National Directors Division (NDD)
Introduction
The NDD is responsible for making recommendations to the National Executive Board (NEB) on policy issues that affect directors nationally and internationally.
The cornerstone of the NDD mandate is to ensure that directors, along with screenwriters, are properly recognized as authors of the audio-visual work. These lobbying efforts are undertaken both on the Canadian and international stages. Flowing from that recognition comes all the working conditions (both creative and economic) that are found in the collective agreements.
The National Directors Division Representatives are:
CHAIR
ZACH LIPOVSKY
ONTARIO
LISA ROSE SNOW
BRITISH COLUMBIA
Heather Hawthorn Doyle
ALBERTA
MICHAEL PETERSON
ATLANTIC REGION
JOHN HOUSTON
John Houston’s childhood in the Canadian Arctic, immersed in Inuit culture, gave him a deep appreciation for the themes he explores in his work. With 25 years as a 1st Assistant Director for his apprenticeship, John started filming his own stories in 1998 with Songs in Stone, a one-hour documentary about the collaboration between his parents, James and Alma Houston, and the Inuit of Cape Dorset. His Arctic trilogy continued with a quest for the ancient Inuit deity, Nuliajuk: Mother of the Sea Beasts, and was capped by Diet of Souls, a look inside the mind of the Inuit hunter. Kiviuq, a performing arts special, revived the ancient Inuit shaman/hero whose story missionaries strove to eradicate. Next, he made James Houston: The Most Interesting Group of People you’ll ever Meet, a celebration of his father’s life. Most recently he adapted his father’s children’s book, The White Archer into a movie for television.
All of John’s films have won multiple domestic and international awards. For outstanding service to the membership of the Directors Guild of Canada, John was the 2012 recipient of the Don Haldane Distinguished Service Award.
MANITOBA
DOUG MITCHELL
QUEBEC
TRISTAN DUBOIS
Tristan was born in Switzerland in 1975. He moved to Quebec in 1984 with his family. After graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Film Studies, Tristan decided to study the art of acting to become a better Director. In 2000, freshly out of the Montreal Academy of Dramatic Arts, Tristan landed a leading role in one of Quebec’s most popular television series, Tribu.com. In 2005, he was accepted as one of twenty-nine directors to attend the American Film Institute Conservatory in Hollywood. Tristan directed many feature films, short films, music videos and commercials ads.
For Tristan, cinema is a vital source of motivation, his own pivotal life project. Embracing the art of cinema has become a defining purpose in his life.
SASKATCHEWAN
LOWELL DEAN
Lowell Dean is a Canadian filmmaker with a talent for the twisted. He wrote and directed the horror comedy Wolfcop, which achieved cult status and was named Canadian movie of the year by the National Post after its release in theatres. Following that success, the sequel Wolfcop 2 has gone into production with Lowell again at the helm and is slated for release in 2016.
Other credits include directing the zombie film 13Eerie, starring Katharine Isabelle for Don Carmody Productions and Minds Eye Entertainment, and the children’s television series Hi Opie! for Marble Media and The Jim Henson Company.
