About Us

The MTL 24/24 Team

Executive Team

Martin Chartrand — Interim General Director

Martin Chartrand has over 35 years’ experience as an entrepreneur and professional, working for digital technology companies and cultural organizations. Mr. Chartrand is a manager and visionary with expertise in business development, strategic planning and budgeting, technology project management (SR&ED) and event production for the performing arts and entertainment industries.

He has directed the creation of over a dozen software products (digital vision, AR, VR, mapping) and has worked on the direction and production of more than fifty cultural events. He joined the Society for Arts and Technology (SAT) as director of digital art research for 5 years, and helped launch the SAT’s new Montreal location. For several years, Mr. Chartrand pursued applied research in photonics on volumetric and holographic projection systems, as President of Lux Image.

Since 2019, he has been involved in the development and activities of MTL 24/24, and has served as Director of Operations since 2021. He is currently the organization’s General Manager (interim). Mr. Chartrand founded the record store Inbeat (1986) and co-founded the companies Zone Web (streaming video/1997), Elektratek (digital vision software/2006) and Lux Image (photonics-holography/2018).

Passionate about music, he pursued a career as a DJ at a very young age, all the while being involved in the musical movements affecting the Montreal scene.

Xavier Bordeleau — Content Manager and Coordinator, Night Council

Xavier Bordeleau is at the crossroads of social research and public action. Currently a master’s student at the Institution nationale de la recherche scientifique – Urbanisation Culture Société (INRS-UCS) in knowledge mobilization and transfer, he also holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from UQAM.

Passionate about the night in Montreal, Xavier has been actively involved in the cultural and nightlife scene since 2021 with MTL 24/24. He is in charge of content for the the 2024 Montreal Night Summit and coordinates the Night Council, in addition to developing the Guide des pratiques festives montréalaises (2023) and participating in the Creative Footprint Montréal project.

At the same time, he acts as sector analyst for the Scènes de Musique Alternatives du Québec (SMAQ) and the Regroupement des festivals régionaux artistiques indépendants (REFRAIN). Convinced that the night offers a unique space for expression, he leverages his expertise in collaborative research and project management to contribute to a benevolent nocturnal future for Montreal.

Max Honigmann — Communications Officer

Max Honigmann is a cultural sector professional based in Montreal since 2011. He has several years of experience in digital media and electronic music event production. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from McGill University and a Master’s degree in Public Policy from Concordia University. Before joining MTL 24/24, he worked for several years as a policy analyst for the federal government.

Pauline Barthe — Communications Consultant

Pauline Barthe is passionate about the current transformations of the creative and cultural industries. A specialist in cultural marketing and communication with more than 10 years of experience, she focuses her collaborations on digital cultures and technologies, digital creation, new media, music, contemporary digital art and innovation. For several years, she has worked for cultural organizations and festivals in Europe and Canada such as MAPP_MTL, MUTEK, ELEKTRA, Printemps Numérique, École des Arts Décoratifs de Paris, Institut Français de Lisbonne, Symposium international sur l’art électronique – ISEA, Festival du cinéma Français de Lisbonne…

Board of Directors

Guy Vincent Melo — Chairman

Guy Vincent Melo has more than 20 years of experience in food and event services. After having lent his talents as a project manager to several major festivals, including the Montreal Jazz Festival, Les Francofolies and Montréal en Lumières, Melo co-founded the Association des restaurateurs de rue du Québec (ARRQ) with Gaëlle Cerf, with the goal of reviving and spreading awareness about street food in Montreal and across the province. The ARRQ has quickly become an important part of the Montreal culinary landscape with the creation of multiple events for the general public including Les Premiers Vendredis on the esplanade of the Olympic Stadium.

Patti Schmidt — Vice-Chairman

Immersed in Montréal’s independent, underground music and contemporary art communities for more than 25 years, Patti has been running labels, performing, making radio and programming events. During her 20 years at CBC Radio she is best known for her tenure as the host and executive producer of Brave New Waves, as well as several other arts, culture and music programs across the network. She programmed 10 editions of the MUTEK Montréal festival as curator, producer and editor, while also spearheading its gender and diversity initiatives. 2016, as Artistic Director, she developed the Convergence: Electronic Music + Visual Arts Residency at the Banff Centre. She continues to work in arts and culture, advocating for artists and the contexts they inhabit for a variety of organizations, including The British Council Canada, Pride Toronto and Envision Management and Production. She knows from living it, that nighttime is the right time.

Will Straw — Administrator

Will Straw is Professor of Urban Media Studies at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec. He is the author of Cyanide and Sin: Visualizing Crime in 50s America (Andrew Roth Gallery, 2006) and co-editor of The Oxford Handbook to Canadian Cinema (with Janine Marchessault, 2019) Circulation and the City: Essays on Urban Culture (with Alexandra Boutros, 2010), Formes Urbaines (with Anouk Bélanger and Annie Gérin, 2014), and Night Studies: Regards croisés sur les nouveaux visages de la nuit (with Luc Gwiazdzinski and Marco Maggioli, 2020). He has published over 170 articles on music, cinema, popular culture and the urban night.

Laurence Fournier Dumas — Treasurer

With a long-standing interest in Montreal nightlife, Laurence has over 15 years’ experience in finance and accounting. Having worked in both consulting and corporate environments, she is currently Senior Director of Finance and Accounting at Novalex. Having specialized in forensic accounting, she has taught this discipline at the Université de Sherbrooke for many years. She holds a graduate diploma in public accounting and has been a member of the Ordre des comptables professionnels agréés du Québec since 2007. She is also a Certified Fraud Examiner and Certified in Financial Forensics.

Liviu Kaufman — Secretary

Liviu Kaufman is a lawyer with Julius Légal, Inc. After completing a bachelor’s degree in political science and economics at McGill University in 2000, Mr. Kaufman completed his law studies at Université de Montréal in 2003. He has been a member of the Quebec Bar since 2005. Mr. Kaufman’s practice focuses on public contract law and civil and commercial litigation. Mr. Kaufman is an accomplished author on a wide range of subjects, and his publications are often cited by the courts. He is regularly called upon to give training courses on public contracts, notably as part of the continuing education programs offered by the Quebec Bar. He has also taught business law at the Université de Montréal.