Simon Lavoie

{{Short description|Canadian film director and screenwriter}}

Simon Lavoie (born May 15, 1979) is a Canadian film director and screenwriter from Quebec.[http://www.lapresse.ca/cinema/nouvelles/entrevues/201207/17/01-4552654-simon-lavoie-sur-les-traces-dun-deserteur.php "Simon Lavoie sur les traces d'un déserteur"]. La Presse, October 21, 2008. He is best known as codirector with Mathieu Denis of Those Who Make Revolution Halfway Only Dig Their Own Graves (Ceux qui font les révolutions à moitié n'ont fait que se creuser un tombeau), which won the award for Best Canadian Film at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival[http://www.ew.com/article/2016/09/18/2016-TIFF-Peoples-Choice-winner "TIFF People's Choice Award cements La La Land's place in Oscar race"]. Entertainment Weekly, September 18, 2016. and garnered several Canadian Screen Award nominations at the 5th Canadian Screen Awards in 2017, including for Best Picture and Best Director.[https://nowtoronto.com/movies/features/canadian-screen-awards-nominations-are-out/ "The Canadian Screen Awards nominations are out!"]. Now, January 17, 2017.

He made a number of short films — including The White Chapel (Une chapelle blanche), which won the Prix Jutra for Best Short Film in 2006 — before making his feature film debut in 2008 with The Deserter (Le Déserteur).[http://www.filmsquebec.com/films/deserteur-simon-lavoie/ "Déserteur, Le – Film de Simon Lavoie"]. Films du Québec, January 7, 2009. He first collaborated with Denis on the 2011 film Laurentia (Laurentie),[https://voir.ca/lea-clermont-dion/2012/11/27/laurentie-lindicible-malaise/ "Laurentie: l’indicible malaise"]. Voir, November 27, 2012. and followed up with The Torrent (Le Torrent) in 2012.[https://www.ledevoir.com/culture/cinema/361803/la-ferveur-d-un-torrent "La ferveur d’un Torrent"]. Le Devoir, October 20, 2012.

His next project, The Little Girl Who Was Too Fond of Matches (La petite fille qui aimait trop les allumettes), a film adaptation of Gaétan Soucy's novel of the same name, premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2017.{{cite web |url=http://beta.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/1049511/tiff-premiere-mondiale-film-la-petite-fille-qui-aimait-trop-les-allumettes-gaetan-soucy |date=9 August 2017 |title=La petite fille qui aimait trop les allumettes présenté en première mondiale au TIFF |publisher=Ici Radio-Canada}} It received an honorable mention for Best Canadian Film,{{cite web |url=https://nowtoronto.com/movies/tiff2017/tiff-2017-and-the-winners-are/ |accessdate=17 September 2017 |title=TIFF 2017: And The Winners Are ... |date=17 September 2017 |last=Wilner |first=Norman |work=Now}} and received a nomination for Best Motion Picture at the 2018 Canadian Screen Awards.Nick Patch, [https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/television/2018/03/08/are-the-canadian-screen-awards-too-canadian.html "Are the Canadian Screen Awards too Canadian?"]. Toronto Star, March 8, 2018.

His next film, No Trace (Nulle trace), premiered in 2021.André Duchesne, [https://www.lapresse.ca/cinema/2020-11-30/nulle-trace-de-simon-lavoie-ouvrira-le-festival-slamdance.php "Nulle trace de Simon Lavoie ouvrira le festival Slamdance"]. La Presse, November 30, 2020. He also wrote the screenplay for the 2022 film Norbourg, directed by Maxime Giroux.Élizabeth Lepage-Boily, [https://showbizz.net/cinema/vincent-guillaume-otis-brille-dans-la-nouvelle-bande-annonce-de-norbourg "Vincent-Guillaume Otis brille dans la nouvelle bande-annonce de Norbourg"]. Showbizz, December 14, 2021.

His most recent film, Dissolution (Se fondre), premiered at the 2024 Rendez-vous Québec Cinéma.Luc Boulanger, [https://www.lapresse.ca/cinema/2024-02-01/rendez-vous-quebec-cinema/plus-de-200-films-pour-la-42e-edition.php "Plus de 200 films pour la 42e édition"]. La Presse, February 1, 2024.