Still from Guilda Elle Est Bien Dans Ma Peau
Julien Cadieux's documentary Guilda: Elle est bien dans ma peau is a profile of Montreal drag queen Jean Guilda. The closing film of Image + Nation film festival. Credit: Image + Nation.
 

Guilda: Elle est bien dans ma peau

by Julien Cadieux
The story of Guilda, the timeless beauty of the golden age of Montreal cabaret culture
2014  ·  52m  ·  Canada
French
English subs
About the Film
There doesn’t seem to be enough epithets to describe Jean Guilda: comedian, singer, costume and make-up innovator, transvestite extraordinaire. It seems the best one, however, is the simplest: artist. Elegantly talented and altogether groundbreaking, Guilda – his stage name recalling his real last name, as well as Rita Hayworth’s portrayal of Gilda, that indomitable mame – graced theatrical stages and television screens from France to Québec for decades. Having established himself in Montréal in 1955 where he remained until his death in 2012, he helped introduce Québec to the fabulous world of female impersonation, approaching his craft with dignity and a pioneering spirit. More than just a celebration of this irreplaceable artist, Guilda the film pays homage to the once thriving swirl of cabarets and is a love letter to Montreal and parenthood, a tribute to the majesty of fleet-footed time, and a reminder of the impact of being oneself. A documentary both affecting and triumphant, Guilda traces one spectacular life through the people and places that touched and transformed Guilda so that Guilda could transform and touch us.
Upcoming Screenings

Stay tuned for upcoming screenings!

In the Press
Review
Montreal Rampage
Sound Recorder
Georges Hannah and Marcel Fraser
Soundtrack Composer
Claude Fournier
Production Company
Phare-Est Média Inc.
Director of Photography
Rénald Bellemare

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