Eugene Boyko

Eugene Boyko (1923 – March 14, 2003) known to many as "Jeep", he was a Canadian filmmaker who worked with the National Film Board of Canada. Born in Saskatoon in 1923. An early film of his, Helicopter Canada was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.

He died in Richmond, BC on March 14, 2003. He was survived by a daughter Debbie (DB) Boyko and son Lee Boyko, both of whom work in the cultural sector.

In 1986, he was diagnosed with Haemochromatosis shortly after reading a magazine article about the work of Marie Warder, founder of the Canadian Haemochromatosis Society.

In the early 1970s he moved out to Vancouver, BC to be the technical producer for the NFB office. He eventually went back to his first love of being a hands-on film maker. He worked with many young film makers in British Columbia. During his time in Vancouver he worked on a number of films including directing Canaries to Clydesdales about two vets interior of the province as well as Pacific Highliner, about the fishing industry. Over his career he worked on close to 200 films in various capacities.

His cinematography credits include serving as director of photography of Donald Brittain's 1964 film Fields of Sacrifice. Fields was one of the films he was most proud of as it provided a sense of dignity of the fallen, without glorifying war. During the early 1970s he worked with a number of aboriginal film makers as part of the NFB efforts to help people tell their own stories, including the 1970 documentary film This Was the Time.

He started with the NFB in the early 1950s while it was still based in Ottawa. He moved with his wife Delia to Montreal when the head office was transferred.