Michael Jones (1944 Wyndham Wise, ''Take One's Essential Guide to Canadian Film''.

University of Toronto Press The University of Toronto Press is a Canadian university press. Although it was founded in 1901, the press did not actually publish any books until 1911. The press originally printed only examination books and the university calendar. Its first s ...

, 2015. Entry "Jones, Mike, Andy and Cathy". – March 14, 2018) was 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 director and screenwriter based in

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the population ...

. He is known for his films which depicted the island's culture and humour.

Early life

Jones was born on March 28, 1944, the son of Agnes Dobbin and Michael Jones Sr."Michael Jones was a pioneer of Newfoundland filmmaking"
Joan Sullivan, ''The Globe and Mail'', April 6, 2018 He was a brother to satirical Newfoundland writers/actors Andy Jones and

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. Early life a ...

. Jones attended St. Bonaventure’s College, graduating in 1962. He joined the Christian Brothers and studied at New York's Catholic Iona College. He earned a master's degree at Notre Dame.

Career

Jones took a position as a teacher in St. John’s, Newfoundland, where he became involved in filmmaking. He left the Brothers in 1969. He left teaching to train with the

National Film Board of Canada The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; ) is a Canadian public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary films, animation, web documentaries, and altern ...

’s Atlantic Studio in 1974, and was a founding member of the Newfoundland Independent Filmmaker’s Co-op in 1975."Mike Jones, ‘godfather of filmmaking’ in Newfoundland and Labrador, dead at 73"
''The Telegram'', Juanita Mercer Mar 16, 2018 Along with his brother Andy he created the film ''

The Adventure of Faustus Bidgood ''The Adventure of Faustus Bidgood'' is a 1986 surreal Canadian comedy film directed by Andy Jones and written by Andy and Mike Jones, with the collaboration of a number of workshop participants. It stars Andy Jones and Greg Malone. Plot And ...

'', which was filmed over a period of ten years. He also directed '' Secret Nation'' and ''

Congratulations Congratulations may refer to: Film and television * Congratulations (2010 film), an Egyptian film * Congratulations (2023 film), a Gujarati drama film *'' Congratulations: 50 Years of the Eurovision Song Contest'', 2005 television programme ...

''."Keeping up with the Joneses: It's taken 10 years but Michael Jones has finished his epic, Faustus Bidgood". ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Newspapers in Canada, Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in Western Canada, western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of more than 6 million in 2024, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on week ...

'', February 8, 1986. He was nominated for two

Genie Award The Genie Awards were given out annually by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to recognize the best of Canadian cinema from 1980–2012. They succeeded the Canadian Film Awards (1949–1978), known as the "Etrog Awards" for sculptor ...

s for ''Faustus Bidgood'', including

Best Original Screenplay The Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay is the Academy Award (also known as an Oscar) for the best screenplay not based upon previously published material. It was created in 1940 as a separate writing award from the Academy Award for Best ...

and Best Editing. Mike Jones performed minor roles in all of his films, including the French teacher in ''Faustus Bidgood''. He provided the voice of Leo Cryptus in his film ''Secret Nation'', a sequel to ''Faustus'', and played the lead role in William D. MacGillivray's 1983 film ''

Stations Station may refer to: Agriculture * Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production * Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle ** Cattle stat ...

''. Although he was not a performing member of

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."Secret Nation is a conspiracy movie with a farcical twist". ''

Montreal Gazette ''The Gazette'', also known as the ''Montreal Gazette'', is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper which is owned by Postmedia Network. It is published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the only English-language daily newspape ...

'', September 26, 1993.

Death

Jones died March 14, 2018, at the Health Sciences Centre in St. John's, Newfoundland.

Filmography

As director

*''Dolly Cake'' (1976) *''

'' (1986) *'' Secret Nation'' (1992) *''

'' (2000)

As cinematographer

*''Dolly Cake'' (1976) *''Linda Joy'' (1985) *''The Adventure of Faustus Bidgood'' (1986) *''Opposing Force'' (1986) *'' Finding Mary March'' (1988) *''

Multiple Choice Multiple choice (MC), objective response or MCQ (for multiple choice question) is a form of an objective assessment in which respondents are asked to select only the correct answer from the choices offered as a list. The multiple choice format i ...

'' (1989) *''Anchor Zone'' (1994) *'' When Ponds Freeze Over'' (1998)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Michael 1944 births 2018 deaths 20th-century Canadian screenwriters Film directors from Newfoundland and Labrador Canadian film editors Canadian television directors Canadian theatre directors Canadian male film actors Writers from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador Male actors from Newfoundland and Labrador 20th-century Canadian male actors 21st-century Canadian screenwriters Canadian male screenwriters Film producers from Newfoundland and Labrador Screenwriters from Newfoundland and Labrador