David Damien Parer
ACS is an Australian natural history film maker, working in partnership with his wife and sound recordist,
Elizabeth Parer-Cook.
[Salleh, Annah (9 January 2023)]
David Parer and Liz Parer-Cook: the husband-and-wife wildlife documentary-making team
'' ABC News''. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
Parer was
conscripted into the
Australian Army to go to the
Vietnam War in 1970, but he entered a Masters program to study
physics in the
Antarctic
The Antarctic ( or , American English also or ; commonly ) is a polar region around Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica, the Kerguelen Plateau and other ...
. Parer spent the summers of 1970 and 1972 in Antarctica studying
cosmic rays at
Mawson Station
The Mawson Station, commonly called Mawson, is one of three permanent bases and research outposts in Antarctica managed by the Australian Antarctic Division (AAD). Mawson lies in Holme Bay in Mac. Robertson Land, East Antarctica in the Austra ...
. While there he filmed his first documentary. David subsequently joined the
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
ABC Natural History Unit making wildlife films, where he met his wife and fellow film maker, Elizabeth Parer-Cook, in 1977. After the Natural History Unit closed in 2007, the Parers have continued working as a freelance team.
Awards
The Parers' films have won over 130 Australian and international awards including the Golden Panda at Windscreen twice and three Emmy's.
He was awarded the Golden Panda from
Wildscreen (known as the green Oscars) for:
:''Wolves of the Sea'', Gold Panda for Best Film at Windscreen 1994
:''Mysteries of the Ocean Wanderers'', Gold Panda Best Cinematography Windscreen 1994
:''Dragons of Galapagos'', Gold Panda Wildscreen 1998
He has been awarded the
AFI award for the best cinematography for a non-feature film four times, for :
:''Edge of the Cold'', 1978
:''Bird of the Thunder Woman'', 1980
:''
The Dragons of Galapagos
''The Dragons of Galapagos'' is a 1998 wildlife documentary film created by David Parer and Elizabeth Parer-Cook. It looks at the life on the Galapagos Islands. The couple spend two years living in a tent on the island of Fernandina to record ...
'', 1998
:''Island of the Vampire Birds'', 1999
His other work as a cinematographer and producer includes:
:''Douglas Mawson: The Survivor'', 1983
:''The Frozen World'', 1984
:''Nature of Australia: A Portrait of the Island Continent: A Separate Creation'', 1988
:''Killer Whales: Wolves of the Sea'', 1993
:''Platypus: World's Strangest Animal'', 2003
:''Terrors of Tasmania'', 2004
:''Australia: Land of Parrots'', 2008
:''Out of the Ashes'', 2011
Many of Parer's documentaries have been narrated by noted naturalist
David Attenborough
Sir David Frederick Attenborough (; born 8 May 1926) is an English broadcaster, biologist, natural historian and author. He is best known for writing and presenting, in conjunction with the BBC Natural History Unit, the nine natural histor ...
.
Parer received an Honorary Doctor of Science from Monash University, Melbourne 17 March 1989.
Parer gained "legend status" at
St Patrick's College Old Collegians' Association. He attended college there from 1962 to 1964.
Parer was inducted into the Australian Cinematographers Society's Hall of Fame in 2008.
He was appointed an
Officer of the Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...
in the
2024 Australia Day Honours
The 2024 Australia Day Honours are appointments Australian honours system, to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by Australian citizens. The list was announced on 26 January 2024 by the Governor General of Australia, Da ...
for "distinguished service to wildlife cinematography, to literature as an author, and to the environment".
Family
His uncle was
Academy Award-winning war cinematographer,
Damien Peter Parer, who filmed ''Kokoda Front Line'' in 1944 in Papua New Guinea.
References
External links
David Parer websiteDavid Parer YouTube channel
{{DEFAULTSORT:Parer, David
Australian cinematographers
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)
Officers of the Order of Australia