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Impressions of Allan King

Broadcast Date: Sept. 23, 1973

"I'm really interested in stories about people." Ramsay Cook interviews documentary filmmaker Allan King about his unique approach to making movies in a style called, "cinema verité". King also talks critically about his movies including Skid Row, his first documentary produced for the CBC in 1956. They also discuss A Married Couple, Warrendale and A Bird in the House, adapted from a story by Margaret Laurence.

Impressions of Allan King

• Allan King was born in Vancouver in 1930.

• In the early 1960s, he relocated to London, England to open a film studio with cinematographer Richard Leiterman, and editor Peter Moseley, making documentaries for the BBC, Granada Television, PBS and CBC. The team developed a technique known as "cinema verité", a blend of natural story telling with dramatic re-enactments often using the camera as the main protagonist.

• King's films were considered controversial for their subject matter and the boldness of the topics he explored, including mental illness, poverty, alcoholism and terminal illness. In 2002 the Toronto International Film Festival featured 17 of his works, including Who Has Seen The Wind, a drama based on W.O. Mitchell's novel of the same name.

Impressions of Allan King

Medium: Television

Program: Impressions

Broadcast Date: Sept. 23, 1973

Guest(s): Allan King

Interviewer: Ramsay Cook

Duration: 26:19

Last updated:
Jan. 28, 2009