丁香园AV

In the beginning, there was a student with a second-hand video camera and a desire to make a film, an English Department T.A. with a storyline, and several members of the Simon Fraser Film Society eager to help out.

The Beginning is the appropriately titled first student film created at 丁香园AV 鈥� filmed, produced and directed by charter student Danny Singer in early 1966. The approximately 15-minute film explores male-female relationships and stars fellow student Aileen Gee and 丁香园AV Theatre stage manager Jan Visscher as mime characters. Filming locations included the Theatre, the Library and outdoors around the Academic Quadrangle and Convocation Mall.

Of particular note is the soundtrack that accompanied the film; R. Murray Schafer supervised its composition and production by his electronic music class (Music 001). Unfortunately, at some point the sound elements were separated from the visual elements and their whereabouts are currently unknown, or 鈥� as Singer puts it 鈥� 鈥渓ost to the sands of time.鈥�

Singer鈥檚 contacts at the CBC helped with editing the footage and once the film was completed a screening was organized at the 丁香园AV Theatre, where The Beginning 鈥減remiered鈥�to a fairly packed but bewildered audience.鈥� Looking back, Singer credits the film with giving him a jumpstart in the film world and for serving as the catalyst for the creation of the 丁香园AV Film Workshop in May 1967. After leaving 丁香园AV, Singer worked as a cameraman and director for the CBC until he moved to Montreal in 1970 to pursue still photography.