Robert Verrall

Robert Verrall
Born(1928-01-13)13 January 1928
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Died17 January 2025(2025-01-17) (aged 97)
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
OccupationsProducer, director, animator
Awardssee below

Robert Verrall (13 January 1928 – 17 January 2025) was a Canadian animator, director and film producer who worked for the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) from 1945 to 1987. Over the course of his career, his films garnered a BAFTA Award, prizes at the Cannes Film Festival and Venice Film Festival, and six Academy Award nominations.

Life and career

One of the first to join the NFB's fledgling animation unit, under Norman McLaren, Verrall would work as animator on such notable NFB animated shorts as The Romance of Transportation in Canada and produce such shorts as Cosmic Zoom, Hot Stuff as well as the Academy Award-nominees The Drag and What on Earth!. His NFB animation credits as executive producer included The Family That Dwelt Apart and Evolution, also Oscar nominees.

Verrall was named director of English-language NFB animation in 1967, and director of NFB's English-language production overall, in 1972. In the 1980s, he acted as executive producer on a number of NFB co-productions, including the film adaption of The Wars and The Tin Flute. His documentary production credits included Alanis Obomsawin's 1986 Richard Cardinal: Cry from a Diary of a Métis Child. He was the father of David Verrall, who would himself go on to head the NFB's English-language animation unit.

Verrall died on 17 January 2025, four days after his 97th birthday.

Filmography

Awards

A is for Architecture (1960)

Hors-d'oeuvre (1960)

The Great Toy Robbery (1963)

The Drag (1965)

What on Earth! (1966)

Alphabet (1966)

Energy and Matter (1966)

Around Perception (1968)

Cosmic Zoom (1968)

Boomsville(1968)

King Size (1968)

Population Explosion (1968)

To See or Not to See (1969)

Little Red Riding Hood (1969)

Ashes of Doom (1970)

Doodle Film (1970)

What is Life? (1970)

Evolution (1971)

Citizen Harold (1971)

Hot Stuff (1971)

In a Nutshell (1971)

The Men in the Park (1971)

Hard Rider (1972)

180 is Max (1972)

Tilt (1972)

The Underground Movie (1972)

The Family That Dwelt Apart (1973)

The Twitch (1973)

Face of the Earth (1975)

Canada Vignettes: Faces (1978)

Canada Vignettes: The Performer (1978)

Going the Distance (1979)

A Right to Refuse? (1981)

The Way It Is (1982)

One Out of Three is a Fishboat (1982)

Democracy on Trial: The Morgentaler Affair (1984)

A Good Tree (1984)

The Masculine Mystique (1984)

The Painted Door (1984)

Richard Cardinal: Cry from a Diary of a Métis Child (1986)

Poundmaker's Lodge: A Healing Place (1987)

References

  1. 1 2 "Robert Verrall". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Historica Canada. Retrieved 28 February 2016.
  2. 1 2 Wise, Wyndham (15 December 2001). Take One's Essential Guide to Canadian Film. University of Toronto Press. ISBN 9781442656208.
  3. ↑ "Robert Verrall". IMDb. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  4. ↑ "Robert Verrall | The Canadian Encyclopedia". www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  5. ↑ Milligan, Mercedes (17 January 2025). "NFB Animation Filmmaker Robert Verrall Dies Age 97". Animation Magazine. Retrieved 17 January 2025.
  6. ↑ "A is for Architecture". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 4 February 2023.
  7. ↑ "Hors-d'oeuvre". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Archived from the original on 13 January 2023. Retrieved 4 February 2023.
  8. ↑ "The Great Toy Robbery". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  9. ↑ "Alphabet". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  10. ↑ "Energy and Matter". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
  11. ↑ "Around Perception". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  12. ↑ "Boomsville". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  13. ↑ "King Size". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  14. ↑ "Population Explosion". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  15. ↑ "Little Red Riding Hood". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  16. ↑ "Ashes of Doom". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  17. ↑ "Doodle Film". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  18. ↑ "What is Life?". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  19. ↑ "Citizen Harold". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  20. ↑ "In a Nutshell". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  21. ↑ "The Men in the Park". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  22. ↑ "Hard Rider". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  23. ↑ "180 is Max". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  24. ↑ "Tilt". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  25. ↑ "The Underground Movie". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  26. ↑ "The Twitch". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  27. ↑ "Face of the Earth". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  28. ↑ "Faces". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  29. ↑ "The Performer". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  30. ↑ "A Right to Refuse?". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  31. ↑ "The Way It Is". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  32. ↑ "One Out of Three is a Fishboat". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  33. ↑ "Democracy on Trial: The Morgentaler Affair". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  34. ↑ "A Good Tree". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  35. ↑ "Richard Cardinal: Cry from a Diary of a Métis Child". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  36. ↑ "Poundmaker's Lodge: A Healing Place". onf-nfb.gc.ca. National Film Board of Canada. Retrieved 23 February 2023.