Telefilm Canada welcomes two new members to its executive leadership team

October 29, 2019 – Telefilm Canada is pleased to announce that René Bourdages has been named Senior Director, Cultural Portfolio Management and Marie-Claude Lavigne has been named Director, Government & Public Affairs. Mr. Bourdages will join the organization as of December 2, 2019 and will be based in Montreal and Toronto. Ms. Lavigne’s first day is November 12, 2019, and she will be based in Montreal and Ottawa.

Mr. Bourdages comes to Telefilm from the National Film Board, where he served as the Director General, Creation and Innovation since 2016. In the course of his 30-year career, he has occupied highly strategic roles in major private and public media groups, including TVA/Quebecor, Astral Media, and CBC/Radio-Canada. In 2012, he founded ELEVADO Media, a consulting firm advising fund managers and production companies regarding their investments in development, funding and strategic planning in the U.S. and Canada.

In this newly created role, Mr. Bourdages will oversee the organization’s core activities, including Project Financing, Business Affairs and Coproduction, and the Canada Media Fund Program Administration, to better meet clients’ needs and to align decision-making and priorities between Telefilm’s core teams.

Ms. Lavigne comes to Telefilm with 20 years’ experience in strategy, public affairs, and government relations. Having worked with both the federal and provincial levels, she has gained in-depth knowledge of the structures and players within government. Over the course of her career, she was notably vice president of several public relations agencies, including Citoyen Optimum and Cohn & Wolfe, and has worked in various sectors, such as finance, economic development, as well as the cultural milieu.

After a rigorous recruitment process, the organization’s executive leadership team is now complete under a new structure. In addition to the two roles above, the executive team also includes:

• Francesca Accinelli, Director, Promotion and Communications, responsible for the organization’s communications and promotional initiatives worldwide;
• E.J. Alon, Director, Talent Fund, responsible for the daily operations and long-term fundraising activities of Telefilm’s private-donor fund;
• Patrick Bédard, Director of Finance and Interim Director, Administration and Corporate Services, who oversees the organization’s Finance and Information, Performance and Risk sectors;
• Stéphane Odesse, Director, Legal Services and Access to Information, and Corporate Secretary; and
• Stella Riggi, Director of Human Resources.