The Filmmakers

The filmmakers spent over three months looking through the 250,000 stereo negative plates stored at the California Museum of Photography at the University of California-Riverside (CMP/UCR). Their first objective was to find all the pictures from the different cities where Twain had visited or lived. Second, they looked at photos representative of the different careers Twain had had in his lifetime. And third, they looked for photos of what everyday people were like during the 19th century.

In addition to photos from the CMP/UCR, they also used photographs from The Library of Congress and the Matthew Brady collection, and from Mark Twain research centers at Hartford and the University of California Berkeley.

And unlike the 3D photos from CMP/UCR and The Library of Congress, the stills from Berkeley and Hartford were 2D and needed to be remade into 3D. These photos were transformed into 3D by a complex process of making a contact print, scanning the image and digitally repositioning the objects into a 3d perspective, a first for any IMAX® film!

For more information on Mark Twain, check out:
The Mark Twain Papers/Project at UC Berkeley
Housed in the Bancroft Library, it is the most comprehensive working archive of Twain's letters, finished and unfinished manuscripts, books from his personal library, photographs, etc. In addition, the Project is working on a comprehensive scholarly edition of all of Twain's private papers and published works.
http://library.berkeley.edu/BANC/MTP/

Stephen Low is one of the foremost large format filmmakers, with eight films to his credit and almost thirty years of experience working in the IMAX® format. His introduction to the IMAX® format dates back as early as 1970, when Low and his father took thousands of 2 1/4" still photographs and blew them up onto a large screen with hopes of someday making a 3D IMAX® film. Low's father, Colin, made the first IMAX® 3D film for Expo '86 Vancouver. His first working foray into the large format field was as a researcher on HAIL COLUMBIA! and soon after Low directed his first IMAX® film, SKYWARD, for the Suntory Pavilion at the 1985 Tsukuba International Exposition in Japan.

Director of some of the most popular and award-winning large format films and noted for his skillful use of technology without neglecting creativity, Low consistently has pushed the limits of the arena with his imaginative and powerful large format films. To bring the past alive in "MARK TWAIN"S AMERICA," Low took 19th century photographs, blew them up and digitally converted them into 3D for the giant screen, a first for any IMAX® film! In 1992, Low broke new ground with the feature-length IMAX® film, TITANICA. For the first time ever, audiences experienced the sunken hull of the Titanic at 12,500 feet below the ocean surface. Directed and produced by Low, the high-risk underwater adventures of the crew in finding and exploring the Titanic received great critical reviews and continues to show on large format screens around the world.

In addition to his roles as director, producer and writer, Low took the challenge of underwater cinematography with his portrayal of the life of the beaver in his1987 production of BEAVERS for Dentsu Inc. of Japan. The film continues to be one of the all-time most popular large format films. BEAVERS was awarded the Jury Prize and the Public Prize at the second International IMAX®/OMNIMAX Film Festival in Paris, France.

Several of Low's large format films have become IMAX® classics, including THE LAST BUFFALO. He directed and produced the film for EXPO '90 Osaka, Japan. One of the early IMAX® 3D films, THE LAST BUFFALO became the most popular attraction at the fair, drawing some 1,940,000 visitors during the six-month exhibition. The film wordlessly weaves a story of art and nature and won Japan's Minister of the Environment Award and received the Outstanding Film Award from the Audio Visual Association of Japan.

Born in Ottawa, Low studied political science at Lakeland University in Thunder Bay, Graduating in 1973. He began working in film in 1976 as a cameraman/editor in Newfoundland. Four years, he directed and produced the award-winning documentary CHALLENGER with the National Film Board of Canada. In 1981, he won the distinguished Grierson Award for achievement in documentary film. Low has written and directed many documentaries including THE DEFENDER and THE TRAIN, and his work has won more than 40 awards worldwide. He also has served as executive producer of THE HUMAN RACE, an award-winning four-part television series on the environment.

Andrew Kitzanuk has spent the past ten years working on over sixty films with various feature films, documentaries, and other large format films to his credit. "MARK TWAIN'S AMERICA" marks his sixth association with director Stephen Low. Previously, they worked together on the highly acclaimed films "ACROSS THE SEA OF TIME," "THE LAST BUFFALO," "TITANICA," "AQUANAUT," and "BEAVERS."

Recently, Kitzanuk has served as cinematographer on several IMAX® films including "IMAGINE," for the Taijon World's Fair in Korea, "AFRICA: THE SERENGETI," and in IMAX® 3D, "T-REX." Other IMAX® titles Kitzanuk has photographed are "ROLLING STONES AT THE MAX," and the IMAX®/SOLIDO film "ECHOES OF THE SUN." A former staff member of the National Film Board of Canada, Kitzanuk began his career as a camera assistant and eventually earned the reputation as one of the Film Board's finest Directors of Photography. He filmed over thirty productions for the NFB, including documentaries, short dramas, and feature films.

Having completed numerous IMAX® productions since he began working in the field of large format films in 1987, Kitzanuk is an acclaimed master of the medium. "MARK TWAIN'S AMERICA" is his eighth large format film.

James Lahti has gained experience editing almost every type of production, since receiving his honors degree in film from York University in 1977. His extensive resume includes commercials, music videos, documentary films, feature films, television features and mini-series. He edited the Emmy Award-winning mini-series "ANNE OF GREEN GABLES" as well as the sequel. His first IMAX® film was Stephen Low's "THE LAST BUFFALO" in 3D followed immediately by Roman Kroiter's "ECHOES OF THE SUN" in IMAX/SOLIDO. Over the past few years Mr. Lahti has acted as Associate Producer / Editor on four large format films directed by Stephen Low, "FLIGHT OF THE AQUANAUT," "TITANICA," "ACROSS THE SEA OF TIME" and "SUPER SPEEDWAY." In 1996 he edited the large format film "WHALES" for National Wildlife Productions.

Charles Braive has contributed his film knowledge and management expertise to the realization of over 50 productions, working as Line Producer and Production Manager, as well as an Assistant Director. Braive began his career in 1971 in the feature film industry, and has worked closely with such prominent directors as Robert Altman, Ted Kotcheff and J. Lee Thompson. His most recent work was on the Gemini-nominated miniseries "THE ARROW," a period aviation drama set in the 1950s. Braive's career has made him familiar with countless locations across North America and internationally and his work now encompasses virtually every genre of film production, from award-winning television advertising to feature films and state-of-the-art large format film.