John Feeney (filmmaker) facts for kids

John Feeney (born August 10, 1922, died December 6, 2006) was a talented director, photographer, and writer from New Zealand. He made many films and took amazing pictures, sharing stories from different parts of the world.

John Feeney's Early Life

John Feeney was born in Ngāruawāhia, a town near Hamilton on New Zealand's North Island. From a very young age, he loved photography. When he was just 8 years old, he received his first camera. He always called it his "magic lantern."

While studying at Victoria University in Wellington, John joined the Royal New Zealand Naval Volunteer Reserve. This was for his required military service. During World War II, he was moved to the Royal New Zealand Navy. He took part in the important D-Day landings in 1944. A year later, he left the navy as a Lieutenant.

After the war, John returned to New Zealand. He worked as a research assistant for the War History Branch. They were writing a 38-volume history of New Zealand's role in World War II. This experience helped him get a job in 1947 at the National Film Unit of New Zealand.

Working at the National Film Unit of New Zealand

The National Film Unit of New Zealand (NFU) was owned by the government. Its main goal was to create educational films for people in New Zealand. It also made films to show New Zealand in a good light. These films aimed to attract tourists, trade, new people, and investments.

When John Feeney joined the NFU, he started as a production assistant. He worked on the "Weekly Review," a series of short films shown in theaters across the country. The tight deadlines for this series helped John learn filmmaking skills very quickly. By 1948, he was ready to direct his own films.

His first known film was Hutt Valley ... New School for Taita. He also edited Naval Force 75 in 1950. His first official credit was for New Golden Hind Sails North Supplying Raoul & Niue Islands in 1949. It's believed that John edited, wrote, photographed, or directed as many as 30 films for the NFU. However, after 1949, the unit stopped adding credits to its films. Many films from this time have also been lost.

In 1951, the NFU stopped making the Weekly Review. John then worked on films that promoted soil conservation and traffic safety. After that, he was able to produce documentaries. He made four highly praised films that launched his career:

• The Legend of the Whanganui River (1952)
• Kōtuku (1954)
• Pumicelands (1954)
• Hot Earth (1955)

These films were so good that John was offered a special scholarship. This scholarship would allow him to study film production in Paris. However, the NFU first sent him to Canada. They wanted him to see how the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) worked. While in Canada, he was asked to make a film, and he created Hidden Power in 1954.

Hidden Power and his four NFU films were shown at the 1955 Edinburgh International Film Festival. The Legend of the Whanganui River even won a special award. Because of how well his films were received, NFB producer Tom Daly offered John a job. John had planned to go back to New Zealand. But he found out his scholarship for Paris had expired. He also missed out on a promotion at the NFU. The Canadian job offered much more money, better resources, and more chances to make films. So, in 1955, John Feeney moved to Montreal and became a full-time filmmaker at the NFB.

Working at the National Film Board of Canada

John Feeney found it hard to get used to life in Montreal. But he stayed with the NFB for 10 years and made 10 films. Tom Daly, his producer, noticed that John was especially good at filming landscapes. So, he assigned John to make documentaries about the Arctic and Inuit culture.

His first film about the Arctic was The Living Stone. This film won him several awards, including a nomination for an Oscar.

His last film for the NFB was the 1964 documentary Eskimo Artist: Kenojuak. This film was very important because it showed the creative process of Inuit artist Kenojuak Ashevak. It won even more awards, including a second Oscar nomination and the BAFTA Award for Best Short Film.

In 1959, John was filming Pangnirtung in what is now Nunavut. Bad weather stopped filming for a while. John wrote that he spent the time reading a magazine he found about Africa's Mountains of the Moon. These mountains are where the Nile River begins. He became very interested in the topic. He started researching the Nile, its people, and the ancient temples of Egypt and Nubia.

Around this time, many countries wanted to develop their own filmmaking industries. It was common for them to ask the NFB to send directors to help train their filmmakers. The governments of Romania and Czechoslovakia had specifically asked for John Feeney. In 1963, Egypt's Minister of Culture, Dr. Tharwat Okasha, visited the NFB offices. He asked if one of their directors would spend a year in Egypt. The goal was to film the highly anticipated 'last' flood of the Nile. John jumped at this chance. He would end up spending the next 40 years in Egypt.

Life and Work in Egypt

In June 1964, John Feeney and a four-person Egyptian film crew started their journey from Cairo. They wanted to film the Nile flood, following its path for 3200 kilometers (2000 miles). This had never been done before. The 83-minute film, Fountains of the Sun, became the only filmed record of this event.

The film took four years to finish. After being shown in Cairo cinemas, it got caught up in official paperwork and was largely forgotten. In 2001, it was nominated to be included in UNESCO’s Memory of the World Programme. The nomination called it "one of the most important films about the River Nile." It showed the sources and wonders of the White and Blue Niles for the first time on screen.

John Feeney often wrote about 'filming', so it's likely he continued making films. However, there are no records of any films he directed between 1969 and 1984. In 1984, he was invited to Saudi Arabia by Abdallah Jum'ah at Saudi Aramco. There, he produced Era of Discovery, a 21-minute documentary about the early history of the company.

John's connection with Saudi Aramco began in 1973. He started working for Aramco World, the company's magazine published every two months. John wrote almost one article every year until 2006. Each article explored a different part of Egyptian culture. For each article, he provided 24 photographs. He became an expert on Egyptian food and started taking pictures of food. He created books like The Red Tea of Egypt (2001), Desert Truffles Galore (2002), and Egyptian Soups, Hot and Cold (2006). In 1995, the American University in Cairo Press published his book Thirty Years in Egypt.

In 2003, John Feeney returned to New Zealand. There, he finished his last book, Photographing Egypt: Forty Years Behind the Lens. He attended its launch in 2005, which was held at the American University in Cairo. The event also featured an exhibition called John Feeney Retrospective: 40 Years Photographing Egypt. It showed more than 60 of his amazing photographs.

John Feeney passed away in Wellington, New Zealand, in 2006.

John Feeney's Legacy

John Feeney's film Eskimo Artist: Kenojuak became popular again in 1992. Filmmakers Colin Low and Tony Ianzelo used parts of it in Momentum. This was Canada's IMAX HD film for Expo '92. Also, his film Pumicelands was used in the 2015 documentary The Ground We Won.

While making Fountains of the Sun, John kept a detailed diary. There are eight books filled with his daily notes and thoughts about filmmaking, travel, and other important details. The diary describes his experiences filming in Khartoum, Uganda, and the Ruwenzori Mountains. It also talks about working with the 'Studio Msir Lab' and recording the film's music. John Feeney's Nile Diaries, along with all his other papers and photographs, were given to the National Library of New Zealand in Wellington.

John Feeney's Filmography

Films for the National Film Unit of New Zealand

• Hutt Valley ... New School for Taita - short film 1948, editor
• New Golden Hind Sails North Supplying Raoul & Niue Islands - short film, Stanhope Andrews 1949 - writer and editor
• Naval Force 75 - short film 1950 - editor
• Pedestrians or Jaywalkers? - short film 1952, writer, editor, director
• A List of Names - short film 1952, writer, editor
• The Legend of the Whanganui River - short film 1952 - writer, editor, director
• Charting the Sea - H.M.N.Z.S. Lachlan - short film 1953, writer, editor, director
• Kōtuku - short film 1954 - writer, editor, director
• Pumicelands - short film 1954 - writer, editor, director
• Hot Earth - short film 1955 - writer, editor, director

Films for the National Film Board of Canada

• On the Spot: Hidden Power - documentary short 1954 - director
• On the Spot: Food Facts - documentary short 1955 - director
• On the Spot: Prairie University - documentary short 1955 - director
• The Living Stone - documentary short 1958 - writer, editor, director
• Pangnirtung - documentary short 1959 - writer, editor, director
• Fifty Miles from Poona - documentary short, Fali Bilimoria 1959 - writer, editor
• Arctic Outpost: Pangnirtung, N.W.T. - documentary short 1960 - writer, editor, director
• Sky - experimental film, 1963 - writer, editor, director
• A Christmas Fantasy - short film 1963 - editor, cinematographer, director
• Eskimo Artist: Kenojuak - documentary short 1964 - writer, editor, director

Films Made in Egypt

• Fountains of the Sun, also known as Yanabie Al Shams - documentary 1969 - writer, editor, cinematographer, director
• Era of Discovery – documentary short 1984 – producer, director

Awards and Recognition

John Feeney's films received many awards throughout his career:

For The Legend of the Whanganui River (1952)

• Edinburgh International Film Festival, Edinburgh, Scotland: Diploma of Merit, 1953

For The Living Stone (1958)

• Winnipeg Film Council Annual Film Festival, Winnipeg: Best Canadian Film, Short Subject, 1959
• American Film and Video Festival, New York: Blue Ribbon, Graphic Arts, Sculpture and Architecture, 1960
• Rapallo International Film Festival, Rapallo, Italy: Special Prize, Cup of the Minister of Tourism and Entertainment for Best Foreign Film, 1960
• Rapallo International Film Festival, Rapallo, Italy: Second Prize, Silver Cup of the Province of Genoa, 1960
• International Festival of Films on People and Countries, La Spezia, Italy: Silver Cup for the Most Popular Film of the Festival, 1967
• International Festival of Films on People and Countries, La Spezia, Italy: Medal for Best Ethnological Film, 1967
• International Maritime and Exploration Film Festival, Toulon, France: Ergo Prize of the Presidency of the Republic, 1969
• Festival of Tourist and Folklore Films, Brussels: CIDALC Medal of Honour, 1960
• Locarno Film Festival, Locarno, Switzerland: Diploma of Honour, 1959
• 11th Canadian Film Awards, Toronto: Award of Merit, General Information, 1959
• International Filmfestival Mannheim-Heidelberg, Mannheim: Special Commendation, 1959
• Robert J. Flaherty Film Awards, City College Institute of Film Techniques: Honourable Mention, 1959
• SODRE International Festival of Documentary and Experimental Films, Montevideo, Uruguay: Honourable Mention 1960
• 31st Academy Awards, Los Angeles: Nominee: Best Documentary Short Film, 1958

For Pangnirtung (1959)

• Okanagan Film Festival, Kelowna, British Columbia: First Prize, 1960

For Sky (1963)

• Columbus International Film & Animation Festival, Columbus, Ohio: Chris Award, Special Fields, 1964
• Jubilee International Film Festival, Swift Current, Saskatchewan: First Prize, Natural Sciences, 1964

For A Christmas Fantasy (1963)

• Columbus International Film & Animation Festival, Columbus, Ohio: Chris Certificate 1964

For Eskimo Artist: Kenojuak (1964)

• 18th British Academy Film Awards, London: BAFTA Award for Best Short Film, 1964
• Cork International Film Festival, Cork, Ireland: Statuette of St. Finbarr - First Prize, Art Films, 1964
• Festival of Tourist and Folklore Films, Brussels: Gold Medal - First Prize, 1965
• Melbourne International Film Festival, Melbourne: Silver Boomerang - Second Prize, 1965
• International Exhibition of Scientific Film, Buenos Aires: Second Prize, Category C, 1965
• Columbus International Film & Animation Festival, Columbus, Ohio: Chris Award, Education & Information, 1966
• American Film and Video Festival, New York: First Prize, Graphic Arts, Sculpture and Architecture, 1967
• Panama International Film Festival, Panama City, Panama: Grand Prize for Best Documentary, 1966
• Thessaloniki International Film Festival, Thessaloniki, Greece: First Prize, Foreign Film, 1967
• Festival of Cultural Films, La Felguera, Spain: Silver Plaque, 1967
• Philadelphia International Festival of Short Films, Philadelphia: Award of Exceptional Merit, 1971
• FIBA International Festival of Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires: Diploma of Honor, 1968
• Tokyo International Film Festival, Tokyo, Japan: Certificate of Merit, 1966
• Vancouver International Film Festival, Vancouver: Certificate of Merit, 1964
• Venice Film Festival, Venice, Italy: Special Mention, 1964
• 37th Academy Awards, Los Angeles: Nominee: Best Documentary Short Subject, 1965