Receives $25,000 investment in business project
ABRAM-VILLAGE – March 6, 2025 – The $25,000 investment that Hélène earned during the finals of RDÉE Prince Edward Island’s 2025 Francophone Ignition Contest will initially enable her to purchase certain equipment for her documentary film production company, Productions LTDU Inc. But these funds will above all help her promote her business, as well as participate in industry events and film festivals in Canada and abroad to raise awareness about her work.
Originally from France, Hélène Lebon from Bonshaw presented her business development project with humor and gusto at the March 5 finale in Abram-Village, explaining that her documentaries, shorts and features are intended for television and digital distribution, on streaming platforms or in theatres. In addition to the video medium, her catalogue of works extends to audio, textual and visual media. Her productions have been shown from Japan to California, via Europe.
She explained that her mission is to produce documentaries that nourish the pride and longevity of the Island’s Acadian and francophone community. LTDU specializes in two main product lines: artistic (documentaries for festivals and television, museum and festival exhibits, collections of poetry and essays, and social podcasts) and cultural (French-language vignettes, research and documentaries).
FIVEFOLD INCREASE
The company produced an impressive number of projects in its first year; sales increased fivefold in its second. Lebon believes that, over time, she will be able to produce fewer productions per year, since she will be able to generate more revenue per project. She is confident that she will continue to spread her projects throughout North and South America, as well as in Japan. And every time she presents an Island project in external markets, she indirectly promotes her province and its tourism. At the same time, she brings film experts here to train local people and thus develop the Island’s film industry.
A montage of short clips from her productions, included in her PowerPoint presentation, elicited appreciative reactions from the crowd, who recognized many of the faces and images shown. In fact, Lebon mentioned that one of the documentaries produced chronicled the career path of 2024 Ignition champion Josée Gallant-Gordon, against whom she was competing last year! Fortunately, they became friends and were able to collaborate on the film.
JUDGES
Around 30 people were present to witness the March 5 competition, which gave each of the three competitors 10 minutes to present their project and seven minutes to answer questions from judges Dominique Chouinard, Nico Durant and Edgar Arsenault, all managers or entrepreneurs. The jury then had the task of determining which of the projects had the greatest potential for success and export; it took more than the allotted 30 minutes for them to deliberate and pick a winner.
Lebon was in her second year in the competition, as was Marie Dubé, of the Bayview-based Timeless Events PEI Inc. The company coordinates and decorates weddings and corporate events. The third competitor was Tsiori Razafindrakoto, who proposed the establishment of MAD-ÎPÉ, a business importing and selling high-quality woven raffia handicrafts, bags and accessories, jewelry and spices from her native Madagascar.
OTHER AWARDS
The Acadian and Francophone Chamber of Commerce of PEI offered a free membership to the three finalists, as well as a pair of tickets to its 2025 Acadian Entrepreneurs’ Gala on March 22 to the champion.
Lebon also won the following prizes:
• A free one-year membership to the Greater Summerside Chamber of Commerce;
• A half-page ad in the summer edition of the Connections magazine published by the Greater Charlottetown and Area Chamber of Commerce;
• A project management course from Collège de l’Île.
THE COMPETITION
The 2025 Francophone Ignition Contest initially accepted submissions for entrepreneurial start-up or expansion projects until early January. Five entrepreneurial projects were accepted into the competition. Participants first underwent a full weekend of intense training (including pitch training) with trainers Donald DesRoches and Bruce Joshua in early February. In mid-February, the five competitors presented their projects to a pre-selection panel, who chose the best three to proceed to the finals for the chance to win the investment.
Innovation PEI’s Ignition Startup Fund provided the $25,000 investment for RDÉE to offer at the competition. The Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) contributes funding for the coordination, training and promotion of the competition.
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PHOTO 1: Velma LeBlanc, right, chair of RDÉE Prince Edward Island’s board of directors, congratulates the champion of the 2025 Francophone Ignition Contest, Hélène Lebon of Productions LTDU Inc., and presents her with a $25,000 entrepreneurial investment.
PHOTO 2: Robert Maddix, Assistant Executive Director of RDÉE Prince Edward Island, thanked the three finalists in the 2025 Francophone Ignition Contest by presenting each of them with a certificate of participation. They are, from left, Hélène Lebon, Marie Dubé and Tsiori Razafindrakoto.
PHOTO 3: The judges of the 2025 edition of the Francophone Ignition Contest – from left, Nico Durant, Dominique Chouinard and Edgar Arsenault – had no easy task in determining the winner of the contest’s $25,000 investment. After much deliberation, they finally settled on a champion.
For further information, please contact
Natalia Saldarriaga
Coordinator, 2025 Francophone Ignition Contest
RDÉE Prince Edward Island
(250) 253-5794
natalia@rdeeipe.org
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Hélène Lebon, champion of the 2025 Francophone Ignition Contest, graciously accepted a pair of tickets to the 2025 Acadian Entrepreneurs’ Gala from Janine Arsenault, spokesperson for the Acadian and Francophone Chamber of Commerce of PEI.
The Greater Charlottetown and Area Chamber of Commerce, represented by its events and sponsorship manager, Chris Beauvais, presented the 2025 Francophone Ignition Contest champion, Hélène Lebon of Productions LTDU Inc., with a half-page ad in the summer 2025 edition of the Chamber’s Connections magazine.
Mitch Martin, executive director of the Greater Summerside Chamber of Commerce, presented a complimentary one-year Chamber membership to the champion of the 2025 Francophone Ignition Contest, Hélène Lebon of LTDU Productions Inc., on March 5, following the competition finals in Abram-Village.
Collège de l’Île, represented by its vice-president Stéphane Blanchard, offered the champion of the 2025 Francophone Ignition Contest, Hélène Lebon of Productions LTDU Inc., a free college course in project management.
Hélène Lebon, Marie Dubé and Tsiori Razafindrakoto, the three finalists in the 2025 Francophone Ignition Contest, each received a free membership to the Acadian and Francophone Chamber of Commerce of PEI from spokesperson Janine Arsenault.
A big THANK YOU to our 2025 Francophone Ignition Contest host, Amy Richard, and to our new coordinator, Natalia Saldarriaga. Thanks to their excellent organization, the whole evening went off like clockwork!