John Waldie
Tutor: Movies of Merit
Movies have always been part of John's life, and it was when his job took him to Philadelphia that it became an interest to help while away the lonely hours and weekends. John set about exploring the many arthouse theatres in that great city.
It was during this time also that John came upon a book listing the movies you must see before you die. He was intrigued, and set about to find out what criteria were used to construct this list. In turn, this led to more books and lists, all constructed with different criteria. John was on a roll!
Long before retirement, John had decided how he would spend the years beyond active employment. Volunteering - helping others - was going to be a large part of his time.
The Australian Centre for the Moving Image became a recipient of John's generosity, as well as a medium to extend his interest in and knowledge of movies.
U3A Melbourne city is another. John spent some six months working in the office, where he was able to apply his expertise in computers and, among other things, extend the computer facilities to meet the administrative needs of the organisation.
As was bound to happen, it was during a casual chat with a committee member that John's interest in movies bubbled to the surface. Always looking for new and interesting courses, the course coordinator found a suitable venue and encouraged John to share his passion with fellow U3A members. 'Movies of Merit' was born.
This popular course regularly has more than two dozen members present for the movie and a lively discussion afterwards. Although John has many genres on which to draw to entertain his audience, he finds the most popular movies are 'films that make you think'.
Always looking to improve the experience for U3A members, John says "one of my objectives is to provide an opportunity to show films which those attending are unlikely to have seen before".
