R. W. Gray
R. W. Gray is an award-winning screenwriter and director who has made seven short films. In 2018, he filmed his first feature film Entropic. With his collaborators at Frictive Pictures they have made fourteen short films.
He is also the author of two books of short stories. His most recent book, Entropic, won the prestigious Thomas Raddall prize for fiction. His poetry has been published in the Broadview Introduction to Literature, the anthology Seminal and magazines such as The Malahat Review, The Windsor Review and ARC Poetry magazine.
He is a professor in the Department of English at the University of New Brunswick.
Matt Rogers
Matt Rogers has produced films that appeared at national and international film festivals, and received awards and nominations in cinematography, editing, writing, and direction for his work. His short film, “a list”, was a part of the CBC Program “Reel East Coast” (Season 3, Episode 3). Telefilm (Canada’s federal film funding agency), awarded Dr. Rogers, along with his creative team (Dr. Robert Gray & Jon Dewar), a Micro Budget film grant to produce their first feature film (Entropic).
As a researcher, he is interested in projects focused on youth-centered participatory filmmaking and documentary inquiry. His expertise includes participatory methods, critical qualitative research, and critical teacher education and social studies pedagogies. As a former Atlantic Canadian public school teacher and an award-winning filmmaker, he brings regional knowledge, and an established professional, creative, and educational network to this study.
His past research explores the limits and possibilities of adopting participatory video pedagogies in classroom contexts. In that project he coordinated a film program (What’s up Doc?) in multiple NB schools. He mentored educators in participatory filmmaking, facilitated youth film projects, organized the film festival, and analyzed the project and associate pedagogical approaches.
FRICTIVE PICTURES
Formed ten years ago by New Brunswick filmmaking trio Jon Dewar, Matt Rogers, and Rob Gray, Frictive Pictures has gained a reputation for bringing together the best of local talent to create stunning films, such as their award-winning shorts Choke Hold, A List, and The Beautifully Drowned. Their films have gathered praise and attention from the festival circuit, achieving best picture at Silverware Film Festival and the Tampa Bay Underground Film Festival among others.
Frictive seeks to make films that challenge assumptions and provoke discussion. They take a leading role in the Fredericton film community, and, through their not-for-profit Frictive Projects, also produce such events as the Fredericton 48-hour Film Competition, the Pink Lobster Film Festival, and the What's Up Doc? film production program in Anglophone School District West.