Bruce Devereux, a local film buff, tells an amazing story of synchronicity and a camera that just won't quit. It starts with Alyssa Bolsey who turned out some dusty boxes that were found in her grandfather's basement after he died and discovered film samples and camera equipment left from her great-grandfather Jacques Bolsey.
She determined that, though it was little known, he had been the inventor of the indestructible Bolex camera so often used during the early days of film-making to produce professional quality movies.
Flashback to the Sunshine Coast a few years ago when Devereux received a phone call from the curator of the Sunshine Coast Museum and Archives to see if he could help an elderly man record his memories on video for his grandchildren. Devereux had helped others to record their heritage in his role as a care home activities co-ordinator. The man was Maynard Kaasa of Sechelt and he was in his late 80s at the time.
He's a charming man a storyteller, said Devereux, who has maintained an interest in film all his life and has helped others transfer 8 mm home movies to digital.
After a visit to the Kaasa home, Devereux noticed that the man had more than 10,000 feet of quality 16 mm film that had been handed down from his father.
John Kaasa had been an adventurer during the 1940s to 1960s and he roamed northern Canada by barge and horseback to shoot dazzling footage with his Bolex of wildlife and scenery. On one occasion his Bolex dropped into the freezing waters of a river. Kaasa marked the spot and returned in the spring to recover it.
The mechanical camera exhibited no rust; it kept right on ticking. Kaasa took these film stories on the road, showing them in towns across the country and narrating them live. His son, Maynard, asked Devereux to transfer these films to digital.
I didn't know at that time what a great story was emerging, Devereux recalls.
Until one day when he happened on a camera fan blog that mentioned that a California producer, inspired by director Alyssa Bolsey, was making a film about the Bolex. With excitement Devereux contacted producer Camilo Lara Jr., and explained that Kaasa had great vintage footage. It was exactly what he wanted and he hoped to make it to the Coast to meet Kaasa's son, Maynard. But the story was not over.
In April, Devereux attended a mini film festival at the museum and was seated next to Shendra Hanney of Pender Harbour. After chatting, he learned that Hanney also knew about the Bolex camera and she had plenty of footage shot by her late husband Colin Hanney. The stories and images were of his work filming the Lacandon Maya, an isolated people from a region of Mexico.
He shot incredible portraiture, Devereux said. To think that this material was here on the Coast, in basements and closets.
I'm still amazed at the synchronicity of meeting Bruce in such perfect timing to connect with the documentary filmmakers, said Hanney later. I had to pull an 'all-nighter' to compile the stills for the producer who would be calling Bruce at 10 a.m. the following day. It was wonderfully energizing to revisit the Lacandon Maya material.
Now there were two people on the Coast who were knowledgeable about the camera and who had footage that should make any film-maker sit up. It only remained to raise funds for film production, which might also allow the film-maker and director to visit the Coast and meet the Bolex buddies.
A crowd funding process began in early May, Kickstarter, often used these days by creative people to raise funds from the public, and it concluded with a nail-biting resolution. The last dollars slipped into place during the final 20 minutes.
The film is a goand who knows? Maybe the story is still unfolding. An account of the progress so far is on www.jacquesbolseyproject.com.
