Martin Villeneuve
Quebec
Cirque du Soleil alumnus and TED speaker Martin Villeneuve is a Montreal-based screenwriter, director, showrunner, actor, and producer. With a strong background in advertising, he has directed numerous commercials for Cirque du Soleil, in addition to music videos, short films, and series. His feature film debut, the pioneering sci-fi romance “Mars & Avril,” starred Caroline Dhavernas (Hannibal) and internationally renowned stage director Robert Lepage. Remarkably, the film was produced on a budget of only $2.3 million CAD. “Mars & Avril” received 10 nominations, including one for Best Adapted Screenplay at the Canadian Screen Awards, and was showcased in over 20 festivals worldwide, starting with its World Premiere in Karlovy Vary. io9 described it as “one of the most beautiful, and immersive, sci-fi worlds ever put on film.” Villeneuve’s success with “Mars & Avril” led to his TED Talk, making him the first (and so far, the only) speaker from Quebec, and the third filmmaker to give a TED Talk after James Cameron and J.J. Abrams. His talk has been subtitled in 33 languages and viewed over a million times. In 2015, Villeneuve won an award for his performance in his short comedy film “Imelda,” in which he portrays his own grandmother. His second feature film, the dramedy “The 12 Tasks of Imelda,” featuring Robert Lepage, Ginette Reno, Michel Barrette, Anne-Marie Cadieux, and himself as Imelda, premiered at the QCFF and was released in Quebec theaters on October 28, 2022. The film also screened at the 2022 Whistler Film Festival, where it won the award for Best Editing in a Borsos Competition film. In 2023, Villeneuve received the Best Actor award at Dieppe’s Canadian Film Festival, in France, and the Best Director award at the Canada China International Film Festival. In 2023, Villeneuve served as showrunner, co-writer, and director of “Red Ketchup,” a dark comedy based on Quebec’s cult graphic novels. Produced by Sphere Animation, this 20-episode animated series aired on Adult Swim in English. He also voiced the character of Bill Bélisle in the French version of the show, which held the top spot on Télétoon la nuit during its broadcast. In 2026, Villeneuve directed and edited “Old Crow,” a 51-minute “docu-sical” about Quebec cultural icon Louise Forestier, which premiered in Official Competition at the Rhode Island International Film Festival before its Quebec premiere at Montreal’s CINEMANIA. He also completed his third feature, “Imelda Strikes Back,” which he wrote, directed and produced, once again portraying his grandmother Imelda alongside Benoît Brière, Robert Lepage, Michel Barrette, Anne-Marie Cadieux, Martin Dubreuil and Louise Forestier. Villeneuve is represented by The Characters Talent Agency.
Carl Liberman, The Characters Talent Agency: carl@thecharacters.com
Awards
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Vieille Corneille
Dates: 2026
Link: IMDB
Roles: Director, Cinematographer, Editor
Type: Indie Feature
Genre: Documentary
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Red Ketchup
Episodes: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20
Link: IMDB
Roles: Director, Writer, Showrunner
Studio / Network: Sphere Animation
Type: Half-hour episodic (TV/SVOD)
Genre: Animation, Action, Adventure
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Les 12 travaux d’Imelda
Link: IMDB
Roles: Director, Writer, Producer, Actor
Type: Indie Feature
Genre: Comedy, Drama
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Mars et Avril
Link: IMDB
Roles: Director, Writer, Producer
Type: Indie Feature
Genre: Drama, Sci-Fi, Fantasy
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