CineMag (Jun 2, 1980)

™) 12 WINNEBAGO. CineMag ppnow feom les : by Les Wedman_ : VANCOUVER — “We have to make better films,”’ declares Michael McCabe, abdicating czar of the Canadian film industry, and it’s a good thing he said it a couple of weeks before the Canadian features were shown to all those interested at the justconcluded Cannes International Film Festival. Otherwise his ~ statement would be a shout. | “As IT see the 1979 films, they’re better as a group, generally, than the 1978 films,” said McCabe during a two-day seminar on film financing that was sponsored here by the Canadian Film Development Corporation (CFDC) and the British Columbia — Film Industry Association. “‘But,” continued the man who started from scratch about two years ago and now speaks as an authority on film, ‘“we’ve still got to make better films in this country. And I think to focus entirely on quantity — more and more films — is a great mistake. We stretch our technical resources and our people resources too much. We have |. competent people. We don’t have limitless numbers of them.” McCabe has seen the Canadian feature film industry grow from about $6 million worth of production in 1977 to $65 million in 1978 to about $150 million in 1979. Now, he says, through more selective investing, the CFDC intends to put the brakes on production. re: Vea e “We don’t think another enormous jump in production is what is needed in 1980,”’ said McCabe. “‘We think producers now should turn to the quality of the films they make, to make sure they get the scripts right and that they get the films packaged properly.” Canada’s tax shelter is a huge incentive for the flourishing film business, but McCabe warned that it isn’t going to be around forever. He estimates that investors in film production can count on a tax write-off for another five years. The CFDC may not be around that much longer, either. ‘*Now don’t make a'big think of this,” McCabe said simply. “Tt isn’t going to happen today or tomorrow. But our mandate is to self-destruct.”” The CFDC is supposed to develop the feature film industry in Canada, and now that the private sector is growing stronger, he feels it’s time to discard the crutch that the CFDC has provided. The CFDC is in business to put itself out of business. / He cited the recent case of Dino DeLaurentiis, the Italian filmmaker now living in Los Angeles, who wanted to produce a $20 million film, Conan, in British Columbia. That will not happen now, McCabe reported, noting that projected production in B.C. alone this year is $100 million, most of that without CFDC money involved. He had no hesitation in saying “British Columbia isn’t going to suffer’ just because DeLaurentiis has been rejected. The rejection took place during a personal meeting in Ottawa _ with McCabe, when DeLaurentiis proposed to make three films in Canada as starters, and indicated he would build a film studio and also set up a film school. McCabe said thanks but no thanks. ““There are two different points,” says McCabe in retrospect. “One of them is whether DeLaurentiis should come to Canada and shoot on location bringing his money with him, or whether he should be able.to get money from Canadian investors.” We will design and build a mobile unit to your specifications DeLaurentiis is not a Canadian producer, McCabe explained. “The Canadian tax shelter has been put in place to build a Canadian film industry based on Canadian producers —-not to allow DeLaurentiis or anyone else to wander into this country and use the Canadian tax shelter. And then, when the Canadian tax shelter wears out, to go and use the Argentinian one. “That would be a distortion and a perversion of the Canadian tax incentive. When I talked to him, what he was saying was that he~wanted me to bend the rules so he could come here and operate as a Canadian producer — not in fact make Canadian movies but the movies he wants to make, and take advantage of the tax shelter. I thought it was quite proper to say no to that. I~ would have been derelict in my duties had I not done so.”’ @ He wouldn’t say just how much money the CFDC would gamble on the story of Dr. Norman Bethune, Canadian physician whose memory is enshrined in China. According to McCabe, it will be the largest amount of money the CFDC has ever put into a film. Instead of following the policy of interim financing the CFDC will go all the way,’ he thinks, with Bethune. “‘The Chinese want a much larger government participation. in this because it’s the first time we’ve made a deal with — the Chinese government, and because the Bethune story has some significance in the country. They want more than we can provide so they’ve gone to the minister (Secretary of State Francis Fox) and his staff. We now are talking with them as to how much we will participate in the financing.” (McCabe still © was in his job when he said this). ; @ zi The Bethune screenplay was written by Canadian Ted Allan and the film will be directed by Canadian Ted Kotcheff, who now calls Los Angeles his temporary home. His last film was Dallas North Forty but he’!l go into pre-production this year on Bethune and start shooting in China, Spain and Canada next . year. Meanwhile, although there will be interpreters on the film, Kotcheff is taking language lessons on his own from his lady whom he met in Peking. She is a Canadian by birth and was in China teaching ballet. The Bethune film is a co-operative project between Canad and August 1 Film Studio of Peking. The Chinese will be providing 35,000 extras, thousands of pieces of weaponry, costumes, animals and Chinese and Japanese period armored_ vehicles and aircraft. Canadians will be in all key positions but the Chinese will have technicians on the job too because they want to learn, said McCabe. ; When_he and the other Canadians involved with the film proposal were in Peking they were told the chief interest of the Chinese is earning foreign exchange and teaching their filmmakeers how to make films in the modern manner. | He admits to being well-entertained in Peking but now that he’s no longer with government he can say that he found it hard ‘to keep a Straight face when, at a Chinese variety concert given for the Canadian visitors, a vocalist came on stage to sing — from Rodgers and Hammersteins’s Oklahoma — The Farmer and the Cowmen Should Be Friends. COMMERCIAL UNITS AND MOTORHOMES June2, 1980 Ludlow Steps Down: Little Alta News ‘EDMONTON — A plan to form an Alberta film development agency, initially tabled last fall, is still before the provincial cabinet. Glen Ludlow, who leaves his post as film liaison with the government's Economic Development Department June 1, says his office and its Minister, Hugh Planche, have been co-ordinating the push for an agency with the Alberta Motion Picture Industries Association (AMPIA). ““There’s not much new,” says Ludlow. “But we’re trying to maintain the momentum.” Should the government give its blessing, an optimistic guess would have the new body in place ~ by year’s end, says Ludlow. But he cautions that the structure ofa financing body is far from decided, and it may operate within the government itself rather than as an independent agency. Whatever the case, he says the ‘focus would be on financing at the front-end : “‘The thrust would be to provide funds at the high-risk, development end of it,” he reports. Of course, aid would be directed at Alberta producers. Also in the works is a scheme for apprenticeship training whereby someone would be placed on a production at no cost to the pro » ducer. Such a person would be expected to perform a function, not just observe as in other programs, Ludlow says. Though he declined to pinpoint the proposed budget of the development body, previous reports have set itin the $3 million range. Quebec, with its Institut Québécois du Cinéma, is the only other _ province at present with a similar plan in operation. Its budget of $4 ° million per year covers production, distribution and exhibition sectors, and accommodates special projects via loans, investments, subsidies and advances: Ludlow says the proposed AIberta body would use “elements” of the Institute’s operation. Ludlow’s plans after June 1 are to return to the private sector with partner Linda Jeffery. The two plan to form a new Edmontonbased production services company, Take One Print One. A replacement for the outgoing film liaison had not been found as of press time. DGC Talks Set TORONTO — Negotiations between the Directors Guild of Canada (DGC) and independent producers are slated to begin June 12, per a DGC spokesman. The Guild will be aiming for a first collective agreement with the various producers’ organizations, now conducting contract talks with the Association of Canadian Tel evision Se a Jot down your requirements and Radio Artists and call us today 416-839-0203 Toronto 282-7779 (ACTRA). Meanwhile, there has been no headway toward scheduling contract negotiations between the Association of Canadian Film Craftspeople (ACFC) and producers. PICKERING MOTORHOMES 995 Alliance Road Pickering, Ont. L1V 2P8 *Rentals *Leasing *Sales *Service