PRESENTED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE EMBASSY OF FRANCE AND ALLIANCE FRANÇAISE DE CANBERRA

While delivering food across Paris in his part-time job, aspiring young rapper Antoine (Mohammed Belkhir, better known by his stage name, MB14) has a chance meeting with Madame Loyseau (Michèle Laroque), an eminent teacher at the Opéra Garnier. Recognising the young man’s raw talent, she offers Antoine an opportunity of a lifetime: to learn opera singing under her tutelage. Antoine unexpectedly finds himself drawn into her foreign and rarefied world – but is compelled to hide his new dream from his friends and family, fearing that they will ridicule him. Will he be able to find his own voice despite the burden of leading a double life?

With surprisingly deep things to say about the power of art, Tenor is a charming film with just enough edge to forgive any predictability in its underdog story.

Nora (Greta Lee) is an aspiring playwright in her early 20s living in New York City. Deciding one night to look up people she once knew on Facebook, she ends up reconnecting with Hae Sung (Teo Yoo), who lives in South Korea. Nora had a crush on him growing up there, which was unfortunately cut short when she and her family emigrated to Canada. Picking up where they left off, the pair soon develop a Skype-based romance – but can their long-distance romance last?

After premiering at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival, writer-director Celine Song’s remarkable debut has continued to ride a wave of critical acclaim to emerge one of the best films of the year. Jumping between various stages in Nora and Hae Sung’s lives, the film never veers into overly sentimental territory, but instead offers a rare, emotionally mature adult drama about love and destiny.