Claude Fournier (July 23, 1931 – March 16, 2023) was a Canadian film director, screenwriter, editor and

cinematographer The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the recording of a film, television production, music video or other live-action piece. The cinematographer is the chief of the camera ...

. He is one of the forerunners of the Cinema of Quebec. He was the twin brother of Guy Fournier.

Career

Claude Fournier began his career in journalism then moved to the

Radio-Canada Radio-Canada may refer to: * CBC/Radio-Canada, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation *Ici Radio-Canada Télé, the CBC's main French-language television network *Ici Radio-Canada Première Ici Radio-Canada Première (formerly Première Chaîne) i ...

as a news cameraman. He joined the

National Film Board of Canada The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; ) is a Canadian public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary films, animation, web documentaries, and altern ...

in 1957 as a writer and director, and he worked on early cinéma-vérité films such as '' À Saint-Henri le cinq septembre'' and '' La lutte''. He left the Board to work in the United States with famed documentary filmmakers

Richard Leacock Richard Leacock (18 July 192123 March 2011)
The Telegraph (Lon ...

and D.A. Pennebaker, then returned to

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

in 1963 to set up his own production company, Rose Films. In 1970, he directed ''

Two Women in Gold ''Two Women in Gold'' () is a Canadian sex comedy film, directed by Claude Fournier and released in 1970.Gerald Pratley, ''A Century of Canadian Cinema''. Lynx Images, 2003. . p. 227. Plot Fernande Turcot and Violette Lamoureux are two housewive ...

(Deux femmes en or)'', one of the most successful Quebec films of its time. In the private sector, Fournier produced over 100 short films, co-wrote the

Sophia Loren Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone (; born 20 September 1934), known professionally as Sophia Loren ( , ), is an Italian actress, active in her native country and the United States. With a career spanning over 70 years, she is one of the ...

film '' A Special Day'', a Canada-Italy co-production that was nominated for an

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People and fictional and mythical characters * Oscar (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters named Oscar, Óscar or Oskar * Oscar (footballer, born 1954), Brazilian footballer ...

, and directed ''The Tin Flute'' with Marilyn Lightstone and ''The Book of Eve'' with

Claire Bloom Patricia Claire Bloom (born 15 February 1931) is an English actress. She is known for leading roles on stage and screen and has received two BAFTA Awards and a Drama Desk Award as well as nominations for a Primetime Emmy Award, a Grammy Award an ...

. ''

The Tin Flute ''The Tin Flute'' (original French title ''Bonheur d'occasion'', literally "secondhand happiness") is the first novel by Canadian author Gabrielle Roy and a classic of Canadian fiction. Imbued with Roy's brand of compassion and understanding, th ...

'' was entered into the 13th Moscow International Film Festival. His 1988 TV series '' The Mills of Power (Les Tisserands du pouvoir)'' won him a Gémeaux Award for best direction of a television drama and a Genie Award for Best Screenplay.

Donald Sutherland Donald McNichol Sutherland (17 July 1935 – 20 June 2024) was a Canadian actor. With a career spanning six decades, he received List of awards and nominations received by Donald Sutherland, numerous accolades, including a Primetime Emmy Award ...

described him as "one of the truly wretched directors of the world." Also a published poet, novelist and essayist, Claude Fournier is one of the most durable and respected Quebec filmmakers of his generation.

Death

Claude Fournier died at the Montreal University Hospital Centre on 16 March 2023, at the age of 91. He had been hospitalised after suffering a heart attack during a trip to

Martinique Martinique ( ; or ; Kalinago language, Kalinago: or ) is an island in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the eastern Caribbean Sea. It was previously known as Iguanacaera which translates to iguana island in Carib language, Kariʼn ...

Filmography

Features

*''

(Deux femmes en or)'' — 1970 *'' The Master Cats (Les chats bottés)'' — 1971 *'' Alien Thunder'' — 1974 *'' The Apple, the Stem and the Seeds (La pomme, la queue et les pépins)'' — 1974 *'' Far from You Sweetheart (Je suis loin de toi mignonne)'' — 1976 *''

Hot Dogs A hot dog is a grilled, steamed, or boiled sausage served in the slit of a partially sliced bun. The term ''hot dog'' can also refer to the sausage itself. The sausage used is a wiener ( Vienna sausage) or a frankfurter ( Frankfurter Würs ...

(Les chiens chauds)'' — 1980 *''

(Bonheur d'occasion)'' — 1983 *''Page trois: un ordinateur au coeur'' — 1985 *'' Heads or Tails (J'en suis!)'' — 1997 *'' The Book of Eve (Histoires d'Ève)'' — 2003 *'' My Only Love (Je n'aime que toi)'' — 2004

Documentaries

*''Télésphore Légaré, garde-pêche'' (Short film, 1959) *''Alfred Desrochers, poète'' (Short film, 1960) *''La France sur un caillou'' (Short film Co-Directed with Gilles Groulx, 1961) *'' La lutte'' (Short film Co-Directed with

Michel Brault Michel Brault, OQ (25 June 1928 – 21 September 2013) was a Canadian cinematographer, cameraman, film director, screenwriter, and film producer. He was a leading figure of Direct Cinema, characteristic of the French branch of the Nationa ...

, Marcel Carrière and

Claude Jutra Claude Jutra (; March 11, 1930 – November 5, 1986) was a Canadian actor, film director, and screenwriter.

, 1961) *''Midwestern Floods'' (Short film, 1962) *''Nehru'' (Short film, 1962) *''Vingt ans express'' (Series of 7 shorts, 1963–1964) *''Nomades de l'ouest'' (Short film, 1963) *''Calgary Stampede'' (Short film, 1965) *''Deux femmes'' (Short film, 1965) *''Columbium'' (Short film, 1966) *''Londres'' (Short film, 1966) *''On sait où entrer Tony, mais c'est les notes'' (Short film, 1966) *''Québec an 2000'' (Short film co-directed with Aimée Danis, 1966) *''Sebring, La cinquième heure'' (Short film, 1966) *''Ti-Jean'' (Short film, 1966) *''Tony Roman'' (Short film, 1966) *''Du général au particulier'' (Short film, 1967) *''Canada Today'' (Short film of Expo 67, 1967) *''La greffe cardiaque'' (Short film, 1969) *''La greffe cardiaque, symposium de Montréal'' (Short film, 1969) *''Coeurs neufs'' (Short film a.k.a. ''Hearts'', 1969) *''Le dossier Nelligan'' (1969) *''...Et Dieu créa l'été'' (Short film Co-Directed with Marie-José Raymond, 1974) *''Aliments, gentils aliments'' (Short film Co-Directed with Marie-José Raymond, 1975)

Television

*'' The Newcomers'' — TV miniseries, 1977) *'' The New Avengers'' — TV series, 1977 *''Tales of the Klondike'' — TV miniseries a.k.a. ''The Scorn of Women'', 1981 *'' The Mills of Power (Les tisserands du pouvoir)'' — TV miniseries, 1987 *''Golden Fiddles'' — TV miniseries, 1990 *''Juliette Pomerleau'' — TV miniseries, 1999 *''Félix Leclerc: Les esprits du fleuve'' — TV miniseries, 2005

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fournier, Claude 1931 births 2023 deaths Canadian screenwriters in French Screenwriters from Quebec Film directors from Quebec People from Waterloo, Quebec Canadian cinematographers National Film Board of Canada people Canadian twins 20th-century Canadian screenwriters 20th-century Canadian male writers 21st-century Canadian screenwriters 21st-century Canadian male writers