Inducted into ACS Hall of Fame – 2002
Born in Johannesburg in 1912, George came to Australia as a very young man. Being the extremely private person that he was, not even close family knew much if anything of his young life other than he spent some time in Queensland as a jackeroo. In 1937 before the outbreak of World War 11 George volunteered for the Royal Australian Air Force and became an Air Gunner serving in Europe and the Middle East in Sunderland and Catalina Flying Boats. He eventually became an instructor. In 1945 he joined the Netherlands Information Service serving in New Guinea, Timor and Ambon and filmed the Japanese surrender in Indonesia. His footage of the Japanese massacre was later used in War Crimes trials.
At war’s end George returned to Australia and in 1946 joined the DOI (Dept. of Information) Film Unit. Then it was off to the war in Korea to tell the story of Australians in action again. George once said that ….”even after seeing our P.O.Ws after the Japanese surrender and the bodies of our soldiers that had been beheaded, I was not prepared for the bloodshed of Korea”. The film he shot “One Man’s War” was a classic of its day and very much an “in the front line” film.
He then sailed aboard the Kista Dan to Antarctica for the expedition led by Philip Law. The expedition called first at Mawson, then continued searching for suitable sites for Australian Antarctic bases.
In 1958 George joined Artransa Studios and in the years following became a most prolific and highly regarded television commercial and documentary cameraman. He also worked for a time at Supreme Films, then Pearl and Dean in Singapore.
George Lowe ACS was a very early and much respected member of the Australian Cinematographers Society
He was accredited in 1963 with Certificate No. 27.
For his services to Cinematography and to the Society he was granted Life Membership in 1999 and inducted into the ACS Hall of Fame in 2002.
