Brian D. Johnson is a Canadian writer and filmmaker. An award-winning journalist, he’s known for his long-time role as film critic and senior arts writer at Maclean’s magazine, where he remains a contributing editor. As former president of the Toronto Film Critics Association, he created and produced the annual TFCA Awards Gala with its $100,000 Rogers Best Canadian Film Award, the largest prize for Canadian cinema (now split into two $50,000 for best dramatic and documentary features). Johnson has made two short films, “Tell Me Everything” (2006) and “Yesno” (2010). He has also has produced and directed two documentary features, which both premiered at TIFF, played festivals around the world, and went on receive a national nationally theatrical release and a CBC TV broadcast. “Al Purdy Was Here” (2015), the story of the Canadian poet, played 70 screens across Canada. “The Colour Of Ink” (2022), which explores the magic of a primal medium, was shot in seven countries. Produced by Sphinx Productions and the National Film Board, it won a various festival prizes and a Canadian Screen Award for cinematography in a documentary. Born in England and raised in Toronto, Johnson has written for publications ranging from the Globe & Mail to Rolling Stone. He has worked as a broadcaster in radio and television and spent five years touring and recording full-time as a musician. He has hosted onstage interviews with authors, actors and filmmakers, notably “One Night Only,” an evening of conversation with Al Pacino at Toronto’s Massey Hall in 2013. He also has published a book of poetry, a novel and four non-fiction books, including a history of the Toronto International Film Festival, “Brave Films, Wild Nights: 25 Years of Festival Fever.” Johnson lives in Toronto and is married to writer Marni Jackson.