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Alexandre Trudeau | |
|---|---|
| Born | Alexandre Emmanuel Trudeau (1973-12-25)December 25, 1973 (age 51) |
| Other names | Sacha |
| Alma mater | McGill University |
| Occupation(s) | Filmmaker,journalist,author |
| Spouse | Zoë Bedos |
| Children | 3 |
| Parent(s) | Pierre Trudeau(father) Margaret Trudeau(mother) |
| Family | Trudeau |
Alexandre Emmanuel Trudeau (born December 25, 1973) is aCanadian filmmaker, journalist and author ofBarbarian Lost.[1] He is the second son of Canada's formerprime minister,Pierre Trudeau, andMargaret Trudeau, and the younger brother of Canada's former prime minister,Justin Trudeau.
Alexandre Trudeau is the second son Pierre Trudeau and Margaret Trudeau, exactly two years younger than older brotherJustin. The family was attending the 1973 Christmasmidnight mass at Mount Carmel Roman Catholic Church when Margaret Trudeau went into labour and was rushed toThe Ottawa Hospital.[2] His mother struggled with severepostpartum depression after his birth, and was later diagnosed withbipolar disorder.[3] He was given the nickname "Sacha" (the French spelling of the Russian diminutive for Alexander) in recognition of his father's love of Russian literature and culture; the name also is linked to former ambassador of theUSSR to Canada and Trudeau family friendAlexander Yakovlev.[4] Alexandre Trudeau's younger brother,Michel, was born in 1975.[5] All three of Pierre and Margaret Trudeau's children became media sensations from birth.[citation needed]
When talking about her sons each having distinctly different personalities, in an interview in 1977, Margaret Trudeau said, "Justin, 6, is a prince – a very good little boy. Sacha, born Christmas Day, 1973, is a bit of a revolutionary, very determined and strong willed. Miche (Michel) is a happy, well-adjusted child, who combined the best traits of both brothers."[6]
His parents announced they would separate in 1977. His mother, unbeknownst to the public, then lived in an attic suite within the Prime Minister's official residence at24 Sussex Drive in Ottawa for the next three years, so as to make the adjustment easier on the children. After the divorce was finalized on April 2, 1984, he and his brothers attended the civil ceremony in which Margaret Trudeau remarried to Ottawa real estate developer Fried Kemper on April 18, 1984. A half-brother, Kyle Kemper (born 1984), and a half-sister, Alicia Kemper (born 1988), soon followed.[3] Pierre and Margaret Trudeau tried as much as possible to protect their children from the public eye, and following Pierre Trudeau's retirement as prime minister in 1984, he raised them in relative privacy inMontreal.[citation needed] Alexandre Trudeau gained another half-sister, Sarah Coyne (born 1991), from his father's relationship with Canadian politicianDeborah Coyne.[7]
Like his father and brothers, Alexandre Trudeau studied atCollège Jean-de-Brébeuf.[8] He graduated with a B.A. in philosophy and a Masters in architecture fromMcGill University.[9] While attending McGill, he joined theCanadian Forces as a Reserve Entry Scheme Officer withRoyal Canadian Hussars reserve regiment in 1996.[1] He trained atCFB Gagetown,New Brunswick and was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant, but released voluntarily before completing his training as anarmoured officer.[citation needed] Following graduation, he traveled toWest Africa to produce his first documentary:Liberia, the Secret War (1998).[10] In the same year in which the documentary was made, his brother Michel died in an avalanche that pushed him intoBritish Columbia'sKokanee Lake, where he drowned.[11]
WhenPierre Trudeau died in 2000, both his surviving sons returned to the public eye. Although Alexandre Trudeau was visibly more reserved and quieter than his brother, his heightened public profile brought new attention[12] to his work as a journalist. After Pierre Trudeau's death, Alexandre continued to live in his father's Art Deco home (Cormier House) in Montreal.[13]
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In the years following his father's death, Trudeau produced documentaries for Canadian television. In 2003, he was one of the highest-profile Canadian journalists covering the2003 invasion of Iraq, producing a documentary film for theCTV programW5,Embedded In Baghdad. His 2004 film,The Fence, shot in Afula, Israel and Jenin of the Palestinian territories draws up a portrait of families on either side of the Israeli-built security barrier around the West bank.[14]
In June 2005, Trudeau focused attention on what he said were the implications forcivil liberties in the Canadian government's use ofsecurity certificates to detain indefinitely, without trial, suspected terrorists based on secret evidence. Trudeau offered to be asurety forHassan Almrei, aSyrian refugee held in a Canadian jail for four years without any charges being laid.[15] His appearance in court in support of Almrei resulted in front-page coverage in theToronto Star andNational Post and major media attention being given to the security certificate issue for the first time. Trudeau's efforts were chronicled in his documentarySecure Freedom. Almrei was ordered released under house arrest by a Federal Court judge on January 2, 2009. On December 14, 2009, Almrei was released.
Known for his staunchly anti-imperialist views, Trudeau attracted controversy in August 2006 for an article he penned praisingFidel Castro's Cuba.[16] Trudeau's documentaryRefuge, produced in 2008, tells the story of the humanitarian crisis facing Africa'sDarfur region and easternChad.[17] In 2012, he produced the filmThe New Great Game, for theCanadian Broadcasting Corporation about the maritimegeopolitics of the Middle-East and Western Indian Ocean.[18]
In 2016, Trudeau published his first book with Harper Collins,Barbarian Lost, Travels in the New China, a number one Canadian best-seller. The book is a travel mémoire with an undercurrent of philosophical and historical reflection. It paints a personal and nuanced portrait of an ancient country in the throes of massive change. About the book, Trudeau is quoted as saying: "My whole professional career has had a focus on geopolitics, and in this age, you cannot understand the world without understanding the massive role that China has grown to play."[19]
In 2018, Trudeau presented his first scripted work, the short filmWiisgaapte (Bitter Smoke).[20] A product of a collaboration with Dr Shirley Williams, anOjibwe language specialist, the film’s dialogue is entirely in oldOjibwe dialect and tells the story of the windigo legend ofAlgonquian lore.[21]
Currently, Trudeau is President and Chief Producer at Same Adventure Productions. He and wife Zoë Bedos are the parents of a son, Pierre-Emmanuel, and two daughters, Gala Simone and Ariane Lea.[22][23] He is a founding member of thePierre Elliott Trudeau Foundation for excellence in social sciences and humanities research and innovation.[24]
