Out Standing

Source: Ariel Méthot

Out Standing

EXCLUSIVE: Caroline Stern’s London and Vancouver-based Canoe Film has acquired international sales rights to Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) selection Out Standing and is engaging in talks with buyers at AFM this week.

Mélanie Charbonneau directed and co-wrote the screenplay with Martine Pagé. Nina Kiri stars in the true story of Sandra Perron, Canada’s first female infantry officer in the 1990s who endured sexual harrassment and abuse from within the ranks.

When a photograph surfaced of Perron tied to a tree in the snow while apparently unconscious during a training exercise, she quit the military. The military eventually launched an investigation.

Kiri starred in The Handmaid’s Tale and the feature Fingernails, and will play the lead in A24’s early 2026 release The Undertone. The cast includes Vincent Leclerc, Enrico Colantoni, Adrian Walters, and Antoine Pilon.

Canoe Film managing director Stern said: “There’s a first female combat officer in every military, but Sandra Perron’s incredible physical and psychological endurance and her absolute determination is unforgettable – as is Nina Kiri’s performance.”

Stern negotiated the deal with producers Marcel Giroux of GPA Films and Julia Rosenberg of January Media. Sphere holds Canadian rights to Out Standing, which premiered in TIFF’s Discovery section.

Canoe Film opened a Vancouver office in September to better serve filmmakers in North America and Europe. The company launched in 2017.

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