Canadian Film Digest (May 1974)

April-May 1974 Production: Vision IV-August Films’ Black Christmas has completed shooting in Toronto. The $600,000 feature was shot on locations in. the city, and provided work for many actors as well as production people. The thriller has Findlay Quinn as executive producer, Dick Schouten as associate producer, Gerry Arbeid as co-producer, and Robert Clarke as producer and director. Script is by Roy Moore. Production manager is David” Robertson, first A.D. is Tony Thatcher, Bill Morgan handled make-up, cinematographer was Reg Morris, and Car] Zittrer will do the music. Cast included Keir Dullea, Margot Kidder, Olivia Hussey, John Saxon, Michael Rapport, Lynne Griffin, Pam Barney, Art Hindle, James Edmond, Les Carlson, Andrea Martin, and Doug McGrath.... CFDC low budget efforts seem to be the only other English language features going these days, but there’s some of them. John Palmer will direct Me for Muddy York Productions, based on the play by Martin Kinch. . . . Peter Bryant will direct and Dave Tompkins produce The Supreme Kid .... Don Hague will produce and Patrick Loubert direct the Adventures of Johnny Canuck for Filmarts .... Claude Jutra’s film is definitely postponed, apparently because original backers didn’t want him to play lead and he insisted .,.. Ron Kelly says the CTV feature effort has been postponed because of lack of suitable scripts . . . . The same trend is even occuring in Quebec. Meanwhile more Canadian features are getting theatrical runs. At the beginning of May Trevor Wallace’s Christine opened in Toronto, and May Toronto dates have been set for Sunday in the Country, A Quiet Day in Belfast, and Alien Thunder ... . Vancouver reports Montreal Main in a strong first week cat the City Nights. Run there is four weeks _...In Vancouver too Christine played the Capitol in March, The Visitor by John Wright and Wolfpen Principle by Jack Darcus played the Rembrandt, and Elliott Productions’ The Inbreaker is scheduled for the Orpheum. Other screenings: New IMAX efforts are featured at Ontario Place’s Cinesphere this summer. Chris Chapman’s Volcano is coupled with an original comedy with the efforts of Don Harron ahd Barbara Hamilton .... At the Outremont Cinema in Montreal Roger Frappier’s L'Infonie Inachevee played. Pic won best Soundtrack at 1973 Canadian Film Awards, and is the first Domestic Notes People, Places and Events from Across Canada The first term is over — the second one is on ! THE CANADIAN SHOWMAN ~OF THE YEAR AWARD Results of the first judging — will be announced soon. The response has been very soo, so keep those campaigns coming in. WATCH YOUR DIGEST FOR REPORTS IN FUTURE ISSUES. The Canadian Film Digest Quebec feature to be seen in stereo. A special sound system was installed by Jean Rival and Andre Dussault, who are also responsible for the soundtrack. Pic was produced by l’Association Cooperative des Productions Audio-visuelles, and cinematographer was Andre Gagnon with Guy Bergeron assisting Frappier..... At the Cinema 2001 in Montreal — same operators as the Outremont — people can see recent important films, but, for the first time, with subtitles. Examples are El Topo, Minnie and Moscowitz, Family Life .... Insight Productions’ Dull Day Demolition, a comedy featuring the Homemade Theatre, was shown at the Canadian Film Instituteon May 12.... Slipstream, David Acomba’s Canadian Film Award Winner, was invited and shown to mixed reaction at the Los Angeles International Film Exposition at the end of EV os International Film Distributors has acquired a Russian Ballet Festival on film. Three pics will be distributed: the Bolshoi, Swan Lake, and the Soviet Army Song and ~ Dance Ensemble . .. . Paramount has added seventeen new silent films to its 16 mm catalogue. All prints are new, and included is The Covered Wagon and the original Ten Commandments .... Ontario Educational TV is featuring Saturday night prime time movies, with no commercials and followed by a discussion, led by host Elwy Yost .... Planned production, we hope: Bill Fruet has been researching’ his latest screenplay; set in the Arctic, it’s an adventure yarn.... Ralph Willsey of London Ontario has a option on Earle Birney’s poem David, and -is currently casting. Pic is a CFDC low budget effort... . Julie Andrews and Blake Edwards may make a film for Sir Lew Grade here in Canada ... . Sun International has acquired world distribution rights to The Snow Tigers. Pic was host in Banff this winter and will be released next winter. Writer and director is Stewart Raffill and his father co-producer _.. .K-Tel, now active in distribution with six films available now, says it plans to go into production. Budgets are aimed in the one-totwo-million dollar range. Other projects: Potterton Productions made a half-hour animated special for TV called The Happy Prince. Sponsor was Readers Digest, and voices included Christopher Plummer and Glynnis Johns .. Gordon Pinsent is finishing up his second novel, called The Missus. He’s already working on the screenplay. And the Rowdyman will be presented as a musical at Concluded on page 21 INFORMATION AND Focus On: Ted Kotcheft Page 5 Director Ted Kotcheff was in Toronto for the opening of his latest feature effort, The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, distributed by Astral. He offered .these comments in a hectic hotel room chat. On actors: | like working with actors and !’m finicky about getting what | want. Dreyfuss and | are perfectionists, but he’s almost worse than me. He's so hyper-, Critical of his own work. If 90 per cent is good, we. see only the other 10 per cent. \ On the film itself: The whole picture is the study of the web of family pressures and their influences and how they shape a person's aspirations. Duddy's indomitable will to achieve is forged on the hearth of his father and uncle. You have the opposition of private and public morality. On Yvette’s character: She develops. At first she’s a simple farm girl. He couldn't do it without her, she’s the ploughorse while he’s scheming. Farm people are very materialistic. And she becomes a good business woman.. There'a moral wrestling relationship between them. On nostalgia and 1948: | wanted a tough gritty quality. There's always a confusion in people's point of view between 1974 and the past, though. A 1948 barber shop wasn't dirty like it would be now, it was clean. | wanted to have it there, not look back on it, S On Cannes: | was very cross that Canada goes through this charade when it has no power. It’s not the rejection, I've been there and | don't need Cannes. It’s the way it was done. Either stand behind your choice or give Bessy a bunch and let him choose. This kind of routine only hurts the industry.