 Imagine it is summer and that, for the last several days, Montreal has been swimming in sweltering heat and smog. Then imagine that you are in the city s downtown core and a woman holding a small video camera approaches you. She asks you to participate in a one-question survey. Although you are slightly wary of this proposal, you stop to listen. She asks you: "What does happiness mean to you?" and awaits your answer. Go on! What are you waiting for? Answer! HAPPINESS IS A SAD SONG tells the disjointed story of Anne-Marie, an unemployed publicist pounding the pavement in Montreal with her mini-cam, collecting testimonials on the subject of happiness. It is happiness that she appears to seek, or understand to the point of being obsessed by her quest. Guided by serendipity and a series of surprising and varied encounters, Anne-Marie dives head-first into her project. She meets a medley of characters whom she engages in engrossing, thought-provoking discussions about happiness. Anne-Marie moves from one character to the next, from one idea to the next in her survey, gathering reactions and challenging viewpoints that give her a chance to reflect upon her own life. How can her obsession be explained? Why the survey? And why the video camera?