Montreal, Canada -- (SBWire) -- 05/08/2013 --Benoit Desjardins, an inspiring, young filmmaker from Montreal is going to the Cannes Film Festival to show his new shortfilm, Welcome Yankee. Released in Quebec last November, the film already participated in various festivals across Canada. Inspired by true stories collected in France, Bulgaria and Canada, Welcome Yankee tells a moving story about freedom. It focuses on two Chechen refugees named Amant and Aslan who are determined to make a better life for themselves and their young child.

As a filmmaker, Desjardins is fascinated by people. He uses this keen interest as inspiration for his work. By telling stories about a couple like Amant and Aslan, he hopes to illustrate the lives of many of our neighbors who are immigrants, and whom escaped from countries in war in search of a better life. “Isolated from and forgotten by the rest of the world, their pleas for help go unanswered,” Desjardins wrote about Amant and Aslan in an article on his website. “In search of a better life, they confide their destiny to God and attempt the impossible. On the other side of the Earth flies a beacon of hope, where diversity is welcomed.”

Welcome Yankee is the first of a trilogy created by Desjardins which focuses on the topic of immigration. By appearing at the Cannes Film Festival from May 15-25 and promoting his 21-minute film, Desjardins will pave the way for his other projects. The second film, “Dr. Diaz,” will be shot both in Mexico and Montreal before the end of the year, with the support of SODEC and Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Québec. Desjardins is currently working on securing funding for the last shortfilm of the triology entitled “Il Petardo.”

Desjardins is attending the famous international film festival, being part of the short film corner, and attending the showings of Welcome Yankee at the Cannes Court Metrage. He is also looking to premier the film in the United States, and to sell it to television stations.

Anybody who would like to learn more about Desjardins and his work is welcome to visit his website; there, they can read about the young filmmaker and watch a trailer of “Welcome Yankee.”

About Benoit Desjardins
Benoit Desjardins is an anthropologist and a filmmaker. He lives and works in Montreal (Quebec), his homeland. His passion for cinema is directly linked with his fascination for human beings. His field of exploration remains the perception of self and of others. He holds a university degree in film studies from Universite de Montreal. In 2006, he founded Perceptions 3i inc. Since then, he produced and directed various short films (A fishing story, 2008, Chewing-gum, 2010 and Welcome Yankee, 2012), which won different awards in Quebec and abroad. Benoit now offers script consultation and production services in Canada, Mexico, Brazil, and Bulgaria. For more information, please visit http://www.bendesjardins.com