Cinema Canada (Sep 1975)

FIL] NEWS The Committee for an Independent Canada held its annual convention in Vancouver on August 1-3. A forum on film policy in Canada was held, and panel members included CFDC lawyer Joseph Beaubien, CCFM director Sandra Gathercole, Famous Players’ publicity man James Cameron, and Vancouver critic Les Wedman... The Ontario Arts Council announced grants in July for film groups. The Canadian Film Institute received $3000, the Canadian Film Awards $7500, the Bowmanville Photography Gallery $6925, and the Toronto Filmakers’ Co-op $15,000... Canada Council Senior Arts Grants have been awarded to filmmakers Tadeusz Jaworski, Paul Legault, Richard Leiterman, and Josef Skvorecky... The CBC spent $17.5 million in the private sector in 1974, so they say. $9.75 million went for rights to broadcast, and the rest for production and co-production services. Temple University School of Communications and Theatre held its first annual graduate seminar in film in Montreal during July. Participants observed current activity in Canadian film, and met directors, politicians, as well as took tours... Screenings: White Line Fever, a story about Billy Jack on a truck, produced as part of a Columbia Pictures deal by Montreal’s John Kemeny, opened in Toronto and other cities on August Ist, and is doing smasheroo biz everywhere (see this issue, pp. 41-43.) CBC showed the NFB’s Mr. Symbol Man on July 16. Film about pictographic script inventor Charles Bliss was made as a co-production with Australia; directors were Bruce Moir and Bob Kingsbury... Several Ca 12/ cinema canada nadian features are being shown on CBC Sunday nights in August, including The Hart Part Begins, The Heatwave Lasted Four Days, and Mon Oncle Antoine... and even Le temps d’une chasse... The latter has been dubbed, but Stratford had to cancel Gina and Les Vautours from its Film Festival because no subtitled or dubbed print exists... Bar Salon, shown at Filmexpo, had been subtitled by the Film Festivals Bureau for screening at New York’s Museum of Modern Art... Kamouraska opened in a small house on the east side of New York this summer. Reviews were not kind and it closed quietly. The picture, a CanadaFrance co-production, has never played in France... On another New York front, aten minute film about Ontario played in Times Square on the Bulovasign. Space was donated by Canadian-born head of Bulova. Pic featured Cabinet minister Claude Bennett, Premier William Davis, and Guy Lombardo (!)... Duddy Kravitz, unsatisfactory overall in the U.S., will be re-released in the fall with a new ad campaign. Boom business in Toronto was pointed to as real potential. Goal is ten million dollar gross!... Whiteoaks of Jalna has now been sold to seven countries, the latest being Poland and Spain... The Ontario Film Institute is eager for an offer from Famous Players whereby the Governement would buy the Yonge theatre, site of a large ground floor house which would be used for concerts, the large upper house, closed since the earlier thirties and called the Winter Garden, would be slated for the OFT’s use. The Word: ACTRA published its latest guide to Canadian talent, Face to Face with Talent, and the third edition features 1272 entries composed of pho tos, phone numbers, and credits. Copies are distributed free to needy compagnies... The Canadian Film Institute Film Title Index, an alphabetical reference guide to all CFI holdings, is now available for $20. 6500 titles jam three hundred pages... Barbara Halperin Martineau is compiling a book about the image of women as presented in the work of women writers and filmakers. Book, to be called Women Imagine Women, includes interviews with Edmonton film akers Lorna Rasmussen and Ann Wheeler... Another female effort is Interlock, published at the women’s unit of the NFB. Editor is Donna Dubinsky, and the work includes technical information, information onprint sources, festivals, reactions; news and articles are being solicited... Robert Fothergill, whose articles are often found within these covers, has written a book with Eleanor Dudor to be published in September. It’s called Redeeming Features: Themes and Images in English Canadian Films Publisher is Peter Martin Associates, who also plans a revised version of Eleanor Beattie’s Handbook of Canadian Film for Decem ber unveiling. The Canadian Film akers’ Distribution Centre has found a leader. New director is Tess Taconis ...Meanwhile, joining former CFMDC head Frederik Manter at the Canadian Film Institute is Harris Kirshenbaum. He’ll be Director of Promotion. ...Alfred Pariser has been named general manager of ICL Industries, Harold Greenberg’s main arm, from which all his little film fingers protrude... Al Johnson is officially in his seat as CBC President... And Jack McAndrew, formerly of the Charlottetown Festi val, has been named CBC head of TV Variety... OECA appointments include Leopold F. Lacroix as Associate General Léopold F. Lacroix Paul Hunt Manager of the Educational Media Division, and Paul Hunt as Director of Marketing for OECA material sales. Canadian Notes: Allan D. Baker, former president of V.S. Food Services, and Philip Johnston, ask in a CRTC brief that PAY-TV should be two separate networks, one English and one French. They will apply for the English part. They claim that Pay-T'V will bea great source of income for Canadian creativity! Just like Global, CTV and any radio station that can get away with it. You will remember Mr. Baker and Mr. Johnston, of course, because they and others poured over half a million dollars into Death Be Not Proud, a U.S. TV movie and took the Canadian tax write -off. Stephen Chesley