Filmmaker Terry Gilliam, who has rebounded from his unfinished feature The Man Who Killed Don Quixote in 2001 to direct Good Omens and The Brothers Grimm, will be among the 10 beneficiaries of new money handed out by Telefilm Canada’s Canada Feature Film Fund, June 28.

Gilliam, who cowrote the script with Tony Grisoni, will direct Tideland, about an orphaned 10-year-old Saskatchewan girl who creates a fantasy world. Gabriella Martinelli (Naked Lunch) and Jeremy Thomas (Sexy Beast) are the producers, while Capri Films will distribute.

The Gilliam feature was approved through the national comparative screening process for projects that ask for more than $1 million from Telefilm. Overall, four English-language features made the cut in the second of four funding rounds in 2004, and they share $8.8 million of the $19 million selective envelope. The other three in this category are:

* Step, about a step dancer with a dream, is produced by Julia Sereny and Jennifer Kawaja (Touch of Pink) and written by Annmarie Morais. Mongrel Media will distribute.

* Fido, a zombie movie, is produced by Blake Corbett and written by Dennis Heaton, Andrew Currie and Robert Chomiak. TVA Films distributes.

* Bon Cop/Bad Policier, an action comedy about the dysfunctional relationship between a French-Canadian police officer and his English-Canadian partner, is directed by Erik Canuel, written by Patrick Huard, Leila Basen and Kevin Tierney,who is also producing. Alliance Atlantis Vivafilm will distribute.

‘The applications are more aimed at the audience objective [at Telefilm],’ says Ralph Holt, Telefilm’s national feature film sector head, referring to the eight feature film candidates considered in this round. ‘They are more about entertaining and appealing to a larger audience. In comparison, a few years ago, the films were aimed more at smaller niches.’

The next English-language feature deadlines are July 5 and Oct. 4.

In Telefilm’s Quebec office, meanwhile, five French-language films were given production funding worth $7.1 million, which when combined with earlier commitments this year, puts the selective envelope over the top for the year, says Michel Pradier, director – French operations and Quebec office. Quebec’s selective envelope is $12.5 million, and the oversubscription already this year means that the October deadline for new feature applications has been canceled for lack of additional funds.

The six funding winners include:

* Aurore, the story of an abused girl, is the debut feature for Luc Dionne, who also wrote the script. Cinemaginaire is the producer and Vivafilm is the distributor.

* Congorama is a Belgium coproduction written and directed by Philippe Falardeau (La Moitie gauche du frigo), about two men whose lives cross. The comedy-drama is produced by Microscope in Canada and Tarantula in Belgium and distributed by Christal Films.

* L’Horloge biologique, about a group of 30-year-olds confronted by the need to settle down and have children, will be directed by Ricardo Trogi (Quebec-Montreal). Trogi cowrote the script with Jean-Pierre Pearson and Patrice Robitaille. Go Films produces and Vivafilm will distribute.

* Les Filles du botaniste chinois, about two adopted sisters thwarted in love, is by director Dai Sijie (Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress), who cowrote the script with Nadine Perront. The project is a coproduction between Studiofilm in Canada and Europa Corporation in France. Christal will distribute.

* Un dimanche a Kigali (A Sunday at the Pool in Kigali), about the Rwandan genocide, is directed by Robert Favreau (Les Muses orphelines), who adapted the novel by his co-screenwriter Gil Courtemanche. Equinoxe is producer and distributor.

The Quebec office of Telefilm received 23 French-language and 10 English-language applications to the CFFF. The one English-language proposal that received money from the regional allocation was These Girls, a bittersweet story of three young women who seduce married men. The project is by writer/director John Hazlett (Ginger Snaps). Les Productions Jeux d’Ombres is the producer and Seville Films will distribute.

‘We’re seeing more applications that take into consideration their audiences,’ says Pradier. ‘On the French side, the public is more used to national cinema, so we see more diversity in the applications. On the English side, we’re not at the same point. The applications are more large-audience driven and we need that.’

-www.telefilm.gc.ca