Gary Burns (born 1960) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

writer and director. Burns studied drama at the

University of Calgary {{Infobox university , name = University of Calgary , image = University of Calgary coat of arms without motto scroll.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms , former ...

before attending

Concordia University Concordia University () is a Public university, public English-language research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College (Montreal), Loyola College and Sir George Williams Universit ...

, where he graduated in 1992 from the Fine Arts film program. Born in

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

, many of Burns' films are shot in Calgary, and contain references to the particularities of living in the city. The

Plus 15 The Plus 15 or +15 is a skyway network in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It is the world's most extensive pedestrian skywalk system, with a total length of 16 kilometres (10 miles) and 86 bridges connecting 130 buildings, as of 2022. Calgary often h ...

system becomes the

habitrail Habitrail is a brand name for a hamster cage made by the Hagen corporation. It is a series of translucent plastic tubes and "houses" for use in home terrariums, designed specially for hamsters. The design of the Habitrail is modular and can be ...

of urban semi-professionals in

waydowntown ''Waydowntown'' (stylized as ''waydowntown'') is a 2000 Canadian film directed by Gary Burns and starring Fab Filippo, Don McKellar, Marya Delver and Michelle Beaudoin. The film is a dark comedy that explores office culture and its effects and o ...

and the

public transportation system Public transport (also known as public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) are forms of transport available to the general public. It typically uses a fixed schedule, route and charges a fixed fare. There is no rigid definition of whic ...

becomes a node where lives intersect in ''The Suburbanators''. '' Radiant City'' examines the seemingly endless amount of suburban neighbourhoods that has overtaken Calgary. Burns is an alumnus of the University of Calgary's television program.

Film festival acceptance

His works have been very well received at Canadian film festivals. His first feature film, '' The Suburbanators'', debuted at the 1995

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...

, where it placed in the top ten Canadian films and was also invited to the

Sundance film festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

in 1996. It is a comedy/

road movie A road movie is a film genre, genre of film in which the main characters leave home on a road trip, typically altering the perspective from their everyday lives. Road movies often depict travel in the hinterlands, with the films exploring the the ...

about bored suburban slackers in Calgary. At the 1997

Vancouver International Film Festival The Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) is an annual film festival held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, for two weeks in late September and early October. The festival is operated by the Greater Vancouver International Film Festi ...

, he was awarded Best Emerging Director for '' Kitchen Party'', a "teenage house party gone wrong" comedy. His film ''waydowntown'' was given the Best Canadian Feature prize at the 2000 Toronto International Film Festival. His 2006 film, '' Radiant City'', co-directed with

Jim Brown James Nathaniel Brown (February 17, 1936 – May 18, 2023) was an American professional American football, football player, civil rights activist, and actor. He played as a Fullback (gridiron football), fullback for the Cleveland Browns of the ...

, garnered the Special Jury Prize at the Vancouver International Film Festival.

Filmography

* '' The Suburbanators'' - 1995 * '' Kitchen Party'' - 1997 * '' Fuck Coke'' - 1999 * ''

'' - 2000 * '' A Problem with Fear'' - 2003 * '' Radiant City'' - 2006 * '' The Future Is Now!'' - 2010 * ''

Man Running Man Running may refer to: * Man Running (novel), a 1948 novel by Selwyn Jepson * Man Running (film), a 2018 Canadian drama film See also * Running Man (disambiguation) {{dab ...

'' - 2018

References

External links

* 1960 births Canadian male screenwriters Film directors from Calgary Writers from Calgary Living people University of Calgary alumni Concordia University alumni Directors of Genie and Canadian Screen Award winners for Best Documentary Film Date of birth missing (living people) Screenwriters from Alberta {{Canada-film-director-stub