Artist Spotlight: Larry Foley
Larry Foley remembers the day in grade school when his class watched the film, Hemo the Magnificent. The educational film, part animation and part documentary, was about the circulatory system and starred a scientist named "Dr. Research," a squirrel and a deer, and the title character, "Hemo."
"I loved that film," Foley said, with a laugh. "I might have been the only kid in my grade who loved it."
Growing up in Fayetteville, Foley also remembers his mother taking him and his sister to the old Fulbright Library for the summer reading program.
"It was one of the few places that had air conditioning back then," he recalled. "Every time we would go to the library, I would always find my way back to the audio library. I would check out these old LP records. 'Great Moments in History' is what they were called. I would take them home on hot summer days and my imagination would take me to those places. By hearing those voices and words, it would take me to that moment in time."
As he thinks back to Hemo the Magnificent and old LP records, Foley said what he learned was that education can not only be fun, but it should be fun. And this is what Foley does today ... he makes films that are both informative and entertaining.
Foley is a professor of journalism at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville and an accomplished documentary film maker. His productions have earned him regional, national and international awards, including two Emmys from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and six Emmy nominations. In 2008, Foley received an Individual Artist Fellowship in 2000 from the Arkansas Arts Council for his work in film making.
Although Foley is not technically a native Arkansan, he considers himself an "Arkansan through and through." Born in New Mexico, Foley and his family moved to Arkansas when he was six months old. After living in Tennessee and Texas for a while, Foley and his family returned to Arkansas when he was in the eighth grade. He later graduated with a major in broadcast journalism from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville.
Seventeen years after graduating, in 1993 Foley returned to his alma mater to teach, produce documentary films and build and direct a center for the teaching of television reporting and production.
In 1996, he founded and is faculty advisor for the campus television station, UATV. In October 2003, he was inducted into the Lemke Department of Journalism's Hall of Honor, the highest award bestowed upon journalism graduates of the University of Arkansas.
Before coming to the U of A, Foley spent nine years at AETN (Arkansas Educational Television Network), where he worked his way up the ladder to the network's number two position. He was also a former reporter, morning news anchor, assignment editor and producer for KATV Channel 7 in Little Rock.
Foley's love for Arkansas history and culture is reflected in many of his films, including his recent film, The Buffalo Flows, a one-hour documentary about the the Buffalo River, the nation's first river. The film features Academy Award winner Ray McKinnon and premiered on AETN earlier this spring.
Looking back at his career, Foley remembers 30 years ago when in August 1979, the news director at KATV gave him the opportunity to produce a one-hour special on college football in Arkansas. "I really liked it," Foley said, "This is when I fell in love with the long format and having more time to tell the story."
Foley's passion for documentary film making comes from his joy of storytelling. "I enjoy learning about a story. I particularly like stories that, for whatever reason, have escaped general knowledge. I am seduced by the obscure," he said.
Documentary film making, he said, is a team sport. "I like all the phases of documentary film making ... the exploration and discovery of the story, the research and development, the logistical part, the fund raising, field production, interviewing people. I have a wonderful career. I get to work with musical composers, editors, writers. Sometimes when I'm sitting in my office, I just get jazzed up about it," he said.
When asked about his favorite films, Foley said it's hard to name just a few. "I appreciate the films that have really good stories ... the ones that tug at the heart strings and make you feel. To Kill a Mockingbird and The Natural are two of his favorites. "Those are the types of films I like to produce. When my work moves people, that's as good as it gets."
Foley just wrapped up production on a couple of films that haven't been released yet. One is titled Sacred Spaces and is about the life and career of architect E. Fay Jones. The other film, The Greatest Coach-Ever!, is about the life and career of former U of A track coach John McDonnell.
Other documentary credits include Beacon of Hope - The Story of the University of Arkansas, Charles Banks Wilson - Portrait of an American Artist, The Forgotten Expedition, It Started Here: Early Arkansas and the Louisiana Purchase, 22 Straight, Arkansas’ Natural Heritage, Out of the Woods, The Keetoowahs Come Home, The Black Swamp, The Governor from Greasy Creek, Arkansas - A Special Place, Hell on the Border and Natural, Wild & Free. His PBS credits include Saving the Eagles, The Lost Squadron and When Lightning Struck: Saga of an American Warplane.
The Arkansas Arts Council is now registering participants for ArtLinks 2009: Creativity for Today's World, the annual statewide conference for the arts. Don't miss your chance to get the early bird rate for the two-day conference: $120 by Sept. 18. The registration fee increases to $140 after that date.
Keynote speaker Andrei Codrescu, internationally known poet, novelist, essayist, teacher and lecturer, will share his experiences with arts and education in a speech titled "25 Years of Teaching Poetry: What Did I Do?" from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 6.
Arts in Education Roster. The Arts in Education Artist Roster features artists available for participation in the Arts in Education residency program. 
The Arkansas Arts Council would like to congratulate Robyn and John Horn for receiving the Aileen Osborn Webb Award for Philanthropy from the American Craft Council. Robyn received the Arkansas Living Treasure Award designation from the Arkansas Arts Council in 2008. 
sas Arts Council is offering preK-12 
The 2009 Small Works on Paper statewide touring exhibition has made its way to the Delta Cultural Center in Helena and will remain on display there through Sept. 24. 