Force Majeure Films (formerly Nitty Gritty Films) is a Montreal and Los Angeles based independent production company led by filmmaker, screenwriter, and actor Julien Martre. The company is dedicated to creating bold dark psychological and body horror cinema driven by character obsession and highly stylised visuals.

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Before filmmaking, Julien built a career as a lifelong musician and songwriter. He toured internationally in a Sony signed band, The New Cities, opening for artists including Nine Inch Nails, Katy Perry and Avril Lavigne and co-wrote the most played Canadian song of 2010 on Canadian Radio. When the pandemic brought touring to a halt, he began exploring a long held passion for acting. This led him to read his first screenplay, sparking an immediate fascination with the form and with the ability to experience an entire film through the written page. Soon after, he began writing original stories imagined with his sister Estelle. The natural next step was to produce them.

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Their first short film, Compelled (2022), was created by a three person crew, with Julien and Estelle sharing roles across directing, production design, acting and taking turns at being boom operator. The film gained strong traction on the horror festival circuit and won Best Horror Short at the Hollywood Blood Horror Fest. Upon its Halloween release, it also went viral on TikTok, reaching over 80,000 views.

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Julien went on to direct and produce the found footage feature The Cottage. His screenplay Red River was selected by STAGE 32 and named finalist for Best Unproduced Screenplay at the legendary TERROR AT THE BAY festival positioning it as a winter creature feature with a cult genre twist.

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Force Majeure Films is now developing SKIN, a French and English language feature exploring obsession within the world of Quebecois actors in Los Angeles. A proof of concept short has already been completed, earning selections at Los Angeles Fantasia Fest and Another Hole in the Head in San Francisco, and winning Best Horror Screenplay at the Catacombs Festival.