Acclaimed filmmaker memorialized as true champion for the underdog
Errol Williams took plight of African- Canadian NHL player Willie O'Ree to the silver screen

By SHAWN BERRY
Published Thursday July 19th, 2007 in the Daily Gleaner

Errol Williams, an inspiring documentary filmmaker who championed underdogs and earned acclaim for his narrative on the NHL's first African-Canadian player, died Saturday. He was 56.

Williams, a respected storyteller who grew up in Fredericton after emigrating from Guyana in his teens, was devoted to his craft. He moved to Bermuda in his early 20s and returned to live here in the late 1980s while his wife was furthering her education. Williams worked up until two weeks ago when he fell ill and was admitted to hospital in Barbados. He had been receiving treatment for leukemia.

Tony Merzetti, head of the NB Film Co-op, met Williams in 1987 when he walked in the door, eager to get involved. From the first meeting, he left an indelible mark.

"From the way he spoke and the things he knew, you could tell he was someone who would do deep films, films with relevance and deep social impact," said Merzetti.

It didn't take long for the man to catch on. He made his first dramatic film, Driftwood, in 1988. It's the story of an aging Caribbean man who moves to Canada at his grandson's urging only to be locked in a basement and live like a prisoner.

Driftwood was the co-op's first big success. It was shown at festivals as far away as Burkina Faso and Martinique,

"Up to that point, we really didn't have any star filmmakers," said Merzetti. And Williams was just as devoted to helping others shine. "He was a real inspiration," Merzetti said.

"He would help other filmmakers, give them advice, he'd help with their scripts and had a real sense of storytelling. From relative obscurity, he was able to go on to something."

Williams is probably best known in New Brunswick and the States for his film Echoes in the Rink: The Willie O'Ree Story.

The film told the story of O'Ree's overlooked struggles as the first black player to play in the NHL. O'Ree, a Fredericton native, played two games with the Boston Bruins in 1958. He played 43 more in 1961.

In a 1998 interview, Williams said he was driven to direct the O'Ree film because of his own experience as a youngster learning the game of hockey in Fredericton.

"As an immigrant to Canada in the late sixties, one of the things that fascinated me the most about this country was the game of hockey. I wished I could skate, so I could play. I would really fit in then," Williams told The Daily Gleaner.

"Hockey is Canadian, I wanted to be Canadian. But where were the black players?"

In a 1992 interview with the New York Daily News, Williams said he was drawn in by O'Ree's personality.

"He was a fighter -- in every sense of the word," Williams said.

In his adopted home of Bermuda, he was known for his film, When Voices Rise, about the end of segregation on the island.

Some in Bermuda found it remarkable that it took a man from Guyana, and raised in Fredericton, to tell their story.

Merzetti said there's no surprise there.

"He could go somewhere, see a story, turn around and do the research and then work with a group of people in a very co-operative manner to get the story done."

(Errol Williams and Tony Merzetti on the beach in San Diego shooting Echoes in the Rink: The Willie O'Ree Story.)

The NB Film Co-op will be creating a special filmmaker award/grant in Errol's name to be announced and given out for the first time at the 2007 New Brunswick Silver Wave Film Festival happening November 8-11.