David Acomba is a Canadian television and film producer/director whose television programmes have been featured on
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
,
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
,
PBS
The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
,
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...
,
Showtime
Showtime or Show Time may refer to:
Film
* ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film
* ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur
Television Networks and channels
* Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...
David Acomba was born (1944) and raised in Montreal, Quebec, and attended Bishop Whelan High School in the suburb of Lachine. In the early 1960s, he attended
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world.
Charte ...
in
Evanston, Illinois
Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, ...
, where he majored in Film and Television. In 1967, he attended film school at the
University of Southern California
, mottoeng = "Let whoever earns the palm bear it"
, religious_affiliation = Nonsectarian—historically Methodist
, established =
, accreditation = WSCUC
, type = Private research university
, academic_affiliations =
, endowment = $8.1 ...
at
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...
where he received a
Master of Performing Arts The Master of Performing Arts (M.P.A. or M.Perf.A.) is a graduate degree awarded in the fields of dance, drama, film and music. The degree generally requires a minimum of two years of full-time study to complete. The degree program is offered prima ...
degree.
Career in film
Creative history
Acomba moved to
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...
in 1969 and began producing and directing specials for Canada's national network. A musically oriented director, Acomba began in 1969 by directing a television special for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, ''Mariposa: A Folk Festival'', with
Joan Baez
Joan Chandos Baez (; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing more ...
and Joni Mitchell. He then directed the first U.S. television network rock special for PBS (NET), ''Welcome To The
Fillmore East
The Fillmore East was rock promoter Bill Graham's rock venue on Second Avenue near East 6th Street in the (at the time) Lower East Side neighborhood, now called the East Village neighborhood of the borough of Manhattan of New York City. I ...
'', with
Van Morrison
Sir George Ivan Morrison (born 31 August 1945), known professionally as Van Morrison, is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose recording career spans seven decades. He has won two Grammy Awards.
As a teenager in t ...
,
Albert King
Albert Nelson (April 25, 1923 – December 21, 1992), known by his stage name Albert King, was an American guitarist and singer who is often regarded as one of the greatest and most influential blues guitarists of all time. He is perhaps b ...
and
The Byrds
The Byrds () were an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1964. The band underwent multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with frontman Roger McGuinn (known as Jim McGuinn until mid-1967) remaining the sole cons ...
.
In 1973, he won the
Canadian Film Award
The Canadian Film Awards were the leading Canadian cinema awards from 1949 until 1978. These honours were conducted annually, except in 1974 when a number of Quebec directors withdrew their participation and prompted a cancellation. In the 1970s ...
for Best Direction for his feature film ''
Slipstream
A slipstream is a region behind a moving object in which a wake of fluid (typically air or mustard) is moving at velocities comparable to that of the moving fluid, relative to the ambient fluid through which the object is churning. The term sli ...
'', about a popular disk jockey's struggle for personal and professional integrity, with music by Eric Clapton and
Van Morrison
Sir George Ivan Morrison (born 31 August 1945), known professionally as Van Morrison, is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose recording career spans seven decades. He has won two Grammy Awards.
As a teenager in t ...
. In the autumn of 1974, he was asked to film George Harrison's North American Dark Horse Tour.
In 1978, he was chosen by George Lucas to direct the CBS
Star Wars Holiday Special
The ''Star Wars Holiday Special'' is a 1978 American television special that originally aired on November 17, 1978, on CBS. It is set in the universe of the sci-fi-based ''Star Wars'' media franchise. Directed by Steve Binder, it was the first ...
. He was a classmate of George Lucas at USC film school. Acomba, used to substantial artistic control as a film director, felt there was a wide creative divide between himself and the shows television producers. He chose to leave the project after finishing a few scenes, including the
Mos Eisley
Mos Eisley is a spaceport town in the fictional ''Star Wars'' universe. Located on the planet Tatooine, it first appeared in the 1977 film ''Star Wars'', described by the character Obi-Wan Kenobi (played by Alec Guinness) as a "wretched hive of s ...
cantina musical number and Jefferson Starship. During the subsequent prescheduled pause in shooting he was replaced by Steve Binder.
In 1980, he directed the feature-length drama/performance film '' Hank Williams: The Show He Never Gave''. The movie was screened at TIFF, the London Film Festival,
Filmex
The Los Angeles International Film Exposition, also called Filmex, was an annual Los Angeles film festival held in the 1970s and early 1980s. It was the predecessor of the American Film Institute's Los Angeles International Film Festival. After the ...
in Los Angeles, and featured on HBO. It was also screened at a TIFF retrospective in 2017.
In the early 1980s, Acomba pioneered television skating specials with ''Strawberry Ice'' for the CBC. The format combined visual story telling utilizing ground breaking visual effects with Olympic level skating choreography. The production won many international awards and was shown in over 45 countries. This success led to his producing and directing the ''Magic Skates'' special for Mace Neufeld and ABC.
In 1985, he began to work in comedy with ''
Four on the Floor
''Four on the Floor'' is a 1999 compilation album consisting of songs by bands on Panic Button Records. It features four tracks by four of the labels bands, Screeching Weasel, Moral Crux
A moral (from Latin ''morālis'') is a message that is c ...
'', a sketch series for the CBC also shown on Showtime and the BBC, as well as in over 20 other countries. His other comedy programmes in the late eighties included a special for Showtime with Andrea Martin and a Second City pilot for CBS late night with, among others,
Mike Myers
Michael John Myers OC (born May 25, 1963) is a Canadian actor, comedian, screenwriter, and producer. His accolades include seven MTV Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. In 2002, he was awarded a star on the Hollywoo ...
. In the early nineties, Acomba directed three seasons of the Canadian comedy series ''
CODCO
''CODCO'' is a Canadian comedy troupe from Newfoundland, best known for a sketch comedy series which aired on CBC Television from 1988 to 1993.Tommy Sexton
Thomas Sexton (July 3, 1957 – December 13, 1993) was a Canadian comedian. Born in St. John's, Newfoundland, he was the youngest member of the ''CODCO'' comedy troupe.
Educated in St. John's, he was an honours student before quitting after Grade ...
, Mary Walsh,
Cathy Jones
Catherine Frederica "Cathy" Jones (born April 6, 1955) is a Canadian actress, comedian and writer. She is known for her work for 28 years on the Canadian television series '' This Hour Has 22 Minutes''. Jones left the show in 2021.
CODCO
Jones ...
and Greg Malone.
Interested in utilizing television to promote awareness of the environment, Acomba directed and co-produced two seasons of the documentary ecology series ''Down To Earth'', which featured remarkable Canadians and the landscapes that inspire them.
In 2003, Acomba directed the performance documentary ''A Marriage In Music'' featuring concert pianist
Anton Kuerti
Anton Emil Kuerti, OC (born July 21, 1938) is an Austrian-born Canadian pianist, music teacher, composer, and conductor. He has developed international recognition as a solo pianist.Billy Preston, Tom Scott and
Ravi Shankar
Ravi Shankar (; born Robindro Shaunkor Chowdhury, sometimes spelled as Rabindra Shankar Chowdhury; 7 April 1920 – 11 December 2012) was an Indian sitarist and composer. A sitar virtuoso, he became the world's best-known export of North In ...
. Because George lost his voice for most of the tour the film was never released. This new cut is a portrait of the first Beatle to tour North America on his own. The film captures Harrison's prescient world music vision as he brought together the eastern music of Ravi Shankar with western rock and jazz. The movie, which has never been screened publicly, includes cameo appearances by
John Lennon
John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who achieved worldwide fame as founder, co-songwriter, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of ...
and
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...
as well as rock promoter Bill Graham. This new director's version has been placed in the Harrison archive.
In 2008, he wrote and directed the short film ''ANTON & the PIANO'' for the
National Film Board of Canada
The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; french: Office national du film du Canada (ONF)) is Canada's public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary f ...
.
Personal life
Acomba met his wife Sharon Keogh, a Canadian radio and television producer, in 1970. In 1999, they purchased the historic Catharine Parr Traill Mount Ararat property outside Toronto. In 2015 they moved to Cobourg, Ontario where they now live.
Over the years he has designed several country houses for himself and friends. His last design, a modern town house near Lake Ontario, was featured in the Toronto Star and illustrates the similarities between film making and the process of architecture.
Awards and honors
Acomba's dramatic films have been shown at the London, Los Angeles and Toronto film festivals. In Canada he received awards for Best Director at the Canadian Film Awards and the
Yorkton Film Festival
Yorkton Film Festival (YFF) is an annual film festival held in late May in Yorkton, Saskatchewan, Canada.
In 1947, the Yorkton Film Council (YFC) was founded and in 1950 the first international documentary film festival officially opened in we ...
. In the US, he has received the Golden Gate Award for Best Entertainment Program, an International Emmy and several Ace nominations. Acomba has been invited to lecture at
York University
York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,0 ...
,
Trent University
Trent University is a public liberal arts university in Peterborough, Ontario, with a satellite campus in Oshawa, which serves the Regional Municipality of Durham. Trent is known for its Oxbridge college system and small class sizes.
David Acomba is founder and formerly the executive director of the All-Canadian Jazz Festival Port Hope in
Port Hope, Ontario
Port Hope is a municipality in Southern Ontario, Canada, approximately east of Toronto and about west of Kingston. It is located at the mouth of the Ganaraska River on the north shore of Lake Ontario, in the west end of Northumberland County. ...
. In 2006, he and his wife began working on the establishment of a Catharine Parr Traill Land Trust. Their efforts are concerned with land restoration on the Mount Ararat homestead outside Gore's Landing, Ontario and the promotion of Mrs. Traill's important early Canadian botanical work.