Francine Vézina

It is a small village somewhere in Quebec with only 215 inhabitants. When young Simon Dubé dies in a car accident, the villagers’ tranquil and regulated existence is thrown out of step. People are decidedly reluctant to talk about the accident. Time seems to lose all meaning. Snowy, frosty winter days stretch out into infinity. Mysterious figures emerge from the fog and commit strange acts. But what seems strange is sometimes more familiar than one might suspect.

Aurelie Laflamme feels alone in the world, especially since her father's death five years ago. What if her father had been an alien who left Earth to return to his own planet? In that case, Aurelie would be an alien too. That would explain many things such as why she feels different from others, especially her mother, why she can't string two words together without making a mistake, and why boys really get on her nerves. Through the pages of her diary, Aurelie confides her joys and sorrows, successes and failures, love and friendships, and tries to find her place.

Benoit, an actor surviving on his barman wages, follows the advice of is his brother Frank - a former hockey player turned talent agent- and grows a beard to get a part in a dinner theatre play. Benoit's girlfriend Vicky, an ex dramaturge who now works as a librarian, finds it difficult to accept this latest development, as it will delay the couple's plan to purchase a condo from their friends Caro and Vincent, who manage a hair and beauty salon. But Benoit's beard seems to have magical powers: he suddenly has a great deal of success, while Vicky develops a mysterious allergy to her boyfriend's facial hair.

A television host tries to react to the process of alienation that the public is subjected to from variety shows.

Le Mirage is the perspective of a man in his thirties asking himself "what am I chasing?" Our society has become all about consumerism, if not excess. Success is determined by what and how much we have and "stuff" becomes the band-aid to a meaningless existence. Stuff fills the void of the existence we weren't meant to lead.

4 and a half is the apartment occupied on the Plateau Mont-Royal in Montreal by a young couple. It is a chronicle of the daily life of the urban reality of 25-30 year olds: love, friendship, humor and tenderness.