Where’s Canadian drama on the CBC?

The Directors Guild of Canada is very disappointed with the CBC’s newly announced summer schedule (first reported in Playback Daily on May 14) that consists largely of comedy competitions, student filmmaking contests, sports and imported drama. The schedule is almost entirely devoid of original Canadian drama and feature film. With the breadth of talent in our industry and the quality of Canadian feature films being made, surely there is some room in the CBC summer schedule for Canadian dramatic programming.

The DGC truly wonders where the Canadian dramas are. Can we expect them in the fall?

We hope so.

Alan Goluboff, President,
Directors Guild of Canada

Fond memories of Yorkton

I enjoyed your look back over the years of the Yorkton film festival (April 16).

I was once invited to be a member of the judging panel. I was astonished to discover the grand prize would be a symbol of Saskatchewan in the form of a golden turkey. I pointed out that in film trade parlance, a ‘turkey’ was a film that lost money at the box office. And thus the Golden Sheaf was born, and it was beautifully done.

For me, a handsome, polished Golden Turkey on a blue-coated stand reading ‘Presented to Gerald Pratley by the City of Yorkton, Turkey Capital of the World, October 1969’ always has a place on my desk.

Gerald Pratley,
Author, A Century of Canadian Cinema