John N. Smith

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John N. Smith OC (born July 31, 1943 in Montreal , Quebec ) is a Canadian film director , screenwriter and film producer .

Life

John N. Smith received his BA in Political Science from McGill University in 1964 . His thesis dealt with a controversy in the German party SPD 1 between 1895 and 1905. In 1968 he began his career at CBC / Radio Canada as a producer for the film The Way It Is . In 1970 he was arrested for failing to report to the police from informants from the Québec Liberation Front . He was detained for about a week. Disappointed with the unsupported CBC, he and his first wife moved to the United States in the early 1970s, where they worked for ABC for a short time .

He returned to Canada in 1972 and worked for the National Film Board of Canada . He initially concentrated on documentaries, but then also made short films and film dramas. His breakthrough came with the short film First Winter , for which he was nominated for Best Short Film at the 1982 Academy Awards . However won Violet by Shelley Levinson Oscar.

In Germany he is best known for directing Dangerous Minds (1995) with Michelle Pfeiffer .

In 1994 and 1998 he won a Gemini Award , in 1994 for the drama series The Boys of St. Vincent and in 2008 for The Englishman's Boy . In 2013 he was recognized by the Directors Guild of Canada for his life's work. He also became Officer of the Order of Canada in 2008.

He is married to director Cynthia Scott . His son Bruce Smith , from a previous marriage, is a screenwriter and worked with him on Prairie Giant: The Tommy Douglas Story , among others .

Filmography (selection)

  • 1970: Here Comes the Seventies (documentary series)
  • 1974: The New Boys (short documentary)
  • 1975: Ready When You Are (short film)
  • 1977: Happiness Is Loving Your Teacher (short film)
  • 1981 : First Winter (short film)
  • 1981: For the Love of Dance (documentary)
  • 1986: Sitting in Limbo
  • 1992: The Boys of St. Vincent (Movie made for TV)
  • 1992: The Boys of St. Vincent: 15 Years Later (TV movie)
  • 1993: Dieppe (TV movie)
  • 1995: Dangerous Minds ( Dangerous Minds )
  • 1995: The Godfather and the Showgirl (Sugartime) (TV movie)
  • 1998: No Father Yesterday ( A Cool, Dry Place )
  • 2006: Prairie Giant: The Tommy Douglas Story (Miniseries)
  • 2008: The Englishman's Boy (miniseries)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c It isn't just politics - it's about family . ( theglobeandmail.com [accessed February 26, 2018]).
  2. ^ Order of Canada. The Governor General of Canada, accessed February 26, 2018 .
personal data
SURNAME Smith, John N.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Canadian film director, screenwriter and film producer
DATE OF BIRTH July 31, 1943
PLACE OF BIRTH Montreal , Quebec