Roman Kroitor, Canadian director and producer, co-founded IMAX (b. 1926)
Roman Kroitor (December 12, 1926 – September 17, 2012) was a Canadian filmmaker who was known as an early practitioner of cinéma vérité, as co-founder of IMAX, and as creator of the Sandde hand-drawn stereoscopic animation system. He was also the original inspiration for the Force, popularized in the Star Wars series.He studied philosophy and psychology at the University of Manitoba and then worked for the National Film Board of Canada, first as a production assistant and then as a film editor. He directed his first film, Rescue Party in 1949. He wrote the NFB animated short It's A Crime (1957), produced Propaganda Message (1974), and produced and directed In the Labyrinth, released as a theatrical film in 1979. On September 17, 2012, he died of a heart attack at the age of 85.