As Hubert Davis’s narrative feature debut, the eco-thriller “The Well,” premieres July 21 in Fantasia Film Festival’s Cheval Noir competition, the director is simultaneously immersed in post-sound mixing for his second feature: a radical reimagining of the 1986 hockey drama “Youngblood.” Both projects, Davis told Variety, leverage his documentary roots to subvert genre expectations—transforming dystopian tropes and sports-movie conventions into deeply human explorations of trust, survival, and shifting masculinity.
“The Well,” set in a near-future ravaged by environmental collapse where water is scarce and disease runs rampant, follows a secluded family whose hidden clean-water source—and fragile loyalties—are jeopardized when a wounded stranger appears. The concept emerged from Davis’s personal anxieties during a period of isolation north of Toronto. “When you’re raising your kids, who do you trust besides yourself? You need other people to survive, yet there’s danger in that,” Davis reflected, drawing parallels to his Oscar-nominated documentary “Hardwood” (which explored his relationship with his pro-basketball player father). “It’s about the tension between protection and the necessity of connection.”
Popular on Variety
[Image Placeholder: Courtesy of Aiken Heart Productions]
Davis honed the script with actor-writer Michael Capellupo and filmmaker Kathleen Hepburn (“Never Steady, Never Still”), later partnering with producer Coral Aiken (Aiken Heart Productions) and executive producers Damon D’Oliveira and Clement Virgo (“Brother”) of Conquering Lion Pictures. Shot around Hamilton, Ontario, during the 2023 writers’ strike, the production capitalized on a rare availability of top Canadian talent, including Sheila McCarthy (receiving Fantasia’s Canadian Trailblazer Award), Shailyn Pierre-Dixon as a young woman lured into a water-cult run by McCarthy’s matriarch, Arnold Pinnock, Idrissa Sanogo, and Joanne Boland. XYZ Films, securing global rights (excluding Canada, held by Vortex Media), lauds the film’s craft and Fantasia’s launchpad. “It’s super smart, well-crafted… giving it instant credibility,” XYZ’s Todd Brown noted, adding major studios are already circling.
Davis merged documentary intimacy with high-production aesthetics: “Establishing scenarios where people feel comfortable to express themselves—like in docs—but with the resources to art-direct a visceral, dystopian world.” This hybrid approach extends to “Youngblood,” a passion project originally set to be directed by Davis’s late friend, filmmaker and ex-pro hockey player Charles Officer (“Akilla’s Escape”). Following Officer’s death in December 2023 after a lengthy illness, Davis stepped in to helm the adaptation, now in post. Far from a nostalgic homage, Davis’s “Youngblood” recenters the story on an African American prodigy (Ashton James) and critically examines the ’80s-era masculinity idolized by his generation. “It’s a re-orienting of these films and ideas,” Davis emphasized, transforming the ice-rink drama into a contemporary exploration of identity and legacy—proving genre, in his hands, is merely a starting point for deeper excavation.
The Fantasia Film Festival runs through August 3 in Montreal.
The Pop Blog general news and updates, mostly from press releases and conferences.