Denys Arcand

Personal Info

Known For

Directing

Known Credits

0.6803

Gender

Male

Birthday

25-Jun-1941

Age

(85 years old)

Place of Birth

Deschambault, Quebec, Canada

Also Known As
  • Denys Arcand, OC

Denys Arcand

Biography

Georges-Henri Denys Arcand CC GOQ (born June 25, 1941) is a French-Canadian film director, screenwriter and producer based in Montreal, who crafts deeply personal and thought-provoking films, earning international acclaim. His career began with features like "Une Maudite Galette" (1972) and "Gina" (1975), exploring diverse narratives. "The Decline of the American Empire" (1986) depicted Quebecois intellectuals tackling issues of sexuality, success, and intimacy, winning critical acclaim, nine Genies, and a Cannes Fipresci prize. "Jesus of Montreal" delved into the lives of Montreal artists portraying biblical figures, blending day-to-day struggles with religious performances. Arcand's film "Stardom" satirized fame, closing Cannes 2000 and opening TIFF, a rare honour for Canadian cinema. "The Barbarian Invasions," a sequel to his earlier work, earned Arcand an Oscar, Cannes prizes, French Cesars, and Quebec Jutra awards, solidifying his cinematic legacy.


Credits

Stealing Alice Stealing Alice (2016) Character: N/A
Artist and writer Marc Séguin offers his first film which is about a woman named Alice who steals paintings in order to reattribute them to people who can truly appreciate their beauty.
C'est pas la faute à Jacques Cartier C'est pas la faute à Jacques Cartier (1968) Character: (uncredited)
Three American tourists explore Quebec guided by an imaginative leader, in an atmosphere of health and good humor. Baroque incidents, romance, and satire on society unfold, aiming to evoke monumental laughter from Quebecers.
On n'engraisse pas les cochons à l'eau claire On n'engraisse pas les cochons à l'eau claire (1973) Character: Rocket
The true identity of an undercover RCMP narcotics agent is discovered by the criminals he is investigating and his family pays the price.
Le Mouton noir Le Mouton noir (1992) Character: Self
From coast to coast, from St. John's, Newfoundland to Vancouver, British Columbia, Jacques Godbout films a documentary chronicle of the political turnaround that was to follow the Meech Lake Accord. Following the Meech referendum, Quebec and Canada found themselves at an impasse after a long and ultimately fruitless negotiation, various social and political actors spoke out. Their comments, linked to film clips on the lives of important Canadian politicians (Sir Georges-Étienne Cartier, John A. Macdonald, Louis-Joseph Papineau...), draw parallels between the speeches of yesterday and those of the post-Meech era.
Sodankylä ikuisesti: Elokuvan vuosisata Sodankylä ikuisesti: Elokuvan vuosisata (2010) Character: Self
The Midnight Sun Film Festival is held every June in the Finnish village of Sodankylä beyond the arctic circle — where the sun never sets. Founded by Aki and Mika Kaurismäki along with Anssi Mänttäri and Peter von Bagh in 1985, the festival has played host to an international who’s who of directors and each day begins with a two-hour discussion. To mark the festival’s silver anniversary, festival director Peter von Bagh edited together highlights from these dialogues to create an epic four-part choral history of cinema drawn from the anecdotes, insights, and wisdom of his all-star cast: Coppola, Fuller, Forman, Chabrol, Corman, Demy, Kieslowski, Kiarostami, Varda, Oliveira, Erice, Rouch, Gilliam, Jancso — and 64 more. Ranging across innumerable topics (war, censorship, movie stars, formative influences, America, neorealism) these voices, many now passed away, engage in a personal dialogue across the years that’s by turns charming, profound, hilarious and moving.
Québec: Duplessis et après... Québec: Duplessis et après... (1972) Character: Narrator
This film establishes a parallel between the 1970 electoral campaign in Québec and the 1936 campaign dominated by Maurice Duplessis. It shows the hope but also the uncertainty that existed in 1970. Had the Quiet Revolution really changed things in Québec? Was it possible that a new leader would emerge on the political scene? (NFB.ca)
Weird Sex and Snowshoes: A Trek Through the Canadian Cinematic Psyche Weird Sex and Snowshoes: A Trek Through the Canadian Cinematic Psyche (2004) Character: Self
This compelling documentary explores Canadian film culture and tries to discover what defines Canadian film through interviews with notable filmmakers.
Good Men Good Men (2024) Character: Self
After the birth of his grandson, Bobby Roth undertakes a cinematic investigation as to what constitutes being a "good man" in today's world. This voyage of discovery leads him to interview more than fifty of his friends, both men and women who he considers to be "good people," about their views on everything from how they were parented to their thoughts on feminism, change, and regrets they might have. Their answers both surprises and enlighten both the viewers and Bobby, himself.
À la lumière du soir À la lumière du soir (2025) Character: Self
At 97, filmmaker Fernand Dansereau delivers a vibrant and inspiring final documentary! He draws us into rich and sensitive exchanges: on the joy of creating with two painter friends, on aging as an artist with Marcel Sabourin and Denys Arcand, on old age with Janette Bertrand and Guy Rocher, on everyday wisdom with philosophers, and on spirituality and mourning with a few friends. He also talks about the future of the planet with his grandchildren.
Nominingue... depuis qu'il existe Nominingue... depuis qu'il existe (1967) Character: N/A
A Docufiction about the twin realities of the Nominingue village in rural quebec, a poverty town turned vacation spot. where the older generation remembers the harsh conditions and poverty that afflicted them, while younger generations and tourist deal with ennui.
Mon oeil Mon oeil (1971) Character: N/A
One evening a man watches eight movies simultaneously on television.
Les fleurs oubliées Les fleurs oubliées (2019) Character: Captain
Brother Marie-Victorin, founder of Montreal’s Botanical Garden, is bored with heaven and decides to return earth to help former agronomist turned beekeeper Albert save Quebec’s flora from a multinational that is poisoning the Earth with chemicals.
La maudite galette La maudite galette (1972) Character: Un détective
A robbery at the secluded country home of a wealthy old man goes horribly awry.
Le direct avant la lettre Le direct avant la lettre (2006) Character: Self
Thanks to the development of techniques and the adventurous spirit of pioneering filmmakers, among whom Michel Brault occupies a central place, a new way of making cinema was born at the turn of the 1950s and 1960s. This film relevantly retraces the history of a collective movement which revolutionized production and filming methods in Quebec and the world.
Réjeanne Padovani Réjeanne Padovani (1973) Character: Sam Tannebaum's Bodyguard (uncredited)
The unexpected return of his ex-wife and the assembly of a group of protesters both threaten to wreck a corrupt contractor's inauguration party for his new superhighway.
Cinéma, cinéma Cinéma, cinéma (1985) Character: Self
An anthology of sequences from the best films that the National Film Board of Canada produced since its beginnings. Divided by themes and presented by a trio of actors-signers (including Carle's wife Chloé Sainte-Marie) who sings the same song in between the movie excerpts. This movie celebrated the anniversary of the National Film Board in 1985.
Montréal vu par… Montréal vu par… (1991) Character: Denys Arcand
Six stories about Montreal. 1: A young housewife from Toronto samples the nightlife using basic French. 2: The tale of a painting of Montreal's first mayor, Jacques Viger. 3: During a hockey game, Madeleine tries to tell Roger she wants a divorce after forty years of marriage. 4: A visitor to a conference on pictographs arrives at the airport, where the female customs officer steals a momento from each person. 5: As she is being driven to the hospital in an ambulance after an auto accident, Sarah recalls her life. 6: At a diplomatic reception, an older woman reminisces about her grand love in Montreal.
Au boute du rien pantoute Au boute du rien pantoute (2024) Character: Self
Every morning, Marcel confides in his tape recorder. It is from his reflections on life that this film takes us into the wake of his story.
Les invasions barbares Les invasions barbares (2003) Character: Unionist (uncredited)
In this belated sequel to 'The Decline of the American Empire', middle-aged Montreal college professor, Remy, learns that he is dying of liver cancer. His ex-wife, Louise, asks their estranged son, Sebastian, a successful businessman living in London, to come home. Sebastian makes the impossible happen, using his contacts and disrupting the Canadian healthcare system in every way possible to help his father fight his terminal illness to the bitter end, while reuniting some of Remy's old friends, including Pierre, Alain, Dominique, Diane, and Claude, who return to see their friend before he passes on.
Léolo Léolo (1992) Character: Director
The story of an imaginative boy who pretends he is the child of a sperm-laden Sicilian tomato upon which his mother accidentally fell.
The Magical Eye The Magical Eye (1989) Character: Self
Features clips from 21 documentary and animation film classics, interviews with NFB filmmakers past and present, and incisive commentary from film critics and historians on the role and influence of the NFB during its first half century of existence.
Le cri du rhinocéros Le cri du rhinocéros (2018) Character: Self
Marc Labrèche, the Director of this documentary, himself an author, actor and host, meets other creators to ask them these questions that inhabit him. Do artists have an expiry date? Do we create our best works in our youth or, on the contrary, does experience allow us to develop a greater mastery of our medium? In this respect, are there important differences between the different forms of art such as music, cinema and literature?
La Tête de Normande St-Onge La Tête de Normande St-Onge (1975) Character: Jean-Paul
Working as a pharmacy clerk while dreaming of escape through dance, Normande St-Onge supports a household of dependent and unstable relatives. As her efforts to protect and hold together her improvised family intensify, the pressures of exploitation, eviction, and emotional isolation push her toward psychological collapse. Directed by Gilles Carle, the film blurs the boundary between fantasy and breakdown.
Un zoo la nuit Un zoo la nuit (1987) Character: Man at peep-show
Marcel, recently released from prison, attempt to rebuild his relationship with his girlfriend Julie (now a prostitute) and especially his father Albert (who thinks he's been away on a long trip abroad), while being pursued by two corrupt cops (one of whom bears a longstanding grudge against him) for drug money he's alleged to possess.
Achieving the Unachievable Achieving the Unachievable (2007) Character: Self
M.C. Escher is among the most intriguing of artists. In 1956 he challenged the laws of perspective with his graphic Print Gallery and his uncompleted master-piece quickly became the most puzzling enigma of modern art. Fifty years later, can mathematician Hendrik Lenstra complete it? Should he?
Jésus de Montréal Jésus de Montréal (1989) Character: Juge
A group of actors putting on an interpretive Passion Play in Montreal begin to experience a meshing of their characters and their private lives as the production takes form against the growing opposition of the Catholic church.
Idole instantanée Idole instantanée (2005) Character: Propriétaire du bar
Four young women are participating on Idole Instantanée, a reality show produced by Omni Global, in which a complete stranger turns into a music star in just 24 hours.
Barney's Version Barney's Version (2010) Character: Maitre'D at Ritz
The picaresque and touching story of the politically incorrect, fully lived life of the impulsive, irascible and fearlessly blunt Barney Panofsky.
Embrasse-moi comme tu m'aimes Embrasse-moi comme tu m'aimes (2016) Character: Édouard Montpetit
Montreal, 1940. The Second World War is raging in Europe. Pierre Sauvageau, 22, would like to enlist, but he has to take care of his twin sister, crippled from birth. This proximity awakens the sensuality of Berthe who tries to seduce her brother. Pierre rejects her advances, but when he falls in love with Marguerite, his best friend's girlfriend, he is haunted by the fantasy of his sister.



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