14 - The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday August 6, 2008 www.oakvillebeaver.com Living Oakville Beaver LIVING EDITOR: ANGELA BLACKBURN By Angela Blackburn OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF Phone: 905-845-3824, ext. 248 Fax: 905-337-5567 e-mail: angela@oakvillebeaver.com Movies and fine wine for FX expert F rom a 35-year career in motion picture special effects to a Niagara vineyard, Martin Malivoire is looking at the world through rose-coloured glasses. Well, not really. But he is donating his famed Ladybug Rose and lots more wine from his personal collection, to the Oakville Hospital Foundation's Fine Wine Auction set to take place on Thursday, Sept. 18. Malivoire, who grew up in Oakville and has worked on special effects for such blockbusters as Charlie Bartlett (2008), Cheaper by the Dozen 2 (2005) and My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002), even Porky's (1982), is the auction's lead sponsor, which means he is donating more than $200,000 in wine to the local fundraising event. The auction will take place at the Oakville Golf Club located at 1154 Sixth Line. It will begin at 6:30 p.m. with cocktails and hors d'oeuvres, with tastings and a silent auction to follow at 7 p.m. and the live auction at 8 p.m. Tickets cost $125. Malivoire, a successful SFX engineer for feature films, has been on the cutting edge of the wine industry, too. He was one of the first small boutique operators dedicated to the geographic Beamsville Bench; the first gravity-fed operation in his region; and the first in his neighbourhood to certify an organic vineyard. That vineyard is named after his partner Moira Saganski. A 35-year veteran of the movie industry, Malivoire has worked on many movies, television and commercial productions as a special effects supervisor. He has worked with stars like Charles Bronson, Shirley MacLaine, Jessica Tandy, Michael Douglas, Nicolas Cage, John Cassavetes and Robert Duvall. He has worked with producers like David Cronenberg and the late Bob Clark who produced the cult classic, A Christmas Story. "I used to live in Oakville, I have friends in Oakville and my parents live in Oakville," said Malivoire from his Vineland home. So, when asked to donate some wine to the auction, Malivoire had no problem doing so. While wine supplied for drinking at the auction will come from his winery, the wine for auction will be from his personal collection. It's a win-win, said Malivoire, noting that he wants to free up space to collect more Ontario wines. Malivoire was born in England, but moved to Oakville with his parents, Derek and Della Malivoire, in 1953. He attended Sunningdale Public School, Oakville Trafalgar High School and was in the first graduating class of the then new White Oaks Secondary School in 1968. Malivoire went on to attend the University of Guelph and began working in the movie industry. "The first five years of my career I spent working with the greats in the industry," he said. However, he, like Cronenberg, had a desire not to leave Canada and so he was on board as one of the founding members of the Canadian film industry. Malivoire was 17 when he left Oakville, but given all his adventures, he hasn't ventured that far. Both analytical and creative, Malivoire has an independent streak a mile wide as evidenced by his hobbies, which include climbing, flying, diving and cooking. "I'm getting old now," admitted the 59-year-old Malivoire, noting SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER he still flies, primarily a helicopter, LASTING EFFECT: Former Oakville resident Martin Malivoire has had a successful career in special effects for many but doesn't do much climbing or popular movies over the past 35 years and he now runs a Niagara-area vineyard. He's donating wine from his personal diving anymore. See Winery page 17 collection to this fall's fine wine auction in support of the Oakville-Trafalgar Memorial Hospital.