Jean Beaudin facts for kids

Jean Beaudin (born February 6, 1939 – died May 18, 2019) was a talented Canadian film director and screenwriter. A film director is someone who leads the making of a movie. A screenwriter writes the story for films or TV shows.

Jean Beaudin directed 20 films starting in 1969. His film J.A. Martin Photographer was very successful. It was shown at the 1977 Cannes Film Festival, a famous film event. There, actress Monique Mercure won an award for Best Actress. The film also won Best Film, and Jean Beaudin won Best Director at the 1977 Canadian Film Awards.

He was also nominated for the Genie Award for Best Achievement in Direction several times. These nominations were for his films The Alley Cat (in 1986), Being at Home with Claude (in 1992), and The Collector (in 2003). Actress Domini Blythe was his partner for over 20 years.

Jean Beaudin's Early Career

Jean Beaudin studied art and design before becoming a filmmaker. He earned a diploma from the École des Beaux-Arts in Montreal. He also studied at the School of Design in Zurich.

In 1964, he joined the National Film Board of Canada. He first worked in animation, making cartoons. Later, he started directing educational films. These were films made to teach people things. He made films for a math series and a psychological study called Vertige.

His first feature film, Stop, came out in 1971. While he made some bold movies, he was known for his calm storytelling. His films often had very careful and beautiful visuals.

His 1977 film, J.A. Martin, photographe, is considered one of the best Canadian films ever made. After this film, Beaudin worked mostly in Quebec. He directed films like Cordélia and Mario. He also directed the film version of the play Being at Home with Claude. He was also known for the very popular TV series, Les Filles de Caleb.

Jean Beaudin's Filmography

Jean Beaudin worked on many different projects. Here are some of the films and TV shows he directed or helped create.

Feature and Short Films

• Stop (1971)
• Le diable est parmi nous (1972)
• Les indrogables (Short film, 1972)
• Trois fois passera (Short film, 1973)
• Par une belle nuit d'hiver (Short film, 1974)
• Cher Théo (Short film, 1975)
• J.A. Martin Photographer (J.A. Martin, photographe) (1977)
• Cordélia (1979)
• Mario (1984)
• The Alley Cat (Le Matou) (1985)
• La bioéthique: une question de choix - L'homme à la traîne (Short film, 1986)
• Being at Home with Claude (1992)
• Memories Unlocked (Souvenirs intimes) (1998)
• The Collector (Le Collectionneur) (2002)
• Battle of the Brave (Nouvelle-France) (2004)
• Without Her (Sans elle) (2006)

Other Projects

• Géométrie (Documentary series, 1966)
• Mathématiques (Documentary series, 1967)
• Vertige (Documentary short, 1969)
• Et pourquoi pas? (Documentary short, 1969)
• Games of the XXI Olympiad (Jeux de la XXIe olympiade) (Documentary Co-Directed with Marcel Carrière, Georges Dufaux, and Jean-Claude Labrecque, 1977)
• Une journée dans les parcs nationaux (Documentary short, 1979)
• Mount-Royal (TV series, 1987)
• L'or et le papier (TV series, 1989)
• Les filles de Caleb (TV series, 1990–1991)
• Shehaweh (TV mini-series, 1992)
• Les minutes du patrimoine (TV series, 1993)
• Craque la vie! (TV movie, 1994)
• Miséricorde (TV mini-series, 1994)
• Ces enfants d'ailleurs (TV mini-series, 1997)
• The Hunger (TV series, 1998)
• Big Wolf on Campus (TV series, 2000)
• Willie (TV mini-series, 2000)