Montreal: Telescene Communications has put the lion’s share of recent revenues into new subsidiary operations in New York, Los Angeles and as company president Robin Spry says, ‘a foothold in Europe (in London, Eng.).’

For the producer of the critically-acclaimed miniseries Hiroshima, the first Canada/Japan coproduction, the approach in the u.s. is two-sided, with the accent in l.a. on development, and on marketing in New York.

‘People who are developing solely in Canada are pretty rare, if they are any sort of size at all,’ says Spry, ‘because development isn’t just an idea and the writing, but is also about bouncing it off the marketplace.’

Telescene’s New York office is head by Michael Yudin, a former vp with Paramount Television and a specialist in advertising and cable networks.

The l.a. office headed by Bruce Moccia, a strong creative producer and former head of production at RKO Pictures, is keyed on the growing pool of Canadian and international talent in the u.s.

If the development networking of most Canadian film and tv producers suggests partnering in l.a., Spry says, ‘We are doing something slightly different. We acknowledge l.a. as the dominant place. But we also feel there’s an inverse kind of development taking place which has a lot to do with listening to what the cable companies (networks) and advertisers are looking for. And if these two can be put together you get a double-whammy, and that’s where Michael Yudin (exec vp, Telescene Entertainment, New York) comes in. He has a long experience of running up and down Madison Avenue and he has contacts upside and down in the cable industry.’

‘Bruce Moccia (senior vp, Telescene Film Group – usa) has a long experience working with writers and comes from the creative side. He’s a wonderful reader and critic of scripts.’

Organizationally, Spry heads Telescene’s Canadian holding company, while Paul Painter, exec vp, is responsible for Telescene’s u.s. operations. Telescene is owned equally by Spry and Painter.

The company’s London, Eng. office is headed by managing director Jamie Brown.

Moccia

The multi-lingual Moccia says his office is primarily developing projects with Canadian and, specifically Quebec, talent in mind.

l.a. office film and tv projects include an original animated kids learning series, The Alphabats, to be produced in association with a Montreal-based animator. Various projects are in development with Showtime and other broadcasters including a contemporary version of The Count of Monte Cristo, most of which will be filmed in Montreal. Capella Entertainment in Germany is the co-developer with interest from Disney. The writer is James Duff.

Moccia says the big challenge is getting l.a. production people to consider shooting in Canada. ‘People like to drive to the set in the morning and drive home at night.

‘It’s a lot easier to film in Montreal than coordinate something in Europe where language, distance and time become a problem. Of course, the relationship to the u.s. dollar is important.’

Yudin

Yudin spent 12 years in the media and broadcast departments at McCann Erickson and Backer Spielvogel. Prior to joining Paramount Television, he held posts with Viacom, Thames Television (u.s.) and Reeves Communications.

Yudin says u.s. multinationals see foreign markets as their primary growth sector, adding network privatization in Europe has accelerated the trend.

‘Whether it’s Bristol-Meyers-Squibb or Procter & Gamble, their interests are as much international as domestic because their growth markets are international,’ he says.

Yudin says advertising-leveraged deals can go in various directions, barter, a straight-up time buy or barter-plus cash.

Yudin says major marketers can effect a foreign sale without necessarily buying advertising on the particular show. Rather, he says, ‘A time-bank is put aside where money is invested in future development and sponsorship, as well as sponsorship of a schedule.

‘The relationships between the international marketers and the foreign networks is much stronger than the producer relationships, because they go back a long way, and they have more clout.’

La-Mont

Housed in the same offices as Moccia is another Telescene subsidiary called La-Mont Communications. The company is headed by Bruce Owen Jones, an Emmy Award-winning producer and Willy Gault, a 10-year veteran of the nfl.

La-Mont’s mission is to develop `positive media images’ of Afro-Americans via print, film and tv production. The wider, general program market is also part of the picture.

‘It’s interesting that we’ve ended up partnering with a Canadian company,’ Jones says.

‘Telescene has been able to step back and say, `This is a good business opportunity as well as a relevant social opportunity.’ ‘

La-Mont’s development slate includes a long-form doc series on the Afro-American experience, tv specials, series and features.

Painter

Painter says investing in international program development is essential for growth and a more balanced production slate

Telescene recently secured a long-term line of credit with Banque National de Paris. The news is welcome, says Painter, ‘because everything in this business has to do with bridge financing.’

‘You have to have the credibility to show your partner you are financially strong enough to be able to withstand the initial start-up phase. The banks here (in Canada) are not prepared to interim finance by any stretch of the imagination,’ he says.

Painter (who is also managing director of Dollard Capital Corp., a high-risk interim financing company) says Telescene has been approached by ‘all the brokerage houses’ as well as by a major u.s. network interested in a minority partnership position. Discussions have also been held with a Toronto-based player.

On the subject of a merger, Spry says, ‘I’m not saying it’s absolutely out of the question but it would have to be an awfully interesting partner.’ The point is, Spry is happy with his new-found u.s. partners and Telescene’s permanent staff at home, Nick Minotti, controller, Micheline Garant, head of production, and Anita Simand, director of creative affairs.

Spry

Telescene’s president adds this caveat.

‘With the new federal tax credit rulesall projects have to originate with a Canadian company. That is increasingly becoming a pre-condition, and I think quite correctly.’

Says Spry, ‘Oddly enough, one of the things that has helped us was the (last big) earthquake. People contemplated spending a long time back up in Canada with more pleasure than before.’

In its last fiscal year, Telescene produced and coproduced projects with combined budgets of over $41 million, including $37 million shot in Quebec.

Production included Hiroshima, a $12 million docudrama miniseries coproduced with Japan’s Daiei Co. in association with Cine Bazar, the first official Canada/ Japan coproduction.

Telescene also shot Peter Svatek’s Witchboard:The Possession, a $2 million thriller distributed in the u.s. by Republic Pictures, and The Jack Higgins Series, two four-hour minseries coproduced with Vision View of the u.k. and Carousel in Luxembourg. The shoot is the first official Canada/Luxembourg/u.k. coproduction.

The first four hours is called On Dangerous Ground, based on the novel of the same name, the second,ÊMidnight Man. u.s. actor Rob Lowe plays Shawn Dillon, a secret agent with a past. Showtime is the Stateside broadcaster.

This year, Spry says the plan is to change the format and shoot four two-hour majority mows (the market’s choice) on location in Montreal.

Selected entries from Telescene’s ’96/97 development slate include:

– Critical Incident, a one-hour tv series pilot in development with Lifetime Television. The star is a female emergency psychologist. The proposal originates out of Toronto via producer Alan Gough. (Lifetime has commissioned two other Canadian pilot-scripts, The Cold Squad from Atlantis Films and Keatley Films, and Byline: Sarah Stark, a newsroom drama from Alliance. The fourth entry is from Cannell in the u.s.)

– By Dawn’s Early Light, a promising 1950s gumshoe feature film with series potential, developed in association with Four Point, a u.s. producer, and a&e. On this one, Spry says the challenge is matching the needs of a&e and a Canadian broadcaster.

– Escape from Wildcat Canyon, a Canadian family film to be produced in association with Showtime. The project is in its final draft stage. l.a.-based Gemini is the American partner.

– Outrage at Taunton Falls, a $4 million thriller from Quebec director/writer Morrie Ruvinsky set for a summer ’96 shoot.

– Divided Waters, a border coast guard/action series.

– Rififfi in New York, a big-budget diamond-heist feature to be coproduced by CineVox in Germany and jld in Paris.