Charles Officer
Encyclopedia
Charles Officer is a Jamaican-Canadian writer, actor, director and former professional hockey player in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

Director

Officer’s directorial debut, When Morning Comes, premiered at the 2000 Toronto International Film Festival
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...

 (TIFF). His other work includes the short films Short Hymn Silent War (2001), Pop Song and Urda/Bone (2003), a music video for K'naan
K'naan
K'naan , born Keinan Abdi Warsame in 1978, is a Somali Canadian poet, rapper, singer, songwriter and instrumentalist.-Biography:Born in Somalia, K'naan spent his childhood in Mogadishu and lived there during the Somali Civil War, which began in 1991. His aunt, Magool, was one of Somalia's most...

’s “Strugglin’” (2005) and television pilot Hotel Babylon (2005).

The 57th Berlin International Film Festival
Berlin International Film Festival
The Berlin International Film Festival , also called the Berlinale, is one of the world's leading film festivals and most reputable media events. It is held in Berlin, Germany. Founded in West Berlin in 1951, the festival has been celebrated annually in February since 1978...

 selected his feature screenplay Nurse.Fighter.Boy
Nurse.Fighter.Boy
Nurse.Fighter.Boy is a Canadian drama film, originally released in 2008.The film stars Karen LeBlanc as Jude, a widowed single mother undergoing treatment for sickle cell disease. While working as a night-shift nurse to support her son Ciel Nurse.Fighter.Boy is a Canadian drama film, originally...

for its Sparkling Tales writer’s lab in 2007. Inspired by Officer's sister's battle with sickle cell anemia, the film was produced while Officer was a student at the Canadian Film Centre
Canadian Film Centre
The Canadian Film Centre is an advanced training institution for film, television and new media. Based in Toronto, Canada, CFC offers residents education, industry partnerships and production experience...

. The film was shot over 23 days with a hand-held camera shot on location in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

, in areas where Officer grew up, including the back alleyways of Eastern Avenue
Eastern Avenue (Toronto)
Eastern Avenue is an east-west street in Toronto, Canada. It runs from just east of Parliament Street in the downtown to just west of Coxwell Avenue, near the Beaches neighbourhood. Originally Eastern crossed the Don River at the Old Eastern Avenue Bridge, but that bridge was disconnected in 1964...

; Woodbine and Danforth Avenue
Danforth Avenue
Danforth Avenue is an east-west arterial road in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its western end begins in Old Toronto from the Prince Edward Viaduct as a continuation of Bloor Street and continues through East York until intersecting with Kingston Road in Scarborough...

; and a boxing club in Cabbagetown
Cabbagetown, Toronto
Cabbagetown is a neighbourhood located on the east side of downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It comprises "the largest continuous area of preserved Victorian housing in all of North America", according to the Cabbagetown Preservation Association....

 where the Officer had learned to fight at age 13.

Nurse.Fighter.Boy premiered at TIFF 2008 and won the audience award for Best in World Cinema and a jury prize for Best Cinematography at the Sarasota Film Festival
Sarasota Film Festival
The Sarasota Film Festival has been held annually since 1999 in Sarasota, Florida. The festival is held in April and has become one of the top ten independent festivals in North America...

. It was also released theatrically in Canada on February 2009.

In April 2009, production began on Charles' feature documentary on Harry Jerome
Harry Jerome
Henry "Harry" Winston Jerome, was a Canadian track and field runner. He was the grandson of John Howard, a railway porter who represented Canada in the 1912 Summer Olympics....

.

In 2009 Charles Officer directed 2 short films for the cross-platform project City Sonic
City Sonic
City Sonic is a documentary series about Toronto-based musicians and the places that influenced their music. The first five City Sonic films were previewed at Toronto's 2009 North by North East Music and Film Festival.-Films:...

. Officer, along with 6 other directors, shot 20 short films about Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...

 musicians and the places where their musical lives were transformed. Officer directed films starting D-Sisive
D-Sisive
D-Sisive is the stage name of Derek Christoff, a prolific Canadian rapper, best known for his Juno Award-nominated EP The Book, his hit single "Nobody With A Notepad" and his 2009 Polaris Music Prize-nominated album Let the Children Die D-Sisive is the stage name of Derek Christoff, a prolific...

 and Divine Brown
Divine Brown
Divine Brown , previously known as Divine Earth Essence, is a Canadian rhythm and blues and soul singer and theatre performer....

.

Premiering at the Vancouver International Film Festival
Vancouver International Film Festival
The Vancouver International Film Festival is an annual film festival held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada for two weeks in late September and early October...

 on October 8, 2010, Mighty Jerome explores the rise, fall and redemption of Harry Jerome, Canada’s most record-setting track and field star. Archival footage, interviews and recreations are used to tell the story of what Jerome’s university coach, Bill Bowerman
Bill Bowerman
William Jay "Bill" Bowerman was an American track and field coach and co-founder of Nike, Inc. Over his career, he trained 31 Olympic athletes, 51 All-Americans, 12 American record-holders, 24 NCAA champions and 16 sub-4 minute milers...

, called “The greatest comeback in track and field history.” Mighty Jerome is produced by the NFB’s Selwyn Jacob.

Actor

As an actor, he has appeared in stage, film and television productions, recently starring in the Theatre Calgary
Theatre Calgary
Theatre Calgary, theatre company in Calgary, Alberta, established as a professional company in 1968.-History:The origin of the company dates back to the 1940s, when students of Betty Mitchell, a drama teacher at Calgary's Western Canada High School, established an amateur group known as "Workshop...

/Soulpepper Theatre Company
Soulpepper Theatre Company
Soulpepper Theatre Company is a Toronto, Ontario-based theatre company dedicated to presenting classic plays.-History:Soulpepper was founded in 1998 by twelve Toronto artists who dreamed of a company that would produce lesser known theatrical classics. Soulpepper has since become an important part...

 co-production of A Raisin in the Sun
A Raisin in the Sun
A Raisin in the Sun is a play by Lorraine Hansberry that debuted on Broadway in 1959. The title comes from the poem "Harlem" by Langston Hughes...

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Background

Charles studied communication design at the Ontario College of Art & Design
Ontario College of Art & Design
OCAD University is Canada's largest and oldest educational institution for art and design. It is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada on McCaul Street beside the Art Gallery of Ontario...

 (OCAD), but left to play professional ice hockey in the U.K. He was drafted by the Calgary Flames
Calgary Flames
The Calgary Flames are a professional ice hockey team based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is the third major-professional ice hockey team to represent the city of Calgary, following the...

 and moved from England to Salt Lake City to play for an NHL farm team. He abandoned professional hockey due to injury problems and returned to OCAD, before attending the Neighborhood Playhouse
Neighborhood Playhouse
The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre is an actor training school at 340 East 54th Street in New York City, generally associated with the Meisner technique of Sanford Meisner.-History:...

 in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

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