Graeme Ferguson

Ivan Graeme Ferguson (October 7, 1929 – May 8, 2021) was a Canadian filmmaker and inventor who co-invented the IMAX film format. He was appointed to the Order of Canada in 1992.

Early life Ferguson was born Toronto on October 7, 1929. He studied political science and economics at Victoria College, University of Toronto, from 1948 to 1952. He served as cameraman for the university's film society, and was consequently chosen for a apprenticeship program at the National Film Board of Canada during the summer of 1950. He was elected as one of the representatives of his college to the Students’ Administrative Council. After graduation, he was chosen as national secretary of the World University Service. and worked as a freelance filmmaker for the next decade. They eventually replicated the initial experience, but with a single large screen and projector. He played a key role in bringing IMAX cameras into space.

Ferguson served as president of IMAX for two decades until 1990. He was granted an honorary doctorate from the University of Bradford in 1994. Eleven years later, Ferguson was conferred the Kodak Vision Award by the Large Format Cinema Association. Together, they had two children: Munro and Allison. Their son, Munro, remembered how it was "quite a painful period", but noted how Ferguson kept at a distance from the case.

Ferguson married his second wife, Phyllis Wilson, in 1982. They met while he was directing and serving as cinematographer of North of Superior. She was of the Algonquins of Pikwàkanagàn First Nation, and assisted him in becoming familiar with the land and engaging with the locals. They were in a common-law relationship for ten years before marrying, and remained married until her death in March 2021.

Ferguson died on May 8, 2021, at his home in Norway Point, Ontario. He was 91, and had been diagnosed with throat cancer one year prior to his death. His wife, Phyllis, died of a heart attack eight weeks earlier.