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Wednesday, October 13, 1999 THE OAKVILLE BEAVER B5 Oakville filmmaker wins more awards David Tucker's newest docum entary set to air on Oct. 25th By C arol B aldw in ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Michael J. Fox may be the Cana­dian who raised the general pub­lic's awareness about Parkin­son's disease, but David Tucker is the Canadian who will bring the reality of the disease into their living-rooms. Tucker, an award-winning filmmaker, recent­ ly finished a documentary, Parkinson's: Lynda's Story, which is set to air on CBC's The Nature o f Things at 9 p.m., Oct. 25th, almost two years to the day after shooting began. Tucker's interest in Parkinson's started with a friend who was in the early stages of the disease, and it grew into a documentary on the disease as seen through the life of one of its victims. This particular victim, Lynda, was involved in a study on the injection of fetal cells into isolat­ ed cells in the brain. This controversial surgery is designed to increase the production of dopamine, the chemical that, when depleted in the brain, causes the major symptoms of Parkinson's - tremor, rigidity, and slowness of movement. Parkinson's: Lynda's Story documents Lynda's participation in this study, in which she goes through extensive testing, has her medica­ tion altered, undergoes a placebo brain operation, fields morality questions from members of her support group, and finally faces the risks of the delicate brain operation itself. Despite the length of the study and the some­ what negative results it produced as a whole, Lynda is experiencing real progress, says Tucker, reducing her dependence on drugs, increasing her mobility and, consequently, gaining more independence. Fam iliarity breeds closeness Throughout the two years of the study, he adds, Lynda and her husband developed close friendships with Tucker and his film crew. "We became so comfortable with her that we became part of the family. She's a very passion­ ate person, very clear and straight-ahead about how things will unfold...She's a very stoic indi­ vidual and does not complain," he says, explain­ ing that on the day of Lynda's surgery, she was moved into the operating area before her husband had returned from an errand. "She asked me to hold her hand.. .sort of a surrogate husband. That was indicative of how close we had become...It was very emotional for us (the crew) as well." In fact, he adds, the only documentary that proved more traumatic for him was one in which he and the crew filmed during a double lung transplant operation. Although the Oakville writer/producer/direc- tor has done everything from TV movies to kids' shows to current affairs programs, he has carved quite a niche for himself in the field of medical documentaries, for which he has won many awards. "I like people, and I like storytelling. Medical stories have tremendous potential. I feel good about these types of shows," he says, emphasiz­ ing that his stories happen naturally with no behind-the-scenes manipulation. "They are sepa­ rate from the quick-and-dirties, as I call them...out to sensationalize things." But, like other television shows, The Nature o f Things is not completely beyond sensationaliz­ ing, as the ads for the new season attest - any­ thing to entice viewers who now have such a wide range of channel choices. But in the scheme of things, Tucker says, he respects the integrity of David Suzuki's long- uITs com pulsive behaviour th a t ju s t cascades. . .Individuals end up w ith police records, lose th eir k ids, g et H epatitis C ..M m e sa id th a t th ey g o t m uch pleasure from th e experience" SHI or perish," he quips, adding that he has been working on the development of the new Sheridan Centre for Animation and Emerging Technolo­ gies, which is scheduled to open next September. This centre will boast the best in high-tech equip)- ment. "The students will, through apprenticeships, have the opportunity to work with industry pro­ fessionals," he says with a certain amount of pride. "It will be a specialized centre to provide high-end training for graduate students an<l industry professionals." Those professionals, he says, will be well- known names - names that he is not at liberty to divulge right now. Photo by Barrie Erskine David Tucker, an award-winning filmmaker, poses in the television studio of Sheridan College, a studio that will be obsolete, along with its equipment, when the new Sheridan Centre for Ani­ mation and Emerging Technologies opens next year. Dicker recently finished a documentary, P a rk in so n 's: L yn d a 's Story, which will air on CBC's The N ature o f Things at 9 p.m., Oct. 25th. running show, and he has written, directed and produced a number of episodes for it. Two new awards However, his most recent accolades came in the form of awards for two shows he created for the Discovery Channel - Anxiety's Hostage and Addicted to Love, which were aired in 1997 and 1998, respectively. The latter "was the most down-beat experi­ ence that I've ever had. The people had had hor­ rible experiences and essentially ruined their lives, doing professional and personal damage," explains the 48-year-old filmmaker. "It was very different from other illness­ es...These are more self-directed, as opposed to some gene that is causing it. It's compulsive behaviour that just cascades.. .Individuals end up with police records, lose their kids, get Hepatitis C...None said that they got much pleasure from the experience." Yet, despite its negative effect on the people involved, including Tucker, it obviously had a positive effect on the judges at the Columbus International Film Festival who have turned Addicted to Love into an award-winning docu­ mentary. Tucker's current project is yet another medical documentary, this time on Alzheimer's Disease, from an unusual perspective - a father caring for his adult daughter who is suffering from the dis­ ease that killed her mother in her mid-forties. "The entire family on his wife's side has been wiped out by Alzheimer's," Tucker says. Although he admits that this story is not like­ ly to have as happy an ending as his other med­ ical documentaries, some of the more recent research is encouraging. "It will probably be treatable in the foresee­ able future," he says, referring to the newest genetic development in which nerve cells are being regenerating. "They're saying that cells don't die but just atrophy, and it's possible to revive them in some instances. There is also a vaccine they are developing...In that sense I hope to make it (the documentary) positive." Tucker, whose day job is that of associate dean of Sheridan College's School of Animation, Arts and Design, says his filming keeps his knowledge and skills up-to-date. Produce or perish "I call it professional development...Produce Are you a Sheridan Graduate? E-mail, Fax, Send us your business card for a chance to win lunch for two! Courtesy of T he Sheridan Sun T h e Oa k v il l e B e a v e r E-Mail: kmontague@haltonsearch.com, Fax: 337-5568, Snail Mail: Sheridan Grad Draw d o Oakville Beaver, 467 Speers Road, Oakville ON L6K 3S4 Cards will be used to compile a database of local businesses who employ or are owned by Sheridan Graduates Burlington M ors Rep Basketbatl TRYOUTS M.M. Robinson Atom Minor Bantam Girls • Sat. Oct. 16 9am-11am 11am-1pm 1pm-3pm Boys - Sun. Oct. 17 9am-11am 11am-1pm 1pm-3pm Aldershot Atom Minor Bantam Girls - Sat. Oct. 23 9am-10:15am 10:15am-11:30am 11:30am-1pm Boys - Sun. Oct. 24 1pm-2:30pm 2:30pm-4pm 4pm-6pm M.M. Robinson Atom Minor Bantam Girls - Sat. 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