Hugh Archibald McPherson (August 28, 1921 – 1999), better known as Hugo McPherson, was a Canadian professor, who served as Canada's Government Film Commissioner from 1967 until 1970. In this position he was the Chairman of the

National Film Board of Canada The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; french: Office national du film du Canada (ONF)) is Canada's public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary f ...

. McPherson was born in Sioux Lookout,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

in August 1921 to Peter Gordon McPherson and Nettie Louella McPherson (nee Perrin). He was educated at the Provincial Normal School in

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, and later at the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a Canadian public research university in the province of Manitoba.The University of Western Ontario and the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

. McPherson was a lecturer at several academic institutions:

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

, the University of Manitoba, the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...

, the University of Toronto,

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

and the University of Western Ontario. He also worked in radio, hosting the programme ''CJBC Views the Shows'' on the

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

-based

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

station CJBC.Evans, p. 130. When he was working at the University of Toronto he had an office near

Phyllis Grosskurth Phyllis M. Grosskurth (March 16, 1924 – August 2, 2015) was a Canadian academic, writer, and literary critic. Born in Toronto, Ontario, she received a Bachelor of Arts honours degree in English from the University of Toronto and later a Ma ...

, who later remembered McPherson and recommended him to Secretary of State for Canada Judy LaMarsh when LaMarsh was selecting a new Government Film Commissioner in 1967.Evans, p. 129. McPherson was an admirer of the

media theory Media studies is a discipline and field of study that deals with the content, history, and effects of various media; in particular, the mass media. Media Studies may draw on traditions from both the social sciences and the humanities, but mostly ...

Marshall McLuhan Herbert Marshall McLuhan (July 21, 1911 – December 31, 1980) was a Canadian philosopher whose work is among the cornerstones of the study of media theory. He studied at the University of Manitoba and the University of Cambridge. He began his ...

, whose work he praised during his interview for the National Film Board (NFB) role. McPherson was offered and accepted the role, although some staff at the NFB were suspicious of their new Chairman, thinking that he had only been appointed due to political connections. During his time at the NFB, McPherson initiated the " Challenge for Change" series of socially activist productions. However, it was also under his aegis that the NFB began to censor some controversial productions, particularly those from

French Canadian French Canadians (referred to as Canadiens mainly before the twentieth century; french: Canadiens français, ; feminine form: , ), or Franco-Canadians (french: Franco-Canadiens), refers to either an ethnic group who trace their ancestry to Fren ...

filmmakers based in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

. Some of the French-speaking filmmakers did not trust McPherson, as they saw him as coming from a literary and not a filmic background. McPherson resigned from his role at the NFB in July 1970. Earlier that year, the Canadian government had publicly criticised the NFB, and some employees had demonstrated on Parliament Hill to protest against staff cuts. McPherson's time at the NFB is generally seen as having been unsuccessful,Evans, p. 150. although McPherson himself was frustrated at what he saw as the government's low priority for filmmaking. In 1976 he was appointed to the position of

John Grierson John Grierson (26 April 1898 – 19 February 1972) was a pioneering Scottish documentary maker, often considered the father of British and Canadian documentary film. In 1926, Grierson coined the term "documentary" in a review of Robert J. Fla ...

Chair of Communications at McGill University. He died at a hospital in Montreal in 1999.

Footnotes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McPherson, Hugo 1921 births 1999 deaths Canadian radio personalities Government Film Commissioners and Chairpersons of the National Film Board of Canada Academic staff of McGill University People from Sioux Lookout Academic staff of the University of British Columbia University of Manitoba alumni University of Toronto alumni Academic staff of the University of Toronto University of Western Ontario alumni Academic staff of the University of Western Ontario Yale University faculty Canadian expatriates in the United States