It was visual arts and literature that led Sophie Deraspe to a career in cinema. As director of photography and/or film director, she made several forays into documentary before directing her first narrative feature film, Rechercher Victor Pellerin (2006), which plays with the codes of reality. Benefiting from strong reviews and multiple screenings around the world, Sophie’s work continued with the production, in 2009, of a second feature film, Les signes vitaux, equally imbued with realism. Since her nomination at the Tiger Awards in Rotterdam, Les signes vitaux has won 15 awards at some 30 international festivals. In Quebec, the movie was a finalist for the Best Film Jutra Award. In 2015, Sophie released the narrative feature Les Loups, winner of the FIPRESCI International Critics’ Award in Turin, as well as a first feature documentary, Le profil Amina, (U.S. title: The Amina Profile /A Gay Girl in Damascus) in the official competition at the Sundance Film Festival. Antigone is her fifth feature film.

Years later, after I had already directed two films, I heard an interview given by one of Freddy Villanueva’s sisters, who died in a Montreal park during a police intervention that went wrong. I began to imagine that this sister could be an Antigone. From that point on, the story developed... I wanted to bring to life, in our time and in the social context of our Western cities, the integrity of Antigone, her sense of justice and her capacity for love. I also wanted Antigone to remain very young (16 years old) and physically petite, in order to bring out the inner strength of this individual who pits higher values against the official laws of man.

IMDB

An Interview With ‘Antigone’ Director Sophie Deraspe

Sophie Deraspe ('Antigone'), director of Canada's Oscar entry for international film | GOLD DERBY