Boer War Page 47	The Program's Creative Team
"The Great Anglo-Boer War: the Canadian Experience" was conceived by historian John Goldi. All research, writing, and shooting, as well as all picture, music, and sound, off and online editing tasks, were carried out by John Goldi csc, and Joan Goldi. They have been a filmmaking team since 1979.

CSC News Cover Article

In Sept. 2002, the "CSC News" featured a cover article by John Goldi csc, called "Tracking History in a Troubled Land: Part 1, The Great Anglo-Boer War: The Canadian Experience." (Part 2 will be in the October issue.)

Read all about how we set about creating and shooting a history documentary on a story never told before on television, of when Canada sent its first military contingent ever, to fight in an overseas war.

It tells of the trials and tribulations of cameraman and historian John Goldi csc - during two months in 2000 - as he, and producer Joan Goldi, discovered that in order to film the Canadian story in South Africa, they would have to sleuth out Canadian historic sites there by themselves. It proved to be a daunting task in a dangerous environment.

TV Program Feedback: #55: Toronto, ON - "First class! As a Brit - and a history buff - let me just say that it's as good as anything the BBC has ever done, and no doubt done with far fewer resources than the British national broadcaster has available."

A Phenomenal Achievement !!!

Certainly We're Proud of Joan Goldi,
International Award-Winning Producer for Goldi Productions

During 1997-1999 Joan Goldi won
an unheard-of 89 international film & television awards,
(including 29 Gold & Silver Plaques** in just over a year)
for her
"hard core" Canadian documentary
cable television programs,
and was the
Top Festival Award Winner
(the most awards won by a producer)
at 8 major American international film & TV festivals
and the
Top Canadian Award Winner
at 6 others,
in competition with the best mega-budget programs
from leading producers and broadcasters around the world.

**Not to mention 31 Bronze Awards.

"Kurtis - Good at Crime, Burns is History, Suzuki, a Naturist ..., Joan Goldi is ..."

We're especially pleased that hundreds of expert American jurors - picked by festivals to reflect expertise across the entire field of television communication - recognized that Joan Goldi had an unusual ability, to depart from the normal convention of specializing in only one type of documentary, and to create outstanding programs in subject areas requiring competence in a wide range of disciplines.

Bringing the Past Alive with Yukon Quest: To show the world that history

shows don't have to be dull, uninspired, and boring, but can be shot on location with verve and zest, Joan Goldi created "Ho for the Klondike" in 1997, and showcased a new approach in the making of history programs.

She documented an enthusiastic group of men and women re-enacting the "Trail of 98", the historic route taken by the gold-seekers in 1898, 1,000 miles from Skagway Alaska, across the Chilkoot Trail, and down the Yukon River to the gold strike at Dawson, Yukon.

"Ho for the Klondike" won 6 international medals: 3 Gold, 1 Silver & 2 Bronze.

Festival jurors across the United States applauded her ability by repeatedly selecting her programs for their top honours in competition categories as widely diverse as:

documentary - nature & wildlife - ethnic & cultural - oceanography
science, research & technology - geography & transportation
television sports - travel documentary - underwater & marine sciences
leisure & recreation - safety - conservation & energy




Suzuki had One, CBC Witness had One, discovery had One: At the world's largest science documentary festival, hosted by the French Service of the CBC, in Montreal, PQ, Joan Goldi was the only English-language producer (out of 27 from around the world) to have TWO programs "Selected for Show."

Safety First: Safety films that Joan Goldi created, have been credited with saving countless lives all over North America. Thousands of copies are in daily use by schools, industry, the RCMP, and the Canadian Armed Forces. The Canadian Coast Guard reports that there is not a school child in Canada's Maritime Provinces who has not seen her internationally acclaimed film "Cold Water: the Silent Killer." Joan Goldi's expertise at crafting superior informational programs has been repeatedly sought out by Parks Canada, Justice Canada, the Canadian Coast Guard, the Department of National Defence, and Mines, Energy, & Resources.

Educational Producer: Joan Goldi is the only Canadian producer to have won "double Apples" three years in a row at the world's most prestigious educational film & television festival in Oakland, CA.

Rare Honour: In 1997 Joan Goldi was awarded the second highest number of points of excellence by a committee judging submissions from the top 65 Ontario film and television production companies applying to be among 6 finalists selected to make programs for Canadian Government departments.

And flouting the usual custom in the industry, of sending a sure award-winner to all the festivals, she sent in many of her shows to competitions, in the end
winning major awards for 18 different programs and for 66% of the shows in her cable television series.

Double Whammy !!!

At the Outdoor Writers of America Association
Film & Video Festival, (State College, PA) where Canadian participants included the NFB, Great Canadian Parks, KEG Productions, and
the CBC (which sent 7 shows),

Joan Goldi won both

the Gold (Four Star) and

the Silver (Three Star) Medals.

It's the first time, astonished organizers reported,
that the same producer
has won both top prizes
in the 40 years the festival has run ......

And she did it again.... and again.....
At three different American international television festivals,
three of her Silver Medals lost out to three of her Golds, competing against one another
- and an international line-up of documentaries - in the same category.

And she did it all with 100% hard-core Canadian, non-tabloid type programs.

It is a phenomenal achievement for
a Canadian documentary producer
which will probably never be equalled.

And far from only being the usual "administrative" producer - who sends out crews to do the location work - she was one-half of the "hands-on," two-person shooting crew that travelled the length and breadth of Canada, and shot the entire 26 award-winning episodes.

"You are a source of pride to your country and your accomplishments will serve as inspiration to your peers and all Canadians."

-letter from the Rt. Hon. Sheila Copps,
Canadian Minister of Heritage

Joan Goldi hard at work, to make sure the cameraman is doing his job:

"KEEPING CANADIANS IN TOUCH WITH CANADA"

Cinematographer, John Goldi csc

Cover Photo (left): by John Goldi csc**.

A red-throated loon on an arctic tundra pond (King William Island, NWT, Canada) in June, at 11 pm, shot from 10 feet away by approaching in chest waders, after working with the bird from a blind for three days.

Part of a feature article on adventures while shooting wildlife.

The Nerd bird, the only 12-string kite in the world.

At work where the Klondike enters the Yukon at Dawson, YT

Semi-palmated Plover on eggs. (King William Island, NWT).

John Goldi csc, has successfully combined highly developed skills rarely found in the same photographer: high quality nature photography (ex. right, the nerd bird), and outstanding people photography (below).

He has been the director and cameraman of all our programs over the last 29 years, the sound and picture editor of most of them, and the supervising editor on the rest. He has won 136 career awards and honours for his work in film and television production.

He has been a juror judging excellence in cinematography for the Canadian Society of Cinematography's annual "CSC Awards," and for the "Genie Awards" which reward excellence in Canada's feature film industry.

**The CSC News is the professional journal of the Canadian Society of Cinematographers, the professional organization of the film and television cameramen of Canada.

(The 'csc' designation is the top honour bestowed by the Canadian Society of Cinematography, "for outstanding achievement as a cinematographer".)

	JOHN GOLDI csc, Awarded SILVER PLAQUE at the Chicago International Television Festival for "Special Achievement in Cinematography"
	*Fellow Cinematography Medal Winners in this prestigious category were "The Dragons of Galapagos"* by ABC Television's Natural History Unit (of "America's Edens" fame) and "A Footprint on Everest". John Goldi shot his images at Kortright, Ontario, and Verdun, Quebec. He won Silver for his work in "Go Fly A Kite", showcasing people of all ages as they explore the world of kiting in Canada.**
(A few months earlier he had been awarded a "Special Jury Award of Merit for Videography", at the North American Outdoor Writers of America Film & Television Festival, in State College, PA. where programs he had directed, shot, and edited, also won both the Gold and the Silver Awards.)
Since 1997 Joan & John Goldi have won 114 international television awards, at major American festivals, including 69, Platinum, Gold, Silver, and Bronze Awards.

Rare - Probably the only picture in the world of a Northern Flicker, with its eggs on the ground. Like all woodpeckers, it usually nests in holes in trees.
(Great Slave Lake, NWT).

In the company of Mr. & Mrs. Sabine Gull.
(Victoria Island, NWT).

Cape St. Mary's lighthouse, NF.

Caught watching unbelievable kites at Montreal's Kite Festival.

	Harry Macdonough (1871-1931): "Where is my Wandering Boy Tonight" 1901 You are listening to one of Canada's very first recordings, made c.1901, and featuring one of Canada's earliest recording artists, Harry Macdonough singing "Where is My Wandering Boy Tonight," a song popular on Canadian Gramophones as the casualty toll started to arrive from South Africa. It is the theme song for our television program.


You can hear these earliest Canadian recordings on our program's soundtrack. Details on our Music Page.