Some people live one predictable life. Others seem to begin again whenever history, love, ambition or circumstance pushes them toward an unfamiliar path. In 9 Lives Like a Cat: A Life Story That Is Also the Story of Electronic Cinema … and Eternal Love, author Daniel Arie reflects on a remarkable lifetime shaped by political upheaval, international migration, technological innovation and a love that endured across decades.
The title captures the heart of the memoir. Like the legendary cat said to possess nine lives, Arie repeatedly finds himself entering a new chapter. Each reinvention brings a different country, profession, challenge or relationship. Yet one quality remains constant: his determination to search for a better way forward.
Arie’s journey begins in Communist Romania. When he was only three years old, his parents secretly left the country, leaving him and his brother in the care of their grandparents. Growing up behind the Iron Curtain meant living with restrictions, political suspicion and uncertainty. Still, his curiosity flourished. He developed interests in physics, literature, sound, electronics and cinema interests that would eventually define his professional life.
His first major career opportunity came through Romania’s Technical School for Cinematography and the Buftea film studios. There, he learned about sound recording, camera technology, film production and electronic repair. However, political pressure eventually forced him to leave Romania. His departure in 1966 marked the beginning of another “life,” taking him first to Paris and then across the Atlantic to Argentina.
Argentina brought its own struggles. Arie had to learn Spanish, find employment, repair electronic equipment and rebuild his identity in a country that was still unfamiliar to him. Yet even while working outside cinema, he never abandoned his creative ambitions. His visits to the Cinematheque of the Canadian Embassy introduced him to the work of Canadian filmmakers and strengthened his desire to move to Canada.
In 1968, Arie arrived in Montreal and began another reinvention. What followed was a five-decade career as a film editor, post-production specialist, programmer, engineer and television systems designer. He became one of the early professionals to experiment with electronic film editing and digital audio, working during a period when the industry was moving from celluloid and mechanical editing systems toward video, computers and digital workflows.
Arie’s inventive spirit became one of the defining forces of his career. Using an ELF II home computer and programs written in BASIC, he developed methods that connected film measurements with video time code. These systems helped editors transfer projects between film and video with remarkable precision. At Telepoint, his work supported productions including the Canadian series Lance et compte.
However, 9 Lives Like a Cat is not simply a memoir about technology. At its emotional center is Arie’s lifelong connection with Nelly, a childhood companion who became his confidante and dancing partner. Their lives separated and crossed again through different countries, marriages, careers and responsibilities. Despite the passage of time, their bond remained present.
Eventually, after decades of missed opportunities and distance, Arie and Nelly reunited in old age. Their story gives the memoir its most moving message: some relationships may be interrupted by life, but they are never entirely lost.
9 Lives Like a Cat offers readers more than one man’s memories. It preserves a valuable chapter of cinema history while exploring resilience, migration, creativity, friendship and lasting love. Daniel Arie’s extraordinary journey reminds readers that starting over is not always an ending. Sometimes, it is simply the beginning of another life.
