Carl Bessai (born 1966 in

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

) is a Canadian

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

and

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

. Bessai studied at

OCAD University Ontario College of Art & Design University, commonly known as OCAD University or OCAD, is a public art university located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The university's main campus is spread throughout several buildings and facilities within do ...

and at

York University York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,0 ...

in Toronto graduating with a Master of Fine Arts Degree. He got his start directing

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...

s before moving to

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

and directing his debut feature film ''

Johnny Johnny is an English language personal name. It is usually an affectionate diminutive of the masculine given name John, but from the 16th century it has sometimes been a given name in its own right for males and, less commonly, females. Varian ...

'' in 1999. Bessai was nominated for the

Genie Award The Genie Awards were given out annually by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to recognize the best of Canadian cinema from 1980–2012. They succeeded the Canadian Film Awards (1949–1978; also known as the "Etrog Awards," for scu ...

for

Best Director Best Director is the name of an award which is presented by various film, television and theatre organizations, festivals, and people's awards. It may refer to: Film awards * AACTA Award for Best Direction * Academy Award for Best Director * BA ...

at the 29th Genie Awards for his 2007 film ''

Normal Normal(s) or The Normal(s) may refer to: Film and television * ''Normal'' (2003 film), starring Jessica Lange and Tom Wilkinson * ''Normal'' (2007 film), starring Carrie-Anne Moss, Kevin Zegers, Callum Keith Rennie, and Andrew Airlie * ''Norma ...

'', which was also a nominee for Best Motion Picture."Victoria-shot film up for Genies; Normal, directed by Carl Bessai, depicts fallout from accident". ''

Victoria Times-Colonist The ''Times Colonist'' is an English-language daily newspaper in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. It was formed by the Sept. 2, 1980 merger of the ''Victoria Daily Times'', established in 1884, and the ''British Colonist'' (later the ''Daily Co ...

'', February 11, 2009. He is a member of the

Directors Guild of Canada The Directors Guild of Canada (DGC) is a Canadian labour union representing more than 5,500 professionals from 48 different occupations in the Canadian film and television industry. Founded in 1962, the DGC represents directors, editors, assistant ...

, the

Writers Guild of Canada The Writers Guild of Canada is an organization representing more than 2,500 professional writers working in film, television, radio, and digital media production in Canada. Members of the Guild write dramatic TV series, feature films, Movies of th ...

, and the Canadian Film and Television Producers Association.

Selected filmography

*''

'' (1999) *''Lola'' (2001) *'' Emile'' (2003) *'' Severed: Forest of the Dead'' (2005) *''

Unnatural & Accidental ''Unnatural & Accidental'' is a 2006 Canadian film directed by Carl Bessai and starring Carmen Moore, Callum Keith Rennie, and Tantoo Cardinal.Alison Gillmor, "Play's powerful message muted by overly stagy film". ''Winnipeg Free Press'', Decembe ...

'' (2006) *''

'' (2007) *'' Mothers & Daughters'' (2008) *''

Cole Cole may refer to: Plants * Cole crops of the genus ''Brassica'', especially cabbage, kale, or rape (rapeseed). People * Cole (given name), people with the given name Cole * Cole (surname), people with the surname Cole Companies *Cole Motor ...

'' (2009) *''

Repeaters ''Repeaters'' is a 2010 Canadian thriller film directed by Carl Bessai, written by Arne Olsen, and starring Dustin Milligan, Amanda Crew, and Richard de Klerk as young drug addicts who find themselves stuck in a time loop. Plot Kyle, Sonia, and ...

'' (2010) *'' Fathers & Sons'' (2010) *''

Sisters & Brothers ''Sisters & Brothers'' is a 2011 Canadian comedy-drama film written and directed by Carl Bessai. The film explores the relationships of four sets of siblings who have not (in one case, never) had contact for some time. It is the final film in ...

'' (2011) *''

No Clue ''No Clue'' is a 2013 Canadian dark comedy film written by Brent Butt and directed by Carl Bessai, starring Butt, Amy Smart and David Koechner. Plot Advertising salesman Leo (Butt) unwittingly assumes the role of a private investigator to help ...

'' (2013) *''

Rehearsal A rehearsal is an activity in the performing arts that occurs as preparation for a performance in music, theatre, dance and related arts, such as opera, musical theatre and film production. It is undertaken as a form of practising, to ensure t ...

'' (2015) *''

The Lears ''The Lears'' is a 2017 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Carl Bessai, and starring Bruce Dern, Anthony Michael Hall and Sean Astin. It is a modern adaptation of William Shakespeare's ''King Lear''. Plot On a family weekend, ...

'' (2017) *''In Her City'' (2020) *''Evelyne'' (2021)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bessai, Carl 1966 births Living people Canadian cinematographers Canadian film producers Canadian male screenwriters Film directors from Edmonton Writers from Edmonton 21st-century Canadian screenwriters