– Salter comedy

Talk about getting the most for the least. Salter Street Films has just begun production on a comedy series called El Mundo Del Lundo for the new Baton-owned Comedy Network. In the tradition of Mystery Science Threatre 3000, the show will feature a humorous narrative and soundtrack dubbed over old stock library footage.

Utilizing Salter’s existing editing and sound facilities, producer Clarence LeBlanc says each half-hour show can be produced for between $10,000 and $13,000. The Comedy Network has ordered 65 episodes and Salter expects to deliver the first 15 by Aug. 15.

LeBlanc likens the format to a variety show where one minute the viewer is watching old footage of a Hercules movie with an added comedic voice-over, ‘and before they can get comfortable we jump to an old U.S. Navy recruiting film.’

LeBlanc is also excited about the ‘Scopetone’ footage they have acquired to use in El Mundo Del Lundo. ‘In the ’50s, Scopetones were like music videos. You put 25 cents into the machine, put your head into a viewfinder, and then saw women with heavy cleavage and skimpy bikinis wiggling fast to a song sung slow.’

The creators of El Mundo Del Lundo, Lex Gigeroff and Jeffery Hirchfield, were two-thirds of the writing team on Salter Street’s series Lexx ii. LeBlanc says the production schedule is closer to live radio than television. ‘We’re editing in the morning, recording in the afternoon and fine tuning at night. We have a 24-hour schedule and we hope to turn out almost one show a day.’

El Mundo Del Lundo’s premiere is expected to coincide with the launch of The Comedy Network on Sept. 1.

-NFB gears up for heavy summer

The Atlantic arm of the National Film Board has a healthy load of documentaries scheduled for production this summer.

All The Right Stuff is a half-hour piece about youth consumerism directed by Connie Littlefield and produced by Mike Mahoney. It will shoot in Halifax.

One Man’s Paradise is a coproduction with director John Brett’s Brett Films. The one-hour doc is a portrait of a fisherman from Sambro, n.s.

Anita McGee’s 53-minute film about Maritime war brides, Seven Brides For Uncle Sam, is currently in post and expected to be completed soon.

-Big new movie truck

Adding yet another vital element to the infrastructure of the Nova Scotia film industry, locally owned Unit Production Vehicles has just acquired a new honeywagon. The custom-designed tractor trailer houses six dressing rooms with air-conditioning and tv, and includes office space for an assistant director as well as a 550-amp generator producing the proverbial ‘enough power to run a small village.’

John Roberts of upv says the truck will help meet the needs of large-scale motion picture producers wanting to shoot in Atlantic Canada. The honeywagon has already found work on Major Crime (Salter Street/cbc), Writer’s Block (Imagex) and has been booked for the second season of the cbc drama series Black Harbour (Fogbound Films/Topsail Entertainment), which begins production in July.

-Find knapsack: meet Grammer and be in movie

It seems there was a bit of a crisis on the Halifax set of the Imagex production Writer’s Block starring Kelsey Grammer. And no, it wasn’t Grammer getting into trouble this time. British director Vadim Jean left a knapsack containing his script, director’s notes, vital technical information and his passport at the trendy local watering hole, The Economy Sh’e Shop.

For return of the knapsack the production offered a reward including cash, a meeting with Grammer and a bit part in the film. As of press time, no one had stepped forward with the knapsack to claim the reward.

-Politoons

On a more positive note for Imagex, owner Chris Zimmer is excited about the company’s foray into animation with the political satire Politoons. The 30-second editorial cartoons are produced using a combination of cel and computer animation, and Zimmer says new innovations in animation technology allow a very quick turnaround of 48 hours so the commentary can be current and punchy.

cbc’s The National ran the first seven Politoons by newspaper cartoonists Bruce McKinnon (Halifax Chronicle Herald) and Brian Gable (The Globe & Mail) during federal election coverage from May 1 to June 3.

Zimmer says Politoons seems to be striking a chord internationally; countries such as Ireland, Germany and England have shown interest in using the Politoons process with their own political cartoonists.

Perhaps the only concern with Politoons will be that it passes the scrutiny of the crtc’s mandate of ‘non entertainment programming’ for CBC Newsworld. The 24-hour news and information channel had to drop the highly successful This Hour Has 22 Minutes and Royal Canadian Air Farce from its schedule when the political satire shows were deemed entertainment. Perhaps if Baton d’esn’t complain, Politoons will be alright.

-Reel Partners in P. E. I.

Gretha Turner Rose, president of the Canadian Screen Alliance, is getting ready for the 2nd annual Reel Partners Film and TV Conference, running June 20-22 in Charlottetown, p. e. i.

‘This year we have expanded our panel to showcase the world, with top producers and industry professionals from Canada, the u.s. and the Pacific Rim,’ says Rose.

Presenters include Judy Holm, director, PolyGram, (‘PolyGram’s Role in Canada/World’); Sunmin Park, Max Media president, (‘Opportunities in the Pacific Rim’); Pamela Wallace, Oscar winner for Witness, (‘Adapting Book to Screen’); and Lawrie Rotenberg, president, The Talent Group, (‘Changing Role of the Agent’).

-News from The Rock

A board of directors for the recently formed Newfoundland and Labrador Film Development Corporation has been put in place. Their first task will be finding someone to fill the position of ceo. An announcement is expected within the next eight weeks. Once a suitable candidate is found to head up the film corporation, that person will create a support team and be given a budget to attract productions to the province as well as develop the indigenous industry within Newfoundland and Labrador.

In other news from The Rock, location scouts from the Columbia TriStar production The Shipping News are currently in Newfoundland researching potential locations for the February 1998 scheduled shoot.