Kriti Mehrotra
As a documentary exploring the existentialism of a creative and imaginative filmmaker gone too soon, HBO’s ‘Daniel’ can only be described as equal parts entertaining, gripping, plus intriguing. That’s because it primarily comprises footage from the archives of Daniel Northcott himself — footage he’d filmed from the time he was 7 till his passing at 29 — brought together by his sister. So now, if you simply wish to learn more about the latter, Erin Northcott — with a specific focus on her background, experiences, as well as current standing — we’ve got the details for you.
Who is Erin Northcott?
Although born in Campbell River, Canada, as the elder of two to Tanya and Tom Northcott around 1977, Erin was primarily raised in Vancouver alongside her three-year younger brother Daniel. She actually vividly remembers him as the life of their family, for whom getting a camera at seven was like getting a friend — an understanding friend that would enable him to share his worldview. “It was like his new sidekick,” she stated in the original. “It didn’t have the technology he had in his mind, but I think as a little boy, he senses this camera could help people see what he saw.”
“[Daniel] was already so enamored with the things people were all ignorin g because they were all so busy,” Erin continued. “I think because he mostly lived in an imaginary world and had this incredibly rich imagination, he wasn’t aware of what was going on with all the undercurrents.” By this, she was apparently referring to the issues within their family concerning their parents — they divorced when she was nine and her brother was 6, yet he still didn’t stop filming. In fact, he kind of began focusing more on ancient civilizations, cultures, innate human connections, and people in general.
The truth is Erin and Daniel had always been close since they shared a love of music, learning, as well as travel, all the while having profound trust in one another, yet they grew even closer later on. She was actually itching to explore the world following her college graduation in California while working locally to support her passion financially, but she still decided not to move forward with it without her brother by her side. Thus came their expedition to Taiwan, where they taught English to youngsters, only for him to stay for a mere semester while she apparently remained for five years.
Where is Erin Northcott Now?
Despite the fact Erin and Daniel physically parted ways around the early 2000s, they remained so connected in the years to come that when he was at a point of no return from cancer, he trusted her with his life’s work. From the time he was 7 to his passing at 29, he’d filmed over 1,475 hours, spanning 42 countries as well as 100 islands, all in the hopes of making an existential documentary that could maybe reconnect humanity as a whole. So, in his will, he left every tape in his sister’s name with a simple request: for her to trust her instincts, follow his 40-minute initial draft, and complete his film for the world.
Not only has Erin since done that, but she has also since fulfilled Daniel’s last wish of returning a stone he’d picked up from a Mayan cave in the Yucatan peninsula that allegedly brought him all the bad luck and death. And now, in her mid-40s, she’s doing her best to continue her brother’s work as well as legacy while also creating her own in the form of her children — in other words, she’s a proud single mother. As for her physical whereabouts, from what we can tell, she currently splits her time between Vancouver, Canada, and Ubud, Bali; plus, she even often visits her college city of Los Angeles, California, to meet old friends and do some more documentary work.
Read More: How Did Daniel Northcott Die?
