The building opened so recently that you can still smell the fresh paint and new furniture. But you don’t even have to search for the newly hung signs to figure out where you are. As soon as you walk into Panavision Canada’s new Toronto facility, which doubles as head office, there’s no mistaking the business of the occupants.

Look down as you walk along the central hallway of the building, and you’ll see the distinctive pattern on the tiles – a line of film stock.

The architect may have just seen it as a clever design element. But the impression is clear.

Here is a company whose employees can’t help thinking about film when they hit the floor every day.

Those are the steps that the folks at Panavision literally take every day. Then there are the kind of steps that the company has taken over the course of a busy year, which have solidified Panavision’s place in Canada – a premier supplier of quality motion picture rental equipment. After all, this is a company with vision, in not just its name but its actions.

‘We have beefed up our facilities and staff,’ says Bill Zacharuk, Vice-President, Panavision Canada, ‘to continually meet the demand of the marketplace in Canada.’

To be sure, the demand for Panavision and Arriflex cameras, lights, grip, and generators in Toronto, and cameras out of Vancouver, has grown steadily. Today, Panavision Canada supplies around 100 shows a year, and anywhere from 300-500 commercials.

November’s move from the former downtown headquarters on Eastern Avenue to the new building in Don Mills increased space by 50%. That followed a move by Panavision’s Vancouver office in April, which also added 50% more space.

The year has been notable not only for the revamped physical space, but for the people occupying it. Last winter, Jeff Flowers, who has been with Panavision since 1984, moved from Toronto to Vancouver to become General Manager for Western Canada.

To be more attentive to its customers, Panavision Canada has also created marketing groups in both Toronto and Vancouver.

The Toronto group comprises Bruce Sparling, a 15-plus year veteran of the company, and Stewart Aziz, who has more than 15 years in the industry, including field experience.

In Vancouver, marketing is handled by Ross Kelsay, who has more than 25 years of industry experience, many as a director of photography.

Toronto has also added to the depth of its team with Lighting Manager Derek Parkes and Fleet Manager Bruce Smith. Parkes started with Panavision Canada almost 20 years ago, while Smith has been in the industry more than 30 years.

Panavision Canada is a seasoned group, proudly reporting that 20 of their employees have now been with the company for 10-plus years.

In fact, on a personal note 1997 stood out for marking Zacharuk’s 20th year with Panavision and, more impressively, President Glen Ferrier’s 40th anniversary in the industry.

‘Everybody is excited and motivated,’ says Zacharuk.

The excitement will continue in the new year, when Panavision introduces the new Millennium camera (unveiled at Showbiz Expo in L.A.) to Canada.

The Millennium features a computer-designed view-finding system, which makes it easier to assess depth of field, and incorporates an upgraded video assist. Two of the cameras will be on display at Panavision Canada’s open house in Toronto on December 16.

The new cameras promise to continue what Zacharuk calls Panavision’s ‘unquestionable pre- eminence’ in the field.

‘On the camera side, we do in excess of 80% of the feature films shot out of Toronto and Vancouver,’ he says. ‘Panavision is the world class leader in motion picture cameras, and that’s where our expertise is.’

Moves accommodate staff and clients

A thriving business means continually increasing demands on your space. The desire for facilities that could better accommodate staff, as well as the requirements of clients, prompted both of the moves this year.

‘Panavision has always positioned themselves to be accessible,’ says client Patrick Whitley, President of Dufferin Gate Productions and Temple Street Productions of Toronto. ‘I have to believe they will be an even more efficient operation as a result of their move.’

The Eastern Avenue building, where Panavision had set up shop since 1989, had become ‘very tight and cramped,’ says Zacharuk.

In July, Panavision began extensive renovations on a much larger space on Don Mills Road, in a building that was formerly occupied by a labeling company and Tribute magazine.

‘It was redone from the floor up,’ Zacharuk says.

The move increased space from 26,000 square feet to almost 40,000 square feet, and doubled the capacity of the loading facilities.

Instead of just two camera testing centres, there are now six, where the crews check the lenses and cameras for DOP preferences and insurance purposes.

Panavision Canada is also a category-certified CSA testing facility for electrical equipment in the motion picture industry.

Other features of the new building include client lounges, a large cafe for staff and guests, a machine shop, and an expendables store where gels, bulbs and the like are sold.

For Panavision’s vehicles, the facility has a 1.5-acre compound, which is paved, lit, fenced, and monitored by security cameras. That’s a big improvement from the ‘nooks & crannies’, as Zacharuk calls them, which Panavision was forced to use downtown.

‘It just sets off the Panavision Canada profile a lot better,’ is how Ferrier describes the new building.

Helmut Cremer, Manager of the Camera Department, calls the move ‘a blessing’. ‘It’s a lot more pleasant, a nicer interior, and a better layout. We’re no longer in an overly cramped facility when people come to visit. We’re like a family that constantly grows and needs a bigger house. Each move is a move to a better future.’

In Vancouver, meanwhile, Panavision started renovations on its new 11,000 square foot digs last January, and moved three months later. The facility is still in Burnaby, close to Bridge Studio (the largest complex in the area), and also features six camera testing facilities (up from two) and twice the loading capacity.

Flowers says business in Vancouver has grown exponentially each year over the last several years. The roomier facility can’t help but increase responsiveness for an office that, says Flowers, already positions itself as ‘the most service-based camera rental house in Vancouver.’

25-year relationship

The dramatic changes in 1997 come two years after Panavision Inc. became Panavision Canada’s owner – a move, says Chief Financial Officer Paul Mason, that ‘added a stability of ownership, making it easier to look much further into the future.’

Panavision Canada had a successful track record long before that, starting life as Cinevision in the late 1960s. The company became Panavision in 1976 but, the name aside, remained a privately owned Canadian company. It has been a Panavision agent for 25 years, but the 1995 acquisition added immeasurably to the relationship.

‘With Panavision behind us, we have a strong link to the manufacturer,’ says Mason. ‘The opportunity to have a close relationship with the leading motion picture camera manufacturer in the world is a wonderful source of strength for our business.’

Zacharuk adds that while Panavision Canada operates independently as a totally separate company, ‘We have a family we can talk to in different parts of the world, to discuss issues and resolve problems.’

At the time of the acquisition, John Farrand, President of Panavision Inc., talked about how ‘excited’ he was by the opportunity to ‘build upon the already excellent reputation of Panavision Canada’.

That reputation is based in large part on the collective experience in the company. Just look at the backgrounds of some of the key personnel.

As already noted, Zacharuk started there in 1977, as a 16-year-old sweeping the floors. With a knowledge of the industry (he had already worked for his dad, Ron, who directed commercials), he joined the company for good after high school. Zacharuk pursued a business degree at York University while working full-time, working his way up from lighting maintenance.

Ferrier admits that he fell into the industry, starting in 1957 as a truck driver with Jack Frost Lighting, where he also repaired the lights.

Though he has been with Panavision since 1971, his career prior to that had a number of stops…a series out of Kleinburg Studios called Hudson’s Bay…dimmer board operator at CFTO…head electrician for the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Vancouver…freelance gaffer…assistant cameraman. He joined Panavision in 1971 as General Manager, and became President in 1993.

‘It kind of gets in your blood,’ says Ferrier, when asked what kept him at Panavision after years of taking a series of jobs. ‘I enjoyed what I was doing here, and it was all related to what I had been doing before.’ That may sound simplistic. Yet talk to the Panavision veterans, and it becomes clear that, corny as it sounds, they love their work. At the end of a long day, one of Helmut Cremer’s first comments to an interviewer concerns his delight at teaching the newer employees the ins and outs of the equipment he knows intimately.

In 1998, Cremer will celebrate his 25th anniversary with the company. He came to Canada in 1973 from Los Angeles, where he worked in the rental department at Panavision’s head office.

Ferrier calls him ‘one of the best technicians in North America.’

For his part, Cremer says ‘Glen’s knowledge of the industry and the company is a great asset to us. His connections to the industry are very important.’

When asked what aspect of the company he is most proud of, Ferrier immediately replies, ‘Our employees.’

‘Clients have a lot more confidence in us because of that,’ he says. ‘We have a certain level of expertise here, people who have been here for many years and who are well respected throughout the industry.’

Depth of quality

The experience with the equipment is an obvious edge, because of the company’s long history as a Panavision agent, and because of what Zacharuk calls ‘the depth of quality of the technicians.’.

‘In the family,’ he says, ‘are the people who designed and built these cameras.’

Right within Panavision Canada, Cremer probably knows as much about the cameras and accessories as anybody anywhere. That ‘organizational knowledge’ filters down to all members of the team, so that even a new employee quickly becomes comfortable working with the number of different units, new or old.

Beyond offering the stock equipment, says Cremer, ‘We come up with new ideas that really separate us.’

He cites a colour video assist camera for the Panaflex a few years back, the first built in Canada. This particular innovation was in response to a request made by director David Cronenberg, who approached Panavision Canada personally (‘very unusual,’ says Cremer).

Cronenberg was about to shoot Naked Lunch, and wanted a colour recorder integrated on the camera, operable by remote control.

Working with Scott McDonald, now his Assistant Manager, Cremer dismantled a video camera and fabricated the video assist just to Cronenberg’s specifications, never to be used again. This one-off is indicative of Panavision’s ingenuity.

‘We modify certain accessories to make the DOP’s life easier,’ says Cremer.

In its normal state, the high quality of Panavision’s equipment already eases the DOP’s job.

Cremer notes that the camera itself is simply a unit that transfers film and exposes it. ‘What really makes the picture you see on the screen,’ he says, ‘is the lenses.’

He positively gushes about the Primo lenses made exclusively by Panavision Inc.

It’s no exaggeration to say that the Panavision lens system has revolutionized cinematography, through superior resolution and colour matching, and significantly reduced ‘veiling glare’.

‘Primo is far superior to anything else on the market today,’ Cremer states.

On average, he adds, Panavision cameras require less maintenance, and are quieter and longer lasting. They’re also tough, able to perform day in and day out at peak quality. Cremer says he has even seen them emerge unscathed – without a scratch and still filming – when they’ve been ‘dropped and knocked around.’

By Zacharuk’s estimate, Panavision has millions and millions of dollars invested in equipment in Canada, and ‘continues to invest every year in new equipment.’

While the quality of the wares it offers is constantly improving, Panavision doesn’t define itself simply by its equipment. As Zacharuk recently told Playback for a focus on production equipment supply shops, clients are also expecting a higher level of service.

‘That service is typically what people think a small company does, but it’s what a big company has to do – we just have to do more of it. What’s helped us is focusing on what we’re best at, which is motion picture equipment supply, sticking to it and doing enough of it to do it very well.’

‘They’re terrific’

Anyone can say they’re tops in service, and Zacharuk knows that patting yourself on the back doesn’t mean much. ‘Let the clients explain why they use us,’ he says

‘They’re terrific, very accommodating,’ replies independent producer Wendy Grean.

Grean, who has produced shows such as Once a Thief, Catwalk and Boogie’s Diner, started to work with the company in Montreal, when it was still known as Cinevision. She vividly recalls the first job she worked on that they supplied, The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, where Grean was an assistant to the production manager.

She continued working with Panavision in Montreal, and has carried on since moving to Toronto in 1989.

‘I’ve been a dedicated client. They’ve had at least a piece of every production I’ve worked on for 24 years. They’re always there to make a deal with you.’

To Flowers, part of service means having a good handle on each and every job. He says members of his team diligently visit all of the sets. Flowers also credits a ‘good synergy’ between the GM, the marketing reps, the rental department and the service department as a key to successful client relationships.

‘We have weekly meetings to keep a tight loop of information. As we grow, it becomes even more important that everyone knows what’s going on.’

After almost a year in Vancouver, Flowers doesn’t hesitate when asked about the biggest difference between the Toronto and Vancouver operations: ‘The weather,’ he laughs. ‘We have quite a few more spray deflectors here than in Toronto!’

The Vancouver office just finished supplying the Disney film Eaters of the Dead, directed by John McTiernan and starring Antonio Banderas. This Viking period piece did much of its shooting on Vancouver Island, and to Flowers was an example of his service ideology.

‘At the drop of a hat, we put technicians on a plane and flew them there with replacement equipment, or tools to look after routine maintenance,’ says Flowers. ‘Even though they were on the island, we were able to provide a dimension of service that made them feel that we were around the corner.’

He says the company is equally adept at bringing in equipment from other parts of Canada, the U.S. and Europe – from other Panavision offices and other rental companies – to meet the most exacting and time-sensitive of client requests.

‘There’s a dimension of resourcefulness and creativity in finding a small, obscure house which has a certain piece of equipment that’s the final piece of the puzzle,’ Flowers says.

Whitley makes that exact point. ‘I like the quality of their service,’ says the independent producer. ‘Even if they don’t have a particular item in the store, they go the extra mile to get it from wherever they can to supply our need.’

Since opening his shop three-and-a-half years ago, Whitley has worked on 35 shows, dealing exclusively with Panavision on each of them.

‘Glen has been around an awfully long time, and has an incredible depth of experience,’ he says of Ferrier. ‘I find him incredibly fair. He’s very understanding of the producer’s needs, very amenable to the producer’s problems.’

Independent producer John Eckert has worked with Panavision Canada since 1971. He says that in service, they are ‘above and beyond the call.’

He recalls using Panavision while shooting a movie called Rituals back in the mid-1970s, in a place called Batchewana Bay. It’s halfway between Sault Ste. Marie and Lakehead, ‘in the middle of nowhere,’ says Eckert.

‘The camera had a problem one day, so I called them up. By 9:30 or 10:00 at night, Helmut had arrived, and he had the camera up and working by the next morning. There are other companies that provide as good a service in grip and lighting. But I don’t know that anybody is as good in service in cameras.’

Support for filmmakers

Support can take on many forms, beyond the service that’s expected as part of the job. Eckert knows firsthand how Panavision encourages young filmmakers.

‘Glen has built a relationship with many people over the years. If some kid wants to come in and make a first film, Glen will do what he can to help out. And it’s rewarded with loyalty.’

He talks affectionately of Ferrier’s ‘gruff ‘ nature, how he’ll gladly give someone a break, but won’t come right out and say it. That was certainly true when Eckert wanted to make a short film in 1972, and had ‘about a buck ninety-eight’ to do it.

Eckert asked Ferrier what it would cost for a tripod and a camera, just over a weekend. Ferrier gave him a price of $125. Before the weekend rolled around, Eckert suddenly needed to get hold of some sound equipment. He took that from Panavision too, fully expecting it would cost another $125.

‘Two weeks later I get the bill and it’s just $125. I came in and said, `Excuse me Mr. Ferrier, I have the bill and I don’t think it’s correct’. He said, `You have a problem? Just pay the goddam bill!”

Janet Cuddy, Vice-President of Production at Paragon, gets a kick out of hearing Eckert’s anecdote.

‘That’s a very Glen story,’ she laughs. ‘He scared me too, for years, but he has a soft heart. It took forever to get it in my head that he was giving me a break. Glen has done a lot for a lot of people in this industry.’

Panavision Canada is the corporate sponsor of the Canadian Society of Cinematographers student awards. On a more informal level, Ferrier does say that, ‘If you see someone that has potential, you give them assistance. They’re the cinematographers of the future.’

‘I think they’re great,’ says Cuddy. ‘They helped me a lot, in my early days, to educate me on the gear. I’ve done big pictures and small pictures with them over the years, and have always had the same service.’

‘Most of the people have been there for years,’ she continues. ‘They’re dependable. You can always reach them. If there’s a problem, they work with you to solve it. And they tailor quotes to the demands of your show, as much as they can.’

To Panavision, the payoff is not just in increased business, but in the satisfaction of seeing clients realize their dreams.

‘Philosophically,’ says Flowers, ‘we’ve always felt the best thing we can do is give people the tools to let them do exactly what they want, creatively or technically, to get their shot.’

The most fulfilling part of the job, agrees Zacharuk, is providing what creative people need to express themselves.

‘It’s finding the right tool for the DOP to express his vision on celluloid,’ he says. ‘Our greatest level of pride is knowing we can help someone create something they’re proud of.’