Celebrate the life and career of screenwriter-director Denys Arcand – one of Quebec’s and Canada’s most internationally acclaimed filmmakers – with this Official First Day Cover.

About the issue

Denys Arcand, the celebrated Canadian filmmaker, is honoured with this special stamp release. Arcand has written and directed over two dozen films, TV shows, and documentaries. Known for his intellectual curiosity and passion for art, politics, and life, Arcand's movies have made a profound mark on the Canadian entertainment industry. This stamp pays tribute to his influence and achievements.

The cancel location for this issue is Deschambault, Quebec, where Arcand spent his childhood.

About Denys Arcand

Denys Arcand was born on June 25, 1941, in Québec and raised in Deschambault, Quebec. Exposed to the arts from an early age, he was educated at a Jesuit school and studied history at the Université de Montréal, where he wrote for the magazine Parti pris. Arcand's passion for film and theatre led him to co-write and co-direct his first film, Seul ou avec d'autres (1962), while attending university.

Joining the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) in 1963, Arcand worked as a documentary maker until 1965 and later pursued a freelance career until 1982. He initially focused on short documentaries, exploring cultural, religious, and historical themes. His feature-length documentary, On est au coton(1970), focused on Quebec's textile industry and was released after a six-year delay due to its controversial nature. Québec : Duplessis et après… (1972), his second feature-length film, examined Quebec premier Maurice Duplessis and rising nationalism.

Transitioning to fiction films, Arcand directed works such as La maudite galette (1972), Réjeanne Padovani (1973), and Gina (1975), each of which offered distinctive views of Quebec society. He also ventured into television, writing for Radio-Canada's mini-series Duplessis (1978) and directing episodes of Empire, Inc. (1983).

Arcand's films received numerous awards. Both Le déclin de l'empire américain (1986) and Jésus de Montréal (1989) won multiple Genie Awards, as well as the Golden Reel Award – the former taking home the International Film Critics Award at the Festival de Cannes and the latter, the festival’s Prix du Jury.

Les invasions barbares (2003), a sequel to Le déclin de l'empire américain, won Best Foreign Language Film at the Academy Awards (the first for Quebec and Canada), and numerous other international accolades, including Cannes, Genie and César awards.

Arcand also directed the English-language films Love and Human Remains (1993) and Stardom (2000). His most recent works include the comedic thriller La chute de l’empire américain (2018) and Testament, which is scheduled for release in 2023.

Denys Arcand has received many awards and accolades over his career, including the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award for Lifetime Artistic Achievement (Film). He has been inducted into the Order of Canada, Canada’s Walk of Fame, the Ordre national du Québec, the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres du Québec, and the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, France.

About the design

The Official First Day Cover features the Denys Arcand stamp and a cancel mark of a director’s chair, set against a black-and-white photographic portrait of him. On the back is a photo at him holding two statuettes at the Genie Awards in 1990.

Product # 414228131

Denys Arcand: Official First Day Cover