Canadian film director
Robin Spry (October 25, 1939 – March 28, 2005) was a
Canadian film director, producer and writer.
[1] He was perhaps best known for his documentary films
Action: The October Crisis of 1970 and
Reaction: A Portrait of a Society in Crisis about
Quebec 's
October Crisis . His 1970 film
Prologue won the
BAFTA Award for Best Documentary .
Biography
Robin Spry was born in
Toronto ,
Ontario to Canadian broadcast pioneer and
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation founder
Graham Spry
CC , and economic historian
Irene Spry
OC .
After studies at
Oxford University and the
London School of Economics , Spry began his filmmaking career in 1964 at the
National Film Board in Montreal, earning a place on its payroll in 1965. He built a reputation as a documentarian engaged with the issues of the day, with films on abortion, youth rebellion, and contemporary politics. His 1970 film
Prologue documented the riots at the
1968 Democratic National Convention in
Chicago , weaving narrative with archival footage. His
Canadian Film Award -winning documentary Action: The October Crisis of 1970 (1973) used a similar approach to tell the story of the kidnapping of British diplomat
James Richard Cross and the murder of
Pierre Laporte .
[2] While at the NFB, Spry acted as a
producer , director, writer,
cinematographer ,
film editor and actor, appearing in several colleagues' films, including
Denys Arcand 's Québec, Duplessis et après" (1972), in which he read sections of the 1839
Durham Report . He also starred in the 1981 hostage film
Kings and Desperate Men .
[3]
In 1978, Spry left the NFB. He did some work for the
CBC , then founded his own production company, Telescene Film Group Productions, through which he produced many TV movies and series. Upon its bankruptcy in 2000, he worked with the Montreal production company
CinéGroupe .
The first season of his last production,
Charlie Jade , was dedicated to his memory, as mentioned in the credits of the final episode, as was
Air Crash Investigation 's episode "Mistaken Identity".[
citation needed ]
Personal life and death
Spry was divorced from journalist Carmel Dumas; they had two children.
He died in a car crash in Montreal on March 28, 2005.
Filmography
You Don't Back Down - documentary short,
Don Owen ,
National Film Board of Canada 1965 - writer
[4]
Miner - documentary short,
National Film Board of Canada 1965 - writer and director
[5]
Level 4350 - documentary short,
National Film Board of Canada 1965 - writer and director
[6]
Little White Crimes - documentary short,
George Kaczender ,
National Film Board of Canada 1966 - writer
[7]
Illegal Abortion - documentary short,
National Film Board of Canada 1966 - writer and director
[8]
Change in the Maritimes - documentary short,
National Film Board of Canada 1966 - writer and director
[9]
Ride for Your Life - documentary short,
National Film Board of Canada 1966 - director
[10]
Flowers on a One-Way Street - documentary,
National Film Board of Canada 1967 - writer and director
[11]
Prologue - documentary,
National Film Board of Canada 1967 - producer and director
Downhill - short film,
National Film Board of Canada 1973 - writer, producer and director
[12]
Reaction: A Portrait of a Society in Crisis - documentary,
National Film Board of Canada 1973 - producer and director
Action: The October Crisis of 1970 - documentary,
National Film Board of Canada 1974, writer, producer and director
Face - short film,
National Film Board of Canada 1975 - editor, cinematographer, producer and director
[13]
One Man - feature,
National Film Board of Canada 1977 - writer and director
[14]
Drying Up the Streets - TV movie,
CBC 1978 - director
Don’t Forget - TV movie,
For the Record ),
CBC 1979 - director
Suzanne - feature, RSL Films 1980 - writer and director
Winnie - short film 1981 - director[
citation needed ]
To Serve the Coming Age - documentary 1983 - director[
citation needed ]
You've Come a Long Way, Ladies - TV movie,
Roger Cardinal 1984 - producer
Stress and Emotion - documentary, for The Brain ,
WNET /
PBS 1984[
citation needed ]
Keeping Track - feature, Telescene Film Group Productions 1986 - writer, producer, director
Malarek - feature, Telescene Film Group Productions,
Roger Cardinal 1988 - producer
Straight for the Heart - feature, Telescene Film Group Productions,
Léa Pool 1988 - producer
Obsessed (aka Hitting Home ) - TV movie, Telescene Film Group Productions 1987 - writer and producer
An Imaginary Tale - feature, Telescene Film Group Productions,
André Forcier 1990 - producer
Urban Angel - TV series, Telescene Film Group Productions,
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation 1991-1992 - producer
A Cry in the Night - TV movie, Telescene Film Group Productions et al - writer, producer and director
The Myth of the Male Orgasm - feature, Telescene Film Group Productions et al, John Hamilton 1993 - producer
Witchboard III: The Possession - feature, Telescene Film Group Productions, Peter Svatek 1995 - producer
Hiroshima - docudrama,
Cine Bazar & Telescene Film Group Productions,
Koreyoshi Kurahara &
Roger Spottiswoode 1995 - producer
On Dangerous Ground - TV movie, Telescene Film Group Productions et al,
Lawrence Gordon Clark 1996 - producer
Windsor Protocol - TV movie, Telescene Film Group Productions & Vision View Productions,
George Mihalka 1997 - producer
Midnight Man - TV movie, Telescene Film Group Productions et al,
Lawrence Gordon Clark 1997 - producer
The Hunger - TV series, Telescene Film Group Productions, 1997-2000 - producer
Student Bodies - TV series, Telescene Film Group Productions et al 1997-1999 - producer
Mario, Mike and the Great Gretzky - Video, Telescene Film Group Productions, France Corbeil 1998 - producer
Going to Kansas City - TV movie, Telescene Film Group Productions, Pekka Mandart 1998 - producer
Escape from Wildcat Canyon - TV movie, Telescene Film Group Productions et al, Marc F. Voizard 1998 - producer
Thunder Point - TV movie, Telescene Film Group Productions & Vision View Productions,
George Mihalka 1998 - producer
Nightmare Man - TV movie, Telescene Film Group Productions & Isambard Productions, Jim Kaufman 1999 - producer
Big Wolf on Campus - TV series, Telescene Film Group Productions
CinéGroupe &
Saban Entertainment 1999-2002 - producer
The Lost World - TV movie, Telescene Film Group Productions et al,
Richard Franklin 1999 - producer
The Lost World - TV series, Telescene Film Group Productions et al 1999-2001 - producer
Live Through This - TV series, Telescene Film Group Productions et al, 2000-2001
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde - TV movie, Telescene Film Group Productions, Colin Budds 2000 - producer
The Lost World: Underground - Video, Telescene Film Group Productions, Colin Budds &
Michael Offer 2002 - producer
Matthew Blackheart: Monster Smasher - TV movie, Telescene Film Group Productions,
Érik Canuel 2002 - producer
Seriously Weird - TV series,
CinéGroupe 2002-2005 - producer
Student Seduction - TV movie,
CinéGroupe et al 2003 - producer
Charlie Jade - TV series,
CinéGroupe 2004-2006 - producer
Awards
Flowers on a One-way Street (1967)
[15]
Ride for Your Life (1967)
[16]
Prologue (1970)
[17]
Action: The October Crisis of 1970 (1974)
[18]
Visions du Réel ,
Nyon , Switzerland: Grand Prize for Best Documentary, Youth Jury 1975
Chicago International Film Festival , Chicago: Silver Plaque, Feature Film, Documentary, 1975
26th Canadian Film Awards ,
Niagara-on-the-Lake , ON: Gemini Award for Best Direction, 1975
One Man (1977)
[19]
International Festival of Red Cross and Health Films,
Varna, Bulgaria : Best Direction, 1979
ACTRA Awards ,
Montreal : Film of the Year, 1978
ACTRA Awards ,
Montreal : Best Writing in the Visual Medium, 1978
Film Festival Antwerpen,
Antwerp : Second Best Film of the Festival, 1978
Film Festival Antwerpen,
Antwerp : Honorable Mention by the Press Jury, 1978
28th Canadian Film Awards ,
Toronto : Best Original Screenplay, 1977
Drying Up the Streets (1978)
Obsessed (1987)
Straight for the Heart (1988)
An Imaginary Tale (1990)
Hiroshima (1995)
References
^
"Robin Spry" . Movies & TV Dept.
The New York Times . 2016. Archived from
the original on 2016-03-07.
^
"Action: The October Crisis of 1970" . Collection . National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 2009-10-05 .
^
"Décès du cinéaste canadien Robin Spry" . Le Devoir (in French). Montreal. 29 March 2005. Retrieved 9 December 2016 .
^
"You Don't Back Down" . onf-nfb.gc.ca . National Film Board of Canada. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2023 .
^
"Miner" . onf-nfb.gc.ca . National Film Board of Canada. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2023 .
^
"Level 4350" . onf-nfb.gc.ca . National Film Board of Canada. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2023 .
^
"Little White Crimes" . onf-nfb.gc.ca . National Film Board of Canada. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2023 .
^
"Illegal Abortion" . onf-nfb.gc.ca . National Film Board of Canada. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2023 .
^
"Change in the Maritimes" . onf-nfb.gc.ca . National Film Board of Canada. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2023 .
^
"Ride for Your Life" . onf-nfb.gc.ca . National Film Board of Canada. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2023 .
^
"Flowers on a One-Way Street" . onf-nfb.gc.ca . National Film Board of Canada. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2023 .
^
"Downhill" . onf-nfb.gc.ca . National Film Board of Canada. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2023 .
^
"Face" . onf-nfb.gc.ca . National Film Board of Canada. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2023 .
^
"One Man" . onf-nfb.gc.ca . National Film Board of Canada. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2023 .
^
"Flowers on a One-Way Street" . onf-nfb.gc.ca . National Film Board of Canada. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2023 .
^
"Ride for Your Life" . onf-nfb.gc.ca . National Film Board of Canada. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2023 .
^
"Prologue" . onf-nfb.gc.ca . National Film Board of Canada. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 3 February 2023 .
^
"Action: The October Crisis of 1970" . onf-nfb.gc.ca . National Film Board of Canada. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 3 February 2023 .
^
"One Man" . onf-nfb.gc.ca . National Film Board of Canada. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 2 February 2023 .
External links
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