Island film producer wins award for B.C.'s best documentary series

A show produced by P.E.I.'s David Moses was recently named B.C.'s best documentary series.

Paramedics: Life on the Line is a show that chronicles the life and death work of first responders in Vancouver.

Moses has been working in the film and television industry in Vancouver for several years.

He said the idea for the series came from paramedics who saw a documentary about life in the emergency room.

"They were really excited and they went 'Oh my gosh we would love for you folks to follow the paramedics and you know share their story with the public,' because I think the public really doesn't have an idea of what goes on on each shift for the paramedics."

Paramedics followed by film crew

Five or six years later, after negotiating issues such as patient privacy, they were ready to shoot. He said the paramedics were open and willing to be followed by a film crew.

"If you can imagine that, somebody following you on your work when you're making life and death decisions like on an hourly basis and having a camera crew following you. I can't imagine a tougher gig than that."

He said some of the cases were "heart-wrenching," not just for the paramedics but for the dispatchers who take the calls.

Our show is about capturing chaos, really.— David Moses

"As a parent, you can understand the calls about children particularly are as terrifying and gripping, and watching these men and women trying to keep parents calm, reassuring them and then leading them through the steps to protect their children while the paramedics are on their way is just heart-wrenching."

Moses said it felt great to win the Leo award for B.C.'s best documentary series.

"Our show is about capturing chaos, really. What's amazing for me about the show is the intimacy of it. It's in there, it's chaotic," he said.

"I was really proud of our field crew who were able to capture these moments and tell these stories. It was stunning."

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