Canada soft on signal theft

It has been five months since the Supreme Court of Canada ruled unequivocally that black- or gray-market satellite access is illegal, but the Canadian government has done little to enforce the Court’s ruling, Canadian Cable Television Association president and CEO Janet Yale told a gathering of broadcast executives Sept. 19.

Yale, speaking at a Broadcast Executive Society luncheon, said that loss of revenue due to the estimated 700,000 homes in Canada currently pulling in illegal signals is a serious detriment to indigenous production, as ‘illegal satellite activity amounts to a loss of about $4 million to $7.5 million annually.’

Since the April ruling from the Supreme Court, the Vancouver Police have busted one dealer, but there has been no increase in resources devoted to the RCMP or other avenues of enforcement and Yale worries that will send a message to dealers that the law has no teeth.

Yale, also chair of the board of the Canadian Television Fund, added that members of the production and broadcasting community are taking matters into their own hands in lieu of government action and are forming a coalition that intends ‘a full frontal attack in the form of litigation against the dealers.’

Implementation of Global Rule One uneventful

With the Screen Actors Guild’s Global Rule One in place for almost five months, Canadian resident actors with both ACTRA and SAG cards are working at home on ACTRA contracts without penalty, says Stephen Waddell, executive director of ACTRA National.

Global Rule One, a policy that compels SAG members to work through the SAG contract no matter where they are on the planet under the threat of severe sanctions, was seen as a jurisdictional challenge and a specific problem for members of both the Canadian and U.S. actors unions.

So far, implementation has been uneventful, says Waddell, but it’s still early. U.S.-resident SAG members working in Canada are working under SAG terms, albeit under an ACTRA ‘faceplate,’ he explains. ‘There has been no impact on [ACTRA benefits] programs, and I don’t expect it,’ says Waddell.

There is no jurisdictional battle underway, he adds, dismissing as wrong recent U.S. trade articles suggesting otherwise.

Ilyanne Kichaven, spokesperson for SAG, agrees, saying there is strong cooperation with Canadian acting unions ACTRA and the Union of BC Performers.

‘There have been no violations to date for Global Rule One,’ she says. SAG is formalizing a side letter memorandum to Canadian producers allowing them to hire SAG members to work under ACTRA contracts with SAG terms and conditions.

AAC scores two Emmys

After winning seven Primetime Emmy Awards for its acclaimed miniseries Life With Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows at last year’s awards, Alliance Atlantis Communications came up a little shorter this year with only two wins.

Stockard Channing won outstanding supporting actress in a miniseries or a movie for her role in The Matthew Shepard Story. The MOW is an AAC/NBC production in association with Cosmic/Clearlight Pictures. CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (AAC/CBS) won for outstanding makeup for a series (non-prosthetic).

David Greene of Unlimited Productions is also among the Canadians to be honored at the 2002 Emmys. He wins in the category of outstanding sound mixing for a variety or music series or special for his work on Opening Ceremony Salt Lake 2002 Olympic Winter Games (NBC/Don Mischer Productions).

Shaw launches VOD service

TV viewers in Calgary can now thumb through the Alliance Atlantis movie library, thanks to a recently inked long-term deal between the Toronto media giant and area cable provider Shaw Communications. AAC agreed earlier this month to provide movies for Shaw On Demand, shortly before the new service launched.

‘One of Alliance Atlantis’ key strategies is to give Canadian consumers greater access to our library,’ said Patrice Theroux, president of Alliance Atlantis Motion Picture Distribution Group, in a statement.

Among the new and old titles earmarked for the VOD service are Hollywood and foreign fare such as Amelie, John Q and The Fellowship of the Ring. The new service, the first of its kind in North America, is available to subscribers of both Shaw’s high-speed Internet and digital cable services. Shaw plans to add VOD service to other cities in the near future.

Toronto hosts large-format conference

The Giant Screen Theatre Association is holding its 25th anniversary international conference in Toronto Sept. 30 to Oct. 4. The event brings together giant-screen exhibitors, producers and distributors from 30 countries, who will discuss the future of large-format films in sessions at the Sheraton Centre Hotel.

More than 20 new large-format films, in various stages of completion, are screening at the Ontario Science Centre Shoppers Drug Mart OMNIMAX Theatre, (the host venue), Ontario Place Cinesphere and the Famous Players Paramount IMAX Theatre.

There are also presentations on emerging technologies, a trade show, vendor and distributor events, professional development sessions, the GSTA Achievement Awards, and the Annual Marketing Achievement and Creativity Awards. Historical films and special honors are being presented to mark the anniversary of the organization, which is the industry’s global forum.

Canadian-related productions screening include Adrenaline Rush: The Science of Risk by Quebec City’s Sky High Entertainment, Straight Up by Toronto’s Shaftesbury Films and the short In Five Minutes, the Feature by Montreal’s Pascal Blais Productions. Imax Corporation, headquartered in Toronto, is screening Apollo 13: The IMAX Experience and IMAX Space Station.

More information can be found at www.giantscreentheater.com/about/toronto.htm.

Cinefest applauds Rub & Tug

It was close, but rookie director Soo Lyu and her film Rub & Tug walked away from Sudbury’s Cinefest with the $5,000 prize for Best Ontario Feature, narrowly edging out Deepa Mehta’s Bollywood/Hollywood.

‘It was a very, very tight race,’ says festival organizer Tammy Frick. ‘We had to go to two separate ballots and then go to a rating system.’ But eventually the five-person jury – comprised of festival staff and sponsors – went with Lyu’s debut comedy, which stars Don McKellar (The Herd) as the new manager of an erotic massage parlor.

Rub & Tug debuted to poor reviews earlier this month at the Toronto International Film Festival, but was so popular in Sudbury that organizers had to add a second screening. It will be released across Canada by Seville Pictures on Oct. 18.

Cinefest also handed its Carolyn Fouriezos Award, for best first Canadian feature, to Wiebke von Carolsfield and her debut Marion Bridge.

Sony launches FilmTrax

Sony Music Entertainment Canada has launched FilmTrax, a new division specializing in music synchronization and media services. FilmTrax offers a one-stop shopping approach for licensing and publishing clearance, music supervision/soundtrack development, score composition and film and TV and advertising production, along with a state-of-the-art facility containing full media capabilities.

FilmTrax (www.sonyfilmtrax.com) is located at Sony’s offices in Toronto, which also house recording studios, three digital online video-editing suites, a graphic design and art direction facility, a 2,500-square-foot soundstage, and a complete printing and CD manufacturing plant.