Biography
Roger Evan Larry is a Canadian director, writer, & producer of film, TV, and new media. Larry is perhaps best known for his feature documentary, Citizen Marc (2014), a biopic about famed Canadian marijuana legalization activist, Marc Emery. The film premiered at the Montreal World Film Festival in 2013 and was subsequently acquired by Capitol Motion Pictures Group, who played the film in 13 cities across Canada. This made it the widest domestic release for a Canadian documentary that year. Citizen Marc was well received critically: The Georgia Straight called it "Excellent"; the Montreal Gazette described it as "Highly entertaining...witty and deftly directed"; and The Globe and Mail said that it was "Vexingly fascinating."
His latest feature-length project, Cool Daddy, follows the complicated and troubled relationship between father and son in this intimate family story and exploration of masculine identity. Featuring legendary Canadian Jazz singer Kenny Coleman- whose successes included major US record deals, his own TV show on CBC, the admiration of Frank Sinatra, and glamorous gigs all around the world-the film documents Kenny's biggest worry, which is not his lack of money nor his declining health but, rather, his forty-three-year-old son Chase, who decides at mid-life-despite having a successful career as a realtor-to follow in his father's footsteps and become a singer. Co-authored with Sandra Tomc and co-produced with Paul Armstrong, this film is fully funded by the CBC Documentary Channel and by the Canadian Media Fund.
Larry's debut as a feature film director was in 2007 with Crossing, a thriller about a cross-dressing gangster, which he produced and co-wrote with Dr. Sandra Tomc. Crossing, also known as Dressed to Kill, starred Sebastian Spence and Crystal Bublé. It played in Canadian theaters in 2007 and was nominated for 6 Leo Awards, including Best Picture, Best Directing, and Best Screenplay. It sold in over twenty countries.
Larry has also had an extensive career as a gun for hire in television as a writer, director, producer, and show runner. Larry's most recent television work was as a show runner/creative producer on the show X Weighted Families, which consisted of 13 one-hour episodes. His work on the show earned him a Gemini nomination and the show sold in over 50 countries. Prior to X Weighted Families, Roger made dozens of hours of network television including highlights such as CITY's The New Music and YTV's Gemini-winning show, streetNOISE, which was later picked up by the BBC. In 2016, the Toronto Star named streetNOISE as one of the most influential Toronto shows ever made.
His earliest professional work was making music videos, including videos for The Tragically Hip, The Barenaked Ladies, and Maestro Fresh. Larry directed the video for National Velvet's 68 Hours, which won a CASBY award for the best Canadian music video in 1989.
In addition to film and television, Larry has worked has a broad range of experience producing new media. To accompany his latest film Cool Daddy, Larry worked with Vancouver agency Denman Digital to create Kenny's Jazz Pad, a virtual 1960s jazz club that provides an immersive and interactive experience for viewers. To accompany Citizen Marc, Larry created The Disagreement Machine, a website that allows fans to re-edit portions of the film to author new political narratives by drawing on non-linear video and sound elements in an engaging and innovative way. In the late nineties, Larry was the creative team leader on SPLICE for MSN Canada, an interactive retelling of Canadian history through the eyes of Marshall McLuhan.
Further, Larry co-authored three film installations in 2012 with Mark Lewis including Volcano Tree, Oak and the Tree, and Mad Man and the Tree, which screened at the Museum of Modern Art's (MOMA) PS1 installation in Brooklyn, NYC. Larry continues to produce film installations and photography.
Larry lives in Vancouver with his wife and creative partner, Dr. Sandra Tomc, a professor of English at the University of British Columbia and their daughter, Scarlett.
