed Quebec director, who has been catapulted to the top tier of Hollywood filmmakers with his blockbuster Dune series, is not just a big talker about the power of cinema and of watching movies on the big screen. An important donation by Villeneuve to Cinéma du Parc contributed to a major renovation of the Montreal theatre, which this week announced the completion of its extensive overhaul.

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“My donation is symbolic,” Villeneuve told The Gazette on Thursday. “The theatrical experience is something I profoundly believe in. I think it’s an experience that’s here to stay, but I think it needs help.”

Villeneuve gave money to Cinéma Beaubien in 2023 through the Conseil des arts de Montréal’s fiscal sponsorship program, but preferred not to publicize the news. He even wanted to keep his donation to Cinéma du Parc a secret initially.

“Honestly, I didn’t want to do any publicity around that,” he said. “The philanthropic gestures I make in life, nobody knows about them. To give is to give. But Roxanne said it’s a good idea to talk publicly, to encourage others to make philanthropic gestures.”

Roxanne is Roxanne Sayegh, who took over as executive director of sister venues Cinéma du Parc, Cinéma Beaubien and Cinéma du Musée in 2022. Villeneuve credits her expertise and enthusiasm as contributing factors to his donations.

“Over the past few years, I’ve been in touch with Roxanne,” he said. “She is a film fan who has a magnificent vision of cinema and theatrical distribution, of how to take care of cinemas. She brings a lot of vitality to Montreal’s circuit of independent cinemas.”

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Villeneuve’s donation “sends a strong message,” Sayegh said. “He’s a national darling who believes in the future of neighbourhood cinemas, of independent cinema, and who is supporting a cinema he has been coming to for decades. It’s a vote of confidence that will allow us to continue our mission.”

Cinéma du Parc’s $1.4-million renovation project, which also received funding from the City of Montreal, Quebec film funding agency SODEC and others, included the complete overhaul of its mezzanine and lobby areas, the installation of gender-neutral washrooms and the replacement of the seats in Cinema 1, the last of its three theatres to undergo an update.

The work was conceived by architect Patrick Blanchette of Blanchette Archi.design, drawing inspiration from the world of iconic American director David Lynch.

“I’m very happy with what they’ve done,” Villeneuve said, “but they will need help in the future. The screens need love, and they will eventually have to revamp the sound systems. It’s not over, so I foresee, if I’m able in the future, to continue to help Cinéma du Parc.”

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Lynch is but one of the iconic filmmakers whose movies Villeneuve first watched on the big screen at Cinéma du Parc during his years as a film student.

“I discovered John Cassavetes, (Andrei) Tarkovsky,” he said. “I couldn’t tell you all the filmmakers I discovered at that cinema.”

Villeneuve has vivid memories of those experiences. And while he’s not against streaming — “I think it’s extraordinary; it provides access to an extraordinary quantity of films,” he said — he doesn’t believe it can create the same magic moments of collective abandon.

“The language of cinema is conceived to be shown in a dark room,” Villeneuve said. “Films of another era were made to be seen on a big screen, where you lose perspective and embrace a rapport where your field of vision is completely occupied by the image, you have to stay seated and live the adventure of the film. That’s an engagement you have in cinema that you don’t have with TV.

“It’s important for human beings to have communal experiences,” he added. “It feeds the soul and gives meaning to things. And there’s nothing more powerful to experience collectively than a film.”

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With that in mind, contributing to the survival of Montreal’s independent cinemas is a way of contributing to the survival of the big-screen experience.

“I’m sensitive to the fact that the big Hollywood productions have access to all the big screens,” Villeneuve said. “Independent movies have less access. I wanted to do my part so that the cinemas I love stay around.”

Villeneuve attended a celebration Thursday evening to mark the completion of the Cinéma du Parc renovations, and he may well drop by to catch a film in the coming months, as he spends time in Montreal while preparing upcoming projects and fulfilling promotional duties for Dune: Part Two in the ramp-up to Oscar season.

“I’m in and out this fall,” he said, “but I’m trying to spend as much time as I can in Montreal, because I love Montreal. It’s a city that regenerates me. My roots are here.

“After the first two Dunes, I wanted to take a break to write and catch my breath. I made Dune: Part Two on fumes. I promised to take time off after, to come home, settle down, spend time with family and think about cinema.”

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