geoff norris was born and raised in north pickering -

about an hour outside of toronto, canada. growing up in the

secluded countryside provided him with a great deal of free

time to daydream and explore the natural world. during the brutal

winters he was driven inside, and encouraged by his mother and

father (sandra and martin norris) to entertain himself through

creative means. film became a passion for geoff from an early 

age and he has commited himself to visual storytelling ever since.

 

after leaving home, geoff studied and obtained a degree in history at the university of toronto, before completing a degree in philosophy at the university of windsor. during his time at uoft, special attention was paid to cinematic theory and its social impact on various cultures. while studying at windsor, his interest shifted slightly away from the social context of motion pictures and he became more interested in the relationship between philosophy and film - especially the language of cinema and the function of non traditional narrative structure.

 

geoff holds that non-linear editing can be used in a way to comment both on our fractured relationships with others, and on the notion of plot in the postmodern world. the way in which stories are assembled and presented is most important to him as a filmmaker, and he feels that the future of cinema will not be driven by technological advances alone, but by a subsequent shift in audience awareness and participation. his motivation for making films is not only to tell stories that advance causes, but to wake the mind so that a better understanding can be reached between the spectator and the greater world. 

 

currently geoff resides in toronto and is pursuing filmmaking as a career. PRESENCE is geoff and kyle's second feature length film, made shortly after their 2013 SUJET.