Both an actor and a director, Jean-Antoine Charest began devoting himself wholly to directon four years ago. While studying film at the St. Lawrence Cégep, he directed two films, including notably, On Parlait Pas Allemand, which won first place at the Rendez-vous Festival of Québécois Cinema. Soon afterwards, Charest veered in another direction and focused on acting. Trained at the National Theatre School of Canada, his interests grew to include writing and production. After finishing his education at the National Theatre School of Canada, Charest created the Theatre Optique as the realization of his desire to herald a new approach to theatre, one which involves a mixture of clowning and the use of absurd characters who exploit the power of exaggerated sentiments. In this spirit, between 1992 and 1997, he released Les Petites Buses, Derrière la Porte, and Le Gazon Frais.It was with these pieces, which combined music and dance, that Charest made clear his interest in movement. He joined the Carbone 14 Company for the re-opening of Dormitory and the group at Camera Obscura. In 1999, he devoted himself fully to direction. He wrote two shorts, The Fall and Rupture, and worked as an advertising director in charge of publicity for Astral Media. In 2000, he wrote Loulou, his first feature-length film which won him the Desjardins prize for prominence in film. In 2001-2002, he was able to produce The Fall on account of this award in 10 sessions at "KINO" and finished its productionat l’INIS. With his work in acting and direction, Charest constributes to a cinematic style which privileges a pronounced theatricality.