Since the 1980s, in addition to his work as a filmmaker, Winkler has translated numerous works of Quebec literature into English. In 1994, he won the Governor General’s Award for French to English translation for The Lyric Generation: The Life and Times of the Baby Boomers (La Génération lyrique) by François Ricard, and he has been a finalist for the prize on two other occasions. Winkler’s translation of La Kermesse (A Secret Between Us), Daniel Poliquin’s latest novel, was short-listed for the 2007 Scotiabank Giller Prize.

Donald Winkler lives in Montreal.