Gary Chuntz is one of the guys who made being a colorist cool. For his efforts and overall contribution to the Canadian commercial production industry, Chuntz is this year’s recipient of the prestigious Bob Mann Award for excellence in post-production at the 2003 Bessies.

According to Bob Mann committee chair, Flashcut’s Tim Kirkwood, Chuntz was chosen for ‘his contribution to years of satisfaction; his patience, and good temperament; excellent skill, and the fact that he has not tired, ever, in keeping up with all of the technological developments in his business of film-to-tape color correction.’

According to Kirkwood, Chuntz is well respected for staying abreast of (and oftentimes ahead of) advancements in his leg of the industry, but there is more to being selected a Bob Mann winner than just know-how.

‘He has a great body of work and he’s got a huge list of fans,’ says Kirkwood. ‘He’s a really easygoing and wonderful guy, even in the most stressful situations. He’s always the coolest cucumber in the room and always accommodating. These are the qualities we respect and look forward to having when the rest of us are all freaked out at the end of a job.’

Chuntz began in the industry in South Africa nearly 20 years ago, coming from a film background. He took a job in a London-based post shop, thus beginning his career as a colorist.

‘I learned to be a colorist when colorists first started,’ says Chuntz. ‘That’s really how I got my break. The equipment we used to use back then was a lot more basic; not with so much range but still pretty good. Then the equipment and everything else just progressed into the colorists’ revolution.’

Chuntz says in the early days of his career the position of colorist was not given the same respect it is now. The task was generally pawned off on whoever was available. He says that seemed to change around the time he came to Canada in search of a better way of life and standard of living, some 13 years ago. He took a job at Magnetic North in Toronto and moved on to Command Post/Toybox, where he made his mark as one of Canada’s top colorists, finding his niche in the commercial market.

‘There are a lot of colorists out there, but doing it commercially I think gives you a little more artistic range than a general, run-of-the-mill colorist who does TV series [for example],’ he says. ‘I think it’s being part artist, but you also have to know your equipment inside out and be able to control a fairly rambunctious crowd. You have a lot of egos out there with film directors, agencies and clients, and you have to control that crowd while you’re doing your job.’

Chuntz says he navigates through the egomaniacal commercial world with a quiet confidence developed through an intimate knowledge of his gear and his job.

In late 2002, Chuntz added another dimension to his career by helping found Notch, Canada’s first colorist boutique. He and Notch co-principal, Bill Ferwerda, had been toying with the idea for a long time before finally taking action. He says they established the company when they felt a strong demand from the industry, and the first six months of Notch have exceeded Chuntz’s expectations for the company’s growth.

With a staff of 12, Notch has been consistently busy since opening its doors. Its first major coup was scoring the color correction duties for several spots in the Budweiser Superbowl campaign. Now, says Chuntz, beer and car ads are all in a day’s work, and there are steady bookings at Notch until well into June.

The small staff at Notch is something Chuntz hopes to maintain, saying one of the main reasons he left Toybox last year after a decade of service was because the company lost a certain degree of its intimacy.

‘It was hard to leave, but the philosophy has changed at that company,’ he says. ‘It’s no longer run by the people who started it. When you work for something you want to feel part of it. It used to be a small enough company that you were made to feel part of it, but by the time I left [I felt like] just a number making money.’

Toybox, however, was where Chuntz worked as a colorist on the Tarsem Singh 2000 feature The Cell. Although he says he prefers commercial work, having done just a handful of longer-format jobs, Chuntz says he enjoyed the experience and expects the colorist, as a species, will be very much in demand in the feature sector as more theatres turn high-def.

‘When they have digital projectors in the theatres, there will be a full-on demand to do feature films through a telecine bay with people like myself straight onto high-def,’ says Chuntz. ‘[At Notch,] we have high-definition and can already go that route. We’ve got all the toys, tools and people and so far it’s been a great ride.’

At 49, Chuntz says another important aspect of what he and Ferwerda are doing at Notch is training the second generation of high-caliber colorists.

‘There is always a lack of time to mold the next generation before my early retirement,’ he says. While he has no immediate plans to retire, the 2003 Bob Mann Award winner adds, ‘At this stage of my life, if I can maintain the level I’m at [professionally] until I do retire, I’ll be more than happy.’