Crackdown on sat theft

Industry Canada and the Ministry of Canadian Heritage have declared their intentions to amend the Radiocommunication Act in the fight against DTH satellite signal theft.

The proposed amendments are initiatives to more effectively control the importing of illegal sat-theft gear into the country; a penalty increase for users to deter the act, and ‘strengthening the existing right of the Canadian broadcasting industry to take civil action’ against pirate satellite dealers, according to an Industry Canada release.

The ministries are also providing info to consumers about the ‘unseen dangers’ of signal theft.

Sudbury preps for awards

Ben Bruhmuller’s Dark Corner, Michael Poitevin’s Exile From the Sun and Wendy Ord’s Black Swan have been nominated for best film in the film component of the Northern Ontario Music and Film Awards, to be presented in Sudbury, ON Sept. 15, coinciding with the opening of the city’s Cinefest International Film Festival. The three filmmakers will also vie for the best director prize.

Bruhmuller is up for best film editor for his film, running against John Hartman for Anglophobes and Lori Paradis for Run Run My Sweet. Bruhmuller and Hartman meet again as Dark Corner faces Hartman’s Hors-D’Oeuvre in the best cinematography heat, along with Darlene Naponse, shooter on Waiting For The Ice To Melt. Best screenplay will be a contest between Ord for Hangdog, Ian Pitblado for Love Is Blind and Gregory Tremblay for The Long Ride Home.

WTSN goes under

Viewers will have to look elsewhere for women’s soccer and the WNBA, now that CTV has ankled WTSN. The women’s sports digichannel will shut down on Sept 30.

‘This was a tremendously difficult decision,’ said net president Rick Brace, in a statement, blaming slow growth, low ad revenue and high operating costs. Eleven people are out of a job, although the net plans to reassign some of them.

WTSN launched two years ago, in the first wave of digichannels, with CTV’s Animal Planet, Discovery Civilization, CTV Travel, ESPN Classic Canada and the NHL Network.

Telefilm deadlines

Telefilm Canada has posted the 2003/04 guidelines for the Canada New Media Fund.

The guidelines are applicable to the Sept. 23 application deadline.

Telefilm also advises that the current national submission date, Sept. 2, for applications to the Canada Feature Film Fund for English-language projects requesting over $1 million, has been extended to Oct. 6.

The next submission date for applications to Telefilm’s Feature Film Fund for all English- and French-language projects is Jan. 19, 2004.

For more details go to www.telefilm.ca.