The Candy Lady

Monique Morton Derouselle is a filmmaker, theatre artist, and a theatre teacher with the Lafayette Parish talented program who received her B.A. from Southern University Baton Rouge and her M.F.A from California State University Los Angeles. Originally from Shreveport, Monique studied improv at The Second City Hollywood and performs and teaches improv in Lafayette with her improv troupes Silverbacks Improv Theatre and Rag Tag. Monique was a mentee in the inaugural year of Sophia Changs Unlock Her Potential mentorship program for women of color with Stefon Bristol as her mentor. Monique’s short film Rising Dawn premiered at the 2022 Louisiana Film Prize won the Founder’s Circle Award from the Judges. Rising Dawn was a Louisiana Project Grants and Al Berard grant recipient. Rising Dawn continues to travel the festival circuit screening in Louisiana, D.C., NYC, and Los Angeles, and more. Monique directed her follow up film, The Candy Lady, in spring of 2023 and it was recently selected as top 20 for this year's Louisiana Film Prize. Monique was also a finalist in the 2019 New Orleans Film Festival Screenplay competition and the 2018 Create Louisiana French Culture Film Grant. Like with Rising Dawn and The Candy Lady, Monque’s artistic approach is to promote “Black Joy” and female led content by showing honest, nuanced depictions of women & Black folks that’s rarely seen on screen. Monique will soon have her eyes set on directing a feature film.