The music was the first thing Tim Burns set to work on when he began adapting Mordecai Richler’s classic kids’ tale Jacob Two-Two Meets The Hooded Fang for the big screen.

The screenwriter and former musician incorporated the sounds of gospel and heavy metal with industrial music and traditional show tunes to bring the fantasy-adventure of six-year-old Jacob to life as a live-action musical feature film.

Burns laid down the tracks for the six songs himself. The evil Hooded Fang and the Judge would each sing on a stage, performing to an audience of characters. Jacob’s song and the chant of a group of children were to be sung straight to camera, as in a true musical. The narrator’s script would also be in song form.

When coproducers Shaftesbury Films of Toronto and Nova Scotia’s Salter Street Films took on the project and began putting together the $6.5-million budget, the musical element made other potential partners uneasy.

‘There just haven’t been many successful live-action musicals,’ says Shaftesbury’s Christina Jennings, who is coproducing the film with Greg Dummett and exec producers Michael Donovan and Christopher Figg. ‘So when it came to the financing, the distributors and salespeople we talked to were nervous.’

Compared to animation, a live-action musical is difficult to version for non-English-speaking territories, so the potential for foreign sales was an issue, she says.

The decision was made to take out the songs performed straight to camera, so Jacob’s piece and the kids’ chant were pulled.

Cineplex Odeon Films has Canadian rights, u.k.-based North and South Film holds foreign rights and cbc is the broadcast partner.

Rapper Ice-T is cast as the Judge who exiles Jacob, played by seven-year-old Noddy star Max Morrow, to Slimers’ Island. This is the domain of the Hooded Fang, performed by Gary Busey (The Buddy Holly Story).

Musician Tom Third was brought in to help produce what Jennings calls ‘two totally amazing tracks’ for the Judge and the Hooded Fang.

But when Miranda Richardson and Mark McKinney (in the roles of the Hooded Fang’s henchmen Mrs. Fowl and Mr. Fish, respectively) got wind of the songs, they became a tad jealous and wanted tunes of their own. Third came up with a musical piece for each to sing to camera.

This begged the question, why wasn’t Jacob singing a song, says Jennings.

Principal photography wrapped July 3, helmed by director George Bloomfield, and on the final day of shooting, Jacob sang the song earlier converted into scripted lines. So now the film is back to its original form as a true musical.

In editing, Jennings says the producers and distribution partners will make the final call on the musical elements.

But Jennings’ mind is pretty much made up. ‘My gut feeling is that kids love music and the tracks are so strong and so much fun,’ she says.

With music such an important element in the film, Jennings wanted Theatre One at deluxe toronto to mix the music, sound and effects. ‘They gave us a break and cut a good deal for us,’ she says. Steven Gorman is sound editor. The scheduled delivery date is November.

As soon as Ice-T and Busey came on board, Jennings knew a film soundtrack was a must and they are currently trying to entice a well-known performer to sing the narrator’s song and find a hot band for the tail credit song.

Budget

Ron Proulx, who was hired on as a music supervisor in preproduction, says music supervisors should be brought in while the budget is still being finalized so they can discuss the amount sidelined for the score. The music allotment for a non-musical feature should be 3% of the gross budget, he says, but in Canada, only 1% to 1.5% is usually set aside.

For Jacob Two-Two, Proulx says between $100,000 and $200,000 has been budgeted for music.

Proulx sees his role as maximizing the music potential of a film and bridging the gap – a wide abyss in Canada, he says – between the film and music industry.

‘I am trying to draw together two industries that in Canada generally do not work together,’ says Proulx. ‘I look at a project and say where is the deal here? What kind of economics can bring a potential upside to the music company and the producer? We have to teach both industries.’

For example, many production companies want to hang on to the ownership of the music publishing rights for their films but do not know how to maximize the potential revenue, says Proulx.

He points to a recent conversation about music rights with a rep at a large Canadian production company, who told him, ‘I don’t know what it’s for, but I get a cheque every few months so I am happy.’

Chances are, says Proulx, the company could be getting a far more substantial cheque in the mail.

For Jacob Two-Two, Proulx negotiated a music publishing deal giving 50% ownership of the music rights to bmg, which in exchange anted up an undisclosed advance based on the perceived profit potential and value of these rights.

The Jacob Two-Two production and bmg will participate equally in the exploitation and profits from the music rights.

‘This type of deal could not happen for every film,’ cautions Proulx. While for many small indie Canadian films the music publishing rights have little upside, Proulx says the lyrics for Jacob Two-Two hold more potential value. First, he says, the shelf life of children’s music is much longer since new generations of kids can be introduced to the soundtrack. And since the film is based on a well-known children’s tale, box office and home-video opps are high.

Royalties

Music publishing royalties are set at a fixed rate of just over seven cents per album. When the film airs on tv, these fees and performing rights royalties are shared between the composer (50%) and the copublishers (25% each). The return takes time to accumulate, but over the long term can be quite lucrative, says Proulx, who also takes an equity interest in the music rights deals he negotiates.

Negotiations are currently underway with record labels to produce the soundtrack. Record companies want to be assured that the film will have a wide release, that a marketing plan is in place, and that the film is generating a buzz, says Proulx.

Attracting hot performers to the album also helps convince music execs that the soundtrack will sell, he says. Music companies want to see not only a potential financial upside, but also opportunities to market the artists signed to their label.

‘Producers should allow the record company to put in some of their artists if that’s what it takes to get them to invest in the film,’ says Proulx. ‘Once a record company has a stake in a film’s success, their cross-marketing and promotion can make a huge difference to the success of a film.’

The producers and Proulx anticipate that the record label they sign with will put up an advance, although in the case of smaller films this is not always the case.

The advance is not based on any formula, says Proulx, but depends on the perceived value of the project and potential revenues. The record company assumes the costs of manufacturing the album, artwork and marketing and promoting the record. As well, he says, access to performers represented by the label is available at a reduced cost.

The cost of recording, producing and mixing the songs and paying performers for the Jacob Two-Two soundtrack will be covered by the record company’s advance. In the case of Thom Fitzgerald’s The Hanging Garden, Proulx says the full advance fee was funneled into the music for the film and soundtrack.

Soundtrack fees

The amount spent on a soundtrack, he says, varies wildly – from almost nil (if favors are used and indie artists seeking exposure are enticed for no fee) to phenomenal costs if mainstream artists are signed.

It is likely other songs that are not included in the film will end up on the Jacob Two-Two soundtrack.

‘I don’t have a problem with that,’ says Proulx. ‘If additional tracks increase buyer awareness, what’s wrong with that? People in this country bad-mouth anything that’s successful. Well, I want to be a part of successful things.’

On The Hanging Garden soundtrack, for example, Proulx added a collection of gay-positive songs from politically motivated artists which were in keeping with the thematic tone of the film.

‘I see a soundtrack as a companion to the political point of view of the picture,’ he explains. ‘The music should represent the audience the film is targeting and the overriding theme. I prefer that to having any song that played on the car radio during the chase scene in the soundtrack.’

While the record company takes on all the risks, the producers have nothing to lose, even beyond royalties from sales, says Proulx.

‘A film can only gain from a soundtrack deal,’ he assures.

At the very least, producers end up with a whole whack of cross-country marketing from the label.

‘Filmmakers are ahead of the game 10 times out of 10,’ says Proulx. ‘They should be lining up to make these deals happen.’