Minuit, le soir

Minuit, le soir
Minuit, le soir logo
Created by	Pierre-Yves Bernard Claude Legault (co-writer)
Starring	Claude Legault Julien Poulin Louis Champagne Julie Perreault
Country of origin	Canada
Original language(s)	Quebec French
No. of episodes	37
Production
Executive producer(s)	Michel Bissonnette Paul Dupont-Hébert André Larin Vincent Leduc
Camera setup	Single camera
Running time	22 minutes
Release
Original network	Radio-Canada
Picture format	NTSC 480i
Original release	January 12, 2005 – March 29, 2007

Minuit, le soir (French: Midnight, in the evening) is an award-winning, character-driven Quebec television show. Set and shot in Montreal, the 30-minute show revolves around the lives of three bouncers, both in private and at work. The show is notable for its portrayal of the daily hardships facing each of the principal characters. Gritty cinematography and fast-paced direction are also key elements of the show's style. All the show's episodes were directed by Daniel Grou (aka Podz).

Aired by public broadcaster Radio-Canada, the show achieved critical acclaim in local media and among viewers, reaching on average 1.3 million people during its first season.Minuit, le soir eventually won 17 Gémeaux Awards for its three seasons, the local equivalent of the American Emmys, the Geminis in other Canadian provinces or the British Academy Television Awards.

The title of the show evokes the bouncers' work cycle and the fact they work at night. Although title screens and promotional logos do not include the comma between minuit and le, it does appears officially in the show's title.

Minuit, le soir aired for three seasons, ending its run in 2007.

Minuit, le soir is a series about three nightclub bouncers at The Manhattan, a fictional bar set in downtown Montreal. At first, all three seem successful: they enjoy working together and feel comfortable, achieving the rough-and-tough persona of the stereotypical bouncer. In an unexpected move, their aging boss sells his bar to an up-and-coming Italian-Canadian nightclub owner, after more than some insistence on her part.

Citing better standards she fires all three main protagonists. She intends on increasing the appeal of the bar by employing inexperienced yet good-looking young men to fill their positions. Nonetheless, one of the terminated bouncers successfully convinces the new owner to reinstate all three employees, showing their love for the job and indispensable experience. After reassembling her team of bouncers, the new owner renames the bar to Le Sas (The Airlock) and assigns the doormen to her other nightclubs in the city, including Le Joystick, a gay BDSM venue.