Pierre Des Marais and Pierre Fortier win the 2018 Cultural Management Award

Pierre Des Marais, winner of the 2018 Cultural Management Award

Pierre Des Marais

Pierre Des Marais was chosen by the jury for “his lengthy career wholly devoted to creating and performing contemporary dance. Thanks to his ability to manage teams and build partnerships, he has supported the growth of some of the most innovative dance companies in Quebec and all of Canada. As the head of Danse Danse for nearly 20 years, he has developed a market that now reaches 45,000 people every year, making Montréal a vital hub of international contemporary dance.”

A fruitful career

• He began his career as a dancer with the Anna Wyman Dance Theatre company in Vancouver, from 1970 to 1981, before becoming its Tour Director from 1981 to 1987.
• In 1987, he became Executive Director of the Karen Jamieson Dance Company, also in Vancouver.
• He returned to Montréal in 1990, as Executive Producer of La La La Human Steps, and guided the creation of Édouard Lock’s famous piece, Human Sex.
• From 1992 to 1995, he was Executive Director of the Fondation Jean-Pierre Perreault.
• Along with his management work, from 1992 to 1996 he served as Associate Producer for three editions of the Dance Canada Festival in Ottawa.
• From 1996 to 2000, he headed up the Compagnie Marie Chouinard in Montréal. His most notable accomplishment during this time was in 1998, when he and Clothilde Cardinal cofounded Les Productions LOMA, the organization that produced the Danse Danse series.
• In 2000, he devoted himself full-time to Danse Danse, serving as its Executive Co-Director and Artistic Co-Director for 15 years.
• Since 2015, he has been the Executive Director and Artistic Co-Director of Danse Danse, the leading contemporary dance company in Canada.

Pierre Fortier, winner of the 2018 Cultural Management Award

Pierre Fortier

In presenting the Cultural Management Award to Pierre Fortier, the jury praised “his exceptional commitment to promoting song in Quebec and throughout French Canada. Drawing on his experience as a communicator and producer, his knowledge of the media and his ability to rally a whole artistic and regional community, he succeeded, in the midst of the transition to digital, in propelling the Festival international de la chanson de Granby to new heights.”

An exemplary career

• In 1989, after earning his Bachelor’s in Communication from UQAM, Pierre Fortier launched his career by creating Les Productions Girafe, an agency for Acadian musicians.
• In 1999, he co-ordinated the cultural portion of the Sommet de la Francophonie in Moncton.
• In 2000, he became Executive Director of Coup de cœur francophone and Artistic Director and Director of International Development for Diffusion YFB.
• In 2003, the Radio-Canada radio network put him in charge of developing song, worldbeat music and jazz.
• In 2007, he became the Executive Director and Artistic Director of the Festival international de la chanson de Granby. Since then attendance at the Festival has rocketed from 4,000 to 55,000, while the number of employees has tripled and private and public investment has increased tenfold. Thanks to major media partnerships and innovative initiatives, he has boosted the event’s profile in Quebec, across Canada and in Europe.
• In 2015, he was made a member of the Ordre des francophones d’Amérique.