About Us

Mystique Films' Team

From her beginnings as the director of A Bog in My Backyard, an environmental documentary produced in association with CBC Rough Cuts, Bissell has built a strong portfolio of factual programming, bringing style and wit to her producing, directing, and on-screen hosting.

Her most recent documentary is a funny, heartfelt, and thought-provoking account of how a small, First Nations town went cold turkey and gave up sugar and junk food for a year.  Described as Supersize Me meets Northern Exposure, My Big Fat Diet aired on CBC Newsworld in March 2008 and was recommended as a Critics Choice in The Globe and Mail. It won the Silver Chris Award at the Columbus International Film and Video Festival, screened at the American Indian Film Festival, and was featured at the National Museum of the American Indian. Her previous documentary, Naked, which explores the world of  nude activism, premiered at the Festival des Films du Monde in Montreal, and is the most watched documentary ever to air on CBC Newsworld’s The Lens.

Bissell created the 13-part series Healing with Animals that she co-produced with partner, Christian Bruyere, for Discovery Health Channel Canada, and which now airs around the world. This series brought Bissell many accolades including a bronze plaque from the Columbus International Film Festival and three Leo Awards for “Best Information Series,” “Best Director, Information Series,” and “Best Screenwriter, Information Series.” 
Bissell also co-produced the series Beyond Invention that is now airing on Discovery Science Channel in the US.

From 2003 to 2008, Bissell was co-host of Knowledge Network’s The Leading Edge, where she earned her chops as a filmmaker by directing, hosting, and writing over fifty short documentaries. This series took her to Africa where she directed and hosted The Gambia: Communities in Action, a documentary which picked up a Bronze Plaque from the Columbus International Film and Video Festival; and earned this recognition from the esteemed Stephen Lewis, former UN Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa: “…the film documentary constitutes a startling amalgam of intelligence, insight, creativity and what can only be called unabashed enthusiasm…. I don't quite know how the film-maker pulled it off. I only know that it's an astonishing achievement."

In 2006, Bissell produced three short documentaries for CBC News: Sunday, including the popular Grease; and, with partner Christian Bruyere, produced and directed Children of the Tsunami, a one-hour documentary about child survivors of the tsunami in north-eastern Sri Lanka that was short-listed for the prestigious Deborah Fletcher Award for excellence in filmmaking on international development.  In 2007 she did a guest stint as national columnist for Vancouver Living, where she produced and hosted a series of segments entitled How Not To Have a Bad Hair Day.

In 2009, Bissell was chosen as one of seven Canadian filmmakers to participate in the Women in the Director’s Chair workshop under the mentorship of Kari Skogland, where she directed the four-minute dramatic short, Spirit of the Law. She co-wrote the feature film script Really Into Her which is a finalist in the 2009 Cinema City International Film Festival’s screenplay competition, and is writing the feature film script On The Lam. She is active in Vancouver’s film community as a board member of Women in Film & Television Vancouver, and co-chairs their Advocacy Committee. She is also a board member of the Creative Women Workshops Association which produces Women in the Director’s Chair.  Bissell has a B.A. from the University of British Columbia and an M.A. in Graduate Liberal Studies from Simon Fraser University.

Email Mary Bissell at info@mystiquefilms.com

Veteran filmmaker Christian Bruyère has built a solid name for himself in the film and television community over the past 20 years. His knowledge of the industry and passion for his subjects are evident in each story he writes, directs or produces -- over 100 documentaries and dramas. Bruyère produced all 65 episodes of Champions of the Wild, a wildlife advocacy series that earned many international awards including the prestigious CHRIS Award at the Columbus International Film & Video Festival. He also wrote and directed 16 episodes of this series. Champions of the Wild has aired on Animal Planet for over 10 years. Distributed by M5/Europe Images International, it has been sold to over 40 countries.

Bruyère’s impressive resume of work includes the CBC television movie Scorn, which won a 2001 Gemini award (Canada’s Emmy) for Best Television Movie. He produced, directed and wrote for Healing with Animals (Leo award-winner for Best Information Series in 2003). Bruyère was producer and co-director of the international award-winning documentary Sanctuary: A New Life for Research Chimps. This television special featured Jane Goodall and was produced for Discovery Channel Canada. In 2004, Bruyère produced a two-hour documentary special, Chasing Light, for Discovery Channel Canada. That year Bruyère also produced Beyond Invention, a fast-paced, character-driven science series that features several quirky inventions that were before their time. This edgy, innovative series is currently airing on Discovery Science Channel and is being distributed worldwide M5/Europe Images International.

In 2005, Bruyère produced, co-wrote and co-directed Children of the Tsunami, a television special about Sri Lankan orphans surviving the aftermath of the 2004 Asian Tsunami. He most recently produced two documentaries, Naked and My Big Fat Diet for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Last year Naked had the highest audience rating of any 1-hour documentary on CBC Newsworld.