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Colin Low (43)
Colin Low
Colin Low is a producer, director, writer, cinematographer and editor. In his NFB career spanning more than 50 years he’s worked on nearly 200 productions, both in animation (The Romance of Transportation in Canada) and documentary (Corral). His tireless creativity and innovative approach have garnered him more than 100 awards.
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The Merchant and the TeacherColin Low 1967 13 minThis short film presents a discussion about the role of merchants on Fogo Island, and of the feasibility of cooperatives. -
"When I Go ... That's It!"Colin Low , George C. Stoney , … 1972 11 minEx-fisherman Billy Crane in Brampton, Ontario, at an industrial job with regular hours. Here he tells why he left Fogo Island and says he has no regrets. (See also Billy Crane Moves Away.)
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Citizen DiscussionsColin Low 1967 28 minBy using film as a means of communication, the people of Fogo Island, Newfoundland, voice some of their concerns. This film discusses efforts to obtain provincial support for the United Maritimes Fisheries Co-op to run the Seldom fish plant, and comments on the subsequent decision by the Newfoundland government in favour of the Yellow Fish Company.
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A Pinto for the PrinceColin Low & John Spotton 1979 16 minIn 1977, Prince Charles was inducted as honorary chief of the Káínaa on their reserve in southwestern Alberta. The ceremony, conducted in the great Circle of the Sun Dance, commemorated the centennial anniversary of the original signing of Treaty 7 by Queen Victoria.
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The Days of Whiskey GapColin Low 1961 28 minRousing tales of the North-West Mounted Police are brought to life through photos and artists' sketches. In 1873, the North-West Mounted Police were established to maintain law and order in the North-West Territories. They undertook a trek from Fort Dufferin, south of Winnipeg, to Fort Whoop-up, near present-day Lethbridge, Alberta. The force raised the flag and proclaimed the Queen's law, ensuring that the Canadian West would not become a lawless American-style frontier.
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Billy Crane Moves AwayColin Low 1967 17 minThis short documentary features Newfoundland fisherman Billy Crane, who speaks frankly on the state of the inshore fishery and how the lack of government support has contributed to the industry’s downfall. He is being forced to leave home to seek employment in Toronto. This film was made with the Challenge for Change program.
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Joe Kinsella on EducationColin Low 1967 7 minJoe Kinsella talks about the problem of young people leaving Fogo Island after they finish their education.
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Dan Roberts on FishingColin Low 1967 16 minThrough the use of film as a means of communication, the people of Fogo Island, Newfoundland, voice some of their daily concerns. This film looks at the success of the longliner and the problems encountered in obtaining and running it.
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The Children of Fogo IslandColin Low 1967 17 minThis short film from Colin Low presents the problems faced by the people of Fogo Island, Newfoundland and what keeps them committed to the land. Witness some of the magic of the island, as seen through the eyes of children, and understand why its inhabitants cling to its shores.
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The Founding of the Co-operativesColin Low 1967 21 minA record of the founding meeting of the Fogo Island Ship Building and Producer Co-operative.
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William Wells Talks About the IslandColin Low 1967 11 minWilliam Wells defends the viability of Fogo Island and expresses his apprehension about the exodus of young people.
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Some Problems of FogoColin Low 1967 21 minBy using film as a means of communication, the people of Fogo Island, Newfoundland, voice some of their daily concerns and thoughts about the future. Some of the problems discussed are the fishermen's unions, the fish plant, able-bodied men on welfare, the problems of education, and the issue of the consolidation of schools.
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Moving PicturesColin Low 2000 47 minThis multi-layered Colin Low documentary offers a visual exploration of his personal collection of war etchings and woodcuts. Collected over 5 decades, these images, including extremely detailed miniatures, were nearly impossible to accurately capture on film. The images so fascinated and haunted Low that he shot them in 35 mm and developed techniques - used here for the first time - to show the fine lines of stamps and the microscopic details of tiny copperplate etchings with startling clarity. In Moving Pictures, Low traces his growing awareness of war, the perversion of art into propaganda, and the technological advances that have led to more efficient creation and dissemination of images - as well as more effective weapons of mass destruction.
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Andrew Britt at Shoal BayColin Low 1967 14 minBy using film as a means of communication, the people of Fogo Island, Newfoundland, voice some of their daily concerns. This film discusses fishermen's cooperation, the need for a fish plant, and adult education.
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Two Cabinet MinistersColin Low 1967 18 minA discussion between Eric Jones, M.P.P. for Fogo Island, and John Crosbie, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, on the role of the Fogo Island Improvement Committee and the feasibility of supra-island government.
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Thoughts on Fogo and NorwayColin Low 1967 16 minA discussion on the methods of fishing, marketing, organization and welfare in Norway, with reference to the situation on Fogo Island.
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Introduction to Fogo IslandColin Low 1968 16 minThis film introduces the Fogo Island/Newfoundland Project series which is an experiment in how film can be a catalyst for social change by serving as a direct means of communication. It gives some basic facts about Fogo Island, Newfoundland, and explains why it was chosen for the film project.
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Brian Earle on Merchants and WelfareColin Low 1967 10 minA look at the relationships among the Fogo Island merchants and fishermen, and at the demoralizing effects welfare has on them.
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McGraths at Home and FishingColin Low 1967 11 minA discussion about Fogo Island fishing, with some criticisms of the longliners.
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A Wedding and PartyColin Low 1967 10 minIn this short film, we witness two Fogo Island festivities: a Roman Catholic wedding in Joe Batts Arm South and a party with music and dancing in Joe Batts Arm North.
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Fishermen's MeetingColin Low 1967 27 minBy using film as a means of communication, the people of Fogo Island, Newfoundland, voice some of their daily concerns. In this film, some of the problems discussed are the lack of fish and the inability to market any species but cod.
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The Winds of FogoColin Low 1969 20 minFogo is a windswept island off the coast of Newfoundland where the inhabitants for generations have lived by, on and from the sea. In this film William Wells, fisherman, and his two sons take a day off from the nets for a journey to the gannet colony on the Funk Islands, fifty miles farther out to sea. There are exceptional close-up views of enormous flocks of seabirds swarming on the cliffs and in the sky.
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The Fogo Island Improvement CommitteeColin Low 1967 13 minThe Fogo Island Improvement Committee discusses the building of a speaking platform for the anticipated visit of the Newfoundland premier.
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The Songs of Chris CobbColin Low 1967 7 minBy using film as a means of communication, the people of Fogo Island, Newfoundland, voice some of their daily concerns. In this film, Islander Chris Cobb sings his own songs and recites his poems about the old days and the recent changes on Fogo.
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The Mercer FamilyColin Low 1967 9 minThe Mercer family discusses the pressures that force the young people to leave Fogo Island and their families.
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The Story of the Up TopColin Low 1967 8 minThe story of how one Fogo Island family managed to raise an old passenger boat from where it had been sitting for four years, and to renovate it for use as a fishing boat, despite lack of capital and government aid.
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A Woman's PlaceColin Low 1967 16 minTwo women discuss the roles and problems of women, education, and shopping on Fogo Island.
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Fogo's ExpatriatesColin Low 1967 15 minIndividuals who have moved away from Fogo Island express their opinions on the life and problems of the Island.
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Jim Decker Builds a LonglinerColin Low 1967 19 minBy using film as a catalyst for change, the people of Fogo Island, Newfoundland, voice some of their daily concerns. This film shows how one of the Islanders built a longliner (a fishing boat using long lines) with the help of his friends, overcoming the problems of financing and the lack of tools and government support.
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CorralColin Low 1954 11 minWestern ballads played on guitar are the only sounds used in this romantic portrait of a cowboy. He rounds up wild horses, lassoing one of the high-spirited animals in the corral, and then goes for a glorious plunging ride across the spectacular Rocky Mountain foothills of Alberta.
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Circle of the SunColin Low 1960 29 minThis short documentary by Colin Low is an invitation to a gathering of the Káínaa of Alberta - as the Sun Dance is captured on film for the first time. The film shows how the theme of the circle reflects the bands' connection to wildlife and also addresses the predicament of the young generation, those who have relinquished their ties with their own culture but have not yet found a firm place in a changing world.
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City of GoldColin Low & Wolf Koenig 1957 21 minThis classic short film from Pierre Berton depicts the Klondike gold rush at its peak, when would-be prospectors struggled through harsh conditions to reach the fabled gold fields over 3000 km north of civilization. Using a collection of still photographs, the film juxtaposes the Dawson City at the height of the gold rush with its bustling taverns and dance halls with the more tranquil Dawson City of the present.
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The HutteritesColin Low 1964 27 minThe followers of religious leader Jacob Hutter live in farm communities, devoutly holding to the rules their founder laid down four centuries ago. Through the kindness of a Hutterite colony in Alberta, this film, in black and white, was made inside the community and shows all aspects of the Hutterites' daily life.
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Standing AloneColin Low 1982 57 minPete Standing Alone of the Kainai Nation was more at home in the White man's culture than his own as a young man. However, confronted with the realization that his children knew very little about their origins, he became determined to pass down to them the customs and traditions of his ancestors. This hour-long film is the powerful biographical study of a twenty-five-year span in Pete's life, from his early days as an oil-rig roughneck, rodeo rider and cowboy, to the present as an Indigenous man concerned with preserving his Nation's spiritual heritage in the face of an energy-oriented industrial age.
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MomentumColin Low & Tony Ianzelo 1992 20 minGo head-to-head with an icebreaker. Plunge down a twisting mountain gorge. Soar through the clouds in the nosecone of a jet, then speed along with a dog team as it races across a frozen Arctic lake. A sweeping, moving tribute to Canada's stunning geography and rich cultural heritage, Momentum leaps off your screen--and touches your heart. Filmed entirely in IMAX, this film wowed audiences from around the world when it premiered at Expo 92 in Seville, Spain, the greatest world's fair of the last quarter century.
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The Jolifou InnColin Low 1955 10 minThis short film depicts Canada as it was a hundred years ago, as seen through the paintings of artist and adventurer Cornelius Krieghoff. The changing seasons, the Quebec countryside, village life — all were an unending inspiration to Krieghoff.
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City Out of TimeColin Low 1959 15 minThis Colin Low documentary from 1959 depicts Venice in all its splendor. In the tradition of Venetian painter Canaletto, the film captures the great Italian city’s elusive beauty and fabled landscapes, where spired churches and turreted palaces soar into a blue Mediterranean sky. Narration by William Shatner.
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UniverseRoman Kroitor & Colin Low 1960 28 minA triumph of film art, creating on the screen a vast, awe-inspiring picture of the universe as it would appear to a voyager through space, this film was among the sources used by Stanley Kubrick in his 2001: A Space Odyssey. Realistic animation takes you into far regions of space, beyond the reach of the strongest telescope, past Moon, Sun, and Milky Way into galaxies yet unfathomed.
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In the LabyrinthRoman Kroitor , Colin Low , … 1979 21 minA film without commentary in which multiple images, sometimes complementary, sometimes contrasting, draw the viewer through the different stages of a labyrinth. The tone of the film moves from great joy to wrenching sorrow; from stark simplicity to ceremonial pomp. It is life as it is lived by the people of the world, each one, as the film suggests, in a personal labyrinth.
In the Labyrinth was first released as a multi-screen presentation for Chamber III of the Labyrinth at Expo 67. These separate images were integrated into a single strand of film, using a "five-on-one" cinematic technique. -
The Romance of Transportation in CanadaColin Low 1952 11 minA light-hearted animated short about how Canada's vast distances and great obstacles were overcome by settlers. The story is told with a tongue-in-cheek seriousness and takes us from the intrepid trailblazers of long ago to the aircraft of today and tomorrow.
