Canadian Film Digest (Apr 1973)

VN SRN The Canadian Film Digest Gerald Potterton Moves into Features Gerald Potterton sits quietly in the hotel room, his voice soft and sometimes even barely audible, He’s tired from running the TorontoVancouver premiere route, but from time to time a twinkle appears in his eye and you know he could be the life of the party. Or, to use a better word, entertaining. Entertaining is what films are all about for Potterton, ‘I’m interested in the entertainment business,”’ he says. ‘‘There’s a terrific shortage of films which can be seen by a cross-section of the public.” And latest effort — The Rainbow Boys — qualifies for that designation. It’s also his first live-action writing and directing effort. ‘‘I wanted to tackle something that would be seen by a lot of people. I had just finished a two-year animation project and I felt I wanted the challenge to sustain a story for a feature length.”’ The three characters, Donald Pleasance as a grizzly old prospector, Kate Reid as the lady, and Don Calfa as the Kid make up a tight controllable group, a situation Potterton wanted. Actually the film first came to him five April 1973 years ago when he was in British Columbia. He met an old man somewhat like the Pleasance character. ‘‘And it was the time of things like Easy Rider, there were a lot of kids around. So I got the idea of these two men, very different yet very similar, and this woman who acts as sort of a buffer or catalyst between them. “I commissioned scripts, but they were a collection of cliches. So finally I had to write it myself, for better or for worse.” Money was the next problem. “It was a good budget, not huge but good. I went to the CFDC and they accepted the script, but with reservations. They said it had better have good acting and be well made! Well, what else? That's like saying you should expose film. And they knew the cast. I guess they didn’t have much faith in me as a director.’ He says it with a sigh, remembering all the government melieu he escaped from in 1967 when he left the NFB. “‘I hadstretched my limit there, and besides it was EXPO year and the place was claustrophobic with the federal presence. Not so much in the administration, equipment Division of SUPER PUFFT POPCORN LTD. Planning Designing Installation Food Service Equipment Theatre-Lobby Snack Bars Restaurants Drive-in Restaurants Arena Concessions Complete Take Out Service & Supplies Visit Our Showroom 391 ADELAIDE ST. E. TORONTO 363-1081 They'd never forget the day he drifted into town. but in the creation area. Unless you’re Norman MacLaren, living in your own world, it was stifling. ‘“‘Now it’s got to the point where huge numbers of people will work on films for three years and they aren't even finished. They should set up a bonus system or something. I left the Board three times during my time there. I could come back after years and someone would say ‘You’ve been away for a month, ay’; it was not right for me. It was seeing an NFB film that brought Potterton to Canada originally in 1954. ‘‘I saw one ‘at home and thought it might be nice to work there. I came to Montreal without any notice and was hired. That lasted until 1967, but I left for three periods during that time. Once I did the Madison Avenue route, director of an animation studio, money and so on. But I made a choice — either freedom and one third the money, or lots of money. I went back to the Film Board.”’ Until 1967°when he and two others formed Potterton Productions. He was working out of his apartment and got an assignment. Today the firm employs two dozen. ‘‘You’ve got to watch that you don’t get too big. The scale of your operation gives you the freedom to hire the people you want to. I believe fully that you’ve got to have very good people and a very good crew on any project.”’ But where do these people come from? “Right now in Canada we need writers and directors. But it isn’t the case only here. I was in Hollywood recently and a fellow at Disney’s told me they can’t get anyone top-notch in animation. No young people are going into it. I guess it’s because attitudes have changed. Now everyone wants to just go off and make small personal films. ‘But we’re a huge country with very few people. It’s strange, though, that no English Canadian film has ever taken off. That’s what we’ve got to learn, how to design a film to be shown in every English-speaking country. We get a lot of scripts sent to us. One was a beautiful story set on the Prairies. It should be made by Bergman. But if it were made here all that would be said is that we’ve taken on too much, because of the type of film it is. ‘‘The Rowdyman, if it were American-made, may not be a better film — in fact it’d probably be worse — but they’d push it. That’s what we need, publicity. There’s no unit publicist or still photographer on films here. At least the Rainbow Boys, the way Mutual is handling it, Page 15 will be known about. Then if it flops, it’s because it’s awful. You can’t rely on a few critics and columnists to do the necessary pushing."’ The critics themselves astonish Potterton. He wonders how they come to write as they do. “Of course, you put yourself on a chopping block every time you make a film. I don’t mind that. But when they write as if it’s a vendetta! I don’t know why. One critic in Vancouver wrote that The Rainbow Boys was the following: it was heavily disguised that the film was shot in Vancouver area. What does he mean? There’s beautiful mountains, okay, but what you're interested in is the people. So what if it had been shot anywhere?. Personal criticism~ doesn’t bother me when it’s face to face, but you never see them.” What interests Potterton now, though, is the great response the public gave to The Rainbow Boys in the Vancouver area. Plus his soon-tobe-released animated feature, Tiki Tiki. ANIMATION ARTIST Applications are invited for the position of Animation instructor on a College level. A challenging opportunity to a mature individual experienced in the total animation process. Practical expertise and dedication more essential than academic status and teaching ability. Excellent working conditions with top professional facilities. Join the staff of the world’s number one School of Animation. Starting Salary: $9,200 to $12,400 Depending on Qualifications & Experience Mail Resumé and References to: GEORGE MARTSEGIS Co-ordinator of Animation SHERIDAN COLLEGE 1430 Trafalgar Road Oakville, Ontario, Canada. Distributed throughout Canada by UNIVERSAL FILMS (CANADA) CLINT EASTWOOD VERNA BLOOM. MARIANA HILL EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Cc DIRECTED GY PRODUCED BY E PR DEC BARTON « ERNEST TIDYMAN «CLINTEASTWOOD ROBERT DALEY + JENNINGS LANG A UNIVERSAL/MALPASO COMPANY PRODUCTION TECHNICOLOR® © PANAVISION ©