Carole Vivier 'led with her heart' as a champion for film, music in Manitoba

Tessa Adamski · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 09, 2025 1:50 PM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago

Tributes successful memory of a Manitoba movie and euphony manufacture trailblazer poured successful this week recognizing Carole Vivier's bequest arsenic a compassionate changemaker successful the sector. 

Vivier, 73, was a beloved wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and sister who worked to beforehand Winnipeg arsenic a movie destination successful her relation arsenic the Manitoba Film and Music CEO from 1993 until she retired successful 2019.

Vivier died of lung crab connected Tuesday conscionable 4 days shy of her birthday, according to her obituary published connected Saturday.

"Carole's lukewarm smile, boundless love, and gentle tone volition beryllium greatly missed by each who had the privilege of knowing her," the obituary said. 

Her decease is simply a "great loss" for the movie assemblage crossed the state owed to her tenacity and power connected gathering beardown connections with radical internationally and locally, said her workfellow of astir 25 years, Kenny Boyce. 

Together they would supply movie producers and directors with a circuit of Winnipeg to scout imaginable acceptable locations astatine businesses, residences, parks and metropolis streets to enactment their originative visions, stock their stories and enactment wrong budget, Boyce said, who works arsenic the manager of movie and peculiar events for the city. 

"We some knew that we had a large work and that a batch of radical counted connected america to beryllium capable to marketplace and beforehand Winnipeg and to adjacent these deals," helium said. 

"Those benignant of stories … permission an imprint — things that I'll ne'er forget."

In 1997, Vivier was instrumental successful lobbying the provincial authorities for the archetypal movie taxation recognition successful occidental Canada which supports crews to hone their trade and marque a living, Boyce said. It provides a 30 per cent recognition connected each accumulation spending successful Manitoba, oregon betwixt 45 and 65 per cent for eligible labour costs, according to the national government.

She advocated for airlines to supply a nonstop formation betwixt Winnipeg and Los Angeles — a alteration that came to fruition successful 2022 — further boosting Manitoba's movie manufacture by making question easier for filmmakers and radical moving successful the amusement industry.

Like galore Winnipeggers, Boyce said helium is reminded of Vivier's bequest whenever helium sees a fleet of large trucks and thinks, "there indispensable beryllium a movie going connected today."

"She was a passionate champion of Manitoba's movie and euphony sectors, and her contributions are genuinely immeasurable," a connection from Manitoba Film and Music said. 

Vivier started moving astatine the bureau successful 1985 and helped bring high-profile productions including Channel Zero, Heaven is for Real, A Dog's Purpose, Shall We Dance, Aloft and Capote to sprout successful Manitoba and co-produce with section companies, the connection said.

She supported the careers of filmmakers including Guy Maddin, Norma Bailey and Madison Thomas and artists Royal Canoe, Begonia, The Lytics, Crash Test Dummies and Chantal Kreviazuk. 

"Her emotion for Manitoba musicians was palpable — she was everlastingly raving astir the latest medium oregon singing on to her favourite Manitoba playlists," according to the statement.

Vivier served connected galore boards of directors, including astatine the National Screen Institute, the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television, Canadian Film Centre Feature Film Advisory Committee, Burton Cummings Theatre for Performing Arts and Film Training Manitoba. 

She helped bring the Juno Awards, which recognizes artists successful Canada's euphony industry, to Winnipeg successful 2005 and was the co-chair of the 2014 Juno big committee, Manitoba Film and Music said successful its statement. 

Vivier "was an exceptional person and changemaker due to the fact that she led with her heart," the statement.

She was the recipient of Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee Medal successful 2012, awarded to Canadians who person made important contributions to their community. She was besides the recipient of the Order of Manitoba successful 2014 and the Order of Canada past year. 

"These prestigious awards reflected her tireless dedication to making the satellite a amended place, whether done her unpaid work, leadership, oregon quiescent acts of kindness that near a lasting interaction connected those astir her," her obituary said.