Hugh Durnford-Dionne
Image credit: Yael Ezerzer
About the Artist
Hugh Durnford-Dionne is a motion designer and documentary filmmaker based in Montreal. In 2023, he filmed and edited Last Respects, a documentary exploring what happens to the bodies that go unclaimed after death in Montreal, which won the Betty Youson Award for Best Canadian Documentary at Hot Docs. In 2019, he wrote and directed Charlotte’s Illustrated World, a short documentary about a Toronto-based illustrator, broadcast nationally on CBC Arts. His latest project, The Steppers Visit SouthAfrica, follows a Montreal dance group as they venture to South Africa to explore both their personal heritage and the roots of their art form.
Through his background in both animation and academia, Hugh gravitated towards the transformative power of motion graphics’ ability to clearly illustrate abstract concepts from philosophy, etymology, and other humanities in a digestible and engaging way.
