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Industry | Film |
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Founded | 1963 in Laguna Beach, California, USA |
Founders | Greg MacGillivray and Jim Freeman |
Headquarters | Laguna Beach, CA , USA |
Areas served | Worldwide |
Key people | Greg MacGillivray (Chair, Founder, Director) Shaun MacGillivray (President, Producer) Brad Ohlund (Director of Photography) Steve Judson (Writer and Editor) |
Products | Motion Pictures |
Website | https://macgillivrayfreeman.com |
MacGillivray Freeman Films is an American film studio based in Laguna Beach, California and founded in the mid-1960s by Greg MacGillivray and Jim Freeman. It produces documentaries, feature films, and IMAX films.
MacGillivray Freeman Films was established in 1963 in Laguna Beach, California by Greg MacGillivray and Jim Freeman. [1] Greg MacGillivray began making films when he was 13 and later partnered with best friend Jim Freeman to form MacGillivray Freeman Films. In 1966, at the age of 19, the two dropped out of college to make movies full time starting with a film in South America after the success of one of their first surfing documentaries, Free and Easy, which recouped its production costs after only 10 screenings. [2] [3]
In the ensuing years, MacGillivray and Freeman produced a series of documentaries about surfing and skateboarding, pioneering a cinematic perspective for the genre by putting the viewer in the middle of the action via board-mounted cameras.
MacGillivray has produced and directed more than 50 films, over 35 of which are IMAX, [2] and has developed three IMAX cameras: a high-speed (slow-motion) model, a lightweight model and the “all-weather” camera he used while filming on Mt. Everest. [3]
Freeman died in a helicopter crash in 1976, two days before the release of To Fly! [4]
Prior to producing IMAX films, the company produced surfing documentaries, TV commercials and filming for Hollywood feature films.
In 1976, it produced Magic Rolling Board, a 10-minute documentary about skateboarding. The company has directed and photographed for Warner Brothers, Twentieth Century Fox, Paramount and Stanley Kubrick. Cinematographer Jonathan Livingston Seagull was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Photography in 1974. [5] The Towering Inferno received the Academy Award for Best Photography in 1975. [6]
Most well known for its IMAX films, the studio has produced and distributed 35 IMAX films since 1974. Its first IMAX film To Fly! , produced for the Smithsonian Institution National Air and Space Museum, was later selected by the Library of Congress for inclusion in the National Film Registry.
Three of its films, The Living Sea (1995), Amazon , and Dolphins (2000), were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Short. Its film Everest (1998) appeared Variety's Top 10 Box Office chart for North America.
The company's films have been received nominations and won awards from the Giant Screen Cinema Association (GSCA). [7] [8] [9] [10]
Below is a list of films and television commercials produced and/or distributed MacGillivray Freeman Films.
Title | Release Date | Runtime | Format | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
Let There Be Surf | 1963 | n/a | Filmed in 16mm | Jim Freeman's first commercial film. |
Outside the Third Dimension | 1964 | n/a | Filmed in 16mm | Produced and directed by Jim Freeman. A film about Hawaiian surfing photographed and released in 3D. |
A Cool Wave of Summer | 1964 | n/a | Filmed in 16mm | Greg MacGillivray's first commercial film. An avant-garde film about surfing in California. |
The Glass Wall | 1965 | n/a | Filmed in 16mm | Produced and distributed by Jim Freeman. |
The Performers | 1965 | n/a | Filmed in 35mm | Produced and directed by Greg MacGillivray. A study of three Californians who find surf and adventure in Hawaii, Mexico and Florida. |
Moods of Surfing | 1968 | 15 minutes | Filmed in 35mm | Short Film for Theatrical Release by United Artists. |
Television Commercials | 1969 | n/a | n/a |
|
Catch the Joy | 1969 | 15 minutes | Filmed in 35mm | An aesthetic look at the sport of Dune Buggy-ing by United Artists. |
Waves of Change | 1969 | n/a | Filmed in 35mm | |
Television Commercials | 1970 | n/a | n/a |
|
Sentinels of Silence | 1970 | 28 minutes | Filmed in 35mm | Narrated by Orson Welles. Photographed by Jim Freeman. |
Ski Movie One | 1970 | n/a | n/a | Produced with Summit Films |
Five Summer Stories | 1972 | n/a | n/a | |
To Fly! | 1976 | 27 minutes | Filmed in 70mm | The premiere film for the Theater of the National Air and Space Museum, Smithsonian Institution |
Speed | 1984 | Narrated by James Burke | ||
The Dream is Alive | 1985 | Narrated by Walter Cronkite | ||
To The Limit | 1989 | Narrated by Richard Kiley | ||
The Discoverers | 1993 | |||
The Living Sea | 1995 | 40 minutes | Filmed in 70mm | Narrated by Meryl Streep |
Storm Chasers | 1996 | Narrated by Hal Holbrook | ||
The Magic of Flight | 1996 | Narrated by Tom Selleck | ||
Amazon | 1997 | Narrated by Linda Hunt | ||
Everest | 1998 | Narrated by Liam Neeson | ||
Dolphins | 2000 | 39 minutes | Filmed in 70mm | Narrated by Pierce Brosnan |
Adventures in Wild California | 2000 | Narrated by Jimmy Smits | ||
Journey Into Amazing Caves | 2001 | Narrated by Liam Neeson | ||
Top Speed | 2003 | Narrated by Tim Allen | ||
Coral Reef Adventure | 2003 | Narrated by Liam Neeson | ||
Mystery of the Nile | 2005 | Narrated by Pasquale Scaturro | ||
Greece: Secrets of the Past | 2006 | Narrated by Nia Vardalos | ||
Hurricane on the Bayou | 2006 | Narrated by Meryl Streep | ||
Grand Canyon Adventure: River at Risk | 2008 | Narrated by Robert Redford | ||
Van Gough: Brush With Genius | 2009 | |||
Arabia | 2010 | Narrated by Helen Mirren | ||
To The Arctic [11] | 2012 | 40 minutes | Filmed in 70mm | Narrated by Meryl Streep. |
Journey to the South Pacific | 2013 | 40 minutes | Filmed in 70mm | Narrated by Cate Blanchett. |
Hidden Universe | 2013 | Narrated by Miranda Richardson | ||
Humpback Whales [12] | 2015 | 40 minutes | Filmed in 70mm | Narrated by Ewan McGregor. A film about the resurgence of Humpback whales |
National Parks Adventure [13] | 2016 | 43 minutes | Filmed in 70mm | Narrated by Robert Redford. A celebration of the 100 year anniversary of the US National Park Service |
The Search for Life in Space | 2016 | Narrated by Malcolm McDowell | ||
Dream Big: Engineering Our World [14] | 2017 | 42 minutes | Filmed in 70mm | Narrated by Jeff Bridges. |
We, The Marines [15] | 2017 | 37 minutes | Filmed in 70mm | Narrated by Gene Hackman. Large format documentary made for permanent exhibit at the National Museum of the Marine Corps |
America's Musical Journey [16] | 2018 | 40 minutes | Filmed in 70mm | Narrated by Morgan Freeman. Exploring the roots of America's music |
Great Barrier Reef | 2018 | Narrated by Eric Bana | ||
Great Bear Rainforest | 2019 | Narrated by Ryan Reynolds | ||
Apollo 11: First Steps Edition | 2019 | Exclusive edition for IMAX and giant screen theaters | ||
Into America's Wild | 2020 | Narrated by Morgan Freeman | ||
Ancient Caves | 2020 | Narrated by Bryan Cranston | ||
Astronaut: Ocean to Orbit | 2021 | Narrated by Mike Casey | ||
Out Where The West Begins [17] | 2021 | 40 minutes | Filmed in 70mm | Narrated by Tom Selleck. Four-episode documentary series explaining the history of the Western United States |
Ireland | 2022 | Narrated by Liam Neeson | ||
Secrets of the Sea | 2022 | Narrated by Joelle Carter | ||
Cites of the Future | 2024 | Narrated by John Krasinski | ||
Lasting Impressions | 2024 | |||
Super Human Body | 2024 | Narrated by Matthew McConaughey |
In 2004, Greg MacGillivray and his wife Barbara founded the non-profit MacGillivray Freeman Films Educational Foundation to contribute to the conservation of the world's natural and cultural heritage through giant screen films and companion educational programming.
MacGillivray Freeman established the One World One Ocean campaign, [18] which along with other organizations, was featured in Laguna Beach Eco Heroes, a 30-minute documentary by The My Hero Project. The efforts of the Crystal Cove Alliance, ECO Warrior, Laguna Bluebelt, Laguna Canyon Foundation, Nancy Caruso, Pacific Marine Mammal Center, Wyland, and Zero Trash Laguna were also highlighted in the documentary. [19]
To Fly! is a 1976 American short docudrama film directed by Greg MacGillivray and Jim Freeman of MacGillivray Freeman Films, who wrote the story with Francis Thompson, Robert M. Young, and Arthur Zegart. It premiered at the giant-screen IMAX theater of the National Air and Space Museum, which opened to celebrate the United States Bicentennial. The film chronicles the history of aviation in the US, with a narration written by Thomas McGrath. Thematically, it explores the search for national identity through the country's westward expansion as well as humanity's relationship with aviation.
Speed is a 1984 documentary written and directed by Greg MacGillivray of MacGillivray Freeman Films which chronicles the development of human technology as part of our desire to go faster than before.
Dolphins is an IMAX documentary produced in 2000. The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Subject. Directed by Greg MacGillivray, with Chris Palmer serving as executive producer, this feature follows a few scientists studying dolphins as they work to learn more about dolphins. The main focus is on research into dolphin communication and intelligence, along with some exploration of feeding habits and human interaction. Several species of dolphins are shown, primarily the bottlenose dolphin, the dusky dolphin, and the Atlantic spotted dolphin. Dolphins is narrated by Pierce Brosnan with music by Sting.
Surf movies fall into three distinct genres:
Everest is a 70mm American documentary film, from MacGillivray Freeman Films, about the struggles involved in climbing Mount Everest, the highest mountain peak on Earth, located in the Himalayan region of Nepal and Tibet. It was released to IMAX theaters in March 1998 and became the highest-grossing film made in the IMAX format.
Alexandr Hackenschmied, born Alexander Siegfried George Hackenschmied, known later as Alexander Hammid was a Czech-American photographer, film director, cinematographer and film editor. He immigrated to the U.S. in 1938 and became involved in American avant-garde cinema. He is best known for three films: Crisis (1939), Meshes of the Afternoon (1943) and To Be Alive! (1964). He made Meshes of the Afternoon with Maya Deren, to whom he was married from 1942 to 1947. His second marriage was to the photographer Hella Heyman, who had also collaborated with Hammid and Deren on several films.
The Living Sea is a 70mm American documentary film exploring marine locales intended to show the importance of protecting the ocean, released to IMAX theaters in 1995. It is narrated by actress Meryl Streep, with music by Sting, produced by Science World, a Vancouver-based science education centre, and underwater imagery directed by filmmaker Greg MacGillivray.
Greg MacGillivray is an American film director and cinematographer.
Adventures in Wild California is a documentary film showcasing the scenery and extreme sports found in California. It is narrated by Jimmy Smits and was released to IMAX theaters in 2000. The film is directed by Greg MacGillivray and features songs by musician Lindsey Buckingham.
Hurricane on the Bayou is an American 2006 documentary film that focuses on the wetlands of Louisiana before and after Hurricane Katrina.
Five Summer Stories is a 1972 surf film by Jim Freeman and Greg MacGillivray of MacGillivray Freeman Films. The last film of the genre by the duo, it explores the joy of surfing amid the backdrop of 1970s political and environmental problems. Its stars include David Nuuhiwa, Eddie Aikau, Gerry Lopez, and Sam Hawk.
Honk is an American rock band based in Laguna Beach, California. It is best known for providing the soundtrack for the 1972 surf documentary film Five Summer Stories.
The My Hero Project is a U.S.-based nonprofit organization established in 1995 by philanthropist Karen Pritzker, Jeanne Meyers and Rita Stern Milch that promotes the sharing of positive role models from around the world for the online digital storytelling project. By 2013, it reached 194 countries.
Amazon is a 1997 American short documentary film directed by Kieth Merrill. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Short.
Grand Canyon Adventure: River at Risk is a 2008 American documentary film directed by Greg MacGillivray and narrated by Robert Redford. It was released to IMAX 3D Theaters in 2008.
Alec Lorimore is a twice Academy Award-nominated film producer and screenwriter who has concentrated his focus in creating giant screen, IMAX documentary films. He is credited as one of the three producers of 1998 IMAX film Everest, which had generated over $140 million in worldwide box office, making it the highest grossing IMAX documentary film of the time.
James Lawson Neihouse is an American cinematographer who has been involved with many of the most memorable and successful IMAX 2D and IMAX 3D films to date.
Chris Palmer is a Hong Kong-born English environmental and wildlife film producer and director of the Center for Environmental Filmmaking at American University. He was executive producer for the Oscar nominated film Dolphins. He is author of Shooting in the Wild: An Insider's Account of Making Movies in the Animal Kingdom (ISBN 1578051487), Confessions of a Wildlife Filmmaker: The Challenges of Staying Honest in an Industry Where Ratings Are King (ISBN 193895405X), and Now What Grad: Your Path to Success After College (ISBN 1475823665).
Journey to the South Pacific is a 2013 IMAX documentary film directed by Greg MacGillivray. It was narrated by Cate Blanchett.
Marc Ostrick is an American born filmmaker and content creator, specializing in television, documentaries and emerging media. He attended the New World School of the Arts in Miami, Florida for High-School before attending the New York University Tisch School of the Arts for his Undergraduate in Film & Television Production and English Literature. In 2009 Marc Ostrick launched eGuiders, one of the first websites to curate and recommend the best videos across the internet from industry experts.
Documentary is posted at 2015 Eco Heroes, My Hero
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