* Director: Guy Maddin * Writers: George Toles, Guy Maddin,

Kazuo Ishiguro * Producers: Niv Fichman, Jody Shapiro * Coproducer:

Phyllis Laing * Cinematographer:

Luc Montpellier * Diary by: James Careless

Guy Maddin is not known for conventional, commercially targeted films, and The Saddest Music in the World is no exception.

Based on an original screenplay by Kazuo Ishiguro (author of the novel The Remains of the Day) and set in 1930s Winnipeg, Saddest Music is about a contest staged by beer baroness Lady Port-Huntley (Isabella Rossellini) to find whoever can perform, literally, the ‘saddest music in the world.’ At stake is $25,000, which attracts the likes of failed Broadway producer Chester Kent (played by Kids in the Hall alum Mark McKinney), his older brother and failed cellist Roderick (Ross McMillan) and Narcissa (Maria de Medeiros), an ‘otherworldly nymphomaniac sleepwalker.’ And she’s not even the strangest character – Lady Port-Huntley is an amputee who gets around on beer-filled glass legs. Oh, and did we mention the pygmy funeral drummer?

Doing things differently is Maddin’s hallmark. That is apparent from the expressionistic silent-film style of Dracula: Pages from a Virgin’s Diary (awarded an International Emmy, top prize at the Golden Prague TV fest and a couple of Geminis) and the Genie-winning short The Heart of the World, which wowed TIFF audiences in 2000.

However, Saddest Music is meant to be one of Maddin’s most accessible works. It is certainly his biggest, at a $3.5 million budget.

‘Some people found my earlier films a bit disjointed and hard to follow,’ the director explains. ‘With Saddest Music, George Toles and I were determined to be clear and avoid artsy ‘red herrings.’ If the film proves to be impenetrable anyway, you’ll have to blame it on my skills as a director, rather than my artistic intent.’

For Rhombus Media producer Jody Shapiro, one goal stood above all others. ‘We wanted to give Guy the room he needed to make a Guy Maddin film,’ he says. This included capturing some of the movie on archival-style 8mm black-and-white.

Rhombus’ attitude was shared by Winnipeg production partner Buffalo Gal Pictures, which got on board in 2002. ‘We love Guy’s work,’ says Buffalo Gal president Phyllis Laing, who acted as coproducer. ‘This film’s premise is unique and very original, and it has lots of creative possibilities.’ It also has real beer in Isabella Rossellini’s resin-based see-through legs – 0.5% beer, that is.

Summer 2000: Kazuo Ishiguro provides a copy of his original screenplay to Rhombus Media’s Niv Fichman, who then gives it to Guy Maddin.

September 2000: Maddin and Rhombus’ Fichman, Daniel Iron (the film’s eventual executive producer along with Atom Egoyan) and Jody Shapiro hold initial meetings after the Toronto International Film Festival.

Fall 2001 to Winter 2002/03: TVA Films comes on board as domestic distributor, thereby giving Rhombus a package with which to approach Telefilm Canada.

Telefilm’s Canada Feature Film Fund awards funding to both Rhombus and Egoyan’s Ego Film Arts, both of which kick in Telefilm money toward the production.

The Harold Greenberg Fund contributes and The Movie Network is in for presales. Additional financing comes in through a world sales advance from Rhombus International.

October 2002: The gigantic Dominion Bridge Works building in Winnipeg, which is ‘the size of two football fields,’ according to Shapiro, is agreed upon as the shooting location. It had also served as the location for Maddin’s acclaimed short The Heart of the World.

November 2002: The Rhombus group travels to Winnipeg to meet with Phyllis Laing of Buffalo Gal Pictures. Laing signs on as coproducer, and subsequently proves instrumental in preventing the Dominion Bridge Works building’s owner from canceling the location arrangement. ‘Of course, we were told that there would be no heat!’ Shapiro recalls.

Manitoba Film and Sound later comes on board.

Jan. 19, 2003: After speaking with Maddin on the phone, Isabella Rossellini flies to Winnipeg to meet with him, then officially signs on for the movie. The two days they spend together are filled with watching Lon Chaney films and eating at the famous Rae and Jerry’s Steakhouse. Rossellini’s excitement at seeing the 20-foot curling rock sculpted out of snow at the Winnipeg airport seals the deal.

Feb. 17, 2003: Shooting begins in the unheated Dominion Bridge Works building during the frigid spell. Temperatures inside hit -46 as filming continues. To fit Maria de Medeiros’ schedule – she has to leave after six days to appear in a play in Porto, Portugal – Maddin pushes on, shooting the third of the film in which she appears. Shooting lasts a total of 22 days.

April 23, 2003: Maddin comes to Toronto to edit Saddest Music at Rhombus with David Wharnsby (Perfect Pie).

July 24, 2003: The Venice Film Festival invites Rhombus to bring Saddest Music to its fest. Rhombus accepts.

Aug. 9, 2003: The sound mix wraps at Toronto’s Casablanca.

Aug. 18, 2003: ‘The Great Blackout of 2003’ has delayed delivery of the first print with sound. ‘I carried it from the lab to the office myself,’ says Shapiro. The print is finally put on a plane for France the same day to have subtitles added before continuing on to Venice.

A second print is then struck for screening at TIFF.

September 2003: Saddest Music has its North American premiere at TIFF.