Georges-Henri Denys Arcand (; born June 25, 1941) is a Canadian filmmaker. During his four decades career, he became one of the most internationally-recognized director from

Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...

, earning widespread acclaim and numerous accolades for his "intensely personal, challenging, and intellectual films." His film ''

The Barbarian Invasions ''The Barbarian Invasions'' () is a 2003 Canadian-French sex comedy-Drama (film and television), drama film written and directed by Denys Arcand and starring Rémy Girard, Stéphane Rousseau and Marie-Josée Croze. The film is a sequel to Arcand ...

'' won the

Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...

for Best Foreign Language Film in 2004. His films have also been nominated three further times, including two nominations in the same category for ''

The Decline of the American Empire ''The Decline of the American Empire'' () is a 1986 Canadian sex comedy-Drama (film and television), drama film directed by Denys Arcand and starring Rémy Girard, Pierre Curzi and Dorothée Berryman. The film follows a group of intellectual fr ...

'' in 1986 and ''

Jesus of Montreal ''Jesus of Montreal'' () is a 1989 Canadian comedy drama film written and directed by Denys Arcand, and starring Lothaire Bluteau, Catherine Wilkening and Johanne-Marie Tremblay. The film tells the story of a group of actors in Montreal who pe ...

'' in 1989, becoming the only

French-Canadian French Canadians, referred to as Canadiens mainly before the nineteenth century, are an ethnic group descended from French colonists first arriving in France's colony of Canada in 1608. The vast majority of French Canadians live in the prov ...

director in history whose films have received this number of nominations and, subsequently, to have a film win the award. For ''The Barbarian Invasions'', he received an Academy Award nomination for

Best Original Screenplay The Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay is the Academy Award (also known as an Oscar) for the best screenplay not based upon previously published material. It was created in 1940 as a separate writing award from the Academy Award for Best ...

, losing to

Sofia Coppola Sofia Carmina Coppola ( , ; born May 14, 1971) is an American filmmaker and former actress. She has List of awards and nominations received by Sofia Coppola, won an Academy Awards, Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, a Golden Lion, and a Can ...

for '' Lost in Translation''. Arcand has also won several awards from the

Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival (; ), until 2003 called the International Film Festival ('), is the most prestigious film festival in the world. Held in Cannes, France, it previews new films of all genres, including documentaries, from all around ...

, including the Best Screenplay Award, the Jury Prize, and many other prestigious awards worldwide. He won three

César Awards The César Award is the national film award of France. It is delivered in the ' ceremony and was first awarded in 1976. The nominations are selected by the members of twelve categories of filmmaking professionals and supported by the French Min ...

in 2004 for ''The Barbarian Invasions'': Best Director, Best Original Screenplay or Adaptation and Best Film, the only Canadian director to have done so. He is a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts, and a Commander of the French

Ordre des Arts et des Lettres The Order of Arts and Letters () is an order of France established on 2 May 1957 by the Minister of Culture. Its supplementary status to the was confirmed by President Charles de Gaulle in 1963. Its purpose is the recognition of significant ...

Early life and education

Arcand was born in Deschambault,

, Canada. He grew up in a devoutly

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

home in a village about 40 km southwest of

Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...

. He attended

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

school for nine years. Entering his teen years, the family moved to Montreal and although he dreamed about being a professional tennis player, while studying for a master's degree in history at the

Université de Montréal The Université de Montréal (; UdeM; ) is a French-language public research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university's main campus is located in the Côte-des-Neiges neighborhood of Côte-des-Neiges–Notre-Dame-de-Grâce on M ...

he became involved in film making, which gave him a new sense of direction. In this era he was involved in several student film projects in collaboration with classmates Denis Héroux and Stéphane Venne, including ''À l'est d'Eaton'', '' Alone or with Others (Seul ou avec d'autres)'' and '' Over My Head (Jusqu'au cou)''.

Career

In 1963, 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 ...

where he produced several award-winning documentaries in his native

French language French ( or ) is a Romance languages, Romance language of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European family. Like all other Romance languages, it descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire. French evolved from Northern Old Gallo-R ...

. A social activist, he made a feature-length documentary in 1970 titled '' Cotton Mill, Treadmill (On est au coton)'' that showed the exploitation of textile workers. The film caused an uproar that resulted in it not being distributed publicly for several years. Arcand received such publicity that it gave his fledgling career a great boost. He also worked on some television series, notably '' Duplessis'', a historical work he wrote (but did not direct) about Premier Maurice Duplessis. During the early part of the 1970s, Arcand produced a number of feature films that received critical acclaim. Arcand returned to directing documentaries and did no work for television. In 1982, his documentary, '' Comfort and Indifference (Le confort et l'indifférence)'' won the Prix Luc-Perreault from the Quebec Film Critics' Association. In 1986 he wrote and directed what was until then the highest-grossing film in Quebec (and Canadian) history, ''

(Le Déclin de l'empire américain)''. At the Canadian

Genie Awards 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), known as the "Etrog Awards" for sculpt ...

, it captured best film, best director, and best writer of an original screenplay. It also won the "International Critics Prize" at the

and became the first Canadian feature film nominated for an

Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film The Academy Award for Best International Feature Film (known as Best Foreign Language Film prior to 2020) is one of the Academy Awards handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to a ...

. Three years later Arcand repeated this award-garnering performance with his widely acclaimed 1989 film ''

(Jésus de Montréal)'' winning the same three Genie awards, plus the Jury Prize at Cannes. The movie earned him a second Academy Award nomination, becoming the first Canadian director to accomplish this achievement. Arcand produced and directed his first English language film in 1993, titled '' Love and Human Remains'', and did so again in 2000, with the film '' Stardom'', which opened the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...

. He then spent two years writing the script for what many claim is his finest piece of cinematic writing to date, ''

'' (''Les invasions barbares''). Released in 2003, the film won Arcand the Best Screenplay Award at the Cannes Film Festival, was nominated for a

Golden Globe Award The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Janua ...

as Best Foreign Language Film and won the

. In addition, Denys Arcand was nominated for an Academy Award for Writing Original Screenplay. ''The Barbarian Invasions'' won France's 2004 César Award for Best Film, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay or Adaptation. Arcand's film '' Days of Darkness (L'Âge des ténèbres)'' was chosen to close the 2007 Cannes Film Festival. The press opening was subdued and the subsequent reviews were mixed. Following this, he took a seven-year hiatus from feature film directing; he returned in 2014 with the film '' Le règne de la beauté.''

Awards and honours

In 1988, he was made an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

and was promoted to Companion in 2005. In 1990 the Government of

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

awarded him the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

. He finally earned from his home province one of its highest distinctions, the title of Knight of the

National Order of Quebec The National Order of Quebec ( French: ), also known as the Order of Quebec, is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of Quebec. Instituted in 1984 when Lieutenant Governor Jean-Pierre Côté granted royal assent to the (Natio ...

, in 1990. In 1995, Arcand received a

Governor General's Performing Arts Award The Governor General's Performing Arts Awards are an annual Canadian award, presented to honour distinguished achievements in Canadian performing arts and culture. Administered by the Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards Foundation in associ ...

for Lifetime Artistic Achievement. In February 2004, the government of France named Denys Arcand a Commander of L'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, that nation's highest cultural honour. In 2004, Arcand was also inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame. He is a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts. In 2023, he was named the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from 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, assist ...

Personal life

Arcand is a lapsed Catholic. Married a second time, neither Arcand nor

Denise Robert Denise Robert, (born 1954) is a Canadian film producer, who is president of Cinémaginaire, a studio she co-founded with Daniel Louis.André Loiselle"Denise Robert" '' The Canadian Encyclopedia'', December 29, 2015. She was invited to join the ...

, his producer/wife, has had children. He was 55 years old when they adopted an orphaned baby boy from

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

named Carter. His brother Bernard Arcand (1945–2009) was a professor of

anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, society, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including archaic humans. Social anthropology studies patterns of behav ...

, and his youngest brother

Gabriel Arcand Gabriel Arcand (born June 4, 1949) is a Canadian actor. He is the brother of film director Denys Arcand. Career After studying philosophy at McGill University, Arcand spent his formative professional years at La Criée in Marseille, France, a ...

(b. 1949) is a noted Canadian actor. His great-uncle,

Adrien Arcand Adrien Arcand (October 3, 1899 – August 1, 1967) was a Canadian fascist politician, writer, and journalist. He founded and led the far-right National Unity Party of Canada from 1934 until his death in 1967. During his political career, he procl ...

(1899-1967), was a notorious far-right politician.

Filmography

Director

*''À l'est d'Eaton'' - 1959, short film co-directed with Stéphane Venne *'' Alone or With Others (Seul ou avec d'autres)'' - 1962, co-directed with Denis Héroux and Stéphane Venne *'' Dirty Money (La maudite galette)'' - 1972 *'' Réjeanne Padovani'' - 1973 *'' Gina'' - 1975 *'' Empire, Inc.'' - 1983, TV miniseries codirected with Douglas Jackson *'' The Crime of Ovide Plouffe (Le Crime d'Ovide Plouffe)'' - 1984 *''

(Le Déclin de l'empire américain)'' - 1986 *''

(Jésus de Montréal)'' - 1989 *''Les lettres de la religieuse portugaise'' - 1991, TV movie *'' Montreal Stories'' - 1992, segment "Vue d'ailleurs" *'' Love and Human Remains'' - 1993 *'' Poverty and Other Delights (Joyeux Calvaire)'' - 1996 *'' Stardom'' - 2000 *''

(Les invasions barbares)'' - 2003 *'' Days of Darkness (L'Âge des ténèbres)'' - 2007 *'' An Eye for Beauty (Le règne de la beauté)'' - 2014 *'' The Fall of the American Empire (La chute de l'empire américain)'' - 2018 *'' Testament'' - 2023Charles-Henri Ramond
"Testament en salle le 5 octobre"
''Films du Québec'', May 24, 2023.

Documentaries

*''Champlain'' - 1964, short film *''Québec 1603 - Samuel de Champlain'' - 1964, short film *''Les Montréalistes'' - 1965, short film *''Montréal, un jour d'été'' - 1965, short film *''La route de l'Ouest'' - 1965, short film *''Volleyball'' - 1966, short film *''Parcs atlantiques'' - 1967, short film *''Quebec: Duplessis and After (Québec : Duplessis et après...)'' - 1972 *''La lutte des travailleurs d'hôpitaux'' - 1976, short film *'' Cotton Mill, Treadmill (On est au coton)'' - 1976 (made 1970 but withheld from release) *'' Comfort and Indifference (Le confort et l'indifférence)'' - 1982

Acting

*'' It Isn't Jacques Cartier's Fault (C'est pas la faute à Jacques Cartier)'' - 1968 *''Nominingue... depuis qu'il existe'' - 1968 *'' My Eye (Mon oeil)'' - 1971 *''Dirty Money (La maudite galette)'' - 1972 *''Réjeanne Padovani'' - 1973 *'' Pigs Are Seldom Clean (On n'engraisse pas les cochons à l'eau claire)'' - 1973 *'' Normande (La Tête de Normande St-Onge)'' - 1975 *'' Night Zoo (Un zoo la nuit)'' - 1987 *''Jesus of Montreal (Jésus de Montréal)'' - 1989 *''Montreal Stories (Montréal vu par...)'' - 1991 *''

Léolo ''Léolo'' is a 1992 Canadian coming-of-age film, coming-of-age fantasy film, fantasy comedy-drama written and directed by Jean-Claude Lauzon. The film tells the story of a young boy named Léo "Léolo" Lauzon, played by Maxime Collin, who engages ...

'' - 1992 *'' Un gars, une fille'' - 2000 *''The Barbarian Invasions (Les Invasions barbares)'' - 2003 *''Tideline'' - 2004 *''Idole instantanée'' - 2005 *'' Les Bougon'' - 2004-06 *''Days of Darkness (L'Âge des ténèbres)'' - 2007 *'' Barney's Version'' - 2010 *''Adam & Ève'' - 2012 *'' Kiss Me Like a Lover (Embrasse-moi comme tu m'aimes)'' - 2016 *''Les pêcheurs'' - 2016, TV series

References

External links

*
Denys Arcand
at the Canadian Film Encyclopedia
Denys Arcand
on NFB {{DEFAULTSORT:Arcand, Denys 1941 births Canadian screenwriters in French Directors of Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award winners César Award winners European Film Awards winners (people) Companions of the Order of Canada Best Director Genie and Canadian Screen Award winners Grand Officers of the National Order of Quebec Canadian recipients of the Legion of Honour Living people Commandeurs of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres Members of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts People from Capitale-Nationale Film directors from Quebec Université de Montréal alumni Best Screenplay Genie and Canadian Screen Award winners Best Director César Award winners Male actors from Quebec Canadian documentary film directors National Film Board of Canada people Prix Albert-Tessier winners Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Screenplay winners Critics of the Catholic Church Best Director Jutra and Iris Award winners Film producers from Quebec Governor General's Award winners Best Screenplay Jutra and Iris Award winners