Alexandre Emmanuel Trudeau, better known as ‘Sacha,’ is a renowned Canadian filmmaker and veteran journalist whose debut novel, ‘Barbarian Lost: Travels in the New China,’ became a national bestseller just months after its publication. Alexandre comes from a line of prime ministers: his older brother, Justin Trudeau, is the current Prime Minister of Canada, and his father, Pierre Trudeau, was a former Prime Minister. While attending McGill University, he enlisted as a Reserve Entry Scheme Officer with the reserve regiment of the ‘Royal Canadian Hussars,’ a part of the Canadian Forces. After graduating from McGill with a philosophy degree, he traveled to West Africa to film his first documentary, ‘Liberia: The Secret War.’ Alexandre Trudeau lost his younger brother Michel the same year he taped his first television documentary, and his father, Pierre, died a few years after. Though these personal disappointments first unnerved him, he quickly gathered himself and rebounded back, producing a series of television documentaries. He rose to prominence as a war correspondent and journalist after producing the moving documentary ‘Embedded in Baghdad,’ which detailed the US invasion of Iraq in 2003. Sacha has always been a strong advocate for social justice and equality. When he vehemently criticized the central government’s strategy of indiscriminately exploiting’security certificates’ to imprison terrorism suspects indefinitely without giving them a fair trial, he demonstrated his philanthropic bent of thought.
Childhood and Adolescence of Alexandre Trudeau
Margaret and Pierre Trudeau gave birth to Alexandre Trudeau on December 25, 1973 in Ottawa. Because his older brother, Justin Trudeau, was born two years earlier on the same day, both siblings were dubbed “Christmas babies.” Alexandre’s mother suffered from postpartum depression after his birth.
Alexandre was given the moniker ‘Sacha,’ which is the French equivalent of Alexander’s Russian acronym. His father, Pierre Trudeau, the Canadian Prime Minister at the time, was a staunch Russophile, and he gave him the nickname Sacha to reflect that.
He also had a younger brother, Michel, who died at the age of 25 after drowning in British Columbia’s alpine lake, ‘Kokanee.’
Margaret previously said in an interview that, despite having some characteristics, each of her three kids had their own distinct personalities. Justin was well-mannered, and Michel, the youngest of the three, had inherited the qualities of his older brothers.
Sacha was temperamental, strong-minded, and a bit of a rebel, while Justin was well-mannered and Michel, the youngest of the three, had inherited the qualities of his older brothers.
Margaret married Fried Kemper, a real estate marketer, in April 1984, not long after Alexandre’s parents legally separated. Pierre Trudeau, who was set to step down as Prime Minister, traveled to Montreal and assumed responsibility for his children.
Alexandre completed his school and college education at Montreal’s College Jean-de-Brebeuf, following in the footsteps of his father and older brother. In 1997, he graduated from McGill University with a bachelor’s degree in philosophy. He enlisted in the Canadian Forces throughout his time at university.
The Career of Alexandre Trudeau
Alexandre Trudeau began working as a Second Lieutenant after completing his training in New Brunswick, but took a voluntary vacation. In 1998, he traveled all the way to Liberia in West Africa to film his debut documentary, ‘Liberia: The Secret War.’
In the same year that Alexandre was filming his first documentary, his younger brother Michel Trudeau was swept away by an avalanche and drowned in British Columbia’s Lake Kokanee. Michel’s body could not be recovered from the lake, despite a thorough search.
Pierre Trudeau died two years later, in 2000, bringing Alexandre and his older brother Justin back into the spotlight. As a result of his increased and expanded public standing, Alexandre’s journalistic forays drew more public notice.
After his father’s death, Alexandre Trudeau continued to work as a journalist, filming documentaries for Canadian television stations. In 2003, he went to Iraq as a high-profile journalist to cover the US invasion of the Middle Eastern country, and he produced the documentary ‘Embedded in Baghdad.’
In 2004, he shot footage for the documentary ‘The Fence,’ which focused on Palestinian families living in the West Bank’s encircling Palestinian territories of Jenin, Israel, and Afula. Alexandre found himself side with suspected terrorists imprisoned without trial by the Canadian authorities the next year.
In 2005, the Canadian government took use of the concept of granting security certificates to detain alleged terrorists indefinitely without having to produce them in court. Trudeau took up the cause of Hassan Almrei, a Syrian immigrant who had been held in detention for years without being tried.
Alexandre Trudeau was outspoken in his opposition to the Canadian government’s unabashed use of security certificates to detain refugees and expatriates by falsely accusing them of being terrorists. He believed that discriminating against immigrants in this way was equal to jeopardizing human civil liberties.
He acted as a guarantor for Hassan Almrei by testifying in court on his behalf. His appearance in a court of law caused a stir in the media, with reports on the front pages of national newspapers such as the ‘National Post’ and the ‘Toronto Star.’
Alexandre Trudeau’s efforts to secure Almrei’s unconditional release were documented in the documentary ‘Secure Freedom.’ On the 14th of December in 2009, Almrei was finally let free.
In 2008, Trudeau released the documentary film ‘Refuge,’ which highlighted the civil turmoil that enveloped eastern Chad and the Darfur region of Western Sudan, threatening the lives of millions of people.
He was heavily involved in the production of a documentary for CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) titled “The New Great Game,” which focused on the geopolitical elements of maritime security in the Western Indian Ocean and the Middle East.
In September 2016, Harper Collins published his debut novel, ‘Barbarian Lost: Travels in the New China,’ which went on to become a bestseller in Canada. The book details and commemorates his numerous excursions to China, which began when he accompanied his father on his trips to the Middle Kingdom as Canadian Prime Minister.
In his book ‘Barbarian Lost: Travels in the New China,’ Alexandre Trudeau reveals that his persona was influenced by closely following Pierre Trudeau, his father, who valued privacy above all else. He has preferred to remain out of the public eye since he began filming films as a journalist.
In his book, he draws parallels with his father, who, like him, was bitten by the travel bug and spent a lot of time in China documenting his findings. Justin, his older brother, hurried to China in his official role after becoming Canada’s Prime Minister.
Alexandre Trudeau has claimed that as an adult, he purposefully and adamantly wanted to separate himself from the spotlight and glare of attention that came with his illustrious surname.
He has an infectious charm and an endless supply of energy to initiate discussions with whomever he feels drawn to at any time. Despite his average build, he has an uncanny ability to endure even under the most trying of circumstances.
Even though he has created some wonderfully emotional documentaries, he has admitted that he is not a hardened journalist like most other successful correspondents or reporters. He considers himself to be a peregrinator rather than a documentarian or chronicler.
Alexandre Trudeau has turned the book into a platform for him to express his ideas and convictions. Harper Collins, the book’s publisher, had originally asked him to write prologues for succeeding editions of his father’s 1961 book “Two Innocents in Red China.”
Alexandre’s prologue for his father’s book grew increasingly long-winded, yet engrossing nonetheless. He thought the preambles deserved special attention, which sparked the idea for him to write his first book. The majority of the book is centered on a six-week journey of China that he took in 2006.
He recalls leaving for a trip to Africa as an 18-year-old because he wanted to see for himself the grimness of life described so clearly in Joseph Conrad’s ‘Heart of Darkness.’
His Personal Experiences
Alexandre Trudeau currently resides in Montreal, with his wife Zoe Bedos, who works as a manager in a clothing business, and their three children, in his father’s home.
Following the untimely death of his younger brother Michel in 1998, he moved in with his father in his Montreal home and cared for him until his death in 2008.
Estimated Net Worth
In the year 2023, his net worth has increased dramatically. So, at the age of 47, how much is Alexandre Trudeau worth? Alexandre Trudeau makes the most of his money as a successful filmmaker. He is from the city of. Alexandre Trudeau’s net worth, money, salary, income, and assets have all been calculated. His Estimated Net Worth is $2 million.