Mankiewicz, Francis

▪ 1994

      Canadian filmmaker (b. March 15, 1944, Shanghai, China—d. Aug. 14, 1993, Montreal, Que.), had a slender output but was considered one of the country's leading talents; his films sensitively and poignantly portrayed, in psychological depth, a child's viewpoint. Mankiewicz' parents fled Nazi Germany for France and then China, where he was born. As an infant he was taken to Montreal, where he attended university and studied geology. In 1966, however, he enrolled at the London School of Film Technique and, after returning to Canada in 1969, he made educational films and television dramas. His directorial feature-length film debut, Le Temps d'une chasse (1972; "Hunting Season"), chronicled a hunting weekend as viewed by a young boy and was a critical success. His second film, Les Bons Débarras (1980; "Good Riddance"), a Gothic tale of passion and jealousy between a mother and daughter, was widely hailed as a masterpiece and swept the 1981 Genie awards. His last film, Les Portes tournantes (1988; "The Revolving Doors"), was a family saga centred around a 12-year-old boy. Mankiewicz then became exclusively involved in English television. He directed the successful television dramas Love and Hate: The Story of Colin and JoAnn Thatcher (1989) and Conspiracy of Silence (1991), both of which received Gemini awards and then spellbound U.S. audiences. Mankiewicz succumbed to cancer.

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