Donald Shebib

Who is Donald Shebib?

Donald Shebib, often called Don Shebib, is a Canadian film director, writer, producer and editor. A graduate of the prestigious UCLA film school, Shebib gained prominence and critical acclaim in Canadian cinema for his seminal 1970 movie Goin' Down the Road, which combined narrative storytelling with Canadian documentary tradition influenced by the British. The low-budget film crew travelled around Toronto in a station wagon, supported by funding from the newly-formed Canadian Film Development Corporation. The movie was screened in New York and hailed by Pauline Kael and Roger Ebert. Kael wrote that the movie showed up the ostensibly forced sincerity and perceived honesty of the films of John Cassavetes. Shebib is the father of Noah "40" Shebib. Goin' Down the Road was digitally remastered as one of the key films in the Canadian film canon and was honoured with a screening at the Art Gallery of Ontario. A sequel was shot in 2011, called "Goin' Down the Road Again," featuring some of the original cast members as well as a new generation of characters.