Vancouver: Vancouver International Film Festival director Alan Franey chose to look back not ahead to kick off the 14th annual viff late last month. The gala opening selection was unusual to say the least, the recently restored 1928 silent film classic Lonesome, directed by Paul Fejos and accompanied live by the Alloy Orchestra from Cambridge, Mass., which had composed a compelling new score.

Lonesome proved to be a surprising crowd pleaser, with a standing ovation for the orchestra. (Unfortunately no stars could attend the gala because they are all dead).

But the screening offered the sro audience a chance to rediscover a delightful film that has endured the test of time, as well as an opportunity to giggle at some great dialogue that hasn’t, for example, the hero’s quintessential pickup line: ‘Mary, I think you’ve found your little lamb.’

In other fest-related happenings, Mayne Island filmmaker Gail Noonan recently faxed us to complain about the short shrift short films tend to get in film festival coverage, even though they represent a very important component and contribute greatly to the profile of the b.c. film industry in festivals throughout the world.

And you know, I think she’s got a point. Granted, Noonan had an agenda; her six-minute animated film Your Name In Cellulite is screening at viff and she wanted some press. But festival coverage does tend to focus on the sexy feature film. (One exception to this state of affairs is a story Playback ran in its last issue (Sept. 25, p. 24) on shorts screening at the viff.)

viff spokesperson Ian Caddell concurs that short films indeed play an essential role. Besides having some of the best darn titles, he says they often serve as a launching pad for feature film careers, while established feature filmmakers also return to the short form throughout their careers to focus on their craft.

Nine other b.c.-produced shorts will be screened during the festival: Five Visits to the Doctor, directed by Marlene Madison Plimley; Going Home In Three Minutes, directed by seven different directors; Chore Wars, directed by Kathryn Garneau; A Rough Crossing, directed by Teresa MacInnes; The Shaper, directed by Jochen Schliessler; Theta, directed by Ruben Moller; Thomas by Keith Behrman; Nobody, Not Even The Rain Has Such Small Hands, directed by Valerie Tereszko; and Unbound by Claudia Morgado Escanilla.

Doc series wraps

Through the Lens, a six-hour documentary series on the evolution of the indigenous independent filmmaking community in Western Canada, wrapped principal photography in Vancouver, coincidentally, just as viff got under way.

From the 1960s psychedelic experimental color field work of Al Razutis to the unique stylized narrative features of Winnipeg filmmaker Guy Maddin, producer/ directors Gretchen Jordan-Bastow and Fumiko Kiyooka have explored the vast range and talents characteristic of the Western indigenous industry over the last 30 years.

Written by Mary Daniel, Gloria Davies Jordan-Bastow and Loretta Todd, the series is slated to air on The Knowledge Network, wtn, scn, Bravo! and Vision tv in the new year.

Educating the masses

Next time you’re tied up in traffic on the Lions Gate Bridge because there’s a film crew blocking off a street and you begin cursing,’ the B.C. and Yukon Council of Film Unions, in conjunction with the B.C. Film Commission, want you and the rest of the public to think about the benefits of the film industry. Benefits like increased job opportunities, an environmentally friendly industry and all those millions of dollars that roll into the province.

To help achieve this attitude shift, the two organizations plan to produce a 90-second, 35mm trailer to be screened in theaters next spring, just in time for the onslaught of summer productions.

Tim Hiltz, the council’s manager of business affairs, says the message, being sent by the entire provincial film and television industry, is to remind the public of the increasing need for mutual respect and co-operation. Amen.

Lunny interactive project

Shane Lunny, who’s been keeping an uncharacteristically low profile in the local community since the recent downsizing of Shane Lunny Productions and elimination of the online post side of his business, is returning the focus of his operations to production once again.

This month he begins shooting another interactive, virtual reality production using flight simulator technology for the Singapore Discovery Centre.

‘Yep, we’re spending a couple of million dollars to create an experience that lasts a mere four minutes, and without a single penny from the government purse,’ says Lunny. ‘How many other production companies out there can say the same?’ Hmm, good question.

Meanwhile, Lunny is immersed in the design phase of another interactive multimedia production for the Pacific Space Centre in Vancouver.

Island hopping

Scouting on Vancouver Island has perked up. Film commissioner Brian Mills is putting his efforts into trying to find extra incentives to make island shooting just that much more appealing.

Mills says Poltergeist, the new tv series produced by Trilogy/mgm for Showtime in the u.s., will be making regular trips from Vancouver to Victoria to use Hatley Castle at the old Royal Roads Military College as ghost central for the series. Mills is also trying to negotiate a deal with the B.C. Ferry Corporation to make trip less financially daunting.

In other island news, David Gordian Films of Victoria has a feature film, Honeymoon (working title), ready for production later this fall.

Written and directed by Victoria-based Jan Carr-Wiggins (who penned Sleeping With Strangers), the film is the story of a homeless mad man who arrives in the backyard of a newlywed couple’s home and ironically forces everyone to confront reality. By the way, this is a comedy.

David Gordian will produce, with Vancouver-based Chris Bruyere taking online producing duties.

Honeymoon, budgeted at under $1 million, will be shot and posted entirely in Victoria. It stars Isabelle Glasser (Forever Young) and Stephen Shellen (Casual Sex, Edge of Deception).

l.a.-based Dove International has picked up u.s. and foreign rights, with Calgary-based Twin Dolphins Distribution, owned by former Nova Entertainment exec Tony Williams, handling Canadian rights.

And Roger Frampton and Susan Wilkie of Victoria-based White Bear Productions are in production on The Investigators, a new 13-part, half-hour documentary series focusing on West Coast natural history for airing on The Knowledge Network. Discovery Channel, for which White Bear produced its first series, Safari Ocean Adventure, is also in the bidding for The Investigators along with the Life Network.