The Loon's Necklace

Réalisé par F.R. (Budge) Crawley et Judith Crawley

Canada, 1948 (pour enfants / fiction, 13 minutes, couleurs, anglais)

Autre titre : « Le collier magique »

Image : © Office national du film du Canada

Description du film :
« Marius Barbeau nous présente une légende indienne racontée à l'aide de masques. Kelora, vieux sorcier aveugle du fleuve Nicola en Colombie-Britannique passe ses jours à rêver. Seul le cri du huard parvient à l'émouvoir. Pendant l'hiver, il prophétise que les loups envahiront le village, ce qui arrive effectivement. Mais il réussit à les chasser par le pouvoir de son collier. »
-- Office national du film du Canada (source)

Générique (partiel) :
Scénario :	Douglas Leechman
Produit par :	F.R. Crawley
Images :	Grant Crabtree
Montage images :	Judith Crawley
Société de production :	Crawley Films

(sources)

Prix décerné à The Loon's Necklace

Palmarès du film canadien : Film of the Year [film de l'année] -- décerné à Frank Radford Crawley

Notes sur The Loon's Necklace

Présenté au Women and Film International Festival (Toronto) en 1973.

(sources)

Citation de la réalisatrice [en anglais]

« To all of us freelancers [John] Grierson had been a godfather, just as he was to the staffers at the NFB. [...] The loss of Grierson's leadership at the NFB was an irreparable blow to the Canadian film industry, not only because he was nurturing it with intelligence and ingenuity, but because the winds of paranoia began to infect the NFB staff. [...] In 1947 we completed a 10-minute experimental film called The Loon's Necklace—the kind of production Grierson would have encouraged—an Indian legend presented on the screen through Indian masks. Ross McLean found it 'a nice little film,' but he didn't see how the NFB could use it. Was that simply an error in judgment or was it paranoia about the private sector? The film sat on the shelf for two years and finally we sold it for our costs to Imperial Oil, who released it through the Canadian Education Association and later Encyclopedia Britannica. It has since been seen by more people in the world than any other Canadian film except for the early Grey Owl films and Norman McLaren's films (another of Grierson's godchildren). »
-- F.R. (Budge) Crawley, Judith Crawley (source)

Citations sur The Loon's Necklace [en anglais]

« The Loon's Necklace, made by the well-known Crawley Films and sponsored by Imperial Oil, was probably the most successful sponsored film of the period. The film helped to establish Budge Crawley's reputation as Canada's leading independent filmmaker. It became a staple of 1950s classrooms and also won film of the year at the first Canadian Film Awards in 1948. »
-- Canadian Film Encyclopedia (source)

« The Loon's Necklace was made on speculation and it was only after it won the award [Film of the Year at the Canadian Film Awards] that Imperial Oil decided to sponsor the distribution. It went on to win many other awards, but the increased recognition also brought with it a business load which put a strain on the co-operative spirit of the organization [Crawley Films]. »
-- James Forrester (source)