Humane, an environment-themed thriller, will be the directorial debut of Caitlin Cronenberg, who recently wrapped the four-week shoot in Hamilton, Ontario. The film is written and produced by Victory Man Productions’ Michael Sparaga. It will take place over a single day, months after a global environmental collapse has forced the world’s leaders to reduce the earth’s population using extreme measures.
Here’s a plot summary, courtesy of Deadline:
“From my very first read, the all-too-possible dystopian world of Michael’s script left me breathless, and I immediately knew I had to be the one to make this movie,” said Cronenberg.
The film’s cast includes Jay Baruchel, who previously faced the end of the world alongside several fellow celebrities in This Is the End, Emily Hampshire from Schitt’s Creek, Peter Gallagher, who was in Grace and Frankie; Sebastian Chacon from Emergency, Alanna Bale, who you can find in Sort of and Cardinal, and Sirena Gulamgaus from Transplant.
“In a wealthy enclave, a recently retired newsman invites his four grown children to dinner to announce his intentions to enlist in the nation’s new euthanasia program. But when the father’s plan goes horribly awry, tensions flare and chaos erupts among his children.”
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“Each and every day on set felt like a gift and I feel truly blessed to have worked with such remarkable talents, both in front of and behind the camera. I cannot wait to share this film with the world,” said Cronenberg.
Family Business
Cronenberg is the daughter of famous director David Cronenberg, whose work, among other things, includes Scanners, The Fly, Dead Ringers, and A History of Violence. Her brother Brandon Cronenberg is also a director whose feature films include Antiviral, Possessor, and the upcoming Infinity Pool.
Previously, Caitlin Cronenberg has made music videos and shorts such as The Death of David Cronenberg, a short film that utilized a prosthetic corpse of her father from when he was on Slasher: Flesh and Blood, the fourth season of the anthology series. Though mainly she’s been focused on photography and artwork. It was Cronenberg’s work as a visual artist that convinced Sparaga that she was perfect for Humane.
Caitlin Cronenberg isn’t the only crew member with a connection with the elder Cronenberg. Doug Koch, the Director of Photography on Crimes of the Future (2022), will also serve in the same position on Humane. After doing the same for Crimes of the Future and A History of Violence, Dierdre Bowen is the Casting Director. Brian Garvey, the Production Designer, was an art director of an episode of Slasher, though not during Cronenberg’s season.
“Her keen eye to detail, her rich compositions, and her ability to convey deep emotion made her my first and only choice to direct Humane. That she said yes to making this film her feature directorial debut is nothing less than a dream come true,” said Sparaga.
The film’s executive producers are Martin Katz and Karen Wookey of Prospero Pictures, Todd Brown and Nick Spicer for XYZ Films, and Adrian Love and Laurie May of Elevation. Hanna Puley will be the costume designer, while Noah Segal will serve as the production supervisor.
“In Humane, screenwriter and producer Michael Sparaga has crafted an original story that is both tragically dark and horrifically funny. Caitlin’s masterful eye turns this family drawn asunder into a violent wreck you can’t look away from for an instant,” said Katz.
