Jean-François Pouliot, a renowned director, was born in Montreal in 1957. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication Arts from Concordia University, with a minor in Philosophy. Pouliot's early career involved working as an assistant cameraman on local and international films, including Sergio Leone's "Once Upon a Time in America" and Tony Richardson's "Hotel New Hampshire".
During this period, he collaborated with Robert Belisle to co-write and co-direct several short animated films for the National Film Board of Canada, including the notable "The Egg".
In 1982, Pouliot transitioned to the advertising industry, joining Cossette Communication Marketing as a writer-designer. He quickly rose through the ranks to become the creative director of French-speaking advertising for McDonald's restaurants, earning the prestigious Grand Prize of the Mundial de la Publicite Francophone on two occasions.
After 15 years of success in advertising, Pouliot returned to filmmaking in 1988, initially working as a director for Fabriqued'Images, a leading production house for television advertising. He created commercials for a range of clients, including Canadian, American, and European brands, and received a Silver Lion at Cannes for a Loto-Quebec advertisement.
As a seasoned director with nearly 500 commercials under his belt, Pouliot was often approached with feature film projects, but it wasn't until he read Ken Scott's screenplay for "Seducing Doctor Lewis" that he found a project he wanted to pursue.
Interestingly, Pouliot was on the verge of launching a software company called Eloda, which specializes in tracking TV advertising and digitizing ads for clients. He needed to secure permission from his investors to put the company on hold while he focused on making the film.
Now, as "Seducing Doctor Lewis" garners international acclaim, Eloda is finally open for business, with Pouliot's dual passions for film and technology finally converging.
