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A Virginia native, CLIO winning director/cinematographer, father and sailor,
Bill has been drawn to sailboats most of his life.
At 22, he “ran away” with some pals on the leaky old
(1901) Skipjack “Freddie.” The voyage ended when
"Freddie" was stolen and wrecked on the outer
banks of North Carolina.
Bill
captured the images for “Skipjack
Sunday” at Deal Island in 1967, not long after leaving the Richmond TV station WRVA as a producer/cameraman, . But these
negatives, (now rediscovered and digitally renovated), along with
countless others, were set aside while Bill went about building his
own company and successful film career.
In 1968 he founded
Colony
Productions, meanwhile sailing as chief
crew aboard the Skipjack "Caleb W. Jones" until his best
friend/business partner sold her back into the fleet. His reputation
grew quickly as an innovative director/cinematographer that created
national caliber work on local and regional budgets. Competing
with the best all over the world, Colony's productions won awards in renowned
film festivals and competitions throughout the country, garnering
three CLIOs, the most respected award in the commercial production
industry.
Bill's unique grasp of communicating with motion in his films won the most coveted
national commercial award of all: CLIO for Best Cinematography.
“I didn’t want to see the wind, I wanted to be the
wind,” says Bill. That
commercial, for the National Agricultural Foundation, also went on
to be displayed in the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts as part of its
Virginia Designers Show.
His
camera and directorial style has taken him on location from coast to
coast, and includes international productions, gubernatorial
campaigns, print for magazine and fashion, and longer productions,
including his 28-minute masterpiece for the
Virginia State Travel Service. “And
You May Find ... Virginia,”
seen by millions in theaters and exhibits, was voted the best travel
film in the U.S., receiving First Place in the National Outdoor Film Theatre.
In
fact Bill is the most highly decorated (in awards) regional director
in the US today.
(Awards List)
Bill currently lives and works between Virginia and Florida aboard his ’51 ketch,
“Colony
II.”
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