Vancouver: A meeting mid-January between Heritage Minister Sheila Copps and West Coast film insiders was less than satisfying, say local film executives.

Carrie Hunter, director of the British Columbia Motion Picture Association, was one of only four film people invited to the meeting, at which they had to compete for the minister’s attention with a roomful of other cultural community members.

Hunter, along with producer Julia Keatley, Vancouver International Film Festival Trade Forum rep Jane MacDonald and British Columbia Film chair Michael Francis, says the structure of the meeting made it impossible ‘to have a meaningful discussion.’

According to Hunter, Francis bore the brunt of Copps’ frustration, with the minister chastising him for the province’s failure to support its own industry.

Copps left many questions unanswered. b.c. filmmakers would like to know why existing federal funding could not be fairly distributed no matter what provincial programs exist.

British Columbia Film’s graphs show b.c.’s foreign to Canadian production ratio similar to that of Ontario’s film industry a decade ago and projects a similar turnaround for b.c. by 2005 with comparable federal support. The federal government invested heavily in an Ontario film industry which subsequently thrived.

To be fair, shouldn’t the federal government make a similar commitment to b.c. since it now has the same raw materials that Ontario’s industry had in 1985?

After a request from provincial Minister of Small Business, Tourism and Culture Jan Pullinger, Copps agreed to consider a b.c. director for the superfund. However, at the Vancouver session, Copps indicated preferring the ‘best people’ rather than representation for each province. D’es b.c.’s lack of representation mean that b.c. lacks the leadership needed? Isn’t that squelching the most critical voice of the ctcpf?

Also sought, a guarantee that mandatory production payments made by companies like broadcast-hopeful B.C. Tel will be dedicated to the jurisdiction in which they were raised.

Minister? Anybody else out there with answers?

-New blood

Vancouver’s Mainframe Entertainment ­ animator of ReBoot and Beasties ­ is coproducing concurrently two new animated series for l.a.-based mtm.

Croaker Memorial is a dark comedy about a hospital. The adult-oriented show looks more like traditional 2D animation but will be augmented by unusual camera sweeps possible through Mainframe’s software. Eddie & Freddie, about two talking dogs, is a primetime family series. The shows could be on the air this fall.

-Bank interest ain’t enough

The $7.5 million in net proceeds Rainmaker raised 18 months ago on the Montreal Stock Exchange is burning a hole in the company’s pocket. The pot-o-gold is getting bigger, too, with positive cash flow and another $4 million that might fall from the sky when special warrants are exercised by year end.

While a small portion of the original financing has gone to technical upgrades and the new l.a. office, executive vp Bob Cabral admits, ‘Shareholders don’t give you their money to have it sit in the bank at three, three-and-a-half points.’ Rainmaker is looking at acquisitions.

One that has gotten away is Vancouver’s Pacific Motion Pictures. ‘We have decided not to proceed’ with a merger, says pmp principal Matthew O’Connor, citing Rainmaker’s undisclosed ‘internal issues.’ O’Connor adds: ‘We may revisit the possibility.’

-Opus Pictures off to inauspicious start

On Jan. 17, creditors defeated a proposal by Vancouver’s Opus Productions, throwing the sports-oriented book publisher into bankruptcy. According to bankruptcy documents, Opus Productions ­ which spun off television production company Opus Pictures in August ­ leaves behind 220 creditors owed collectively $2 million.

Notable creditors include sports stars Wayne Gretzky ($31,000) and Muhammad Ali ($64,500).

Bobbing in the wake of the business failure is the five-part tv series Legends of Hockey, which has already aired on tsn and will show on espn.

The series began in early 1995 under the Opus Productions banner and was well underway when Opus Pictures assumed ownership of Legends in August.

In November ­ the month Opus delivered the series to tsn ­ principals for the original Opus Productions began to wind up the company.

So who owns Legends? The creditors of Opus Productions or the principals of newly minted Opus Pictures: Derik Murray and Jamie Engen? Trustees are investigating the ownership issue and the transfer of the Legends asset between the Opus companies.

At least one film worker claims to be owed money by Legends and worked for both Opus companies. And with at least two government funding applications pending, Opus Pictures has had to rely on interim financing to get the Legends project made.

Opus Productions’ $2 million debt to unsecured creditors appears to be approximately the same amount as Opus Pictures’ $2 million production budget for Legends.

The Legends project started in early 1995 when Vancouver writer Michael McKinley ­ who authored the original Legends book for Opus Productions ­ suggested there was enough material for a series. Opus, an unproven producer, then forged a joint venture with filmmaker Water Street (of Odyssey fame) in May 1995 to win financial approvals and help produce a Ken Burns-style documentary.

That relationship soured within a year when the parties disagreed about delivery dates to tsn. In June, Opus unsuccessfully sued to have Water Street cut out of the project and ended up having to pay Water Street a settlement, the balance of payment of which is an issue that was still in court at the end of January.