88 minutes – Drama
Language: French, Anishnaabemowin
Festival release date: October 7, 2021 (Festival du nouveau cinema, Montréal)
Release date: October 8, 2021
Production company: Microclimat Films
Canadian distributor: MK2 Mile End

Mani, a master’s student, returns to the northern Quebec community where she grew up. As she deals with painful memories, she is determined to find a place for herself. She becomes involved in a debate surrounding a referendum aimed at allowing the free sale of alcohol on the reserve. Laura, a trafficker, pockets the profits under the protection of the band council and Raymond, her husband. He remains angry with Mani and holds her responsible for the death of his daughter in a fire. Two radically opposed women quickly divide the Indigenous community into two sides who must come face to face to determine the best path to independence. Shot in French and Anishnaabemowin, Bootlegger is Caroline Monnet’s first full length feature film. It won the Best Screenplay Award at the “Centre national du cinéma et de l’image animée (CNC) et la Cinéfondation” held during the 2017 Cannes Film Festival. It was selected to open the 50th Festival du nouveau cinema.

In late April 2021 it was announced that the film had been selected for the FIRST LOOK – USA 2021 program, organized by Telefilm Canada and the Trade Commissioner Service of the Consulates General of Canada in New York and Los Angeles from May 13 to 19.
Caroline Monnet won the Dramatic Feature Award for Bootlegger at the 2011 imagineNative Film + Media Arts Festival.