''Jerome's Secret'' () is a Canadian drama film, directed by

Phil Comeau Phil Comeau (born 1956) is a Canadian film and television director, born in Saulnierville, Nova Scotia. He lives in Moncton, New Brunswick and Montreal, Quebec. Biography Phil Comeau is a film and television director and scriptwriter, based i ...

and released in 1994. The first-ever

Acadian The Acadians (; , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Today, most descendants of Acadians live in either the Northern American region of Acadia, ...

feature film, it dramatizes the story of

Jerome Jerome (; ; ; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was an early Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, theologian, translator, and historian; he is commonly known as Saint Jerome. He is best known ...

, a mysterious man who washed up on a beach at Baie-Sainte-Marie,

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

, mute and with his legs recently amputated, and lived in the community for the remainder of his life. Denis Lapalme, a Canadian amputee athlete who previously competed at the

Paralympics The Paralympic Games or Paralympics is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of disabilities. There are Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which since the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Kore ...

, portrayed Jerome in his first-ever acting role. The film also stars Myriam Cyr as Julitte, a woman who falls in love with Jerome as she nurses him back to health, and

Germain Houde Germain Houde (born December 14, 1952) is a Genie Award-winning Canadian actor from Petit-Saguenay, Quebec. He has usually played tough-guy parts; his screen characters have ranged from cruel criminals to corrupt policemen. A graduate of the Con ...

as Jean Nicholas, Julitte's infertile husband whose desire to leave Acadia to return to his native

Corsica Corsica ( , , ; ; ) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the Regions of France, 18 regions of France. It is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the Metro ...

has caused strain in their marriage, as well as

Rémy Girard Rémy Girard (born August 10, 1950) is a Canadian actor and former television host from Quebec.Gaetan Charlebois"Girard, Rémy" ''Canadian Theatre Encyclopedia'', December 5, 2023. Early life Born in Jonquière, he is the son of politician Fern ...

and Viola Léger in supporting roles. The film premiered at the 1994

Atlantic Film Festival The Atlantic International Film Festival is a major international film festival held annually in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada since 1980. AIFF is the largest Canadian film festival east of Montreal, regularly premiering the region's top films of ...

, where it won the festival's People's Choice Award. It was nominated for two

Genie Awards The Genie Awards were given out annually by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to recognize the best of Canadian cinema from 1980–2012. They succeeded the Canadian Film Awards (1949–1978), known as the "Etrog Awards" for sculpt ...

at the

15th Genie Awards The 15th Genie Awards were held on December 7, 1994 to honour Canadian films released in 1993. Actor Graham Greene hosted the ceremony. Building on the success of its Genie specials of the last two years, the academy and the CBC produced two show ...

, for Best Art Direction or Production Design (Luc J. Béland) and Best Costume Design (Jacinthe Demers)."Dreaming of Genie: Atom Egoyan's moody tale of a rock recluse tops the list". ''

Windsor Star The ''Windsor Star'' is a daily newspaper based in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Owned by Postmedia Network, it is published Tuesdays through Saturdays. History The paper began as the weekly ''Windsor Record'' in 1888, changing its name to the ''Bor ...

'', October 20, 1994.

References

External links

* 1990s Canadian films 1990s French-language films 1994 drama films 1994 films Acadian film Canadian drama films Films about amputees Films shot in Nova Scotia French-language Canadian films {{1990s-Canada-film-stub