Martin Matte’s Autofictional Series ‘Vitrerie Joyal’ Premieres on Prime Video, Chronicling a Family’s 1995 Collapse

Key facts

• ‘Vitrerie Joyal’ premieres on Amazon Prime Video on May 1, 2026, for Canadian and Quebec subscribers.
• The series consists of six 35-minute episodes, set in summer and fall 1995.
• Martin Matte plays his own father, André Joyal, a prosperous but stubborn boomer who runs a door-and-window factory in Laval.
• Pier-Luc Funk portrays the 25-year-old Philippe Joyal (based on Matte), who supervises the family business.
• Pierre-Yves Roy-Desmarais plays Vincent Joyal, 27, an accounting graduate who clashes with his father over computerizing operations.
• Marilyse Bourke plays Diane Vaillancourt, André’s wife and a bored homemaker.
• Florence Longpré plays secretary Josée Côté, who takes daily masturbation breaks in the office toilets.
• François Chénier plays Gaston Veilleux, the top salesman who delivers sexist and lewd remarks.

A Family Business on the Brink

On May 1, Amazon Prime Video will release ‘Vitrerie Joyal’ (English title: ‘The Glass House’), a six-episode autofictional comedy-drama created by and starring Martin Matte. The series, entirely financed by Amazon, marks the platform’s first fully funded Quebec production. It recreates a transformative period in Matte’s real life: the summer and autumn of 1995, when both his family and professional worlds shattered. The story centers on André Joyal, a prosperous boomer who drives a gleaming BMW and runs the family door-and-window factory in Laval. Matte himself plays his own father, a man utterly out of step with the changing times. The narrative follows André’s two sons: Philippe (Pier-Luc Funk), the 25-year-old supervisor, and Vincent (Pierre-Yves Roy-Desmarais), a 27-year-old accounting graduate who wants to computerize the business. Their mother, Diane Vaillancourt (Marilyse Bourke), is a housewife suffocating from boredom.

A Cast of Characters Navigating Comedy and Tragedy

The ensemble cast brings to life a range of personalities that oscillate between the comic and the tragic. Florence Longpré plays Josée Côté, André’s secretary, who wears thick glasses and regularly excuses herself for masturbation breaks in the office restroom. François Chénier portrays Gaston Veilleux, the company’s top salesman, whose sexist and crude jokes—unacceptable even in 1995, weeks before Quebec’s sovereignty referendum—still resonate with a certain type of retrograde uncle today. Four main actors carry the emotional weight of the series, which Matte has described as blending elements of ‘Mad Men,’ ‘Les Beaux malaises,’ Ricardo Trogi’s autobiographical films, and ‘C’est comme ça que je t’aime.’ The tone shifts midway through the second episode, darkening as the patriarch’s world begins to crumble.

The Turning Point: A Patriarch’s Fall

The series opens with André Joyal at the peak of his power, cigar in mouth, with both sons working alongside him. But André refuses to evolve with the society of 1995. He dismisses computers as unnecessary, scoffs at burnout as an imaginary illness that a kick in the pants can cure, and reacts with hostility when a Black salesman (Patrick Emmanuel Abellard) enters his office. He casually uses homophobic slurs like “moumounes” or “fefis,” unaware of their weight. A particularly powerful scene in the second episode unfolds during Vincent’s birthday dinner, where the family’s discomfort around a character’s sexual orientation is palpable. The series does not shy away from showing André’s bigotry as a product of his era, but also as a force that isolates him from his sons and the world.

Real-Life Tragedy and Artistic License

Martin Matte has long spoken publicly about the real events that anchor the series: Vincent Joyal suffers a serious car accident, while Philippe abandons the family business to pursue a career in comedy. Matte’s own father died in 2002, and the series leaves open the question of whether he ever recovered from the family’s upheaval. The English title, ‘The Glass House,’ captures the transparency and fragility of the Joyal family’s existence. Directed by Guillaume Lonergan (‘Empathie’), the series meticulously recreates the pre-referendum atmosphere of 1995. The production design is rich with period details: brown walls, Rolodexes, Ford Festivas, manual credit-card machines, hands-free telephones, and Timberland clothing. The budget has not been disclosed, but the creative team says it was sufficient to realize their ambitions without becoming gimmicky.

A New Model for Quebec Television

‘Vitrerie Joyal’ represents a milestone for Quebec content on streaming platforms. As the first series fully financed by Amazon, it demonstrates the growing willingness of global streamers to invest in local-language productions with strong cultural specificity. The series will be available to all Prime Video subscribers in Canada and Quebec from May 1. The show’s blend of humor, pathos, and social commentary has drawn comparisons to Matte’s earlier work, ‘Les Beaux malaises,’ but with a longer format and a more dramatic underpinning. Critics have praised the performances, particularly the ability of the four leads to navigate the tightrope between comedy and tragedy.

What ‘The Glass House’ Says About 1995 and Today

At its core, ‘Vitrerie Joyal’ is a story about a man who cannot adapt—and the collateral damage that inflicts on those around him. André Joyal’s refusal to embrace computers, changing social mores, or even basic empathy mirrors a broader societal tension that was coming to a head in 1995 Quebec. The series uses the family business as a microcosm of a province grappling with modernity, sovereignty, and identity. Yet the show’s relevance extends beyond its historical setting. The character of Gaston Veilleux, still spouting sexist jokes in 2026, reminds viewers that the attitudes André embodies have not disappeared. By placing a flawed, unlikable patriarch at the center of a comedy, Matte forces audiences to confront uncomfortable truths about family, legacy, and the cost of stubbornness.

The bottom line

• ‘Vitrerie Joyal’ premieres May 1 on Amazon Prime Video in Canada and Quebec, the first fully Amazon-financed Quebec series.
• The six-episode series is set in 1995 and follows the Joyal family as the patriarch’s refusal to change leads to a car accident, a son leaving the business, and family collapse.
• Martin Matte plays his own father, André Joyal, while Pier-Luc Funk plays the younger version of Matte (Philippe Joyal).
• The show blends comedy and drama, with a tone shift in the second episode that marks the beginning of the patriarch’s downfall.
• Period details (brown walls, Rolodexes, Ford Festivas) and social issues (homophobia, sexism, resistance to technology) ground the story in its 1995 setting.
• The English title ‘The Glass House’ reflects the family’s transparent fragility and the series’ autofictional nature.