2008 TRIBUTE TO GREAT MONTREALERS RECEPTION

Rémi Marcoux, founder of Transcontinental, is Executive Chairman of the Board of Transcontinental Inc. since March 2004. Prior thereto, he held the positions of Chairman of the Board and President and Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation, which he founded in 1976.

Mr. Marcoux's social involvement supports several causes, in particular fundraising for the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal and Sainte-Justine Hospital. In 2006, he acted as Co-President of the fundraising campaign for Centraide of Greater Montréal. HEC Montréal has designated its arts management foundation as the Carmelle and Rémi-Marcoux Chair in recognition of his support.

He is also a member of the Board and of the Executive Committee of the Montreal Heart Institute Foundation. In addition, Mr. Marcoux is on the Council of Associate Governors of the Université de Montréal. In October 2007, Mr. Marcoux was invested as a Member of the Order of Canada in recognition for his contribution to the vitality of the economic sector and the growth of communities. In June 2008, Rémi Marcoux was invested as an Officer of the Ordre national du Québec by its premier, Jean Charest.

“I produce feature films to serve the imagination of great creators and to work with them for a time – at least the length of a film.”

In less than eighteen years, Denise Robert has carved out a place for herself among the most respected producers in Canada and on the international stage.

With Daniel Louis, her partner and the co-founder of Cinémaginaire, Robert has produced more than thirty-five films, including Denys Arcand's Les invasions barbares (The Barbarian Invasions) which enjoyed phenomenal success and earned not only an Oscar but also more than forty-five international awards, including best actress and best screenplay awards at the Cannes Film Festival, César awards for best film, best screenplay, and best director, the European Film Academy non-European film award, the award for best foreign film from the National Board of Review (U.S.), and the David di Donatello award (Italy) for best foreign language film. Her many other productions include Surviving My Mother (Émile Gaudreault), people's choice award at the World Film Festival, Québec sur ordonnance, and Les voleurs d'enfance by Paul Arcand, which was nominated at the Genie Awards for best documentary; L'âge des ténèbres by Denys Arcand, closing film at the Cannes Film Festival and opening film at the Toronto Film Festival; Roméo et Juliette (Yves Desgagnés); Maurice Richard (Charles Binamé), winner of eight Genie awards and proclaimed best Canadian film by the Vancouver Film Critics Circle; Aurore (Luc Dionne); Idole instantanée (Yves Desgagnés); Ma vie en cinémascope (Denise Filiatrault), winner of the Henri Alekan award from the Festival de Paris; Mambo Italiano (Steve Gallucio and Émile Gaudreault) and the television series Le petit monde de Laura Cadieux. Her co-productions include La petite Lili (Claude Miller), winner of two Césars, and La Veuve de St-Pierre (Patrice Leconte), nominated for the Golden Globe for best foreign film.

Whether it be with À corps perdu (Léa Pool), selected for official competition at the Venice Festival, or Le Confessionnal (Robert Lepage), opening film at the Directors' Fortnight in Cannes, Robert's signature unquestionably contributes to the quality of Quebec film and its export to the world stage.

She is currently working on Le grand départ(Claude Meunier); De père en flic (Émile Gaudreault); André Mathieu, a film by Luc Dionne about the famous pianist; Callas, a biography of Maria Callas; and A Short History of Progress, a documentary by Mathieu Roy, all with her partner Daniel Louis.

Among the activities that are close to her heart, Robert is patron of the Mental Illness Foundation with Denys Arcand. She is actively involved with helping disadvantaged children as chair of the Fondation pour la promotion de la pédiatrie sociale, co-founded by Dr. Gilles Julien, and sits on many other boards of directors including that of Gestion Juste pour rire and the Festival du nouveau cinéma.

Robert is also a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA). She has received many honours, including the Grand Prix des Amériques, many Genie awards for best motion picture, the Gémeaux Award for best dramatic production, the Séquences award for innovation, and the Golden Reel Award for highest box office. She was named Personnalité du monde des affaires La Presse 2003, recognized as a Builder by Commerce magazine, elected Personnalité Le Droit/Radio-Canada 2004, presented with the 2004 Entrepreneur of the Year Award by Ernst & Young, and admitted as Chevalier to the Order of Art and Literature by the French Ministry of Cultural Affairs.

Heather Munroe-Blum is Principal and Vice-Chancellor of McGill University and Professor in Medicine.  A distinguished psychiatric epidemiologist, she has dedicated her career to the advancement of higher education, science and innovation, in Canada and internationally, advising governments and other organizations on the role that universities and research play in advancing international competitiveness and enriching societies.

Ms. Munroe-Blum serves on numerous public and private boards.  She is President of the Conférence des recteurs et des principaux des universités du Québec (CREPUQ) and she serves on the executive committees of the Association of Universities and Colleges of Canada (AUCC) and the Association of American Universities (AAU).   She chairs the AUCC Standing Advisory Committee on University Research (SACUR), and is a member of the Board of Governors of the Council of Canadian Academies.  She is also a member of the federal Science, Technology and Innovation Council (STIC), of the Canada Foundation for Innovation, and of the Trilateral Commission.  She serves on the boards of the Sir Mortimer B. Davis Jewish General Hospital, the Conférence de Montréal, the Yellow Pages Group, and the Canada Forum of Rio Tinto Alcan.  She has also served on the boards of the former Medical Research Council of Canada, Genome Canada, Neurosciences Canada, the Four Seasons Hotel, and Hydro One, among others.

Heather Munroe-Blum holds a Ph.D. with distinction in epidemiology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, in addition to M.S.W. (Wilfrid Laurier University) and B.A. and B.S.W. degrees (McMaster University).  Named an Officer of the Order of Canada for her outstanding record of achievements in science, innovation and higher education policy, she holds numerous honourary degrees from Canadian and international universities and is a Specially Elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.  Ms. Munroe-Blum is also a Senior Fellow of Massey College.

Peter A. Howlett works with many companies and is an investor in major projects in North America, Europe and Asia. He is currently president of Montorsan Holdings and Meta Energy and is a founding member of the Montreal International Institute for the Environment. Throughout his career, Mr. Howlett has demonstrated a strong commitment to the community.

In fact, Peter A. Howlett has become involved with a number of non-profit organizations. For example, he is president and founder of Portage Canada, a national organization that has helped more than 33,000 people since it was founded. He is president of Les Amis de la montagne and has actively participated in fundraising campaigns for various charitable organizations, such as the campaign for the 50th anniversary of The Priory School, along with campaigns for the Butters Foundation, the Greene Avenue Community Centre and the Maison Smith. He has also served as a board member for the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse. Peter A. Howlett has shown great commitment to Concordia University as a member of the Board of Governors, vice-president of the Concordia Foundation, and an honourary member of the Golden Key International Honour Society.

These accomplishments have earned Mr. Howlett many accolades, including the Order of Canada, an award for excellence from the Concordia University Alumni Association, “Irishman of the Year,” and an honourary award from the International Council on Alcohol and Addictions (ICAA). Under his presidency, Les Amis de la montagne received an honourary award for heritage and the environment from the City of Montréal and Héritage Montréal.

Peter A. Howlett has a Bachelor of Arts from Loyola College as well as a Bachelor of Law from McGill University. He was also a professional football player for the Montreal Alouettes from 1967 to 1970 and was a member of the Canadian rugby team in 1974.