William Fruet (born January 1, 1933)[1] is a Canadian film and television director, playwright and screenwriter. He made his directorial debut with the drama Wedding in White (1972), based on a play he had also written. The film won Best Picture at the Canadian Film Awards in 1973.
His later career included several horror films, including Death Weekend (1972), Cries in the Night (1980), and Killer Party (1986), as well as television series, including Goosebumps and Poltergeist: The Legacy. Other writing credits include the influential Canadian film Goin' Down the Road, which he co-wrote with Donald Shebib.[2]
Early life and education
Fruet was born in Lethbridge, Alberta, and graduated from the National Theatre School of Canada in 1952. He worked for the CBC as an actor and photographer. He appeared Drylanders (1963), the National Film Board’s first English-language feature film. Between 1962 and 1963, Fruet studied directing at the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, and worked as an industrial filmmaker.[1][3]
Career
Fruet began his filmmaking career in Canada after meeting fellow UCLA alumnus Donald Shebib at the CBC.[3] He wrote the screenplay for Shebib's Goin' Down the Road (1970),[4] which was a critical and commercial success and is considered a landmark Canadian film. This film has been designated and preserved as a "masterwork" by the Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada.[5] His other screenwriting credits include Rip-Off (directed by Shebib) and Slipstream.
His directorial debut was the 1972 film Wedding in White. Based on Fruet's play of the same name, the film stars Carol Kane as a teenager in rural Ontario during World War II, who is forced to marry her rapist after he impregnates her. The play and film was based on a real woman Fruet met in his youth, who had been forced to marry an older man by her parents in the same circumstances.[6] The film received critical acclaim, and won Best Motion Picture at the 24th Canadian Film Awards.[1]
Fruet's subsequent film directing credits include Death Weekend, Spasms, Search and Destroy, Killer Party, Cries in the Night and Bedroom Eyes. Several of his films have become cult classics among fans of the horror film genre.
His television credits include episodes of The Ray Bradbury Theatre, My Secret Identity, Diamonds, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Friday the 13th, War of the Worlds, Counterstrike, The Outer Limits, Goosebumps, Poltergeist: The Legacy, The Zack Files, Da Vinci's Inquest, Chasing Rainbows, Code Name: Eternity and Zoe Busiek: Wild Card.[7] He co-created the television series Code Name: Eternity.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1972 | Wedding in White | Canadian Film Award - Best Picture |
| 1976 | Death Weekend | Also known as: The House by the Lake |
| 1979 | Search and Destroy | |
| 1980 | Cries in the Night | Also known as: Funeral Home |
| 1982 | Trapped | Also known as: Baker County, U.S.A |
| 1983 | Spasms | |
| 1984 | Bedroom Eyes | |
| 1986 | Killer Party | |
| 1987 | Blue Monkey | |
| 2000 | Dear America: A Line in the Sand | Short film |
TV series
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1979 | One of Our Own | |
| 1987–1990 | Friday's Curse | 10 episodes |
| 1988 | Chasing Rainbows | |
| Alfred Hitchcock Presents | Episode: "If Looks Could Kill" | |
| 1988–1990 | War of the Worlds | 8 episodes |
| 1990 | My Secret Identity | Episode: "David's Dream" |
| 1990–1993 | Top Cops | 4 episodes |
| Counterstrike | 4 episodes | |
| 1995 | Mysterious Island | 4 episodes |
| The Outer Limits | Episode: "Birthright" | |
| 1995–1996 | Lonesome Dove: The Outlaw Years | 2 episodes |
| 1995–1998 | Goosebumps | 27 episodes |
| 1998 | Animorphs | 2 episodes |
| 1998–2003 | Da Vinci's Inquest | 2 episodes |
| 1997–1999 | Poltergeist: The Legacy | 6 episodes |
| 2000 | Code Name: Eternity | 4 episodes |
| 2000–2002 | The Zack Files | 10 episodes |
| 2001–2002 | Tracker | 3 episodes |
TV movies
- Brothers by Choice (1986)
- The Royal Diaries: Isabel - Jewel of Castilla (2000)
- Imaginary Playmate (2006)
- The Egg Factory (2008)
- Matty Hanson and the Invisibility Ray (2011)
References
- ^ a b c "William Fruet". Northern Stars. Retrieved January 23, 2017.
- ^ "William Fruet". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved January 22, 2017.
- ^ a b "Canadian Film Encyclopedia - William Fruet". cfe.tiff.net. Retrieved 2024-10-01.
- ^ Mendik, Xavier (2021). "An Interview with William Fruet". Shocking Canadian Cinema of the 70s. Bloomsbury. pp. 189–201. ISBN 9781350136311.
- ^ "Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada". Avtrust.ca. Archived from the original on 2011-09-30. Retrieved 2011-10-22.
- ^ "Wedding in White and its novice director". The Globe and Mail, May 27, 1972.
- ^ "William Fruet". The British Film Institute. Archived from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved January 22, 2017.
