Over 450 delegates from all aspects of Canada’s motion picture theater industry will converge at the Chateau Laurier Hotel in Ottawa May 6-9 to take part in the Motion Picture Theatre Association of Canada’s 11th annual ShowCanada.

The convention and trade expo presents an opportunity for theater execs, as well as those involved in distribution, production and exhibition to discuss their concerns and participate in ShowCanada’s first-ever industry-wide workshop focusing on how to make Canadian films fashionable.

Handicapped by their small marketing budgets, it is difficult for Canadian films to compete in a market saturated with big names, big advertising campaigns and big money.

‘People line up for the [Toronto International] Film Festival in September to see foreign films that they know nothing about and it’s become popular because it’s fashionable, not because of the content,’ says Dina Lebo, executive director of the mptac and chairperson of ShowCanada 97.

Among the representatives from the Canadian Association of Film Distributors and Exporters, Alliance, Malofilm, the cftpa, nfb and other organizations participating in the workshop will be Jeff Dowd, president of Palisades Pictures, who, as part of the committee that founded the Sundance Film Festival, will provide some insight into the approach used by that group to aid indie filmmakers.

Also involved will be the gm of the Wine Council of Ontario, Linda Franklin, who will discuss how to turn negative thinking about a Canadian consumer product into a more positive view resulting in increased respect and prestige.

Other issues of concern to be addressed, discussed, and hopefully resolved at ShowCanada 97 include the new sound standards, the introduction of a new 6,000-foot reel and the polyester problem.

Switching from acetate-based film ­ which rots and disintegrates ­ to the polyester version has caused some problems for exhibitors

Although the polyester film lasts longer, in the winter, when the air is dry, the film gets stuck and winds itself around the projector. Supplying an update on this problem, and solutions, will be David Cheng, Fuji Film vp and gm of motion picture, magnetic and computer media, and Colin Davis, vp of marketing for Kodak Canada.

Robert Warren of Dolby laboratories in San Francisco will be attacking the issue of the new sound standards created by digital technology and addressing the question, ‘How loud is too loud?’

‘Digital technology has made it so that sound levels can be played at higher levels without breaking up and consumers are complaining,’ explains Lebo.

Also up for discussion is the introduction of the 6,000-foot reel format.

The switch from the 2,500-foot reels will mean less work for the exhibitor as the new reels will come already spliced and edited together, but it will also mean much bigger packaging and many theaters having to switch their systems.

Spearheading the switch is Warner Bros., which recently released Murder at 1600 across the u.s. in 6,000-foot reels.

ShowCanada participants will be updated on the success of this release and discuss when they can expect to see the new larger reel in Canadian theaters.