Marie Valade and Dominique Côté take over for founder Érik Goulet, who joins the board of directors along with eight other new appointees.
Festival Stop Motion Montreal has announced the appointment of Marie Valade (former festival coordinator) and Dominique Côté (former programmer) as the new co-directors of the event. Taking the reins from Érik Goulet, they are preparing for the festival’s 11th edition coming up September 16 -22.
Goulet, festival founder and director, has spent 10 years developing, promoting and sharing his passion for stop-motion. He recently announced that he would be passing the torch to his longtime collaborators as he pursues new professional challenges.
“The event has grown, and it remains the first of its kind dedicated to stop-motion animation in the world,” Goulet remarked. Referring to the new co-directors he added, “They are the perfect fit to pursue our mission and bring new ideas and a fresh look to our beloved event.”
Initially a volunteer and then coordinator, Valade is an independent animation filmmaker. She collaborates in the creation of cultural mediation projects, short films, music videos and feature films. Thanks to Les Films de l’Autre, she is currently producing and directing a short film supported by SODEC and CALQ.
Côté, has spent 5 years as a member of the festival team while also collaborating on design and manufacture of puppets and accessories for stop-motion projects, including several National Film Board of Canada (NFB) productions. Since 2017, she has been assistant animator and composer at the TONIC DNA advertising studio.
(From L-R) Érik Goulet, Marie Valade and Dominique Côté
New Board of Directors
The festival also announced a new board of directors: Luc Chamberland (president), Erik Goulet and Marie Valade (vice presidents), Yves Meunier (secretary), Brenda Lopez Zepeda (treasurer), and Dominique Côté, Hugo Bossaert, Shanna Segal and Sophie Roy (administrators).
New 2019 theme: Stop-motion in the digital age
The 2019 edition’s official poster highlights past and present stop-motion techniques. The poster includes an arcade, a controller, and 8-bit graphics to illustrate the video game section of the festival, while the virtual reality headset is a nod to the VR section. The camera, loyal partner of the stop-motion filmmaker, honors the stop-motion animation process, as the main section of the festival remains the film screenings.
The full lineup of the 11th Festival Stop Motion Montreal will be announced on August 28. Additional information is available at the festival website.
Source: Festival Stop Motion Montreal
