Paul Quarrington Documentary: First Look
January 21, 2010
Paul Quarrington’s friends, family and colleagues pay tribute.
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!Comments
3 Responses to “Paul Quarrington Documentary: First Look”
Got something to say?
Paul Quarrington
In May 2009, Paul was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer. From May 2009 to January 2010 he channeled his prodigious creative energy into the completion of many artistic endeavours, including his first solo CD release “Paul Quarrington: The Songs,” the third PorkBellys Futures CD release, his memoir “Cigar Box Banjo: Notes on Music and Life” for Greystone Books, the documentary film “Paul Quarrington: Life in Music” (BookShorts / CTV Bravo) and so much more.
His brave journey ended on January 21, 2010. He passed peacefully at home in Toronto surrounded by friends and family.
The Quarrington Arts Society has been established in honour of the inspiration Paul’s life and work continues to provide for artists who seek expression in many disciplines – for information about the organization and its mandate, please visit http://www.quarringtonartsociety.ca
Paul Quarrington was a musician, acclaimed non-fiction writer and novelist, an award-winning screenwriter and filmmaker, and an educator extra-ordinaire.
His novel The Ravine (2008) was long-listed for the Scotiabank Giller Prize; his previous novel Galveston (2004) was short-listed for the Giller. Quarrington won the Stephen Leacock Award for King Leary, a title that also won the 2008 Canada Reads competition. Whale Music won the Governor General’s Award for Fiction and was one of several of his novels already adapted or currently being adapted as feature films.
His non-fiction writing includes books on some of his favourite pastimes such as fishing, hockey and music; his memoir Cigar Box Banjo: Notes on Music and Life, is published by Greystone Books (May 29, 2010). He regularly contributed book reviews, travel columns and journalism to Canada’s national newspapers and magazines, winning or co-winning more than 30 Gold awards. His screenplays and story editing won many awards, including the CFPTA Indie Award for Comedy for the series Moose TV.
Throughout his career he was in high demand as a story editor for Canadian and American feature films and television. Paul’s filmmaking talents as writer / director are evident in his BookShorts film, Pavane (2008), which he adapted from his novel The Ravine; it was featured in the national tour of Moving Stories Film Festival, won a Remi Platinum Award for adaptation at Houston’s WorldFest, was juried in several other US film festivals, and was broadcast in Canada on Bravo!FACT Presents and CBC Reflections.
As a musician, he played in the band Porkbelly Futures for more than ten years; the band’s first CD Way Past Midnight was extremely well received, their self-titled second CD was released to even more popular acclaim; and a third release will be available in 2010. From 2008, Paul increasingly returned to the performance circuit as solo vocalist on guitar; his first solo CD release “Paul Quarrington: The Songs” is available June 8, 2010 from Cordova Bay.
Paul taught creative writing at Humber College for more than 20 years (in the program founded by Joe Kertes, Quarrington and colleague Wayson Choy); he also taught at University of Toronto. His seminars on adapting books for the screen and creative writing were constantly presented by institutions and festivals in across Canada.
He sat on the Board of Directors for the Fringe Theatre Festival, and was mentor to BookShorts Inc. since the company’s first short film release (2005) through to the company’s production of Paul’s biographical feature documentary film Paul Quarrington: Life in Music (Dir. Bert Kish, for CTV Bravo) which will be broadcast May 29 and 30, 2010. Nipissing University bestowed him a Doctor of Letters PhD (posthumously) in June 2010.
Quarrington enjoyed his ranking as an (extremely) amateur magician and would-be mariner. He is survived by his two children, Carson Lara and Flannery Quarrington.
If you enjoyed this post, make sure you subscribe to my RSS feed!eNews & Updates
Sign up to receive breaking news
as well as receive other site updates!
[...] talented and funny guy, and extremely productive even to the last day, working on 2 CDs, a book and documentary on music, as well as numerous TV and film projects. We’ll miss you [...]
I have many fond memories of Paul when we were in high school. He was such a talented and loveable guy. Remember the ravine, fire pit and Three Valleys Drive.
I’m sad to hear cancer has taken him away.
My deepest sympathy to his family.
Paul, this message is for you. When I heard of your illness, I wrote to you to tell you of a book that I had read when my brother was terminally ill with cancer., “The Anatomy of Hope”. It was, in that long year of my brother’s fight with his cancer, and myself a long distance from him, the one book that helped me to cope. I highly recommend this book to anyone suffering from cancer and to any family member or friend struggling to cope. Paul responded to my letter, although I do not know if ever he read the book. But he certainly made clear he was glad to have read my letter to him. Perhaps the message of that book was transmitted in my letter.
From all that I can observe from my standpoint, he took the advice from that book. Do what you can to leave the world with your loved ones knowing how you feel about them, and to settle your affairs, your emotional affairs, with the living.
I never knew Paul, but I offer my sincere condolences to his family, and my sincere admiration for Paul in doing what he loved as long as he could.
Peace.
Kate Orland Bere