Following Gabriel Gascon and Guy Provost, now it’s the turn of Roy Dupuis to play the part of Alexis Labranche, Donalda’s spurned lover.

"Alexis is back in town," cries Roy Dupuis (in English), filming, that day, a scene where Alexis has just returned to the woods.

"The story begins in the spring, but I don’t want to say too much about it. I don’t like when someone tells me about a film before I’ve seen it," he stresses.

The actor remembers Belles Histoires in colour. (see note ***)

"It’s a long time ago, but I don’t remember seeing the TV version in black and white. I have rather a hazy memory of the characters. So when I was asked to play the part of Alexis I didn’t know quite what to expect. After reading the script and after Charles Binamé told me what he wanted done, I was interested."

The actor states that it was the story of Un Homme et son Péché itself that attracted him.

"I think it’s a really beautiful story, much less diluted than the TV series."

According to Roy Dupuis the film will be much more dramatic and intense.

"There will be great dramatic scenes in the film which I think will surprise people. I was moved by the characters who are slightly larger than life. And it’s well written, with slightly stylised, sometimes almost poetic dialogue. It’s the language of the period which is always fun to revive when it is done well."

Roy Dupuis worked with Charles Binamé on the film Chili’s Blues as well as the TV series Blanche.

"It’s nice to be back with Charles. We get on well together, and it’s a great shoot."

Roy shares most of his scenes with young actress Karine Vanasse.

"Karine is a very beautiful actress. Let me clarify that – when I say "beautiful", I don’t mean just aesthetically or physically."

** "Bouleau noir!" – (pronounced bool-oh nwar) Alexis’ favourite expletive. Literally means black birch (tree), an appropriate curse for a man of the woods. Apparently, more explicit swearing got cleaned up around the turn of the century (1900’s) as people were afraid they’d end up in Hell. Séraphin’s oath of choice is "viande à chien!" – dog meat. Grateful thanks to Danièle St-Denis for this explanation.

*** Les Belles histoires d’en pays en haut – the television version which ran from 1956 to 1970. Colour transmission first appeared in 1967.

A clear vision for Charles Binamé

Co-writer and director of the film Un Homme et son Péché, Charles Binamé declares that he had a very clear vision as soon as he heard of the project.

"I haven’t moved since then, with respect to what I had in mind for the film, and this has been borne out as I progress. I envisaged great dramatic potential. It’s a folk tale, but it’s based on classical dramatic elements," he adds.

The greatest source of inspiration for the director was Claude-Henri Grignon’s novel.

"The book sets a tone. For me, the radio version was closer than the television series. It left more to the imagination. TV is another matter."

Charles Binamé avoided watching any episodes of Belles Histoires.

"One might have been tricked into wondering whether the film looked like the television series."

The director states that he remains true to the beginning and end of the book. In the middle he has chosen to explore the "behind the scenes" aspects of the love between Donalda and Alexis.

He also declares that he held out to have his own choice of Séraphin – Pierre Lebeau.

"If I hadn’t been able to have this Séraphin I wouldn’t have touched the film. Roy Dupuis is magnificent as Alexis. He shows the well-known side of the character, but at the same time we see a picture of a mature man with a heart of gold. Karine Vanasse is the ultimate in inspiration. She is superb. She has the innocence of youth. She is ingenuous, but not naïve," he concludes.

Hidden in the tree-clad hills of Saint-Charles-de-Mandeville is a village from another age, with its church, its presbytery, its general store, its inn, its forge and its houses. This village belongs to those characters who have made their mark on the history of the literature, radio, cinema and television of Quebec : Séraphin Poudrier, Donalda Laloge and Alexis Labranche.

This is where Charles Binamé is making the feature film Un homme et son péché, whose screenplay is inspired by the novel of the same name, written by Claude-Henri Grignon, and published in 1933.

The three main characters are played by Pierre Lebeau, Karine Vanasse and Roy Dupuis.

Producer Lorraine Richard (Cité-Amerique) relates that Guy Gagnon of distributors Alliance Atlantis Vivafilm suggested, over lunch, that "it would be fun to make a film that would become a classic".

"Un homme et son péché, when you come to think of it, is one of our great classics," she points out.

Charles Binamé says that he was told about the plans as soon as Lorraine Richard returned from the lunch. Producer and director initially spent two days drawing up an outline.

"Our memories of this work are very much tied to the TV series, which lasted for 14 years and involved a huge number of characters. When there is a feature film to be made, the story must be quite condensed. The trio is the very heart of the story. Donalda is the princess, Alexis the knight, and Séraphin the ogre. It’s the eternal triangle," says Lorraine Richard.

We have deduced that the feature film will be very close to the novel, and that the action lasts over a year and a day. The film is set two years before the inauguration of the "little train of the North" << a famous but now defunct CPR rail line>>. Everyone is looking forward to the train’s arrival.

Antonine Maillet developed the first version of the screenplay. Afterwards Pierre Billon and Charles Binamé laid down the definitive version, picking up on the previous work.

In the film the public will rediscover several other characters that made the TV series popular. Including: old Laloge (Rémy Girard), Bidou (Robert Brouillette), Nanette (Céline Bonnier), Father Ovide (Julien Poulin), Peg Leg (Benoit Brière), Délima (Marie Tifo) and Raudin the priest (Normand Chouinard). A new character will be introduced , the teacher Delphine Lacoste (Louise Portal).

In the film the owner of the general store won’t be Todore Bouchonneau, but old Laloge who finds himself in financial trouble because of his son Bidou. Séraphin takes the opportunity to offer his "assistance" in exchange for the hand of the beautiful Donalda.

With a budget of a little over 6 million dollars (a lot for a Quebecois film), Un homme et son péché will be shot in 38 days. A further 2 days of filming are required for the winter scenes.