Colin Archibald Low (July 24, 1926 – February 24, 2016) was a Canadian animation and documentary filmmaker with the National Film Board of Canada (NFB). He was known as a pioneer, one of Canada's most important filmmakers, and was regularly referred to as "the gentleman genius". His numerous honors include five BAFTA awards, eight Cannes Film Festival awards, and six Academy Award nominations.

Early life Low was born and raised in Cardston, Alberta, to Gerald and Marion Low, ranchers who were members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The town borders the Kainai Nation (Blood Tribe), which later became the subject of two of his films; his 1960 film Circle of the Sun marked the first time the Kainai Nation's sacred Sun Dance was filmed.

Career Low studied graphic design and animation at the Banff School of Fine Arts and then the Calgary Institute of Technology. In 1946, while he was at the latter, the National Film Board of Canada was hiring and put out a call for student submissions; one of Low's teachers suggested that he send in his portfolio and, a week later, he was hired by the prominent NFB filmmaker Norman McLaren. McLaren placed Low under the tutelage of George Dunning, who would act as his mentor for five years. To hone his animation skills, he was also put to work with NFB animator Evelyn Lambart.

Low was recognized as a filmmaker in 1949. In 1950, he was appointed Head of the Animation Unit. From 1972 to 1976, he was an executive producer for the NFB's Studio C; in 1976, he became Director of Regional Production. He would stay with the NFB for the rest of his life, making 203 films and acting as a researcher and advisor on many others. He officially retired in 1997, but continued to write about animation and large-format film, and to work on film projects.

Influence on Stanley Kubrick and Ken Burns Low's 1957 documentary City of Gold made use of slow pans and zooms across archival photos and has been cited by Ken Burns as a key inspiration for the so-called 'Ken Burns effect'.

In 1960, Low and Roman Kroitor co-directed Universe, capturing the attention of Stanley Kubrick, who was preparing to make 2001: A Space Odyssey. Low was invited to work on 2001: A Space Odyssey but had to decline because he was making In the Labyrinth, a multi-screen production for Expo 67. Some of his ideas and techniques were incorporated into Kubrick's film and Kubrick used the narrator from Universe (Douglas Rain) as the voice of his HAL 9000 computer.

Challenge for Change From 1966 to 1968, Low worked with the people of Fogo Island, Newfoundland to shoot 27 films for the NFB's Challenge for Change program, using media as a tool to bring about social change and combat poverty.

IMAX Low was involved in a series of firsts in the wide-screen genre. The experimental multi-screen production In the Labyrinth helped lead to the creation of the IMAX format. Low co-directed the first IMAX 3D production Transitions for Expo 86 in Vancouver, and co-directed Momentum, the first film in 48 frames per-second IMAX HD for Expo 92 in Seville, Spain.

Lifetime achievement recognition In 1972, at the 24th Canadian Film Awards, Low received the inaugural Grierson Award for "an outstanding contribution to Canadian cinema."

Low was a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts and, in 1996, in recognition of his extraordinary contributions to cinema in Canada and around the world, was invested as a Member of the Order of Canada.

In 1997, Low was awarded the Prix Albert-Tessier, given to individuals for an outstanding career in Québec cinema.

In 2002, the Large Format Cinema Association presented Low and the NFB with its Abel Gance Award for outstanding work in large format filmmaking.

In 2013, the DOXA Documentary Film Festival created the annual Colin Low Award, sponsored by the Director's Guild of Canada, and presented to director of the best Canadian documentary film in the festival program.

Personal life and death Shortly after joining the NFB, Low met Eugénie (Jean) St. Germain in Montreal. They married in 1947 and had three sons. He was survived by his wife and sons when he died in Montreal on February 24, 2016.

Filmography All for the National Film Board of Canada

Cadet Rousselle - animated short, George Dunning 1946 - co-animator with George Dunning Christmas Carols - animated short, Jim MacKay 1947 - co-animator with Grant Munro, Helen MacKay, Robert Verrall, George Dunning and Lyle Enright Time and Terrain - documentary short 1948 - director, animator, co-editor with Robert Verrall Teamwork - Past and Present - animated short, Michael Spencer 1950 - editor, animator Challenge: Science Against Cancer - documentary short, Morten Parker 1950 - co-animator with Evelyn Lambart The Fight: Science Against Cancer - documentary short, Morten Parker 1950 - co-animator with Evelyn Lambart The Outlaw Within - documentary short, Morten Parker 1951 - co-animator with Evelyn Lambart Age of the Beaver - documentary short 1952 - director The Romance of Transportation in Canada, Part 1 - animated short 1952 - director The Romance of Transportation in Canada, Part 2 - animated short 1953 - director A Thousand Million Years - documentary short 1954 - director One Little Indian - puppet film, Grant Munro 1954 - co-producer with Tom Daly Corral - documentary short 1954 - writer, director Riches of the Earth - documentary short 1954 - director Gold - documentary short 1955 - director The Jolifou Inn - documentary short 1955 - editor, director It's a Crime - animated short Wolf Koenig 1957 - production designer City of Gold - documentary short 1957 - with Wolf Koenig, co- cinematographer and co-director The Living Stone - documentary short, John Feeney 1958 - co-cinematographer with Patrick Carey and Wally Gentleman City Out of Time - documentary short 1959 - director A is for Architecture - documentary short, Gerald Budner and Robert Verrall 1960 - co-producer with Tom Daly Hors-d'oeuvre - animated short, Gerald Potterton, Robert Verrall, Arthur Lipsett, Derek Lamb, Jeff Hale and Kaj Pindal 1960 - co-producer with Victor Jobin Universe - documentary short 1960 - co-director with Roman Kroitor Circle of the Sun - documentary short 1960 - writer, director The Days of Whiskey Gap - documentary short 1961 - director Very Nice, Very Nice - documentary short, Arthur Lipsett 1961 - co-producer with Tom Daly Do You Know the Milky Way? - documentary short 1961 - director My Financial Career - cartoon, Gerald Potterton 1962 - co-producer with Tom Daly The Peep Show - cartoon, Kaj Pindal 1962 - producer The World of David Milne - documentary short, Gerald Budner 1962 - co-producer with Tom Daly Pot-pourri - montage, Jeff Hale, Derek Lamb, Austin Campbell, Kaj Pindal, Grant Munro, Cameron Guess, Rhoda Leyer 1962 - co-producer with Victor Jobin 21-87 - documentary short, Arthur Lipsett 1963 - co-producer with Tom Daly The Ride - short film, Gerald Potterton 1963 - producer I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly - animated short, Derek Lamb 1963 - producer The Hutterites - documentary short 1964 - director Free Fall - experimental short, Arthur Lipsett 1964 - co-producer with Tom Daly An Essay on Science - documentary short, Guy L. Coté 1964 - co-animator with Pierre L'Amare Riches of the Earth, Revised - documentary short 1966 - director McGraths At Home and Fishing - documentary short 1967 - director The Mercer Family - documentary short 1967 - director The Merchant and the Teacher - documentary short 1967 - director The Songs of Chris Cobb - documentary short 1967 - director Tom Best on Co-Operatives - documentary short 1967 - director A Wedding and a Party - documentary short 1967 - director Citizen Discussions - documentary short 1967 - director Dan Roberts on Fishing - documentary short 1967 - director Discussion on Welfare - documentary short 1967 - director Fishermen's Meeting - documentary short 1967 - director Some Problems of Fogo - documentary short 1967 - director The Story of the Up Top - documentary short 1967 - director Two Cabinet Ministers - documentary short 1967 - director The Fogo Island Improvement Committee - documentary short 1967 - director Fogo's Expatriates - documentary short 1967 - director The Founding of the Co-operatives - documentary short 1967 - director Jim Decker Builds a Longliner - documentary short 1967 - director Jim Decker's Party - documentary short 1967 - director Joe Kinsella on Education - documentary short 1967 - director Thoughts on Fogo and Norway - documentary short 1967 - director Andrew Britt at Shoal Bay - documentary short 1967 - director Billy Crane Moves Away - documentary short 1967 - director Brian Earle on Merchants and Welfare - documentary short 1967 - director The Children of Fogo Island - documentary short 1967 - director William Wells Talks About the Island - documentary short 1967 - director A Woman's Place - documentary short 1967 - director In the Labyrinth - documentary short 1967 - co-director with Roman Kroitor and Hugh O'Connor Introduction to Fogo Island - documentary short 1968 - director The Winds of Fogo - documentary short 1969 - director Of Many People - documentary short, Stanley Jackson 1970 - co-editor with Malca Gillson and John Spotton Cell 16 - documentary short, Martin Duckworth 1971 - producer The Sea - documentary short, Bané Jovanovic 1971 - co-producer with Tom Daly and William Brind Time Piece - documentary short, Albert Kish 1971 - producer God Help the Man Who Would Part with His Land - documentary, George C. Stoney 1971 - co-producer with Tom Daly I Don't Think It's Meant For Us... - documentary short, Kathleen Shannon 1971 - co-producer with George C. Stoney Here is Canada - documentary short, Tony Ianzelo 1972 - producer The Question of TV Violence - documentary, Graeme Ferguson 1972 - producer That Gang of Hoodlums? - documentary short, Robert Nichol 1972 - co-executive producer with Len Chatwin A Memo from Fogo - documentary, Roger Hart 1972 - producer When I Go...That's It! - documentary short 1972 - co-producer and co-director with George C. Stoney, Ron Alexander and Dennis Sawyer Child, Part 1: Jamie, Ethan and Marlon: The First Two Months - documentary short, Robert Humble 1973 - executive producer Child, Part 2: Jamie, Ethan and Keir: 2-14 Months - documentary short, Robert Humble 1973 - executive producer Child, Part 3: Debbie and Robert: 12-24 Months - documentary short, Robert Humble 1973 - executive producer The Greenlanders - documentary short, Hubert Schuurman 1973 - co-executive producer with Len Chatwin Rock-A-Bye - documentary short, Jacques Bensimon 1973 - executive producer Kainai - documentary short, Raoul Fox 1973 - producer Do Your Thing - documentary short, Len Chatwin 1973 - production team The Man Who Can't Stop - documentary, Michael Rubbo 1973 - executive producer Coming Home - documentary, Bill Reid 1973 - co-producer with Tom Daly Sub-Igloo - documentary short, James de Beaujeu Domville and Joseph B. MacInnis 1973 - executive producer Freshwater World - documentary short, Giles Walker 1974 - executive producer King of the Hill - documentary, William Canning and Donald Brittain 1974 - executive producer Another Side of the Forest - documentary short, Raoul Fox and Strowan Robertson 1974 - executive producer Running Time - feature, Mort Ransen 1974 - executive producer Sananguagat: Inuit Masterworks - documentary short, Derek May 1974 - executive producer Thoughts on the Future with George McRobie - documentary short, Roger Hart 1974 - executive producer The Boat That Ian Built - documentary short, Andy Thomson 1974 - co-producer with Stanley Jackson Cree Hunters of Mistassini - documentary, Boyce Richardson and Tony Ianzelo 1974 - producer In Praise of Hands - documentary short, Donald Winkler 1974 - co-producer with Tom Daly In Search of the Bowhead Whale - documentary, Bill Mason 1974 - executive producer