Rich Williamson (filmmaker)

Last updated
Rich Williamson
Rich Williamson during an interview, March 2022.jpg
Occupation(s)film director, producer, cinematographer, editor
Years active2010s-present
Known for Frame 394 , Scarborough

Rich Williamson is a Canadian film director, cinematographer and editor, most noted as codirector with Shasha Nakhai of the 2021 film Scarborough . [1] The film won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Picture, and Nakhai and Williamson won the award for Best Director, at the 10th Canadian Screen Awards in 2022. [2]

A partner with Nakhai in the production firm Compy Films, [3] he first became known for his 2016 short documentary film Frame 394 , which was a CSA nominee for Best Short Documentary at the 5th Canadian Screen Awards in 2017. [4]

He was also a CSA nominee for Best Editing in a Documentary at the 7th Canadian Screen Awards in 2019 for his work on Nakhai's documentary film Take Light , [5] and at the 12th Canadian Screen Awards in 2024 for Cynara . [6]

Scarborough, codirected by Nakhai and Williamson as their debut narrative feature film, premiered at the 2021 Toronto International Film Festival. [7] It was named the winner of the Changemaker Award, was first runner-up for the People's Choice Award, and received an honorable mention from the jury for the Best Canadian Film award. [8] It was nominated for the Toronto Film Critics Association's Rogers Best Canadian Film Award. [9]

His other films have included Prom Day (2009), The Sugar Bowl (2011), Joe (2012), Freelance (2014), The Unsinkable Captain John (2014), The Hole in Reservoir Hill (2018) [10] and Thirty Eight Minutes (2020).

Related Research Articles

The John Dunning Best First Feature Award is a special Canadian film award, presented by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the year's best feature film by a first-time film director. Under the earlier names Claude Jutra Award and Canadian Screen Award for Best First Feature, the award has been presented since the 14th Genie Awards in 1993.

The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television presents an annual award for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role to the best performance by a supporting actor in a Canadian film. The award was first presented in 1970 by the Canadian Film Awards, and was presented annually until 1978 with the exception of 1974 due to the cancellation of the awards that year.

The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television presents an annual award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role to the best performance by a supporting actress in a Canadian film. The award was first presented in 1970 by the Canadian Film Awards, and was presented annually until 1978 with the exception of 1974 due to the cancellation of the awards that year.

The Canadian Screen Award for Best Achievement in Art Direction/Production Design is awarded by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best Canadian film art direction/production design.

The Canadian Screen Award for Best Costume Design is awarded by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best Canadian costume designer. It was formerly called the Genie Award for Best Achievement in Costume Design before the Genies were merged into the Canadian Screen Awards.

The Canadian Screen Award for Best Achievement in Editing is awarded by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best Canadian film editor in a feature film. The award was presented for the first time in 1966 as part of the Canadian Film Awards, and was transitioned to the new Genie Awards in 1980. Since 2012 it has been presented as part of the Canadian Screen Awards.

The Canadian Screen Award for Best Achievement in Sound Editing is awarded by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best sound editor on a Canadian film. The award was first presented in 1970 as part of the Canadian Film Awards, before being transitioned to the new Genie Awards in 1980; since 2013 it has been presented as part of the Canadian Screen Awards.

The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television presents an annual award for Best Achievement in Music: Original Song to the best original song in a Canadian motion picture.

The Canadian Screen Award for Best Animated Short is awarded by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best Canadian animated short film. Formerly part of the Genie Awards, since 2012 it has been presented as part of the Canadian Screen Awards.

The Canadian Screen Award for Best Live Action Short Drama is awarded by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best Canadian live action short film. Formerly part of the Genie Awards, since 2012 it has been presented as part of the Canadian Screen Awards.

The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television presents an annual award for Best Feature Length Documentary. First presented in 1968 as part of the Canadian Film Awards, it became part of the Genie Awards in 1980 and the contemporary Canadian Screen Awards in 2013.

The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television's Award for Best Short Documentary is an annual Canadian film award, presented to a film judged to be the year's best short documentary film. Prior to 2012 the award was presented as part of the Genie Awards program; since 2012 it has been presented as part of the expanded Canadian Screen Awards.

Catherine Hernandez is a Canadian writer, whose debut novel Scarborough was a shortlisted finalist for the 2017 Toronto Book Awards and the 2018 Edmund White Award.

The Donald Brittain Award is a Canadian television award, presented by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to honour the year's best television documentary on a social or political topic. Formerly presented as part of the Gemini Awards, since 2013 it has been presented as part of the Canadian Screen Awards. The award may be presented to either a standalone broadcast of a documentary film, or to an individual full-length episode of a news or documentary series; documentary films which originally premiered theatrically, but were not already submitted for consideration in a CSA film category before being broadcast on television, are also considered television films for the purposes of the award.

The Rob Stewart Award, formerly known as the Gemini/Canadian Screen Award for Best Science or Nature Documentary Program, is a Canadian television award, presented by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to honour the year's best television documentary on a scientific or nature topic. Formerly presented as part of the Gemini Awards, since 2013 it has been presented as part of the Canadian Screen Awards. The award is open to both standalone documentary films and relevant episodes of television documentary series; in particular, episodes of the CBC Television documentary series The Nature of Things have frequently been nominees for or winners of the award.

The Canadian Screen Award for Best Cinematography in a Documentary is an annual award, presented as part of the Canadian Screen Awards program to honour the year's best cinematography in a documentary film. It is presented separately from the Canadian Screen Award for Best Cinematography for feature films.

The Canadian Screen Award for Best Editing in a Documentary is an annual award, presented as part of the Canadian Screen Awards program to honour the year's best editing in a documentary film. It is presented separately from the Canadian Screen Award for Best Editing for narrative feature films.

<i>Scarborough</i> (2021 film) 2021 Canadian film

Scarborough is a 2021 Canadian drama film, directed by Shasha Nakhai and Rich Williamson. An adaptation of Catherine Hernandez's 2017 novel Scarborough, the film centres on the coming of age of Bing, Sylvie and Laura, three young children in a low-income neighbourhood in the Scarborough district of Toronto, as they learn the value of community, passion and resilience over the course of a school year through an after-school program led by childhood educator Ms. Hina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shasha Nakhai</span> Filipino-Iranian Canadian film director

Shasha Nakhai is a Filipino-Iranian Canadian film director, most noted as co-director with Rich Williamson of the 2021 film Scarborough. The film won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Picture, and Nakhai and Williamson won the award for Best Director, at the 10th Canadian Screen Awards in 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scarborough (novel)</span> 2017 Canadian novel

Scarborough is the debut novel by Canadian writer Catherine Hernandez, published in 2017. Set in the Toronto district of Scarborough, the novel centres on the coming-of-age of three young children living in the low-income Galloway Road neighbourhood — Bing, a boy struggling with his sexual identity; Laura, a girl who longs for stability as she is continually being shuffled back and forth between her mother's and her father's separate homes; and Sylvie, a girl whose family is living in a homeless shelter — as well as Hina, a community literacy worker dedicated to serving as a supportive oasis of guidance for underprivileged children in her community.

References