Marie-Claire Marcotte’s Neon Dreaming (2024) expertly highlights the struggle between imagination and reality when introducing complex ideas to a child’s mind. It reveals the beautiful delicacy of youthful innocence with fiercely astute Billie (Maélya Boyd), the film’s eight-year-old protagonist, as she begins to unravel the lies she has been fed by her father (Corey Loranger) and grandmother (Genevieve Langlois) about the identity of her absent mother. When Billie proudly introduces an image of her mother during a school presentation, her world is quickly turned upside down by the revelation from a classmate that this is actually an image of a famous ballerina. Billie is taunted by her classmates for claiming this image to be one of her mother, and so she embarks on a mission, accompanied by best friend Sherry (Maïna Rose Caméus), to discover the truth about her family. 

Boyd provides a stunning performance as Billie, with all the playfulness and naivety of a child, alongside the emotional maturity of someone coming to terms with being lied to by those they trust, and accepting a different reality from the one they have been led to believe. The scenes with Billie and Sherry reveal the situation from a child’s perspective and beautifully depict the steadfast loyalty of childhood friendships. Communicating with each other through encrypted knocks between walls and retreating to their secret hideout, the two reveal the duality of childhood. Their ability to play and use their imaginations with ease contrasts with their desire to unlock the mysteries of the adult world. They remove their colourful wigs and abandon their invented personas before Billie details the serious business of her mission, and pleads for her friend’s help. 

Despite having a limited understanding of the task they are undertaking, believing a 10km walk in thick snow will take them twenty minutes, the two girls set out on their quest for the truth. Following a minor setback in their friendship, Sherry assures Billie ‘I’d only freeze my butt off for my bestie’, revealing herself to be the one person in support of Billie’s need for answers about her mother. These interactions highlight an essential theme within the film — loving someone despite their flaws. 

Neon Dreaming raises questions about childhood and how much children can handle in difficult family dynamics. It causes us to reflect on our own perceptions of the world as children. How much did we really understand? How much was being concealed from us by those wanting to protect us? What this film reveals is how much children just want to be heard and understood. Billie’s frustration at the lies her guardians have provided, which have shaped a distorted version of her reality and identity, expose how damaging a well-intentioned lie can be. However, her father Fred’s clear distress and anxiety over the situation highlights the complexity of navigating the fine line between honesty and sensitivity when exposing children to harsh truths. By allowing the audience an insight into the mind of a child, with only brief glimpses into the reality happening around her, Marcotte paints a compelling picture of the balance between innocence and knowledge. 

Bathed in luminescence, Neon Dreaming is a short but sweet example of how children can be both lost in imagination and desperate to know the truth. It reveals the fragility of childhood innocence but reminds us that, no matter what else may change, the most important thing is knowing you are loved.