Afterwards

Afterwards explores a fragile space: that in which women reclaim their voices after experiencing domestic violence. Within the walls of a shelter, they speak, they listen, they slowly rebuild themselves. The film reveals a circle of speech where dignity is woven, where sisterhood becomes a source of strength, and where speaking out is the first step toward freedom. A choral film, rooted in intimacy, that transforms pain into collective power.

From the outset, a bold choice: to never show faces. Director Romane Garant Chartrand draws this guiding line with delicacy — at first out of a concern for protection, and later out of a desire to create differently. These fragile and courageous voices come together in a chorus, without any face being associated with the stories they tell. This anonymity does not erase — it reveals. The editing was built around the sound, with the image initially set aside. For the director and editor Marie-Pier Dupuis, the challenge was to work outside of the traditional timeline, to move forward with eyes closed, not hesitating to play with chronology so that echoes could emerge and intimate journeys could resonate at the pace of emotion. Editing thus becomes an act of listening, a gesture of care. The visual component followed — and with it, apprehension: would it diminish the strength of a voice that stands on its own? This led to a rediscovery of the footage and a new challenge — to isolate fragments of body language that would support without overstating. To reconstruct differently. Every gesture on screen is deliberate. There are fragments of moving bodies, trembling hands, fidgeting fingers, hunched shoulders — shots that are subtle, restrained. Sometimes darker, suspended in time, to better convey the depth of distress. All of it punctuated by still shots — glimpses of the shelter, its daily life, the small views of the women’s rooms, and the few personal objects they managed to bring with them. Through this, the director and editor probe both verbal and non-verbal speech to allow us to truly experience the violence. This form of language makes it possible to reach the essence of these wounded stories — stories that can be received without being exposed.

Emma Bertin
Film editor

Presented in collaboration with