After swiping an armload of nominations and awards on the international stage, it was no surprise that Little Criminals stole a few Gemini Award nominations. The number of nods it received from the Academy, however, was a surprise to some, including producer Phil Savath. ‘It’s really gratifying. I’ve been surprised by the level of response all along. It shows that if you do something with your whole heart and soul, it works out.’

Little Criminals’ nominations in a wide cross-section of categories distinguish it as one of the most nominated programs this year. It is up for best tv movie, best direction (Stephen Surjik), best writing (Dennis Foon), best photography (Stephen Reizes), best editing (Alison Grace), best production design (Lawrence Collett), lead actor (Brendan Fletcher), two supporting actresses (Sabrina Grdevich, Mimi Kuzyk) and best sound.

Little Criminals is a fact-based film about two 11-year-old city kids, repeat young offenders who do drugs, vandalize property for fun, engage in robbery, extortion and arson and who are all-round holy terrors to most adults around them. It’s an in-your-face, sometimes disturbing look at a segment of society we’d prefer to believe didn’t exist.

The result is a film that succeeds on many different levels: it has artistic integrity, a relevant social message and audience appeal. It garnered an impressive 1.6 million viewers and has had an impact in the world of social services: from a major speech made in the Senate referring to the film, to youth-worker training videos centered on it, its impact has been lasting.

Those involved are quick to point out that the movie was financed, developed and produced in-house by cbc. Its budget was a modest ‘$2 million to $3 million,’ according to cbc executive in charge of production for movies and miniseries Brian Freeman. There were no coproducers, and by all accounts, no pressure to serve any audience besides the Canadian one. (All five of the nominees for Best TV Movie aired on cbc – of those, Net Worth and Little Criminals were in-house productions.)

‘cbc is the only broadcaster in the world who would have done this film and financed it,’ says Savath.

Vancouver scriptwriter Foon agrees, attributing the film’s success to its unwavering integrity. ‘cbc was involved from the get-go and gave us full support to make it a credible piece of art and drama. We had artistic freedom we wouldn’t have had at another broadcaster. When you have several broadcasters or coproducers, everyone wants to have a say. We were protected from that. The people involved in this project were committed to telling the emotional truth and getting across its political message while engaging viewers.’

That support is important, particularly for a film that presents some unpalatable material. It’s not a story most people want to know is unfolding in their city – and it doesn’t have a happy ending. The language, spewed forth via the mouths of babes, is unprecedented at cbc for its harshness. ‘We made a choice early on not to make it commercial,’ says Foon. ‘We knew it would hurt (foreign) sales.’

Sales, it turns out, have been good. Although no American network picked it up, presumably because of its unsanitized take on troubled kids and its profanity, the u.s. Trio dbs satellite service aired it. It also sold to about 20 other countries, including several from Eastern Europe and Scandinavia, Italy, Malaysia, South Africa, Brazil and England’s prestigious Channel 4.

‘We all thought it would be a little more marginalized in the ratings and in overall response,’ says Savath. ‘But I think programmers sometimes underestimate audiences. People respond to real emotion and power.’

Foon stumbled across the stories told in Little Criminals while researching a play in Winnipeg. He then began his research in earnest, going on the beat with police, interviewing social workers, youth workers, psychologists and teachers and speaking to kids in schools, group homes and drop-in centers across the country.

His investigations led to the composite characters in the film. Savath was brought on board, and then director Surjik. Two years later, in the spring of 1995, the six-week Vancouver shoot began.

Surjik’s goal in his direction was to capture the harshness and pathos of the world the little criminals inhabit. A lot of it was filmed in and around old shipyards and railway tracks and abandoned homes which were lived in by squatters.

‘We wanted to give a sense of heightened reality to the whole piece,’ he says. ‘We shot at eye level and it was almost all hand-held and wider lenses. We used muted monochromatic colors on the sets.’

Surjik says one of the reasons the film was set and shot in Vancouver was because of its overcast skies – but an unusually long sunny spell forced them to use large silks to give the effect of grayness. While creating this dim world, the production team was also conscious of showing the danger and excitement the little criminals enjoyed – thus the film is layered with edgy music from artists such as Hole, Tom Waits and the Hungry Crocodiles.

In doling out accolades for the success of the film, Surjik, Freeman, Foon and Savath all heap praise on actor Brendan Fletcher, now 14, who played the lead little criminal in his first acting job ever.

‘You can have the best director, producer, sets and music, but if you don’t have the actor, it won’t amount to much,’ says Surjik.

Having two youngsters in leading roles (that of Fletcher and the other little criminal, Myles Ferguson as Cory), along with several other children’s parts, added a dimension to the filming process. Because of the rough subject matter, steps were taken to protect the children.

‘We wanted to make sure kids wouldn’t be damaged by the experience,’ says Freeman. ‘We had an onset psychologist and consultants for their families – although we could ill afford it. We wanted to create the most benign situation for the kids.’

‘My only concern at the beginning was the casting,’ says Surjik. ‘I was worried about getting a kid with the acting prowess and the emotional fortitude for the role. But it worked out, and in an almost supernatural way, every aspect of the film went so smoothly.’

Freeman attributes that synergy to the ‘common vision’ embraced by all those involved. ‘No one had to be massaged into `getting it,’ ‘ he says. ‘There was no rancor as often is the case, no turf wars. We went out on the edge and the network had to take it on faith that it would work. If it offended, it was done for a good reason.’

Meanwhile, many inside and out of the television and film industry wonder if movies like Little Criminals – made with that strong artistic vision for Canadian audiences – will soon be history at cbc.

‘cbc pushed us to be all we could be, allowed us to go out on a creative limb. We took advantage of that. I will be very sad if that capability ceases to exist,’ says Savath.