Screenwriting C.V. & Selected Credits

PAUL QUARRINGTON
AUTHOR / SCREENWRITER / DIRECTOR / STORY EDITOR

Representation

Sarah Cooper
The Saint Agency
416-944-8200
sarah@thesaintagency.com

Paul Quarrington is a novelist, playwright, screenwriter and filmmaker. He has written ten novels. King Leary won the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour and Canada Reads 2008; Whale Music was given the Governor General’s Award for Fiction. Whale Music was also made into a feature film, directed by Richard J. Lewis and starring Maury Chaykin. Quarrington’s other novels include the cult favourite Home Game, Civilization and The Spirit Cabinet. Galveston, about people who like to get in the way of extreme weather, was published in 2004 by Random House Canada to great acclaim, and was shortlisted for the prestigious Giller Prize. The Ravine was published by Random House in March 2008.

Quarrington has also published four books of non-fiction: Hometown Heroes, Fishing With My Old Guy and The Boy On The Back of the Turtle, and a collection of angling essays, From the Far Side of the River. His next, The Song, is due from Greystone Books in 2009.

Quarrington’s works for the stage include two musicals for children (So You Think You’re Mozart, music by Louis Applebaum, and Heavenfields, music by Glenn Buhr), two one-acts (Checkout Time, The Heart in the Bottle) as well as the full-length plays The Second, The Invention of Poetry and Dying Is Easy.

Quarrington has written or contributed to five theatrical screenplays: Men with Brooms (story, dir. Paul Gross), the afore-mentioned Whale Music, Camilla (directed by Deepa Mehta, starring Jessica Tandy and Bridget Fonda), Perfectly Normal (dir: Yves Simoneau, co-written with Eugene Lipinsky), winner of the Genie for Best Screenplay, and Giant Steps (dir: Richard Rose). He has also directed three short films: Mump and Smoot in ‘The Princess Who Wouldn’t Smile’, Moon and Mann and A Man’s Life, which was awarded a Golden Sheaf Award in 2002 for Best Comedy.

Quarrington has also written for television. His credits include Due South, John Woo’s Once a Thief, Power Play (writer & executive story editor), The Counsellors, Tom Stone and 1-800 Missing (writer and creative producer). Television movie and mini-series credits include writing The Cloud for CBC, story editing Cradle Will Fall and Keep Your Head Up: the Don Cherry Story for Barna-Alper, and Marie Hood Has a Secret for Duopoly/Barna Alper.

He was a story consultant and writer for the CBC animated show, Chilly Beach, in it’s first season, and wrote and story-edited a comedy series for Showcase, Moose TV, which won the CFTPA Indie Award 2008. He and co-creators Nino Ricci and Erica de Vascancelos have a series in development with Alberta Film Works, Changing Houses. He is also working on developing the television adaptation of Men With Brooms for CBC /Serendipity/Whizbang, is working on a movie with director/producer Ron Mann, another with Peter Lynch, and just completed work on a mini-series for CBC on the life of Don Cherry. His short film, Pavane, which he wrote and is directing, based on his own novel The Ravine, is now in production for delivery to broadcast co-producer Bravo!FACT in July 2008.

Selected Film & Television Credits

• Pavane, Screenwriter Director, Fizzy Dreams, Crush Inc., BookShorts Inc / BravoFACT / CBC
• 23 Questions…. Writer Sphinx Productions
• Rainforest Gold Writer NFB
• Keep Your Head Up: Story Editor and Barna Alper Productions / CBC
• The Don Cherry Story consultant / CBC
• Men With Brooms Co-Creator and ½ hr comedy series in development with Writer Serendipity / CBC
• Moose TV Writer and ½ hour comedy series Exec. Story Editor Rezolution Films / Showcase
• Changing Houses Writer and Drama series in development with Co-Creator Alberta Film Works. Co-created with
  Nino Ricci & Erika de Vasconcelos
• Puck Hogs Story Editor Feature in development with Protocol Ent.
• Call Forward Story Consultant Feature; Protocol Entertainment
• Whiskey Echo Story Editor Miniseries; Barna Alper Productions /CBC
• 1-800 Missing Writer and Hour long drama series; NDG
• Creative Producer Productions / Lion’s Gate
• Cradle Will Fall Writer MOW; Barna Alper Productions
• Chilly Beach Writer and ½ hour animated comedy series. Story Consultant March Entertainment / CBC
• Tom Stone Writer Hour long drama series; Alberta Film Works / CBC
• Men With Brooms Story Consultant Feature starring Paul Gross. Whizbang/Serendipity Point Films
• Power Play Writer and Exec. Story Editor Serendipity Point Films / NDG Productions / Alliance Atlantis / CTV WGC Award
• John Woo’s Once a Thief Writer Alliance / NDG Productions / CTV
• A Man’s Life Writer/Director Short; Moondog Films
• Mann Over Moon Writer/Director Short; Fizzy Dreams Inc. Producer
• Due South Writer, Program Drama Series; Alliance-Atlantis / Consultant CTV / CBS; Gemini Nomination Best Writing
• Mump and Smoot in the Princess Who Wouldn’t Smile Director Short, Canadian Film Centre
• Camilla Writer Feature; directed by Deepa Mehta and starring Jessica Tandy. Majestic Films / Shaftesbury / British Screen
• Whale Music Co-Writer Feature, Alliance / Cape Scott; Genie Award Best Song
• Giant Steps Co-Writer Feature; OB & D Films
• Perfectly Normal Co-Writer Feature; BSB / Bialystock & Bloom /
• Skyhost; Genie Award Best Screenplay

Novels

• The Service - 1978
• Home Game - 1983
• The Life of Hope – 1985
• King Leary – 1987; Stephen Leacock Award for Humour in 1987; Finalist for Trillium Book Award; Winner Canada Reads 2008
• Whale Music - 1989; Governor General’s Literary Award for English Language Fiction in Canada
• Logan in Overtime - 1990
• Civilization - 1994
• The Spirit Cabinet - 1999
• Galveston – 2004; Short-Listed for The Giller Prize
• The Ravine - 2008

Non-Fiction

• Hometown Heroes: On the Road With Canada’s National Hockey Team - 1988
• Fishing With My Old Guy - 1995
• Original Six - True Stories from Hockey’s Classic Era - 1996
• The Boy On the Back of the Turtle – 1997; Short-Listed for Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour; Short-Listed for Trillium Book Award
• Fishing for Brookies, Browns & Bows: The Old Guy’s Compleat Guide to Catching Trout - 2001
• From the Far Side of the River - 2003

Plays

• The Second - 1981
• The Invention of Poetry - 1989
• Checkout Time - 1997
• Dying is Easy - 1997

Music

• Pork Belly Futures; Way Past Midnight CD 2004 …is a masterful effort distinguished by
  some exceptionally colourful and unusual songs and an authoritative dedication to
  fundamental folk, roots and blues grooves.” –– Toronto Star
• Porkbelly Futures; Porkbelly Futures, CD 2008