In the first minutes of the gala, Pierre-Yves Lord spoke about his mental state over the past few days: “I was stressed, I was nervous, I didn’t eat anymore, I didn’t sleep anymore. The night I managed to sleep, I dreamed that I had insomnia! » said the host jokingly. Nervousness did not appear at all as the curtain rose on Sunday at the Gala des 38are Gémeaux prizes, which presented non-gendered categories for the first time.
Having the difficult task of succeeding Véronique Cloutier, who has been at the helm of the evening nine times since 2008, “PY” was entitled to words of encouragement from Véro at the very end of a special edition of the emission Back to culture, which preceded the gala. A long musical number followed where the host, installed on the decks, made the Maisonneuve theater at Place des Arts dance.
The fight promised to be fierce between The night Laurier Gaudreault woke up And Before the crash for the title of best drama series. If the first received plenty of awards, it was the latter who won the top honors. With 10 nominations, the series on the world of finance won just one prize, the most prestigious.
However, the harvest was good for Laurier Gaudreault, which won 6 awards out of 12 nominations. Actors Patrick Hivon (best leading role) and Anne Dorval (best supporting role) were crowned for their performance in a drama series. The work also stood out at the Industry Gala, last Thursday, and at the Opening Gala, Sunday afternoon, where Xavier Dolan was crowned best director for a drama series.
The success of Laurier Gaudreault, for which Xavier Dolan wrote the texts and direction, will it encourage its creator to continue his journey on the small screen? He was open to this possibility last July, when he said he no longer wanted to make films. We bet that this great performance will feed his thoughts.
Speaking to Xavier Dolan when picking up her prize, Anne Dorval gave a moving speech: “In the first episode of Laurier Gaudreault, you aged me by 20 years, you made me die. But in the same episode, you resurrected me […] Every time I’m on the edge, I feel like you’re resurrecting me a little. »
As for daily drama series, Indefensible, favorite of the evening with 14 nominations, had to settle for the prize – but not the least – for “daily drama series”. Charles Lafortune took the opportunity to deliver a plea for Quebec television by accepting the prize.
Despite nominations half as numerous asIndefensibleher rival STAT had a happier hand, leaving with the titles of best leading role for Suzanne Clément, best supporting role for Geneviève Schmidt and best text for Marie-Andrée Labbé. Earlier in the afternoon, Danièle Méthot was crowned best director for a daily drama series.
Completely high school was crowned best comedy or dramatic comedy. Simon Boulerice was rewarded for his texts (drama series) with Pet, and the title of best annual drama series went to Alerts.
Gender neutral interpretation
The Quebec section of the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television announced last December that the acting categories would now be non-gendered. The Academy had justified its choice by a concern for inclusiveness, but also to energize the gala by making it shorter.
This decision is not unanimous, with some people rejoicing that non-binary artists no longer have to choose a gendered category, while others fear that this will advantage male candidates. Similar experiences at the Grammy and Juno awards have also brought their fair share of criticism, with male nominations and winners often outnumbering their female counterparts.
The pruning work done is obvious: this year there are several dozen fewer categories than in the previous edition. From now on, eight finalists instead of five are competing for the acting trophies. All eyes were on the first winners who would win in their respective categories.
It was Jade Charbonneau who broke the ice in the afternoon, at the Opening Gala, by winning best leading role (youth) for Lou and Sophiea youth show which stood out with 8 nominations.
At the main gala, at the opening, Pierre-Yves Lord called on “the guys” and “the girls” to make as much noise as possible, before being called to order: “It’s way too gendered for Gemini!” » he was warned. A wink that set the table for the five women who left with trophies in the six performance categories.
For their first roles, we find in particular Catherine Trudeau for The perfect moments (annual drama series) and Christine Beaulieu for The eye of the storm (comedy or dramatic comedy). On stage, the latter wanted to deliver a message to mothers: “We hope, the whole team, that The eye of the storm lightens you a little, helps you and makes you aware of the value of your role as a mother, much more determining and crucial than any role presented this evening. »
In animation, the results are equal: Jean-Philippe Dion (show or series: interviews or talk show), France Beaudoin (special program or series: variety or performing arts), Katherine Levac (humor) and Mathieu Pichette (youth).
Called to vote for their favorite series, viewers awarded the audience prize to Discussions with my parents. “This is the first prize that this show has won in six years,” underlined François Morency as he went to collect his trophy. “That it is the public prize is, in my opinion, anything but a coincidence […] You are the one and final jury. »
List of winners of the 38th Gémeaux awards
What to remember from the Opening Gala?
Overview of the Industry Gala
Will the success of Laurier Gaudreault, written and directed by Xavier Dolan, encourage its creator to continue his career on the small screen?