Stanley Jackson (1914-1981) was a Canadian film director, producer, writer and narrator with 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 ...

(NFB).

Biography

Jackson began his career as a schoolteacher in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749 ...

, before taking a teaching position in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

. There, in 1942, he was hired by NFB producer

Stuart Legg Stuart Legg (31 August 1910 in London, England – 23 July 1988 in Wiltshire, England) was a documentary filmmaker who was a leading figure in both the United Kingdom and Canada as a pioneering director, writer and producer. During his long filmma ...

to conduct research for the new NFB series '' Canada Carries On''. He wrote and directed the first film he worked on, '' Battle of the Harvests''. At the time, Tom Daly was putting together the NFB’s now-famous Unit B; Jackson and Colin Low were its first two members. They were joined by

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, Robert Verrall,

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, Roman Kroitor, Don Owen,

Arthur Lipsett Arthur Lipsett (May 13, 1936 – May 1, 1986) was a Canadian avant-garde director of short collage films. Life and career Born in Montreal into a Jewish family, Lipsett saw his mother, an immigrant from Kiev, commit suicide when he was 10 year ...

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and Hugh O'Connor. Jackson soon distinguished himself as a writer, and as a narrator. He wrote most of his own scripts, and created a characteristic narration style for NFB, becoming known as ‘the voice of the NFB’. Of the 130 films he made, he was the narrator of 82, and Low would call him "irreplaceable" in the field of documentary film commentary. Ironically, Jackson is also credited with helping to ''break'' the NFB narration style he helped to create, on Low and producer Tom Daly's 1954 film, '' Corral'': Jackson was known as a meticulous filmmaker and, along with Low, as the ‘conscience’ of Unit B; the two men worked together to make sure that no documentary descended into voyeurism. Jackson was also the ‘peace-keeper’ of the unit, holding the team together as others found the personalities of Kroitor and Lipsett difficult to deal with. A bachelor with no relatives, Unit B was Jackson’s family—to the point where he paid the school tuition for Kroitor’s son for two years. He retired for health reasons in 1971 and died in Toronto in 1981, at age 67.

Filmography

All

*'' Canada Carries On: Battle of the Harvests'' - documentary short, 1942 - writer, director *'' Canada Carries On: Thought for Food'' - documentary short, 1943 - writer, director *''Home to the Land'' - documentary short, 1944 - writer, director *''Hands for the Harvest'' - documentary short, 1944 - writer, director *''The Plots Thicken'' - animated short, 1944 - writer, director *''This is Our Land'' - documentary short, 1945 - writer, producer, director *'' Canada Carries On: This is Our Canada'' - documentary short, 1945 - writer, producer, director *''Condition Improved'' - documentary short, 1946 - writer, director *''Ukrainian Festival'' - documentary short, 1947 - writer, co-producer, co-director with John H. Tyo *'' Who Will Teach Your Child?'' - documentary short, 1948 - writer, editor, director *'' Canada Carries On: Summer is for Kids'' - documentary short, 1949 - producer, director *'' Canada Carries On: Our Town is the World'' - short film, 1950 - director *''Feelings of Depression'' - documentary short, 1950 - writer, director *''Depressive States'' - documentary short, 1951 - writer, director *''Schizophrenia: Catatonic Type'' - documentary short, 1951 - writer, director *''Schizophrenia: Hebephrenic Type'' - documentary short, 1951 - writer, director *''Schizophrenia: Simple Type: Deteriorated'' - documentary short, 1951 - writer, director *''Paranoid Conditions'' - documentary short, 1951 - writer, director *''Organic Reaction Type: Senile'' - documentary short, 1951 - writer, director *''Manic State'' - documentary short, 1952 - writer, director *''Paul Tomkowicz: Street-Railway Switchman'' - documentary short, Roman Kroitor 1953 - writer *''Shyness'' - documentary short, 1953 - writer, director *''The Ballot-o-Maniac'' - short film, 1953 - writer, director *''One Little Indian'' - animated puppet film, 1954 - writer, director *''To Serve the Mind'' - short film, 1955 - writer, director, co-narrator with Tom McBride *''The Pony'' - short film, Lawrence Cherry 1955 - narrator *''Introducing Canada'' - documentary short, Tom Daly 1956 - writer *''Profile of a Problem Drinker'' - short film, ''Perspective'' series 1957 - writer, director *''Looking Beyond…Story of a Film Council'' - documentary short, 1957 - writer, director *''The Quest'' - short film, 1958 - director *''Stigma'' -short film, 1958 - writer, director *''Town Planning (The Master Plan)'' - documentary short, Louis Portugais 1958 - narrator *''Trans Canada Summer'' - documentary, Ronald Dick 1958 - writer, narrator *''Memory of Summer'' - documentary short, 1958 - writer, director *''A Foreign Language'' - documentary short, 1958 - writer, director *''The Days Before Christmas'' - documentary short, 1958 - co-writer and co-director with

and

*''The Back-Breaking Leaf'' - documentary short,

1959 - writer, narrator *''The Canadians'' - documentary short,

1959 - writer, narrator *''Emergency Ward'' - documentary short,

William Greaves William Greaves (October 8, 1926 – August 25, 2014) was an American documentary filmmaker and a pioneer of film-making. He produced more than two hundred documentary films, and wrote and directed more than half of these. Greaves garnered many ...

1959 - writer, narrator *''Glenn Gould - On the Record'' - documentary short,

& Roman Kroitor 1959 - co-writer, narrator *''Glenn Gould - Off the Record'' - documentary short,

& Roman Kroitor 1959 - co-writer, narrator *''Tourist Go Home'' -short film, 1959 - co-writer and co-director with Ron Weyman *''Roughnecks: The Story of Oil Drillers'' - documentary short, Guy L. Coté 1960 - narrator *''The Cars in Your Life'' - documentary short,

1960 - writer, narrator *'' Circle of the Sun'' - documentary short, Colin Low 1960 - co-writer with Colin Low *''

Universe The universe is all of space and time and their contents, including planets, stars, galaxies, and all other forms of matter and energy. The Big Bang theory is the prevailing cosmological description of the development of the universe. A ...

'' - documentary short, Colin Low & Roman Kroitor 1960 - commentary *''The Discovery of Insulin'' - documentary short, 1961 - director *''Wrestling'' - documentary short,

Michel Brault Michel Brault, OQ (25 June 1928 – 21 September 2013) was a Canadian cinematographer, cameraman, film director, screenwriter, and film producer. He was a leading figure of Direct Cinema, characteristic of the French branch of the National ...

Claude Jutra Claude Jutra (; March 11, 1930 – November 5, 1986) was a Canadian actor, film director, and screenwriter.

, Marcel Carrière, Claude Fornier 1961 - narrator *''Mathematics at Your Fingertips'' - documentary short, John Howe 1961 - writer, narrator *''The Days of Whiskey Gap'' - documentary short, Colin Low 1961 - writer, narrator *''University'' - documentary, 1961 - director *''The Peep Show'' - cartoon, Kaj Pindal 1962 - narrator *''

My Financial Career ''My Financial Career'' is a 1962 animated short directed by Gerald Potterton, based on a story of the same name from Stephen Leacock's ''Literary Lapses'' collection of short fiction. The six and a half minute film takes a humorous look at a y ...

'' - animated short,

Gerald Potterton Gerald Potterton (8 March 1931 – 23 August 2022) was a British–Canadian director, writer, producer and animator. He is best known for directing the cult classic '' Heavy Metal'' and his animation work on '' Yellow Submarine''. Potterton wa ...

1962 - writer, narrator *''The Living Machine'' - documentary, Roman Kroitor 1962 - writer, narrator *''The Origins of Weather'' - animated documentary short,

Joe Koenig Joseph (Joe) Koenig (born August 14, 1930) is a Canadian filmmaker and entrepreneur who was the founder and president of Electronics Workbench. Biography Koenig was born in Dresden, Germany; his family fled Nazi Germany in 1937, emigrating ...

1963 - narrator *''Cornet at Night'' - short film, 1963 - writer, director *''Children Learn from Filmstrips'' - documentary short, 1963 - director, narrator *''Paul-Émile Borduas 1905-1960'' - documentary short, Jacques Godbout 1963 - co-narrator with Percy Rodriguez *''Trail Ride'' - documentary short, Ernest Reid 1964 - writer, narrator *''The Transition'' - documentary short, Mort Ransen 1964 - narrator *''The Hundredth Summer'' - documentary,

1964 - writer, narrator *'' The Moontrap'' - documentary,

, Marcel Carrière and Pierre Perrault 1964 - writer, narrator *''Among Fish'' - documentary short, 1964, co-director with Mort Ransen & Kenneth McCready *'' The Hutterites'' - documentary short, Colin Low 1964 - writer, narrator *''Above the Horizon'' - documentary short, Roman Kroitor and Hugh O'Connor 1964, writer, narrator *''Antigonish'' - documentary short, 1964 - director *''Legault's Place'' - documentary short, Suzanne Angel 1964 - writer, narrator *''Jet Pilot'' - documentary short,

1964 - writer, narrator *''About Flowers'' - documentary short,

René Jodoin René Jodoin (30 December 1920 – 22 January 2015) was an animation director and producer who founded the French-language animation studio of the National Film Board of Canada. Born in Hull, Quebec on December 30, 1920, Jodoin died in Montreal on ...

1964 - writer *''A Tree is a Living Thing'' - documentary short, Vincent Vaitiekunas 1964 - writer, narrator *''Two Men of Montreal'' - documentary, Suzanne Angel, Donald Brittain & Don Owen 1965 - co-writer with Donald Brittain *''Henry Larsen'' - documentary short, John Kemeny 1965 - writer, narrator *''War II: Total War'' - documentary short, William Canning 1965 - writer, narrator *''Instant French'' - short film, David Bearstow 1965 - writer *''Stefansson: The Arctic Prophet'' - documentary short, John Kemeny 1965 - narrator *''The Forest'' - documentary short, John Spotton 1966 - writer *''The Long Haul Men'' - documentary short, Michael Rubbo 1966 - writer, narrator *''The People at Dipper'' - documentary short, Richard Gilbert and Jack Ofield 1966 - writer, narrator *''Island Observed'' - documentary short, Hector Lemieux 1966 - writer *''Paddle to the Sea'' - documentary short, Bill Mason 1966 - co-producer, writer, narrator *'' Helicopter Canada'' - documentary, Eugene Boyko 1966 - narrator *''Steeltown'' - documentary, Walford Hewitson 1966 - writer *''After Eve'' - documentary short,

Michael J.F. Scott Michael Scott, sometimes credited as Michael J. F. Scott, is a Canadian film and television director and producer."Canucks in Oscarland crossing their fingers". ''Toronto Star'', March 21, 1986. Associated in his early career with the National Fil ...

1967 - writer, narrator *''The Transportation of Ore Concentrate'' - documentary short, Eugene Boyko 1967 - writer, narrator *''The Name of the Game is Volleyball'' - documentary short, Hector Lemieux 1967 - writer, narrator *''Charlie’s Day'' - short film, Martin Defalco 1967 - narrator *''The Indian Speaks'' - documentary, Marcel Carrière 1967 - writer, narrator *''They’re Putting Us Off the Map'' - documentary short,

1968 - writer, narrator *''Foresters'' - documentary short, Werner Aellen 1968 - narrator *''Standing Buffalo'' - documentary short, Joan Henson 1968 - writer *''The World of One in Five'' - documentary short, James Carney 1969 - writer, narrator *''Pathways to the Sky'' - documentary short, Hector Lemieux 1969 - writer, narrator *''If He Is Devoured, I Win'' - experimental film, Rick Raxlen 1969 - co-producer with Tom Daly *''Aqua Rondo'' - documentary short, Jacques Bensimon 1969 - writer, narrator *''Of Many People'' - documentary short, 1970 - writer, director *''Introduction to Labrador'' - documentary short, George C. Stoney and Harvey Best 1970 - writer, narrator *''Tee-Won Short'' - documentary short (3 parts),

Michael J. F. Scott Michael Scott, sometimes credited as Michael J. F. Scott, is a Canadian film and television director and producer."Canucks in Oscarland crossing their fingers". ''Toronto Star'', March 21, 1986. Associated in his early career with the National Fil ...

1970 - producer *''Death of a Legend'' - documentary, Bill Mason 1970 - writer *''The Conquered Dream'' - documentary, Michael McKennirey and Richard Robinson 1971 - writer, narrator *''People of the Seal, Part 1: Eskimo Summer'' - documentary, Michael McKennirey and Richard Robinson 1971 - writer *''People of the Seal, Part 1: Eskimo Winter'' - documentary, Michael McKennirey and Richard Robinson 1971 - writer *''The Sea'' - documentary short, Bané Jovanovic 1971 - co-writer with Joseph B. MacInnis *''Here is Canada'' - documentary short, Tony Ianzelo 1972 - writer, narrator *''Kainai'' - documentary short, Raoul Fox 1973 - writer *''Child, Part 1: Jamie, Ethan and Marlon: The First Two Months'' - documentary short, Robert Humble 1973 - writer, narrator *''Child, Part 2: Jamie, Ethan and Keir: 2-14 Months'' - documentary short, Robert Humble 1973 - writer, narrator *''Mr. Symbol Man'' - documentary, Bruce Moir & Bob Kingsbury 1974 - writer, narrator *''The New Alchemists'' - documentary, Dorothy Todd Henaut 1974 - writer, narrator *''Child, Part 3: Debbie and Robert: 12-24 Months'' - documentary short, Robert Humble 1974 - writer, narrator *''The Boat That Ian Built'' - documentary short, Andy Thomson 1974 - co-producer with Colin Low *''Freshwater World'' - documentary short,

Giles Walker Giles Walker (January 17, 1946 - March 23, 2020) was a Scottish-born Canadian film director. Biography Giles Walker, born in 1946 in Dundee, Scotland, received a B.A. from the University of New Brunswick and an M.A. from Stanford University ...

1974 - narrator, co-writer *''The Light Fantastik'' - documentary short, Michel Patenaude and Rupert Glover 1974 - writer, narrator *''Enemy Alien'' - documentary short, Jeanette Lerman 1975 - narrator, co-writer with Jeanette Lerman *''Jack Rabbit'' - documentary short, Bill Brind 1975 - writer, narrator *''The Outcome of Income'' - animated documentary short, Veronika Soul 1975 - writer, narrator *''Have I Ever Lied to You Before?'' - documentary, John Spotton 1976 - writer, narrator *''A Pinto for the Prince'' - documentary short 1976 - Colin Low and John Spotton, writer, narrator *''The Great Clean-Up'' - documentary, James Carney 1976 - writer, narrator *''First Steps'' - documentary short, Philip Bridgeman and Alec MacLeod 1976 - writer, producer, narrator *''The Vacant Lot'' - documentary short, Judith Merritt 1977 - co-producer with Donald Brittain *''The 1 CAG Story'' - documentary short, Douglas Cameron and Andy Thomson 1977 - writer *''Child, Part 4: Kathy and Ian: Three-Year-Olds'' - documentary short, Robert Humble 1977 - writer, narrator *''Child, Part 5: 4 Years - 6 Years'' - documentary short, Robert Humble 1978 - writer, narrator *''Flash William'' - documentary short, Tom Radford 1978 - co-writer, narrator *''The Forests and Vladimir Krajina'' - documentary short, John Laing and

Thomas Burstyn Thomas Burstyn (born 1954 in Montreal, Quebec), sometimes credited as Tom Burstyn, is a Canadian cinematographer and documentary filmmaker. He is most noted for his work on the 1995 film ''Magic in the Water'', for which he won the Genie Award for ...

1978 - writer, narrator *''Canada Vignettes: Helen Law'' - documentary short,

Jennifer Hodge de Silva Jennifer Hodge de Silva (28 January 1951 – 5 May 1989) was a Canadian filmmaker. Her film, ''Home Feeling: Struggle for a Community'', revealed tensions between and police and residents of the Jane and Finch neighbourhood of Toronto. The resid ...

1979 - writer *''China Mission: The Chester Ronning Story'' - documentary, Tom Radford 1979 - co-writer with Tom Radford *''John Law and the Mississippi Bubble'' - animated short, Richard Condie 1979 - writer, narrator *''Unemployment: Voices from the Line'' - documentary short, Pierre Lasry 1979 - narrator *''Prairie Album'' - animated documentary short, Blake James 1979 - writer

Awards

''Who Will Teach Your Child?'' (1948) *

1st Canadian Film Awards The 1st Canadian Film Awards were presented on April 27, 1949 to honour achievements in Canadian film.Maria Topalovich, ''And the Genie Goes To...: Celebrating 50 Years of the Canadian Film Awards''. Stoddart Publishing, 2000. . pp. 5-7. The ceremo ...

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

: Best Theatrical Short, 1950 * ''Scholastic Teacher Magazine'' Annual Film Awards: Top-Ten List: Best 16mm Information Films of 1949 '' Canada Carries On: Summer is for Kids'' (1949) *

2nd Canadian Film Awards The 2nd Canadian Film Awards were presented on April 19, 1950 to honour achievements in Canadian film.Maria Topalovich, ''And the Genie Goes To...: Celebrating 50 Years of the Canadian Film Awards''. Stoddart Publishing, 2000. . pp. 9-11. The cerem ...

: Honourable Mention, Theatrical Short, 1950 ''Feelings of Depression'' (1950) *

3rd Canadian Film Awards The 3rd Canadian Film Awards were presented on April 22, 1951, to honour achievements in Canadian film.Maria Topalovich, ''And the Genie Goes To...: Celebrating 50 Years of the Canadian Film Awards''. Stoddart Publishing, 2000. . pp. 13-15. The cer ...

: Genie Award for Best Non-Theatrical Film, 1951 ''To Serve the Mind'' (1955) * Golden Reel International Film Festival, Film Council of America, Chicago: Silver Reel, Health, 1956 ''The Quest'' (1958) *

11th Canadian Film Awards The 11th Canadian Film Awards were held on June 5, 1959 to honour achievements in Canadian film.Maria Topalovich, ''And the Genie Goes To...: Celebrating 50 Years of the Canadian Film Awards''. Stoddart Publishing, 2000. . pp. 45-47. The ceremony w ...

: Award of Merit, Theatrical Short, 1959 * HYSPA Healthcare & Sports Exhibition, Bern: Diploma of Merit, 1961 ''Children Learn from Filmstrips'' (1963) * Columbus International Film & Animation Festival,

Columbus, Ohio Columbus () is the state capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the 14th-most populous city in the U.S., the second-most populous city in the Midwest, after Chicago, an ...

: Chris Award, Adult Education/Teachers, 1963 ''Cornet at Night'' (1963) * American Film and Video Festival, New York: Blue Ribbon, Stories for Children, 1965

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Jackson, Stanley 1914 births 1981 deaths Canadian male screenwriters National Film Board of Canada people Canadian documentary film directors Film directors from Winnipeg Male actors from Winnipeg Writers from Winnipeg Canadian male voice actors 20th-century Canadian screenwriters