Canadian Film Digest (May 1973)

y a | Tin 4 The Canadian Film Digest Toronto’s Quadrant Films will see its $1.5 million Neptune Factor premiered in Florida on May 17. The Continental Theatre, Winter Haven, will see stars, bands and all the trimmings. There will be a press reception at famous Cypress Gardens prior to the screening, including performances by aquatic teams, and a documentary on the making of picture which will be projected eighteen feet under water for viewing. Bands and a parade will then lead the cast and dignitaries to the screening place. Downtown Calgary will get a $500,000 glass from twin cinema, to be built by Hector Ross. It’s directly across the street from the Odeon Uptown, which is now being twinned ... Bennett Fode not only turned his art theatre in Toronto into an exploitation house, he found too little product to show, so now he’s making his own. His second feature is currently in the final Stages... Reactions: Wedding in White, Dermet Productions’ Canadian Film Awards winner which was directed by William Fruet, has opened in New York to good, strong reviews... Ivan Reitman’s Cannibal Girls, shot as a quickie last year outside of Toronto, has been demolished by the U.S. trades. American International is distributing. Anne Murray has been signed to sing the title song in Stanley Kramer’s Oklahoma Crude... Gordon Pinsent has turned his Rowdyman screenplay into a novel, and is currently making the rounds of Canadian publishers with it. ..N.A. Taylor has resigned as President of International Film Distributors. Company was sold last year by Taylor to NTA, and he agreed to stay on only for a limited time. Charles S. Chaplin continues as executive vice president. -R. Fraser Neal has been appointed President and general manager of General Sound and Theatre Equipment. He joined the company as general manager in 1970 and is responsible for its overall operation. Projects: The James Huston novel of Eskimo life, White Dawn, is being filmed by Paramount and Martin Ransahoff in Frobisher Bay. A Canadian crew is being used. Stars are Timothy Bottoms, Warren Oates, and Lou Gossett, with the townspeople making up the -restof the cast... Mutual Films is now making a concerted effort to break into the English market. Plans call for a suspense pic, called Child under a Leaf, starring Dyan Cannon. Writer and director is George Bloomfield, and setting is Montreal... Al Waxman plans a fall shooting on Gordon Pinsent’s new script John and the Missus. Alvan Rakoff will direct it on location in Newfoundland. Ridiculous Projects. Rumour heard that Ryan O’Neal has been asked to play none other than Maurice ‘The Rocket’ Richard in a film biog. Grants: La Cinematetheque Quebecois, Musee du Cinema, has received $150,000 for a film storage vault with full security and climate control. It’s from the Secretary of State’s program for aid to museums... . Senior arts grants have been awarded to film-makers Morley Markson and Joyce Weiland and critic Martin Knelman. No specific amount is given, but the grant includes cost coverage of up to $10,000 and a travel and living allowance which could bring the total to $23,000... John S. Gaisford has left Somerset _ Productions, which he founded, to work as an independent producer. Having experience in all facets of film work, he is best known for his Domestic Notes People, Places and Events from Across Canada May 1973 dubbing ability, and his work as a feature producer for Out of Touch, the encounter group film made in Toronto Gaisford dissassociates himself with the post-production on that film, for which he also acted as director . . . Richard Leiterman finally got his IATSE membership, he was turned down last year when he refused to take an oath of allegiance to the United States. Oath requirement has been dropped... The main purpose of his IATSE joining was to act as cinematographer for White Dawn. Then he had disagreement with Paramount and backed out. At the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers’ (SMPTE) 113th conference, a new annual award was inaugurated. To be called the John Grierson Award in honour of the National Film Board founder, it is to be presented to someone for _ technical achievements primarily related’ to documentary. Award is sponsored by the NFB and presented by SMPTE. The first went posthumously to George W. Colburn for his ' development of 8mm printing and processing equipment for non-theatrical use. NFB head Sydney Newman presented it to Mrs. Colburn on behalf of the NFB. Simon Fraser University in Vancouver held an evening of screenings April 2 as part of their Spring Arts Festival. It was to showcase work of the film workshop under the direction of Film Resident Vincent Vaitiekunas Moreland Latchford Productions of Toronto now has a 28 minute short film on how to make a film. All aspects are covered ... The 12th Annual Yorkton International Film Festival is to be held in October. August Ist is the deadline for entries, which must be 16mm _ except amateur which can be 8. The maximum running time is 60 minutes. A panel will pre-select entries for admission to the judging. True Davidson, Toronto area politician, will address the annual instalation dinner for the Women of the Motion Picture Industry. To be held June 6 at Toronto’s Sutton Place hotel, the evening will be emceed by Odeon publicity head Charles Mason. Productions: Shooting has been completed in Toronto on Peep, written and directed by Jack Cunningham from his play. It features Lois Maxwell and Don Harron, and is financed under the CFDC’s $100,000 program ... The Great Little Artist, an NFB comedy, is being filmed in Montreal. Part of the Multicultural Program, it is set in the city’s Italian Community. Purpose of the program is to highlite Canada’s ethnic groups. Featuring Bob Vinci and Mario Verdun, it is being directed by Martin Defalco. Script is by Defalco, Sergio Lanzieri, and Angela Ferrante ... The NFB is also working on a feature documentary on the Film Board’s founder, Dr. John Grierson. To be titled Grierson, it will feature he and his associates discussing events of the century as related in the mass media. 50,000 feet of original shooting plus public and private archives are being used. Then the pic will be broken into short films. It is a 60 minute work for TV now. Centrodyne Corporation has moved to new premises at 9145 Charles de la Tour St. in Montreal. New phone is 381-9308 . .. The first showing of Vibravision, a new _ process developed by Leo G. Ozols, was shown at the Niagara Falls Art Gallery on May 6th. On a giant screen of nearly 180 degrees, a computerized multi-projection system sends myriads of separate images onto the screen. QUEBEC PLANS OWN FILM SET-UP SEPARATE FROM OTTAWA The provincial government in Quebec will probably enact its film law soon. The law will define government policy regarding the film industry. The basis of the law is the thinking that film is a cultural expression, and, as culture is under provincial jurisdiction, Quebec has the right to legislate whatever is necessary to guard and stimulate that culture. Federal thinking would be that it is an industry and a form of comm nication, therefore federal responsibility. But it is also true that film is under the care of the Secretary of State, the federal department concerned with culture. What will happen to these two parties when and if the law is passed is anybody’s guess. Quebec plans include a Cinematographic centre to oversee film in the province and to stimulate filming in a Quebec perspective. The Centre would be designed to satisfy the wishes of the professionals. The idea for the Centre stems from a -~* proposal by the Federation of the Quebec Cinema Industry. This body‘is made up of all members of the industry, from production, exhibition and distribution, as well as actors, writers, etc. The proposal first presented in October 1971 called for an autonomous body jointly managed by government and the industry. Its budget should be 50 cents per capita or three million dollars, The money should be distributed after the films are finished as prizes in order to stimulate quality and Quebec milieu in the films. The budget should be invested 55% in production, 20% in distribution, and 25% for collective projects and administration, The prize jury would consist of six members not associated with production. At this point the government has not disclosed the actual outline of its plans, so the filmmakers can only hope that their proposals will be heard. The Quebec government dissolved the censor board last year and created a supervisory board to classify films by age of patrons. sue+eereke oo Liza Minnelli was in Toronto last month, only days after her Oscar win, to give a solo concert and play tennis for a charity group, the Children’s Asthma Research Institute and Hospital. / . a : * _ & TS 4 $5 ms as + . 4 i 7 iN ; = y) 72 © 1 be 4 a i "i ‘Ss may at oe rj * < Fy fs nae ¢} : 6 Mores) & > > ps) d 2 4 sf * ee ed v oO 4 th ys f Ry : <a v% iN + eg —emeeneey Page 3 © Focus On: Liza Minnelli On her vitality: I don’t know how to explain it. That’s one thing I have in common with Sally Bowles, I just got a lot of energy. On Cabaret: It was really an authentic picture. Fosse wouldn’t even let the girls shave under their arms! That’s how you can tell that I’n the star, because I’m the only one who doesn’t have hairy armpits. On her mother: Home was where my family was. Even when I was very little, my mother never left me. And we always had a lot of love. My mother, no matter how bad things were, was a very honey lady. The tragic image that she presented to the public was rarely what we saw. On her father: He’s a gentleman and someone who’s always believed in me. He’s trusted me. He never lectured me. Working for him is the biggest thing that’s ever happened to me. On her work: My ambition is to work and be good at whatever I do. You don’t work for awards but for artistic happiness, and because it makes me happy. en i cane SS OTe weeks nO BES San de ore Sse SS Fre sees. So