Category Archives: Filmography

Hot Sauce

a Bashar Shbib film

HOT SAUCE

Fiction, Comedy, 80:58 min, 1997, 35mm, colour, NTSC.

 

Synopsis

Following the adventures of the B-movie director, Bill Gabriel Young (Bashar Shbib), Hot Sauce explores the sensation of taste. Suffering from amnesia after being mugged and knocked unconscious, Bill attempts to piece his life together. With the help of his friend Bella (Susan Eyton-Jones), he inadvertently discovers that spicy foods help him to regain his early memories bit by bit. His subsequent hot-food binges, however, only serve to reveal that his forgotten life may not be worth remembering. Told with humor and wisdom by Bill's daughter Tanya (Maïa Nadon-Chbib), the story mixes straightforward narrative with documentary-style interviews of people from the filmmaker’s past.

As the different accounts unfold, a common theme emerges : each person casts Bill in an unflattering light - as a shady and insensitive man who has little (if any) talent in his chosen field. In despair over these revelations, Bill is ultimately saved by Tanya, whose open and unqualified acceptance and love convince him that some things in life are definitely worth remembering.

 

Cast & Crew

STARRING : BASHAR SHBIB, SUSAN EYTON-JONES, MAÏA NADON-CHBIB, IONA BRINDLE, GREGOR VON BISMARCK, GEOFF DEADMAN, ROBYN LANE, LYNNE ROSENFELD, DONALD ROSENFELD SR., JAY FERGUSON, ALEXANDRA WOODWARD, MARK HOUGHTON, GABOR ZSIGOVICS, CLARK GREGG, HÉLÈNE VERRIER
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER : PIERRE LATOUR
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY : JAY FERGUSON
EDITOR : HEIDI HAINES
SOUND: ANTOINE DURAND
ORIGINAL MUSIC : JEAN-FRANÇOIS FABIANO
ART DIRECTOR : KARINE ZERBÉ
SCREENPLAY & STORY : BASHAR SHBIB
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER : MICHEL ZGARKA
PRODUCER / DIRECTOR : BASHAR SHBIB

THIS FILM IS PRODUCED WITH THE FINANCIAL PARTICIPATION OF:
TELEFILM CANADA
SOCIÉTÉ DE DÉVELOPPEMENT DES ENTREPRISES CULTURELLES (SODEC)
GOUVERNEMENT DU QUÉBEC (Programme du Crédit d'Impôt)
GOVERNMENT OF CANADA (Tax Credit Program)

All Rights Reserved © 1997 Oneira Pictures International

Bone

a Eugene Garcia film

BONE

Fiction, Drama, 76:07 min, 1998, 35mm, colour, NTSC.

 

Synopsis

Bone tells the story of four friends who get caught up in a crooked venture to transport illegally-obtained genetic material across national borders.

Upon returning to her hometown, Hadley (Marisa Malone) finds herself in the company of her lover, Paul (Romano Orzari). Paul is an educated young man who – like many from his generation – is stuck working for minimum wage in a position well below his qualifications. For all these reasons, Paul wants to quit. Marty (David Andrew Barret) is a long-time friend who often has his hand in shady deals of all kinds. But this time, Marty has a tempting offer for Hadley and Paul for an easy, sure-fire scam that could net them all a handsome sum.

The idea is to use Hadley’s position as a flight attendant to transport a mysterious package on a simple round trip and voila! However sceptical, Hadley nonetheless agrees to meet Marty and his live-in girlfriend, Jamie (Eva Gaspar). Jaime is a troubled beauty who writes poetry in her spare time, otherwise working as a masseuse out of a converted room in her apartment. The two women immediately share a strong affinity for one another. The story takes a bad turn when their paranoia is worsened as they meet Frankie the mobster dealer (Mark Houghton), who has a unique vision concerning events as they unfold.

 

Cast & Crew

STARRING : ROMANO ORZARI, MARISA MALONE, DAVID ANDREW BARRETT, EVA GASPAR, MARK HOUGHTON, PATRICK GARROW, BRENT RADFORD, DAVID DI SALVIO, LARRY COHEN, EUGENE GARCIA
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER : PIERRE LATOUR
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY : JAY FERGUSON
ORIGINAL MUSIC : TITI REBO, TALAMASCA
SOUND: PIERRE MICHAUD, MICHEL GRZELAK, MICHEL LECOUFLE
ART DIRECTOR : ANTHONY BRAITHWAITE
EDITOR : SUZANNE TURGEON
SCREENPLAY : EUGENE GARCIA
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER : MARIE-HÉLÈNE PANISSET
PRODUCER : BASHAR SHBIB
WRITER, DIRECTOR : EUGENE GARCIA

THIS FILM IS PRODUCED WITH THE FINANCIAL PARTICIPATION OF:
SOCIÉTÉ DE DÉVELOPPEMENT DES ENTREPRISES CULTURELLES (SODEC)
GOUVERNEMENT DU QUÉBEC (Programme du Crédit d'Impôt)
GOVERNMENT OF CANADA (Tax Credit Program)

All Rights Reserved © 1998 Oneira Pictures International

The Kiss

a Bashar Shbib film

THE KISS

Fiction, Drama, 77:17 min, 1999, 35mm, colour, NTSC.

 

Synopsis

Bill Gabriel Young (Bashar Shbib), a B-filmmaker with a past, discovers he has some kind of blood cancer. He sets out to do his final film as he spends his last days with his children Tanya, Laila and Amir (Maïa Nadon-Chbib, Camille Fortin-Chbib and Tadzeo Horner-Chbib). He finally tells his three children that, by intuitive feeling, he was going to soon die of this cancer. Before succumbing to death, he is determined to tell them his views on the state of the world, conflicts, people’s irreconcilable differences, and lastly about love. Through the voyage of a kiss, which is what ultimately brings them and life together.

 

Cast & Crew

STARRING : BASHAR SHBIB, MAÏA NADON-CHBIB, CAMILLE FORTIN-CHBIB, TAZEO HORNER-CHBIB, GABOR ZSIGOVICS, ROSS PARTRIDGE, BOBO VIAN, TONIA LYNN, ALEXANDRA WOODWARD, SUSAN EYTON JONES, MARK HOUGHTON, IONA BRIDLE
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER : PIERRE LATOUR
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER : ANDREW MAKAREWICZ
CAMERA/DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY/PHOTOGRAPHY : KARINE ZERBÉ
ASSISTANT CAMERA : GEOFF DEADMAN, STEPHEN DE OLIVEIRA
ART DIRECTOR : CLAUDINE REBBOH
SOUND: MICHEL LECOUFLE
MUSIC : TITI REBO, IVAN ZAVADA
COSTUMES : ZYX PRODUCTIONS
EDITOR : ROB SWARTZ, ROBERT YATES
SCREENPLAY : THÉRÈSE BRODEUR, BASHAR SHBIB
DIRECTOR: BASHAR SHBIB

THIS FILM IS PRODUCED WITH THE FINANCIAL PARTICIPATION OF:
SOCIÉTÉ DE DÉVELOPPEMENT DES ENTREPRISES CULTURELLES (SODEC)
GOUVERNEMENT DU QUÉBEC (Programme du Crédit d'Impôt)
GOVERNMENT OF CANADA (Tax Credit Program)

All Rights Reserved © 1999 Oneira Pictures International

Life As It Was

a Bashar Shbib film

Compilation of Webseries:
Broadcast daily over the Internet. Alien Dog: LIFE AS IT WAS

Fiction, 74:00 min, 2000, DV, colour, NTSC.

 

Synopsis

Ariel, a loser (ANDRE BENDAHAN), Deakin (JON DEITCHER), Charley (MASSIMO CANNISTRARO), a stand-up comic, and the delusional Trace (LEAH KOSATSKY) come together in the second compilation of the first ever web show broadcasted daily over the Internet. Alien Dog: Life as It Was follows the misadventures of these three as they seek pleasure and laughter while disturbing the peace and avoid any acts of kindness.

 

Cast & Crew

STARRING : ANDRE BENDAHAN, JON DEITCHER, MASSIMO CANNISTRARO, LEAH KOSATSKY
WEB SERIES PRODUCER: DOUG McCOLEMAN
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER: MAÏA NADON-CHBIB
EDITORS : GEOFF KLEIN, PIERRE-OLIVIER CHIASSON
MUSIC: TITI REBBOH
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY : BASHAR SHBIB, ANDRE BENDAHAN, JON DEITCHER, MASSIMO CANNISTRARO
SERIES WRITER, PRODUCER: BASHAR SHBIB
DIRECTOR : BASHAR SHBIB, ANDRE BENDAHAN, JON DEITCHER, MASSIMO CANNISTRARO
CREATOR : BASHAR SHBIB

 

All Rights Reserved © 2000 Oneira Pictures International

Life as It Is

a Bashar Shbib film

Compilation of Webseries:
Broadcast daily over the Internet. Alien Dog: LIFE AS IT IS

Fiction, Drama, 79:14 min, 2000, DV, colour, NTSC.

 

Synopsis

Life as it is is a compilation of episodes from the first webshow broadcast daily on the internet in Canada. “ALIEN DOG – LIFE AS IT IS” deals with various aspects of contemporary youth culture. The main characters, Sean (Michael Jorden Colton), a drug dealer, Karen (Maïa Nadon-Chbib), a business student, and others, face a variety of issues ranging from love and drugs to unemployment, and the search for identity. In the end, they come to understand that life’s basic lessons are universal, no matter the culture or origin. The question is, to live or let live.

 

Cast & Crew

STARRING : MICHAEL JORDEN COLTON, MAÏA NADON-CHBIB, LEAH KOSATSKY, WALEED ALGUMER, HOWARD ROBBINS, TADZEO HORNER-CHBIB, BASHAR SHBIB, NOAH KOLE, SILVIA GUIMAREY, DAPHNE BRUNEAU, PIERRE LALIBERTÉ, ANDRÉ JADE, URIEL ISAAC,
PRODUCER : BASHAR SHBIB
ASSOCIATE PRODUCERS : DOUG McCOLEMAN, ROBERT YATES
DIRECTORS : BASHAR SHBIB, ANDRÉ JADE, DJELA DJAMBA OKOKO, SIMON MADORE, LOUISE MIGNAULT, HOMBELINE DUMAS
SCREENPLAY : BASHAR SHBIB, HOMBELINE DUMAS, URIEL ISAAC, ANDRÉ JADE, LOUISE MIGNEAULT, DJELA D. OKOKO, NOAH WOHL
ORIGINAL MUSIC SCORE : MARWAN JUNO FARHOUD, TITI REBO
SOUND : BRUNO PUCELLA, MARWAN JUNO FARHOUD 
LINE PRODUCER : NADIA MORENCY
DIRECTORS OF PHOTOGRAPHY : HOMBELINE DUMAS, ANDRÉ JADE, ALEX CHARTRAND, BASHAR SHBIB, ALEX BUSSIÈRE, SIMON MADORE, OLIVIER SOMMELET
EDITORS : JON DEITCHER, GEOFF KLEIN
CREATOR : BASHAR SHBIB

All Rights Reserved © 2000 Oneira Pictures International

Kabbani

a Bashar Shbib film

KABBANI

Documentary, 51:20 min, 2001, DV, colour, NTSC.

 

Synopsis

Moataz Kabbani emigrated from Syria to Canada bringing with him his own modern dance choreography fusing the narrative of the West with sensuality of the East. This documentary follows his independent dance performances in Montreal and Toronto. The rehearsals, the performances and interviews with those behind the scenes depict a creative and persistent artist.

 

Cast & Crew

PARTICIPANTS:
DANCERS: MOTAZ KABBANI, DAELIK HACKENBROOK
CHOREOGRAPHER : MOTAZ KABBANI
MUSIC : GANESH ANANDAN
STAGE DIRECTOR: ANDREW CALAMATAS
MUSIC PERFORMED BY: GANESH ANANDAN, PATRICK GRAHAM
PLAYWRIGHT/THEATRE DIRECTOR: EUGENE LION
CHOREOGRAPHER/TEACHER/PERFORMER: JO LECHAY
CHOREOGRAPHER/TEACHER/PERFORMER: DONNA KRASNOW
EDITOR : JEAN CHRISTIAN AROD
SOUND: SIMON BÉLANGER, KARINE ZERBÉ
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY: KARINE ZERBÉ
PRODUCED, WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY: BASHAR SHBIB

 

All Rights Reserved © 2001 ONEIRA PICTURES INTERNATIONAL

Drinking Games

a Jon Deitcher film

DRINKING GAMES

Fiction, Drama, 82 min, 2004, HDV, colour, NTSC.

 

Synopsis

It is only through personal challenges that we can learn what we are made of. But, how far are we willing to go before we give up? Man is the only obstacle standing between himself and his destiny. Are you ready? The dice have been cast.

According to the beautiful and mysterious Darcy (Anna Jaeger), fear is the only thing that can prevent us from creating better alternatives. In seeking to prove her point, she decides to organize a drinking game. To succeed, the only question is to what extent the player is prepared to approach death.

Attracted by Darcy’s charismatic personality, four young people accept the challenge: Vaughn (Jon Deitcher), a businessman possessed by a miserable death wish, Ethan (William Furtado), a seminarian questioning his beliefs, Damon (Michael Penning), an artist whose arrogance is only equaled by his success, and Ash (Jasmine Roberts), a young woman with HIV. The players push their limits further and further to where they each must discover of what they are truly capable. Before they are broken down, they must try to ignore the fact that they have been thrust in a world wherein the limits of human endurance will be radically tested. Through contests designed to bridge the distance between what they are and what they could be, the rules are simple and morbid: win or die trying.

While the intensity of the game escalates, the four are forced to confront a more daunting opponent: themselves. Drinking Games is a universal call to realize one’s own power and to dare to imagine that power as infinite.

 

Cast & Crew

STARRING  : ANNA JAEGER, MICHAEL PENNING, WILLIAM FURTADO, JON DEITCHER, JASMINE ROBERTS, STEVEN DONOHUE, NIKI PISLIS, SHAWN McALEAR, COLLIN HENRY, GEOFF KLEIN, TRISH BABINEAU, TONY VENAFRO, WILLIAM PENNING, JASON PYNN, DARYL ROBERTS, JAMIE MERKLE
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER : MAÏA NADON-CHBIB
ORIGINAL STORY : JON DEITCHER,  GEOFF KLEIN,  MICHAEL PENNING
WRITER : MICHAEL PENNING
ORIGINAL MUSIC : MICHAEL A. McCANN
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY : GEOFF KLEIN
EDITORS : JON DEITCHER, GEOFF KLEIN
CAMERA OPERATORS : GEOFF KLEIN, JON DEITCHER
SOUND RECORDIST : MICHAEL PENNING
SOUND EDITORS : MICHAEL McCANN, MICHAEL PENNING
DIRECTOR : JON DEITCHER
PRODUCER : BASHAR SHBIB

All Rights Reserved © 2004 Oneira Pictures International

Silent Men

a Bashar Shbib film

SILENT MEN

Fiction, Comedy, 87 min, 2005, DV, colour, PAL.

 

Synopsis

What’s a girl to do when her biological clock is ticking, yet marriage and a husband are the furthest thing from her mind? Silent Men follows the trials and tribulations of one very modern-minded young woman, Patricia (Alexandra Woodward), as she tries to plan out her foray into motherhood. With some help she enlists her best friend, Liam (Neil McDonough), with whom she video-interviews dozens of men to find a suitable potential father for her child.  But there’s a catch: the relationship must only be platonic! In the end she will choose the obvious candidate...

“How many silent men will I meet before the right one speaks to me?”

“Every woman thinks she has a soul-mate and sometimes she doesn't find one, so how do you plan to have children with a strange man without compromising your beliefs?”

“A film where men weep and women laugh.”

 

"But tired rockumentary format, broad perks, limited laughs and a truly irritating protagonist - whom one suspects these/longtime Shbib collaborator Alexandra Woodward meant to be more charming than obnoxious - give this marginal item an irksome vanity project scent. Commercial prospects will be, like Woodward's necklines, plunging."
Dennis Harvey, Variety

 

Cast & Crew

STARRING : ALEXANDRA WOODWARD, NEAL McDONOUGH
SOUND : BASHAR SHBIB, GABY LAJEUNESSE
MUSIC : THE FREE OXYGEN BAND
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY : KARINE ZERBÉ
EDITOR : EYAD HAMAM
ASSOCIATE PRODUCERS : ALEXANDRA WOODWARD, CARLOS SOUSA, MAÏA NADON-CHBIB
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER : FAROUK S. CHEBIB
WRITER PRODUCER AND DIRECTOR : BASHAR SHBIB
ALSO STARRING : KATHERINE KOUSI, JOE FLANIGAN, TRAVIS SHAKESPEARE, LEONARD KLADY, ADAM LINDEMANN, MICHAEL ROGERS, PETER TRAUGOTT, HARRY TIMATEO DALTON, NANCY MCNAMARA, TOM “BLISS“ LEVINTHAL, KRIS JORGENSEN, BARBARA LINDEMANN, STEPHEN HEGYES, VICTOR KING, BRIAN F. NAHAS, JASON R. FRASCA, DURK DEHNER, ANOUK STEINKE, TOM CROWL, LOUISA RIPPON, CHRIS HORAN, HILARY SEGAL, ADRIAN COHEN, NEIL FOURNIER, KENNON B. RAINES, THOMAS J. COLAVITO, RONNIE MARMO, JAMES HUGULEY, KARL GERHARDT

All Rights Reserved © 2005 Oneira Pictures International

Frogs in Love

a Bashar Shbib film

FROGS IN LOVE

Making-of, Drama, 52 min, 2006, DV, colour, NTSC.

 

Synopsis

Frogs In Love depicts the exciting and sometimes tumultuous circumstances that surround shooting Adam Coleman Howard’s film, Frauds in Love, starring himself and Alexa Woodward.

For Oneira's 25th anniversary, the veteran filmmaker, Shbib was convinced to give someone else the opportunity to take the reigns and lead one of his films.  With a new approach comes a new group dynamic, making for a very special twist that may not be for the worse.

 

Cast & Crew

STARRING : ADAM COLEMAN HOWARD,  BASHAR SHBIB,  ALEXANDRA WOODWARD,  TOLGA KUTLUAY,  STEPHEN DE OLIVEIRA
EDITORS : RAGNAR KEIL, CAMILLE FORTIN-CHBIB
DIRECTORS OF PHOTOGRAPHY : CHIARA FOLINI,  CAMILLE FORTIN-CHBIB
ART DIRECTOR: MARIE JOSÉE DUPONT
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER: J.-P. FORTIN, SYLVAIN BROSSET
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER : MAÏA NADON-CHBIB
PRODUCED, WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY : BASHAR SHBIB

All Rights Reserved © 2006 Oneira Pictures International

Granite Forks

a Bashar Shbib, John Deitcher series

GRANITE FORKS (8 EPISODES)

TV Series, Drama, 186:36 [8 episodes of 23.3 min], TBA, HD, 35mm, & Betacam, colour, NTSC.

 

Synopsis

Something slightly mysterious is underfoot in the sleepy border village called Granite Forks, and it smells like murder. The citizens of this odd little town are rather eccentric themselves and have many secrets. It’s up to the quirkiest resident of them all along with a couple of unlikely accomplisses to solve the mystery.

The prophecy of the border town:

When the hanging light collapses and the plastic man expires,
Old bonds will be broken as the children start to tire (and the villagers conspire).
When a gentle stranger doth arrive then heroes will be born
(a gentle stranger comes, a hero’s strength he then uncorks)
To uncover something fiendish at the gates of Granite Forks.

 

Cast & Crew

STARRING : JOAN ANDRADE, CHRISTINA ANDRADE-SANGSTER, PATRICK AUBERT, SARA BAXTER, CLARA BIRD, REUBEN BIRD, ZACHARY BIRD, PAUL BOITEUX, MARY LYNN BOYS, COLIN CAMPBELL, ROBERT CHADWICK, KARINA CHADWICK, CINDEL CHARTRAND, TAMMY CLEROUX-BAILEY, MICHAEL SHANE CONLEY, HEATHER CROGHAN, JON DEITCHER, MELISSA DE MASI, STEPHEN DE OLIVEIRA, EMILY DESORMEAUX, NICOLAS DOUCET, BRIAN DUBOIS, MYRIAM ENAULT, CHIARA FOLINI, BEVERLEY GOODSELL, RONALD GOODSELL, AARON GUIMOND, GILLES GUIMOND, HOPE GUIMOND, CRAIG HENDERSON, LORNE HILTSER, ANDREW HOPPS, DAVID HOPPS, MEGHAN JENSEN, GEOFF KLEIN, ERICA KOHL-BRADLEY, TOLGA KUTLUAY, JONAH LERNER, JAYME MARROTTE, RYAN MOLEIRO, JAMES MURRAY, BOB MURRAY, CHRISTIAN OUELLET, STACY POULIN, KIM PRANGLEY, ZUHEIR RAJABI, FRED ROBERTSON, DUSTIN RUCK, RUSSELL SANGSTER, CHRIS SEVERS, BASHAR SHBIB, ALBERT SMITH, JERRY SMITH, CARLOS SOUSA, ARIEL THERRIEN, MARJOLAINE TREMBLAY, R. MATTHEW TURNER, STEPHEN WALKER, JASON WESTOVER, MARC WILTSHIRE, ALEXANDRA WOODWARD
ART DIRECTOR : EYAD HAMAM, MARK WILTSHIRE
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY : TOLGA KUTLUAY, GEOFF KLEIN
MUSIC : TBA
EDITORS : SERGE SARKOYAN, JON DEITCHER , GEOFF KLEIN
SOUND : STEPHEN DE OLIVEIRA, EYAD HAMAM, ROGER ORCAU
SCEENPLAY : BASHAR SHBIB, MICHAEL PENNING, JON DEITCHER, BOB MURRAY, ANDREW HOPPS 
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER : MAÏA NADON-SHBIB
PRODUCER : BASHAR SHBIB
DIRECTORS : BASHAR SHBIB, JON DEITCHER
CREATOR: BASHAR SHBIB

All Rights Reserved © 2020 Oneira Pictures International