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Trailer Park Boys talk DVD, dream jobs and Jim Shaw
It’s been nearly six years since Canucks were first exposed to the foul-mouthed, pot-smoking trio from Nova Scotia on their upstart hit TV series on Showcase, and since then, Ricky, Bubbles and Julian have successfully conquered not only the tube, but now the big screen as well.
The Burning Question
As of Playback press time, producers and actors had not yet reached an agreement on a new Independent Production Agreement – compensation for work distributed via new media being the sticking point. With the ACTRA strike into its second month even after court-ordered arbitration, we asked various industry members, ‘How would you resolve the ACTRA/producers dispute?’
CanWest’s Williams: mentor par extraordinaire
If Barbara Williams is a great mentor, she says it’s because she had some incredible teachers herself.
CWC recognizes Radford, Reyes, Vaillancourt
They are successful business executives and leaders in their field. Now they can add Canadian Women in Communications awards to their CVs.
Rewriting the rules at KidScreen
The eighth annual KidScreen Summit was ablaze with activity, literally, as 1,367 executives from the children’s entertainment world converged in New York last week to analyze the future of the industry and, on day one, to flee an electrical fire and flood in the Sheraton Hotel & Towers.
Realscreen message: climb the tail, cut the crew
It was no shocker that when more than 1,100 nonfiction professionals congregated at the recent Realscreen Summit that they had varying visions about their business.
People
* CBC has tapped Michael Claydon as commissioning editor for all docs and doc series, moving the Life and Times veteran into the job recently vacated by Jerry McIntosh.
Sold!
* Magnolia Pictures (Jesus Camp) has bought the U.S. rights to Weirdsville, closing the deal with Darius Films and sales agent Shoreline Entertainment shortly after the black comedy’s turn at Slamdance. The picture remains in limbo in Canada, having been dropped by ThinkFilm.
Corrections
* Denny Alexander is the new media and communications manager at Teletoon, not Telefilm Canada as stated in the Feb. 5 issue.
Is Saturday night Siberia for Canuck shows?
Jeff Seymour is the first to admit that he has plenty in common with his obnoxious alter ego on Jeff Ltd., the comedy he co-created, executive produces, cowrites, stars in and now directs. But they are different in some ways — Seymour says he’s the kind of guy who likes to stay in on a Saturday night and watch the tube, for instance, something his alter ego most definitely wouldn’t do. The question is: do Canadian viewers feel the same way, and will they embrace homegrown sitcoms at that time?
Breaking down box-office trends
The year-end box-office numbers are in from Telefilm Canada, which means that media pundits and touts from St John’s to Victoria will weigh in with theories and prognostication about the current and future state of moviegoing. But do they really know what they’re talking about?
Film Review — Sharkwater has bite
Sharkwater, Toronto-based Rob Stewart’s debut feature doc about sharks, was a surprising but deserved addition to TIFF’s list of the Top 10 Canadian films of 2006, and should have significant play in limited theaters through positive word of mouth and mainstream press fascination. Strong drama and stunning HD underwater photography will also make it attractive to international buyers in multiple windows.
How Bridezilla fooled millions
The now-notorious YouTube video Bride Has Massive Hair Wig Out may have been a fake, but the ultra-low-budget, Toronto-shot and -produced clip became an international sensation, reaching three million viewers in just two weeks. Canadian content-makers working on traditional platforms can only dream of getting an audience that big.
Springtime for Moriarty
Vancouver – It’s been six years since Vancouver producer/director Brendan Keown was approached to shoot Hitler Meets Christ – the provocatively titled project, if there ever was one, written by and starring former Law & Order frontman Michael Moriarty.
Married white woman seeks homicidal man
Regina – A low-budget American indie starring Maria Bello (World Trade Centre) and Jason Patric (The Alamo) began shooting in Regina on Feb. 9.
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