Montréal, May 26, 2021 - Videotron is pleased to announce the upcoming launch of Vrai, Québec’s first subscription platform dedicated to exclusive unscripted lifestyle, documentary and entertainment content. Vrai will go live later this year with thousands of hours of all-French, on-demand content, including more than 40 first-run exclusive original Québec productions. It is committed to some 100 original Québec productions by the end of 2022. Vrai will also carry the best international content of this type.
“The advent of Vrai is in line with Quebecor’s and Videotron’s strategic vision, which is focused on meeting the expectations of today’s consumers and reaching them wherever they may be,” says Pierre Karl Péladeau, President and CEO of Quebecor. “Quebecers’ consumption patterns continue to diversify, and lifestyle, documentary and entertainment content is in high demand. With the addition of this new platform, Quebecor Content becomes the largest catalyst for original productions in Québec. We are expanding our collaborations with local producers and we will continue investing hundreds of millions of dollars in the production of new French-language content in the above categories. Our head office is in Québec, our management is based in Québec; we are committed to concretely supporting our culture, our artists and our cultural workers, for the benefit of Québec audiences. We are proving it again today.”
“Vrai will offer new content every week, including several original productions each month,” says Caroline Paquet, Vice President, Marketing, at Videotron. “In a world so rich in content, Videotron wants to stand out with strong specialty programming. Vrai will feature unfiltered, straightforward, unaffected productions that people can relate to. Subscribers will find engaging, candid characters, moving true stories, compelling reality shows, well-known personalities and also lesser-known personalities who will transport them to strange and wonderful worlds.” She adds that the company has big plans for Vrai; it is intended to complement Club illico, which has more than 650,000 subscribers.
Original productions unveiled
Quebecor Content has been working for over a year on developing varied content for the Vrai platform. “Québec has a wealth of talented people and we are proud to be able to collaborate with them,” says Denis Dubois, Vice President, Original Content at Quebecor Content. “Over the years, our original productions have been an important part of our success. It’s because they’re developed in Québec for Quebecers, and made in Québec by Quebecers. In addition to a number of projects already in progress that will be shown on Vrai, we are currently receiving great proposals from our producer partners. It bodes well for the future of the platform.”
Vrai is always on the lookout for new trends and will feature compelling and engaging productions, including docureality, reality shows, comedy, decorating, travel, foodie content, social issues and some guilty pleasures. Today, Videotron, in collaboration with Quebecor Content, is excited to unveil nine original productions that will be offered on Vrai.
Feel-good encounters
Vrai will focus on human stories with programs dealing with a wide range of subjects. Chantal Lacroix will take the helm of Demain tout est possible, produced by Trio Orange and directed by Félix Trépanier. The inspirational series will help people regain control over their lives in a spirit of optimism and self-realization.
Singer-actor Mélissa Bédard and comedian Christine Morency will examine the many prejudices and preconceived ideas about overweight people in the documentary series J’t’aime gros, produced by Iprod Média and directed by Chloë Mercier. A sensitive and authentic exploration of fatphobia, peppered with the co-hosts’ personal reflections.
The documentary series Espaces, produced by Fair-Play and directed by Guillaume St-Arnaud, is for viewers interested in architecture and design. Sarah-Jeanne Labrosse meets people who know and care about architecture, real estate and design, and finds out what guided their choices in the design and construction of their homes.
On a humorous note, Jean-Michel Anctil will host Mes numéros marquants, produced by ComediHa! and directed by Raphaël Malo. Comics P-A Méthot, Mariana Mazza, Cathy Gauthier, Claude Meunier, François Bellefeuille, Rachid Badouri, Michel Barrette and Laurent Paquin will talk about the acts that were the turning points in their careers.
L’Atelier, produced by Fair-Play and directed by Josiane Lamarre, is an inspiring documentary series in which personalities at the top of their game share their knowledge and life experiences. In discussions that are midway between master class and private conversation, personalities such as Louis-José Houde, Kim Thuy, Guylaine Tremblay and Martin Picard let viewers into their lives.
Spotlight on family
Families of all kinds will figure prominently on Vrai The docureality series Bianca vie d’famille, produced by Iprod Média and directed by Sébastien Robineau and Mélanie Moisan, is about Bianca Longpré, a.k.a. Mère ordinaire, comedian François Massicotte and their family. Together, they make everyday life extraordinary.
The documentary series Une semaine sur deux, produced by Sphère Médias and directed by Sébastien Goyette and Jean-Sébastien Lozeau, follows Dr. Jean-François Chicoine’s quest to understand the consequences of divorce on a child’s life. The episodes examine the various stages of a separation with the support of abundant testimonials, including contributions from Mahée Paiement and Marie-Claude Savard, who recalls her childhood experiences.
Something for everyone
Foodies will want to login to Vrai for cooking competitions such as the reality show Chefs de bois, hosted by Mathieu Baron, produced by Toast Media and directed by Brian Desgagné. Every day, ten chefs try to impress judge Martin Picard and their peers with their culinary creations in the forest as they vie for the $10,000 prize and the title “Chef de bois.”
History and current events buffs can look forward to a batch of documentaries about history, crime, investigations and social issues. For example, Jonathan Roberge will dive into the world of Montréal crime during the 1957-1977 period, when the city saw a prolonged war between the police and bank robbers. Produced by Pixcom and directed by Félix Trépanier, La Guerre des hold-up will revisit this unusual and bloody war through the testimonies of people who were on the frontlines, including bank robbers and journalists such as Claude Poirier.
Videotron is confident that Quebecers will be drawn to the quality and diversity of Vrai’s content and see themselves in its programs. The new streaming service will be available in late summer.
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About Vrai
Vrai is Videotron’s new streaming platform for unscripted content. It carries original productions of all kinds featuring prominent figures on Québec’s cultural landscape as well as major international brands. Vrai’s wide-ranging selection of French-language lifestyle shows, documentaries and entertainment content is available on demand for unlimited, guilt-free viewing.
About Quebecor Content
Quebecor Content, a wholly owned business unit of Quebecor Media Inc., creates, develops, acquires, distributes and exports distinctive, high-quality audio-visual content, providing consumers with a multi-platform experience via the services of Videotron and TVA Group, and promoting Québec artists at home and abroad.
Contact
Émilie Ouimet-Maurice | Press Officer, Quebecor Content
emilie.ouimetmaurice@quebecor.com
