[Bcma-l] CMA Clip Serv: McLaren's work added to UNESCO list
bcma-l@museumsassn.bc.ca
bcma-l@museumsassn.bc.ca
Fri, 31 Jul 2009 10:23:48 -0700
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<b>Norman McLaren's works added to UNESCO
list of most significant heritage collections</b></span></font>
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Canada Newswire, Thursday, July 30, 2009</span></font>
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The remarkable audiovisual legacy of National Film Board of Canada
animation pioneer Norman McLaren has been added to the United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization's
(UNESCO) Memory of the World Registry.</span></font>
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Created by UNESCO in 1992, the Memory of the World Register
identifies and lists the most significant documentary heritage
collections in the world, including such eminent works as the
Gutenberg Bible and the original manuscript of the Ninth Symphony
of Ludwig van Beethoven.</span></font>
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82 films and 52 film tests completed by McLaren between 1933 and
1985 have been entered into the registry - including McLaren's
Academy Award-winning, 1952, anti-war classic, Neighbours.</span></font>
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The nomination was made by the Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of
Canada, which had itself selected Neighbours as one of its first three
film "Masterworks" in 2000, along with McLaren's Begone Dull Care
in 2005.</span></font>
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"Norman McLaren showed the world the power of animation as a
means of serious social commentary, making a contribution to world
art that cannot be overestimated. The National Film Board of Canada
is proud that his great legacy has been added to the Memory of the
World Register, just as we're dedicated to ensuring that Norman's
genius and social conscience reach the widest possible audience," said
Tom Perlmutter, Government Film Commissioner and NFB
Chairperson.</span></font>
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"The Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada must be
congratulated for having put forward Norman McLaren's body of
work to be inserted in the Memory of the World list of documentary
masterpieces," commented Jean-Pierre Wallot, the President of the ad
hoc committee for the Memory of the World Program set up by the
Canadian Commission for UNESCO. </span></font>
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"McLaren's works have impacted on animation cinema and even art
across the world. But the significance of Neighbours, a National Film
Board of Canada production, is as prevalent today as in 1952:
Countries, factions and terrorists wage wars all over the world with
terrible collateral damage upon millions of innocent victims. This
simple and short parable of a mortal fight over a flower illustrates the
violence brought about by passions for power, for possession, for
ideologies, etc. that shred our world. It calls eloquently for peace, for
dialogue, for sharing, for working out differences in all kinds</span></font>
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of situations. In that sense - and of course also because of its technical
brilliance - it is an icon of exceptional universal value. We can only
hope that Canadians will identify more of these treasures that grace
our country and submit proposals to the Memory of the World
Program, adding to the treasure trove of humanity."</span></font>
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"The Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada is elated that
Norman McLaren's works will join the UNESCO Memory of the
World Register alongside The Story of the Kelly Gang (Australia),
The Battle of the Somme (United Kingdom), Metropolis (Germany)
and The Wizard of Oz (United States)," said David Novek, President</span></font>
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of the AV Trust. "McLaren's films have long been honoured
universally, and UNESCO's recognition now places his masterpiece
on a par with the world's most enduring works, underlining the AV
Trust's mandate to assure that Canada's audiovisual heritage is
preserved and accessible for generations to come."</span></font>
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Support for the AV Trust's nomination of the collection came from
such distinguished bodies as the International Association of Sound
and Audiovisual Archives, the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), the
British Film Institute, the Toronto International Film Festival, the
Film Studies Association of Canada, the Canadian Chapter of the
International Animated Film Association, the Concordia University
Film Studies Department and the Association of Moving Image
Archivists.</span></font>
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The McLaren collection is just the third Canadian entry into the
Memory of the World registry, which also includes the Hudson's Bay
Company Archival records and the Quebec Seminary Collection,
from 1623-1800.</span></font>
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Norman McLaren (April 11, 1914 to January 27, 1987) was one the
most influential figures in film animation, creating an extraordinary
body of work and continuing to inspire generations of filmmakers. He
was also deeply involved with UNESCO, through his pioneering
UNESCO-sponsored missions to teach animation in China (1949) and
India (1952) for use in promoting public health and education.</span></font>
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In 2006, the NFB marked the 65th anniversary of NFB animation
with an ambitious restoration of the complete works of Norman
McLaren, from his early years in Glasgow in 1933 to his final film
with the NFB in 1983, including experiments, tests and outtakes.
These restored classics were released as part of a 7-DVD box entitled</span></font>
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Norman McLaren - The Master's Edition, which received the Focal
Award for Best Archive Restoration or Preservation Project. A
theatrical retrospective of McLaren's films also toured Canadian and
international cities.</span></font>
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Neighbours and other McLaren classics can be viewed, free of charge,
at the National Film Board of Canada's online Screening Room,
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<u>NFB.ca</u>
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