Vents MagaZine Music and Entertainment Magazine
Related Articles
They say that one of the true measures of a man can be found in the work that they leave behind. If that’s true, then director Jean-Marc Vallee was indeed a truly great man. In work that was wide and diverse, the Emmy-winning director of such TV and film projects as Big Little Lies, Dallas Buyers Club and Wild touched upon the zeitgeist which is our 21st Century Life and Times with such a deft touch that his work felt closer to stolen real-life moments than to fictional film narratives.
The Montreal, Quebec native was found dead this weekend in his cabin not too far from where he began his journey in life, confirmed Nathan Ross, his longtime agent to The Hollywood Reporter. No cause of death was immediately given for the auteur; he was 58 years old.
In a statement eulogizing Vallee, Ross said that the director and producer “stood for creativity, authenticity, and trying things differently. He was a true artist and a generous, loving guy. Everyone who worked with him couldn’t help but see the talent and vision he possessed. He was a friend, creative partner and an older brother to me. The maestro will sorely be missed but it comforts knowing his beautiful style and impactful work he shared with the world will live on.”
Vallee hit the ground running with his very first feature, the delightfully eerie 1995 film Black List and garnered a ton of momentum – and industry respect and plaudits – off of that freshman at-bat project. Ten years after that splash into the entertainment world, the visionary was at it again with his coming-of-age film C.R.A.Z.Y. which scored eleven Genie Awards, one of the most prestigious recognitions in film to ever come down the pike.
Of course, it was with projects like the Oscar-winning Dallas Buyers Club and Wild where Vallee really got mainstream recognition, and an entirely new chapter opened up for him after that successful one-two punch.
The HBO series Big Little Lies was another success for the erstwhile director and it nabbed him an Emmy and a DGA Award for his craftsman-like direction of industry stars Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon and Laura Dern.
“Jean-Marc Vallee was a brilliant, fiercely dedicated filmmaker, a truly phenomenal talent who infused every scene with a deeply visceral, emotional truth,” HBO said in a statement. “He was also a hugely caring man who invested his whole self alongside every actor he directed.”
Jean-Marc Vallee is survived by his two sons Alex and Emile. Vents sends its condolences to the Vallee family and his many friends and admirers; he will be missed.
