St. John’s, NF-based Anita McGee’s The Bread Maker has the distinction of being the only East Coast feature film to make it into the Perspective Canada program at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival. The Bread Maker is producer/director McGee’s first feature, which makes the selection even sweeter.

Set in St. John’s, the film is a romantic comedy about a woman named Honey Reddigan who works in a large bakery by day and writes romance novels at night. When one of her novels is published, she becomes a celebrity among her coworkers at the factory.

McGee says she is thrilled the film made it into TIFF.

‘You hope,’ she says. ‘You always hope, because this is a great festival to be a part of. When you’re working on your own for such a long time, you do hope that people will like the film, and it’s wonderful to have been chosen.’

The Bread Maker stars Sherry White (who also wrote the script) as Honey and Jonathan Torrens (Trailer Park Boys) as Edmund Goobie, Honey’s love interest.

Produced through McGee’s Kickham East Productions, the $750,000 film was shot in St. John’s over a period of two years due to financing issues. ‘We shot half of it and then went back to it 18 months later. It was quite an amazing process,’ says McGee.

The Bread Maker makes its world premiere at TIFF.

Last year, five films produced or coproduced by Atlantic production companies were featured in Perspective Canada: Past Perfect and The Wild Dogs (both coproduced by Halifax’s imX communications as part of its seats 3a & 3c collection); the documentary Is the Crown at War with Us? (National Film Board); Yellowknife (coproduced by Moncton’s Transmar Films); and Marion Bridge (coproduced by Halifax’s Idlewild Productions).

Dreamsmith teams with T.O. prodcos on MOW

Moncton, NB-based Dreamsmith Entertainment is preparing for a busy August. The prodco is teaming with Toronto’s Barna-Alper Productions and Platt Productions on a new MOW for Movie Central and the CBC, sporting the working title Cradle Will Fall, which will be shot in and around Saint John, NB.

According to Dreamsmith’s Timothy Hogan, the film is 100% Canadian – from its financing to its cast and crew. Hogan is executive producing with Laszlo Barna and Phyllis Platt, who is also producing. Brain Dennis is the line producer.

Laurie Lind is set to direct from a script penned by Raymond Storey (The Inventors’ Specials: Leonardo: A Dream of Flight). The MOW is based on the true story of a woman who takes on the entire administration of a hospital for their unethical activities, and the powerful doctor who works against her. The cast, says Hogan, is still to be announced.

The film is budgeted at $3.2 million, with funding assistance from New Brunswick Film, Movie Central, CBC and the CTF. It will begin production in mid-August and shoot for four weeks. No delivery or airdate has been announced, but Hogan predicts it will be early next year. Filmoption will distribute.

In other Dreamsmith news, Bound for Carnegie, a $400,000 performance doc coproduced with Moncton’s West Street Pictures, is now in post. The film follows the 70-member New Brunswick Youth Orchestra as it prepares to perform at New York City’s legendary Carnegie Hall. The performance (not to ruin the ending) was shot in late June.

The film is written and directed by Moncton’s Christine McLean, and co-executive produced by Timothy and W. James Hogan for Dreamsmith and Rick LeGuerrier of West Street. It is expected to air on CBC’s Opening Night in the fall.

And director Liam O’Rinn will shoot the Ireland footage for the Dreamsmith/West Street doc Neutral Ground, about a dozen Catholic and Protestant children from Belfast, Ireland who are brought to Saint John for a summer vacation (to escape the often-violent ‘marching season’). The film tracks their experiences and how they interact with each other and Canadian children in their age group.

Redstar working on classical series for Bravo!

Halifax’s Redstar Films wrapped production late last month on its new series The Classical Now, a 13 x 30 musical series for Bravo!. Produced by brothers James and Paul Kimball, the series features performances by young Canadian classical musicians.

According to James Kimball, most of the performers are in their early and mid-20s – the age of most contemporary rock and pop stars – and it is important to also give this alternative genre a chance on television.

‘We want to give them some exposure, and to show [classical music] isn’t all about old, stuffy concert halls,’ he says. ‘It is a young, vibrant and growing industry, not only for the musicians themselves, but also the audience.’

Directed by Paul Kimball, the series features performers such as violinist Kai Gleusteen, guitarist Daniel Bolshoy, soprano Melissa Renshaw and the Borealis String Quartet.

The budget for the series is $450,000, with funding from the Nova Scotia Film Development Corporation, deferrals and tax credits. Production ran July 7-23.

Post-production has started and Redstar is scheduled to deliver the series to Bravo! in the fall, with a likely premiere in November. James says although he and Paul have yet to begin shopping the program outside of Canada, it is certainly part of their master plan.

‘The plan is to take this and market it to European markets, the U.S. and possibly even the Asian markets,’ he says.