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‘Baptism by fire’ for Lenz on Passion
The blockbuster hit The Passion of the Christ may be one of the most controversial films ever. According to Jack Lenz, one of the film’s composers, the production process was as controversial and political as the film itself.
Shops making noise
Everything and the Kitchen Sync
Composers close in on collective agreements
Canadian film and television composers may soon benefit from the collective bargaining power gained by the Guild of Canadian Film Composers in May 2003.
Little luck for Canucks at audio awards
No Canadian audio teams came out winners at the 51st Golden Reel Awards, despite several nominations. The Motion Picture Sound Editors organization made the prize announcements Feb. 28 in Los Angeles.
Decoys P&A goes T&A
If you watch Space with any regularity, or Bravo! or Drive-in Classics or have recently been within earshot of anything else owned by CHUM, you almost certainly know about Decoys. Promos for the teen-targeted sci-fi flick have been running all but constantly on CHUM outlets since the holidays – descending, like so many invading UFOs, from the digitals, down past the specialties, to the conventional NewNets and Citytvs. On Space these days the Decoys ad seems to play more frequently than the station ID.
Cold Squad, Blue Murder iced for ’05
And then there were four. Word reached Playback late last month that neither CTV’s Cold Squad nor Global’s Blue Murder will be renewed for the ’04/05 season, bringing the current total of hour-long English-Canadian dramas below the half-dozen mark and further darkening the state of domestic TV drama.
Canadian films caught in U.K. tax clamp down
On Feb. 10, Chaos was thrown into chaos. Financing for the Wesley Snipes-Jason Statham action-thriller, produced by Vancouver’s Rampage Entertainment, was tied to a U.K. coproduction deal with Grosvenor Park – one of that country’s equity suppliers hit last month by a sudden crackdown on U.K. tax shelters.
No CTF boost in budget advancer
Finance Minister Ralph Goodale has called his long-awaited federal budget for March 23, and there remains no indication that the feds’ contribution to the Canadian Television Fund will be restored to its former amount.
Short success for 11th Hour
Comedy may be the way to go in Canadian television, according to recent Nielsen Media Research numbers, which show slight audience increases for homegrown comedy, while the few remaining Canadian dramas struggle to attract viewers.
No PST relief or B.C. Film boost
Vancouver: British Columbia Film has less money than ever before to invest in the West Coast film industry, following the B.C. government’s Feb. 17 provincial budget for fiscal 2005, beginning April 1.
Cinar goes private with Hirsh
The Quebec Superior Court approved the sale of Montreal animation producer Cinar to an investment group led by Nelvana founder Michael Hirsh on Feb. 19, two days after shareholders voted almost unanimously in favor of the takeover bid worth US$144 million. Cinar president and CEO Stuart Snyder says the deal should close on March 1, at which time he will step down.
Invasions wins at home
In the leadup to Oscar night, Quebec director Denys Arcand and his Les Invasions barbares scored big at the Prix Jutra in Montreal, taking four trophies on Feb.22, just one day after a three-win show at Les Cesar in Paris. Invasions won best director and best screenplay for Arcand at the sixth annual Jutras plus best film, picked up by producers Denise Robert and Daniel Louis, and best actress for Marie-Josee Croze.
No love for Republic
Despite high hopes from its producers and Telefilm Canada and a great pedigree, Deepa Mehta’s Republic of Love did not gross among the top-five homegrown films at the Canadian box office in its opening week.
Rex appeal at ACTRA Toronto Awards
Show business looked more like ‘no-show’ business at the 2004 ACTRA Toronto Awards, when two of the three winners failed to appear. Brent Carver won best male performance for his turn as one of William Shakespeare’s sidekicks in Elizabeth Rex, but was stuck down in New York City with, fittingly, a production of King Lear. Rex scored again when Diane D’Aquila won for best female performance for her role as Elizabeth I. Sonja Smits – on hand to pick up her own award of excellence – accepted the trophy on D’Aquila’s behalf, praising her ‘very raw, very powerful’ performance as the Virgin Queen.
Jump Cuts
Killed Bill, Vol. 2
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