Guylaine Maroist facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Guylaine Maroist
Citizenship	Canada Canadian
Occupation	Producer, Director, Screenwriter
Organization	La Ruelle Films
Notable work	Backlash: Misogyny in the Digital Age

Guylaine Maroist is a talented Canadian filmmaker, producer, and writer. She is known for making powerful documentary films that tell important true stories. She started a film company called La Ruelle Films with Eric Ruel.

Some of her well-known documentaries include Gentilly or Not To Be, Time Bombs, and Backlash: Misogyny in the Digital Age. In 2011, she received a special award, the Governor General's History Award, for her TV series J’ai la mémoire qui tourne (My Memories On a Roll). Guylaine Maroist is also involved in promoting peace and working against nuclear weapons. Her recent film, Backlash: Misogyny in the Digital Age, which she co-directed with Léa Clermont-Dion, explores the issue of online harassment against women.

Guylaine Maroist's Journey

Guylaine Maroist studied communications and arts at university. After finishing her studies, she worked as a music writer for a newspaper called Le Devoir from 1992 to 1995. She also wrote for other magazines during this time.

Exploring Quebec Music History

In 1994, Guylaine Maroist became very interested in the musical history of Quebec. She worked with Denis Pantis to create a huge collection of Quebec music records. They re-released about one hundred albums from famous Quebec stars from the 1950s to the 1980s.

From 1999 to 2001, Guylaine led a big project to create biographies of top Quebec artists. She conducted nearly 2000 interviews for 70 music biographies. This was a massive effort to document the history of popular music in Quebec.

La Ruelle Films: Telling True Stories

In 2002, Guylaine Maroist and Éric Ruel founded Les Productions de la Ruelle, which is now known as La Ruelle Films. This company specializes in making TV series and documentary films.

Time Bombs: A Story of Canadian Soldiers

In 2005, they produced a documentary called Time Bombs. This film won important awards, including the Gold Ribbon Award for best documentary. Time Bombs told the true story of Canadian soldiers who were sent to the US in 1957 for military exercises involving nuclear weapons. These soldiers were exposed to dangerous levels of radiation without knowing the risks. For many years, the Canadian government kept the details of this incident secret.

The film used rare footage from US Army archives and interviews with the surviving Canadian veterans. Time Bombs had a big impact on the public. It helped the veterans share their story and led the Canadian government to admit what happened. The government then compensated the victims for their health problems.

Documentaries That Make a Difference

Guylaine Maroist found that making documentaries gave her a lot of creative freedom. She dedicated herself to this new path.

In 2012, she produced Gentilly or Not To Be. This documentary looked at the problems with upgrading the Gentilly-2 nuclear power plant in Quebec. It raised questions about the plant's safety, its nuclear waste, and how it might affect people's health. The film asked if it was better to fix the plant or to use other energy sources. Leaders like Tom Mulcair and Pauline Marois said the documentary helped public opinion turn against the upgrade project, which was eventually cancelled.

Also in 2012, La Ruelle Films released The Disunited States of Canada. This documentary explored the idea of separatism in Canada, outside of Quebec. Within a month, 120,000 people watched the film online. In 2013, both Gentilly or Not To Be and The Disunited States of Canada won three Gemini Awards, which are major Canadian TV awards.

My Memories On A Roll: A Look at History

From 2009 to 2010, Guylaine Maroist and Eric Ruel worked on a big film project about Quebec's history. They used thousands of family home movies collected from people in Quebec. This project, called J’ai la mémoire qui tourne (My Memories On A Roll), was recognized internationally. In 2011, Maroist and Ruel won a Pierre Berton Award for this production. This is a very high honor given by the Governor General of Canada for works on Canadian history.

Exploring Politics and Online Safety

In 2014, Maroist and Eric Ruel released God Save Justin Trudeau. This documentary looked closely at how politicians use showmanship in Canadian politics. It raised important questions about the state of Canadian democracy. The film was nominated for the 2015 Gemini Awards.

In 2015, Guylaine Maroist worked with Professor Sergei Plekhanov and the Canadian Pugwash Group to create a documentary that supports getting rid of nuclear weapons. This project shows Maroist's long-standing dedication to peace and environmental causes. She was a member of Greenpeace in the 1980s and has worked on films about nuclear dangers. She also leads Les Artistes pour la Paix, a group in Quebec that promotes peace and nuclear disarmament.

In 2022, Maroist and Léa Clermont-Dion released the documentary film Backlash: Misogyny in the Digital Age. This film follows four women whose lives have been greatly affected by online harassment and hate, especially against women. Experts like Donna Zuckerberg, who studies online violence, and Sarah T. Roberts from UCLA also appear in the film.