Published: April 8, 2008
What do a letter carrier, a manager of a book store, an operations manager for a clothing factory and a sheet metal worker have in common? They are all jobs that Humber faculty member Michael Glassbourg had before becoming one of Canada’s most successful documentary filmmakers. With an enthusiastic and free spirit he says “I did whatever it took to survive.” The Montreal-born Glassbourg started touring Canada as an actor shortly after leaving mid-way through a graduate program at Concordia University. The acting eventually led to writing and directing and after 25 years he moved into film and television production.
He has taught in Humber’s Film and Television Production program for the last 15 years and loves every moment of it. A shining example of someone who brings immediacy to the classroom, he has kept his feet wet in the film industry throughout his tenure at Humber by creating cutting-edge documentaries. His summers are spent filming some of the most remarkable contemporary artists and writers of our time. Glassbourg’s most recent work, which was just screened at The Montreal International Film Festival of Films on Art, is part of his ongoing Artist’s Life series. The documentary features Canadian realist painter Ken Danby who is best known for his studies of anonymous sports figures and subjects from everyday life. “Danby was very reluctant to be profiled,” said Glassbourg. “He wasn’t happy with how he was featured in other instances. But he was aware of the other documentaries that I did and really liked them, so he agreed to be filmed. He really wanted us to focus on all his work, not just hockey, he was very enthusiastic.”
Part of Glassbourg’s uniqueness in his filmmaking is that he allows the artist to have a real voice. “You get to hear the artist talk about their process, you get to see them paint in their studios.”
Glassbourg has had a myriad of successes throughout his career including shooting over 150 half-hour shows for broadcast television. He just finished a documentary called Policy Baby: The Journey of Rita/Bev an engaging story shot on a reserve in Manitoba which details the life of a native woman. It will be screened at Doxa Documentary Film Festival in Vancouver.
For more information on Humber’s Film and Television Production program, visit: http://postsecondary.humber.ca/04831.htm.
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