Noel chanan: a life in film and photography cut short
Acclaimed documentary film editor and photographer Noel Chanan has passed away at the age of 86.
Noel's early years and bbc training
Born in London, Chanan was the eldest of three sons to Elchanan and Miriam Chanan. His fascination with filmmaking began at 13 with an 8mm Paillard-Bolex camera given to him for his bar mitzvah.
His training at the BBC in the early 1960s laid the foundation for a distinguished career.In 1962, Chanan joined the BBC as a trainee film editor, just in time to work on the pioneering current affairs program Tonight in the early 1960s.
Noel's freelance career and directorial work
After leaving the BBC in 1966, Chanan set up his own cutting room and worked freelance, quickly becoming in high demand as a film editor. He also directed several understated yet elegant films, particularly on photography.
In 1979, he contributed to Granada Television's Camera: Early Photography series. Chanan also made film biographies of contemporary photographers, including Bert Hardy, George Rodger, and David Goldblatt.
A talented photographer himself, Chanan excelled at portraiture and captured remarkable images of cultural figures like Pierre Boulez, Isaiah Berlin, and Leonard Baskin, with whom he formed a close friendship.
Personal life and later years
In 1966, Chanan met June Stanier, a fellow photography enthusiast who would become his wife two years later. Around the same time, Stanier became the picture editor of the Sunday Times Magazine.
In the 1970s, Chanan collaborated with his brother Gabriel on several films for television.
After retiring from editing in the early 2000s and moving to Devon, Chanan focused exclusively on photography. He held three solo exhibitions, including one at Exeter University's Atelier Gallery.
Chanan was also an accomplished writer, penning monographs on forgotten English pioneers, including a book on William, Earl of Craven, and another on John Dillwyn Llewelyn. He had nearly completed another title at the time of his passing.
Noel Chanan is survived by his wife June, who predeceased him in 2018, and his younger brothers Gabriel and the author.