A sad reality of English-Canadian cinema has been that most domestic productions, vying against Hollywood fare, end up getting play on only one or two screens in the major markets. The smaller markets, meanwhile, traditionally would never get a chance to see these films theatrically, and as for foreign distribution, forget it.

But that has changed somewhat, thanks to Cam Haynes, founder and director of Film Circuit, a year-round initiative of the Toronto International Film Festival. (It launched in 1992 and joined TIFF in 1995.)

Facilitating screenings of Canadian and international art-house films in 190 communities nationwide, the Film Circuit has reached 1.2 million filmgoers with 900 films and has traveled to some 20 countries around the world, with a box-office take of about $2 million last year.

‘Trying to put a small Canadian or international film through the same stream [as] Lord of the Rings… never made sense to me,’ says Haynes, former director of the Cinéfest Sudbury International Film Festival.

The Film Circuit, by comparison, represents a grassroots approach to film distribution, with screenings arranged by local volunteers in community organizations. They choose the film, rent the local theater and sell the tickets, while the circuit negotiates with distributors to use their prints.

‘We provide them with the access,’ Haynes says. ‘The community works as the marketing mechanism… there’s never enough marketing for independent films.’

He says that the model of screening a Canadian film on a night or two in one location, with the exhibitor, distributor and community each taking a cut, has ‘worked economically… and for the local community.’

More than 100 times a year, talent travels with their films. Recent guests have included directors Peter Wellington (Luck), Don McKellar (Childstar) and Scott Smith (Falling Angels).

The Film Circuit is supported by the industry, government (Telefilm Canada, Foreign Affairs Canada and the Ontario Media Development Corporation) and corporate sponsors.

It is currently touring Canuck films including Being Julia, Siblings and La Peau blanche, as well as rereleases of classics such as The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz. Also big on the program are international independent films like Vera Drake, which Haynes says helps ‘position Canadian films with the best films from around the world.’

Haynes says that Canadian and international indies appeal to the same demographic – cinephiles skewing older than the 13-to-29 age demo targeted by the average multiplex.

The Film Circuit went international in 2002, taking a group of Canadian films and filmmakers on a U.K. tour. Haynes says the reception was overwhelming.

‘Directors who go with us are very invigorated by touring,’ he says. ‘You’ve gone through the festival circuit, you feel great about your film, and then it opens in Canada and it doesn’t perform commercially. To tour around and get the audience reception in those other countries is a good thing.’

Plus it gives films a platform outside of festivals for foreign sales. He cites the example of Guy Maddin’s Dracula: Pages from a Virgin’s Diary, which sold in Mexico right after a Film Circuit screening.

Last year, Film Circuit screenings were held in over 250 locations in countries including India, Spain and throughout Latin America. The presentations may be coordinated with local film festivals or rep houses, and the gate is split between the rights holder and exhibitor. This year, Haynes expects the number of countries to increase to 25, bringing the Film Circuit’s audience outside of Canada to 60,000 people.

He says that films that are more experimental in nature play well in Europe and in most other countries, and that directors whose work is in high demand include Atom Egoyan, David Cronenberg and Denys Arcand.

-www.e.bell.ca/filmfest/filmcircuit/index.asp