John Burgan

John Burgan (born in 1962 in London) is an independent documentary director and writer.

Burgan is best known for his documentary film Memory of Berlin (1998). Sometimes autobiographical, sometimes observational, he takes us on a search for identity, sharing his own roots as English adoptee and reflecting on the torn identity of the city he chose to live in: Berlin.

Biography

Burgan grew up in Kingston upon Hull, East Yorkshire. He read English Language and Literature at Newcastle University from 1981 to 1984, then worked as an editor at the BBC before attending the National Film and Television School from 1989 to 1992.

In 1992, Burgan moved to Berlin and was awarded a Nipkow Programme Fellowship to develop the documentary essay, Memory of Berlin, completed in 1998.

In Berlin, Burgan worked as a writer, director and editor. He taught documentary at the and at documentary workshops in Hamburg and Istanbul. He was artist-in-residence at the Villa Aurora, Los Angeles in 2003. In 2005, he joined Doug Block and Ben Kempas in hosting The D-Word, an online community for documentary filmmakers.

In 2007, John Burgan moved to Ebeltoft, Denmark, where he teaches documentary at the European Film College.

Films

• Close Up: Swinton & Szabo (1995)
• Memory of Berlin (1998) - First prize ("Premiers Plans") at the Marseille festival "Vue sur les Docs"
• Behind Words (2005)
• Friendly Enemy Alien (2006) - "Best Documentary" at the New Berlin Film Awards

He also worked as a consultant on 'Memories of Rain' (2004) and Cinemania (2002).

Sources

• John Burgan IMDb
• European Film College List of teachers
• The D-Word