| The Benevolents | |
| Native Name: | |
| Director: | Sarah Baril Gaudet |
| Producer: | Sarah Baril Gaudet |
| Cinematography: | Sarah Baril Gaudet |
| Editing: | Justine Gauthier |
| Distributor: | Travelling Distribution |
| Runtime: | 16 minutes |
| Country: | Canada |
| Language: | French |
The Benevolents (French: Les Bienveillants) is a Canadian short documentary film, directed by Sarah Baril Gaudet and released in 2021.[1] An exploration of contemporary loneliness and the importance of human social connection, the film is a portrait of various people who are training to become volunteers for Tel-Aide, a crisis hotline in Montreal, Quebec.
The film premiered at the 2021 Festival international du cinéma francophone en Acadie. It was subsequently distributed principally through Op-Docs, The New York Times's streaming platform for documentaries.[2]
At the 2022 Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, the film received an honorable mention for the Betty Youson Award for Best Canadian Short Documentary.[3] It was a nominee for Best Short Documentary at the 2022 IDA Awards,[4] and a Canadian Screen Award nominee for Best Short Documentary at the 11th Canadian Screen Awards in 2023.[5]