Fernand Dansereau (born April 5, 1928) is a Canadian film director and film producer.

Biography

After five years working as a reporter for the Montreal daily

Le Devoir ''Le Devoir'' (, "Duty") is a French-language newspaper published in Montreal and distributed in Quebec and throughout Canada. It was founded by journalist and politician Henri Bourassa in 1910. ''Le Devoir'' is one of few independent large-c ...

, Dansereau joined the NFB in 1955. He was a founding member of the NFB's French Unit and until 1960, he wrote and directed several feature films and documentaries for the series ''Panorama''. He worked on the television series ''Temps présent'' from 1960 to 1964 and then returned to directing with the fiction feature ''Le festin des morts'' which won 2

Canadian Film Award The Canadian Film Awards were the leading Canadian cinema awards from 1949 until 1978. These honours were conducted annually, except in 1974 when a number of Quebec directors withdrew their participation and prompted a cancellation. In the 1970s ...

s including Best Feature Film in 1966. He left the NFB in 1970 for the private sector. Among his many achievements, he wrote and directed the feature documentary ''Faut aller parmi l'monde pour le savoir'' (1971) which was selected for the Directors' Fortnight at the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...

in 1972. His 1977 feature ''Thetford au milieu de notre vie'' (co-directed with Iolande Cadrin-Rossignol) about life in a Québécois mining town became another career highlight. His dramatic feature ''Doux aveux'' (1982) garnered 4 Genie Award nominations in 1983. Most recently Dansereau made the dramatic feature ''La brunante'' (2007) which was nominated for best film and best director at the 2008

Jutra Award The Prix Iris is a Canadian film award, presented annually by Québec Cinéma, which recognizes talent and achievement in the mainly francophone feature film industry in Quebec.Prix Albert-Tessier The Prix Albert-Tessier is an award by the Government of Quebec that is part of the Prix du Québec, given to individuals for an outstanding career in Quebec cinema. It is awarded to script-writing, acting, composing music, directing, producing a ...

. In 2003 he received the Prix Lumière for his outstanding contribution to the profession and in 2009 received the Jutra Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2019, Dansereau was appointed as a Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the cen ...

and, in 2020, and Officer in the

National Order of Quebec The National Order of Quebec, termed officially in French as ''l'Ordre national du Québec'', and in English abbreviation as the Order of Quebec, is an order of merit in the Canadian province of Quebec. Instituted in 1984 when Lieutenant Governo ...

Selected filmography

Fiction

*''Le maître du Pérou'' - Short, 1958 *''Pays neuf'' - Short, 1958 *''La Canne à pêche'' - Short, 1959 *''

Mission of Fear ''Mission of Fear'' (french: Astataïon, ou Le Festin des morts) is a Canadian drama film, directed by Fernand Dansereau and released in 1965. Based on ''The Jesuit Relations'', the film dramatizes the story of the Canadian Martyrs at the Jesui ...

(Astataïon ou Le festin des morts)'' - 1965 *''

This Is No Time for Romance ''This Is No Time for Romance'' (french: Ça n'est pas le temps des romans) is a Canadian short drama film, directed by Fernand Dansereau and released in 1967. An exploration of the changing role of women in the early years of feminism, the film ...

(Ça n'est pas le temps des romans)'' - Short, 1966 *''Contrat d’amour'' - Short, 1973 *''Simple histoire d’amours'' (1974) *''Thetford au milieu de notre vie'' - Co-Directed with Iolande Cadrin-Rossignol, 1978 *'' Sweet Lies and Loving Oaths (Doux aveux)'' - 1982 *''

Twilight Twilight is light produced by sunlight scattering in the upper atmosphere, when the Sun is below the horizon, which illuminates the lower atmosphere and the Earth's surface. The word twilight can also refer to the periods of time when this i ...

(La Brunante)'' - 2007

Documentaries

*''La communauté juive de Montréal'' - 1956, short *''Pierre Beaulieu, agriculteur'' - 1959, short *''John Lyman, peintre'' - 1959, short *''Les Administrateurs'' - 1960, co-directed with Jacques Godbout *''Congrès'' - 1961, short co-directed with Jean Dansereau and Georges Dufaux *''Éducation populaire'' - 1968, series of 30 shorts *''Saint-Jerome'' - 1968 *''Jonquière'' - 1969, short *''Québec ski'' - 1970, short *''Tout le temps, tout le temps, tout le temps...?'' - 1970 *''Comité d’expression populaire'' - 1971 *''It Is Necessary to Be Among the Peoples of the World to Know Them (Faut aller parmi l'monde pour le savoir)'' - 1971 *''Vivre entre les mots'' - 1972 *''Quotidien series'' - 1975-77, series of 28 shorts co-directed with Iolande Cadrin-Rossignol *''L’autre côté de la lune'' - 1994 *''Quelques raisons d’espérer'' - 2001 *'' Hope Builders (Les porteurs d'espoir)'' - 2010

References

External links

*
Watch films by Fernand Dansereau at NFB.ca
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dansereau, Fernand 1928 births Living people Film directors from Montreal Writers from Montreal Canadian documentary film directors Canadian documentary film producers Canadian screenwriters in French French Quebecers National Film Board of Canada people Prix Albert-Tessier winners Members of the Order of Canada