Mission and Mandates

The Association québécoise des marionnettistes (AQM) was founded in 1981. Its mission is to foster the development of puppetry arts.

Its membership includes practitioners, companies, and professional artists, as well as individuals and cultural organizations interested in puppetry arts.

The AQM strives to represent the field, foster peer recognition and public awareness, facilitate the flow of information, encourage professional development and, through its involvement with UNIMA (Union internationale de la marionnette), promote artists’ presence on national and international stages.

... Puppetry honours the material world and life itself, reimagines reality, brings dreams to life, and advocates for a better, more imaginative and thoughtful world.

REPRESENT AND PROMOTE the art of puppetry

Puppetry is an ancient art that contributes to the evolution of contemporary artistic movements. It honours the material world and life itself, reimagines reality, brings dreams to life, and advocates for a better, more imaginative and thoughtful world. It is a mature art form that can be expressed in many fields, such as theatre, film, television, and digital media. The AQM and Québec artists advocate for the recognition of puppetry as a major art form and wish to raise awareness of the specific requirements of their profession.

Since the early 1980s, the AQM has published various documents, including the Marionnettes magazine. These publications provide an overview of puppetry in Québec, document the various events that have shaped the association’s history, and highlight the realities, challenges, and vitality of the practice.

NORDICITE, Theatre Iincliné photo-Genevieve Therrien

Nordicité, Théâtre Incliné | Photo: Geneviève Therrien

Expand the discipline and further professional development

Formation AQM, photo Cloé Ratio

AQM workshop | Photo: Cloé Ratio

STIMULATE professional and disciplinary development

The AQM develops a high-quality continuing professional development program, with financial support from Intervention compétence and, on occasion, in partnership with professional organizations. The training program meets Québec puppeteers’ request for more opportunities to improve their skills. Rich and varied, these workshops and courses tackle practices like manipulation, construction, dramaturgy, video production, music, object theatre, shadow theatre, and many other related disciplines.

Réseautage, Casteliers 2024 © Christian Brault

Networking, Casteliers 2024 | Photo: Christian Brault

SPARK community spirit

The AQM organizes a range of activities to foster the development of the discipline, such as conferences, theme-based discussions with members, talks, and training sessions with Canadian and visiting puppeteers, as well as a series of lectures as part of the Université populaire des arts de la marionnette (UPAM).

Built on a foundation of collaboration and resource sharing, the MIAM is above all a community-driven, open and accessible space.

The MIAM | Photo: Jeanne Bertoux

Support the development and outreach of the Maison internationale des arts de la marionnette (MIAM)

Founded at the initiative of the Association québécoise des marionnettistes and Casteliers, the Maison internationale des arts de la marionnette (MIAM) opened its doors in the fall of 2018 in Montréal. This creative hub, which also serves as a performance venue and a training and cultural mediation centre, is entirely dedicated to puppetry arts.

Built on a foundation of collaboration and resource sharing, the MIAM is a community-driven, open and accessible space. Its rental facilities and activities are developed and led by its founders, partners, and users, resulting in a versatile, spontaneous and ever-evolving range of activities.

The AQM is actively involved within the MIAM through its participation in advisory committees on funding, communications and shared use. Since the opening of the MIAM, the AQM has held the vast majority of its activities there, including several professional development workshops, lectures and professional meetings.

Festival Mondial des Théâtres de Marionnettes | Photo: Patrick Argirakis

The AQM ensures that puppetry arts remain at the heart of cultural life in Québec and beyond.

ENSURE national and international representation

The AQM plays a central role in representing puppetry arts within Québec’s cultural landscape. The association serves on the board of directors of the Conseil québécois du théâtre (CQT) and on the CQT’s Continuing Professional Development Committee.

The AQM accomplishes important advocacy work in Québec thanks to its representatives on various governing boards. Working within organizations such as the Conseil québécois du théâtre, Compétence Culture and the Québec Drama Federation, the AQM engages in the major debates shaping the arts sector and ensures members’ voices are heard.

The AQM organizes several networking events:

  • Since 2010, the Marché international de Casteliers (MIC) brings together international and Québec-based presenters invited to the Festival international de Casteliers and professional AQM members.
  • Every two years, in collaboration with the FIAMS (Festival international des arts de la marionnette à Saguenay), the AQM organizes the Présentations express event, followed by a networking cocktail where puppeteers and festival guests can meet in a relaxed atmosphere.
Unima Canada

Act as Québec’s representative within UNIMA

Since 1986, the AQM has been recognized by UNIMA (Union internationale de la marionnette) and serves on the board of directors of UNIMA-Canada as the representative of the Québec section. Two councillors actively participate in the organization’s work, and several members of the Québec section are members of six of the 16 working committees of UNIMA International. The unwavering commitment of these delegates over the past 20 years has greatly contributed to Québec puppeteers’ international reputation for creativity and expertise. Thanks to the bonds forged between puppeteers at home and abroad, the community is able to monitor trends within the field.

The AQM recently led the Pro UNIMA Circuit pilot project, a remarkable collaboration that brings together key organizations from across Canada to offer training and cooperation opportunities to puppeteers from coast to coast to coast.