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Cronenberg film looking to make Oscar History
It may not be considered Cancon on Genie night, but David Cronenberg’s acclaimed and most mainstream film to date, A History of Violence, about an unassuming husband and father (Viggo Mortensen) whose past comes back to reclaim him in small-town America, is in the hunt for a pair of major Oscars.
Canuck auteur Crashes Oscar
Paul Haggis (c) directs Matt Dillon (l) and Ryan Phillippe (r) while cowriter Bobby Moresco looks on during the filming of the drama Crash. The film’s six Oscar nominations include three for London, ON native Haggis: best picture (shared with Cathy Schulman), direction, and original screenplay (shared with Moresco). The film’s U.S. distributor, Canadian-based Lions Gate Films, has noted a bump in DVD revenue for the film since the nominations were announced. Crash is handled in Canada through Lions Gate spin-off Maple Pictures
Domestic up, foreign down in Ontario
Hollywood spending was down by almost a third last year, according to new numbers from the OMDC
CSI edges out Superbowl
The latest BBM/Nielsen numbers show Global with two in the top five — thanks to the Superbowl and a certain game show that followed. But CTV’s CSI still has the highest numbers for a series, followed by the juggernaut, American Idol
A rough season for Jozi-H
The makers of Jozi-H paid for their own ads and drew dismal ratings. And yet, they think CBC will want a second season of their blood-stained medical drama
Ubisoft expands in Montreal
Game-making giant unveils six-year hiring and spending spree, and plans for a new CG studio
Tories get cautious welcome
Bev Oda saw more than a few flashbulbs on election night as she and her Conservative colleagues gained office, but it was film and TV players who were left blinking, as they consider what the new government means for their futures.
C.R.A.Z.Y. leads Genies pack
The Quebec box-office hit C.R.A.Z.Y. leads the pack with a dozen nominations and will face off against Water, with nine, and It’s All Gone Pete Tong, with eight, in categories including best picture and best director at the 2006 Genie Awards.
Layfield new CBC programming head
Kirstine Layfield has been announced as the CBC’s new executive head of programming, taking the job vacated by Slawko Klymkiw last year. Layfield was most recently the senior VP content, lifestyle, at Alliance Atlantis Communications. Layfield says that details of her transition are being worked out, but she should be installed at the pubcaster within the next few weeks.
2006 Genies Nominees
Following are the 2006 Genie nominees as provided by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television.
B.C. renews tax credits
The B.C. industry let out a sigh of relief last month when the provincial government announced it is extending its film and TV production tax credits to 2008, contrary to the advice of a recent government report.
The credits, which pay back 18% or 30% of labor costs – to foreign and domestic productions, respectively – were set to expire on March 31, but B.C. Finance Minister Carole Taylor announced her decision on Jan. 20, well ahead of her upcoming budget.
Big plans for Barna-Alper
A new partnership for Barna-Alper Productions could make the company not only the country’s biggest indigenous producer, but also a player in new areas including distribution and broadcast.
Toronto-based BAP has partnered up with Blue Ice Group Capital, headed by entrepreneur Neil Tabatznik and filmmaker Steven Silver, both hailing from South Africa, in a deal that bolsters BAP on both the financial and creative sides.
Lionsgate sells studios
Vancouver: Lionsgate Entertainment is closing the gates on its North Vancouver studios, and on March 15 will hand over the keys to B.C. real estate firm Bosa Development for $46.1 million.
All about Eve at Sundance
Park City, UT: Vancouver filmmaker Julia Kwan’ s film Eve & the Fire Horse won the special jury prize at the Sundance Film Festival, along with praise from one of the world’s best-known film critics, but still does not yet have a U.S. or international distributor.
Looking to lasso Oscar
Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger star in Brokeback Mountain, which leads all films with eight nominations at the 78th Academy Awards. Both actors received nods – Ledger for lead – as did the Calgary-shot film itself for best picture and Ang Lee for director. Alberta Filmworks was involved on the production.
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