His debut feature, Black List (1995), was nominated for nine Genie Awards, including nods for Vallée's direction and editing.

[2] Vallée's follow-up, The Young Victoria (2009), garnered strong reviews and received three Academy Award nominations.

Vallée was initially unsure about accepting this offer, as he didn't much care about period films, or the British monarchy.

However, his love for a cinematic challenge won out, and he researched Queen Victoria in great depth before starting the film.

[3] He was known for his naturalistic approach to filming, encouraging actors to improvise during takes, and used natural lighting and handheld cameras.

[2] Vallée ventured into television by executive producing and directing two projects for HBO, the drama series Big Little Lies (2017) and the thriller miniseries Sharp Objects (2018).

Les Productions Perfo 30 had been founded earlier that year in May 1985 by André Fortin, Martin-Éric Ouellette and Martin Saint-Pierre, and wound up producing a total of 32 music videos, all directed during the month of August, with editing spanning September and October.

[10] In 1991, Stereotypes, a fantastique comedy inspired by some American classic films, received numerous prizes at several events, including Best Promising Director for Vallée at the Rendez-vous du cinéma québécois.

[13] It tells the story of Zachary Beaulieu, a young man dealing with homophobia and heterosexism while growing up with four brothers and a conservative father in 1960s and 1970s Quebec.

[17] Written by Julian Fellowes, the film is based on the early life and reign of Queen Victoria, and her marriage to Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha.

The film stars Emily Blunt, Rupert Friend, Paul Bettany, Miranda Richardson, and Jim Broadbent among a large ensemble cast.

It received generally positive reviews from Canadian film critics and garnered thirteen nominations at the 32nd Genie Awards.

[21] American reviews were more mixed; Variety's Boyd van Hoeij saluted the film's casting, but deemed Café de Flore unoriginal, noting that "Vallée has taken what made C.R.A.Z.Y so successful, and simply tried to replicate it on a slightly larger scale.

[32] Unfinished projects Prior to his death, Vallée was set to direct the HBO miniseries Gorilla and the Bird.

[Note 1] Following his death, the Directors Guild of Canada renamed its DGC Discovery Award for emerging filmmakers to the Jean-Marc Vallée DGC Discovery Award in his memory,[43] and filmmaker Marie-Julie Dallaire announced the production of Cut Print Thank You Bye, a documentary film about Vallée's life and career.