André Brassard

Directing

André Brassard

Born 1946-08-28 · Montréal, Québec, Canada

André Brassard was a Canadian stage director, filmmaker and actor, best known for staging the vast majority of Michel Tremblay's plays. He was the director of the French section of the National Arts Center from 1982 to 1989 and the National Theatre School from 1992 to 2000.

Acting credits

Cap Tourmente poster
5.2

Alex has a deeply troubled mind. He also has a seriously dysfunctional - not to say incestuous - family. Why then, has he returned from his merchant seaman job to the rocky coasts of his home? Perhaps he couldn't cut manage to march in his father's footsteps in that job. His mother doesn't seem to mind, and lets him stay at her bed and breakfast hotel. His sister still seems to have the hots for him, just as she does for his (and her) old boyfriend Jean-Louis, who has just shown up. Even his mother seems to find him sexy. All these people appear eager to get their hands on his body, but he's too wrapped up in what's going on inside his head to notice.

Cap Tourmente

1993

2 Seconds poster
4.9

Laurie, a professional downhill racer gets fired because of her slight overindulgence in irresponsibility. She returns to Montreal where she is welcomed by her geeky but cute brother. She meets Lorenzo, a cranky, ex-racer who owns a bike shop. The two become friends. Laurie gets a job with a local bicycle courier company, but a member of the group is intent on shutting her out of their circles, making her life difficult and sad. After a bonding truth-revealing discussion between Laurie and Lorenzo, Laurie begins to see what she has to do to make things better for herself.

2 Seconds

1998

Le territoire du comédien poster
10.0

This feature-length documentary follows actor Jean-Louis Millette as he travels to Italy to present the play The Dragonfly of Chicoutimi, in which he plays the lead role. Director Jean-Claude Coulbois attempts to unravel the mystery of this protected, hard-to-reach area, which he calls the "actor's territory," where life and theater intertwine and interact.

Le territoire du comédien

2000

Games of the Heart poster
8.0

A woman in love with a musician has a change of heart on her 18th birthday.

Games of the Heart

2001

The Saracen Woman poster
7.1

Montreal, 1904. Giuseppe and Ninetta own a boarding house where they welcome their fellow Sicilians. One day, as he comes to the defence of one of his boarders, Giuseppe accidentally kills Theo, his French Canadian best friend’s son-in-law. This drama depicts the tensions between people from different ethnic backgrounds and their life-changing impact. Based on a true story, 'The Saracen Woman' paints a portrait of Italian immigration to Quebec and the affinities and conflicts that arose from the clash of two different cultures.

The Saracen Woman

1992

La naissance d'une messe poster
NR

Making of documentary filmed over months of rehearsal and experimentation between director André Brassard and the cast to flesh out Michel Tremblay's "Messe solennelle pour une pleine lune d’été".

La naissance d'une messe

2002

Backyard Theatre poster
7.0

Backyard Theatre is a documentary about playwright Michel Tremblay and director André Brassard’s flavourful brand of Quebec theatre, which captured the earthy wit and joual (slang) of Montreal's East End working-class neighbourhood. The film features impromptu improvisation by the cast of Les belles-soeurs and Demain matin, Montréal m'attend, two genre-defining plays.

Backyard Theatre

1973

No artwork available
NR

“Fiction is a letter that I’m writing to myself to make sense of the world.” These are the words of Michel Tremblay and the opening of this delicate and touching documentary that explores the creative mind behind Les Belles Soeurs. From Glasgow to Tokyo, from Key West to Montreal, In the Hands of Michel Tremblay sensitively paints the portrait of a singular career.

In the Hands of Michel Tremblay

Behind the camera

Sainte Carmen de la Main poster
NR

A TV film staging of Michel Tremblay's play "Sainte Carmen de la Main" by André Brassard.

Sainte Carmen de la Main

1990

Once Upon a Time in the East poster
5.3

Two women and a transvestite gay man cross paths in this French Canadian drama. The transvestite is preparing for a drag-queen beauty pageant, and has decided to present himself as Cleopatra. Of the two women, one was just fired from her waitressing job and seeks to go back to work at the nightclub where the beauty pageant is to be held. The other woman's mother has just won one million food stamps.

Once Upon a Time in the East

1974

Once Upon a Time in the East poster
5.3

Two women and a transvestite gay man cross paths in this French Canadian drama. The transvestite is preparing for a drag-queen beauty pageant, and has decided to present himself as Cleopatra. Of the two women, one was just fired from her waitressing job and seeks to go back to work at the nightclub where the beauty pageant is to be held. The other woman's mother has just won one million food stamps.

Once Upon a Time in the East

1974

The Late Blossom poster
8.0

30-year-old Quebec City native Gisèle lives a quiet life as a secretary without happiness with her parents and siblings. One day, tired of being teased by her office mates, she decides to consult a marriage agency to find her soul mate.

The Late Blossom

1977

The Late Blossom poster
8.0

30-year-old Quebec City native Gisèle lives a quiet life as a secretary without happiness with her parents and siblings. One day, tired of being teased by her office mates, she decides to consult a marriage agency to find her soul mate.

The Late Blossom

1977

Françoise Durocher, waitress poster
6.3

Fictional character played by 24 different actresses, Françoise Durocher is altogether small time waitress, hostess and barmaid. Together, according to the author, they represent the archetypical Québec waitress that everyday waits on us with a smile, despite whatever problems she faces in her personal life. First cinematographic experience of the Brassard-Tremblay tandem, this film full of ironic joy details all the nuances of the waitress living conditions.

Françoise Durocher, waitress

1972

Françoise Durocher, waitress poster
6.3

Fictional character played by 24 different actresses, Françoise Durocher is altogether small time waitress, hostess and barmaid. Together, according to the author, they represent the archetypical Québec waitress that everyday waits on us with a smile, despite whatever problems she faces in her personal life. First cinematographic experience of the Brassard-Tremblay tandem, this film full of ironic joy details all the nuances of the waitress living conditions.

Françoise Durocher, waitress

1972