'The People of Earth' Enters Production on Super 8mm

It's working title is The People of Earth. The new super 8mm project under the EVMP banner has gotten under way with the first cartridge off to Toronto for processing. It is a short of course, shot on Kodak 64t Ektachrome Super 8mm film. Written and directed by myself - Nikalas Kryzanowski

The story revolves around the three forest dwelling survivors of a catastrophic event. Through Voice of God narration it explores their characters and traces their history to the point leading up to the catastrophy. It will touch on themes of human conflict and cooperation and will hopefully illustrate how we are ultimately at the mercy of our environment. It is being shot amongst the decimated forests of Stanley Park in Vancouver, BC. Click here for more context.

There should be more details and photographs available in the coming weeks.

East Van Moving Picture Collective Launched

The new website for the East Vancouver Moving Picture Collective has now been launched.

The EVMP, as it's known, is as a grassroots, community based filmmaking resource created by myself and Benn Neufeld for anyone with an interest in networking with like-minded individuals, and for those who want to see their own artistically motivated films come to light.

One of the EVMP's main goals is to provide both practical and moral support for everyone wishing to collaborate on a film shoot. We feel our approach will provide a wonderful platform for those who wish to participate in the process of filmmaking but who may lack the network. We're looking for all types of crew to join us, with no talent too small.

It features a members forum for communication, as well as news from around the Vancouver film scene and more.

I'd like to extend and invitation to join our forum to contribute to our project.

Cavia Erectus

On a personal note, I've wrapped and finished my own art film called Cavia Erectus. It's distributed online by the East Van Moving Picture Collective, which is a group founded by myself and Benn Neufeld. As of now, we're sans a proper website, but working hard to get one.

You can currently find it on google video here: Cavia Erectus It's five minutes long - please have a watch.

Directed by Nikalas Kryzanowski
Featuring J. Mercer
2006 (5:24)

Brand Upon the Brain and a New Model of Production

The Film Company, is an interesting Seattle based film company with a business model unique to the current climate in the industry. The model is based on trust. While sounding risky, it gives the the Company the opportunity to scout and nurture talent, as well as the power to take artistic chances to produce films that are more cutting edge and entertaining than the Old Guard of Hollywood movie making.

In producing Winnipeg-based, surrealist director Guy Maddin's feature "Brand Upon the Brain", they offered him a full professional crew, 11 hours of film footage and a month to prepare his film. And most importantly, they offered him full artistic and creative freedom. This before even pen hit paper for a script.

The Company also retains funds to court distribution for the films and even retains a fund for self distribution in the event that no outside distributor can be found. (Brand Upon the Brain opened at the Toronto International Film Festival, on September 8th, with a live score by members of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra.)

The model also allows the company to court directors who have established reputations making edgy cult films, such as Guy Maddin. On paper it makes for a win-win situation.

For a piece in Cinemascope Magazine, he writes that, "In Canada, most feature films take years to develop. By the time the money arrives, you're sick of the subject matter." He talks of the merit in doing things impulsively. Action! not talk.

If there's one thing a production company should be doing, it's producing. There is far too much talent that is wasted. And it's a fine thing that there is a company that sees the potential in harvesting raw talent over nit-picking bureaucratic indifferrence.

Trailer Park Boys: Get Thee to the International Market

Two things:

I'm not surprised. The Trailer Park Boys opened on some 200 Canadian screens with record box office receipts totally roughly $1.3 Million. The popular potty mouthed TV program that has run for five seasons on Showcase with solid ratings, has consistently been one of the top rated shows in Canada.

Yes, it pains me that this kind of subject matter does so well on our airwaves, but it's also a "cultural export" that puts Canadian programming on the radars of the viewing public in countries such as Iceland, the UK, Australia, New Zealand, the Netherlands and the US.

What has also not surprised me is that the Trailer Park Boys movie has not yet opened as a film in these countries. US and UK release is simply stated as TBA. I can only guess why. Perhaps the distributors are waiting to see how it does in Canada first, however, you can be assured that foul mouthed depravity on screen usually translates rather seamlessly across borders. The only difference this time is that we're exporting rather than importing.

It's not out of character for a Canadian production with box office potential to not fully realize itself. Look at Vincenzo Natali's Cube. This Hitchcockian/Dystopian thriller has enough going on to rival any Hollywood film. It opened on 16 screens and took in a mere $57,000. According to Box Office Mojo, it's widest domestic release had it on 24 screens. Thankfully it was shored up by it's eventual foreign release. Had a major studio made this movie, as it is, it would've seen $40 million or more. Comparable in quality to Trailer Park Boys, the two Jackass films have grossed over $150 Million combined, and here we're celebrating one percent of that as a record.

Canadian film should be placing more emphasis on marketing. Get Trailer Park Boys on foreign screens. Otherwise, the Americans and Brits will be downloading crappy internet rips of it in no time.

Moral Ambiguity

I would like to argue that film-going, Hollywood style, is a Godly pursuit. It's a light emitting medium that presents to us with a set of clearly defined morals. Full of angels and demons, we usually find ourselves aligning with the filmmakers conception of justice, afterwards feeling vindicated in our decision, and if the filmmaker is particulariy effective, ready to spread the feel-good-word to those around us.

On the otherhand there is a devil of a cinema out there, far less popular than your good news cinema. It operates under an entirely different set of conventions. Morality is questionable, ambiguous. It can be confusing and many times there are no definitive answers provided.

They're also at the foundation of the Canadian film tradition which is linked closely to the European auteur tradition, where the directors of the film are the largest selling point, even larger than the actors. This cultivates the expression of individual morality rather than the collective morality of Hollywood. Each auteur piece "belongs in spirit" to the director and goes to illustrate the relatively of morality itself, which is a tough swallow from the Judeo-Christian film going perspective.

The Canadian Co-operation Project

Here's a tidbit that's been buried in history. If passed today would likely (and hopefully) cause an furor across the nation. It was a motion passed by government officials in 1948 that showed an incredible lack of foresight, ambition and even sovereignty on Canada's part. The veritable *stunting* of Canadian initiative.

It goes that the Government of Canada agreed not to pass a Canadian quota system for our own industry or tariffs on U.S. films, in exchange that Hollywood studios to agree to *mention* Canada as often as possible in order to promote the tourist industry. A so called "Gentleman's Agreement".

The agreement was terminated in 1958 after the threat of quotas and tariffs had evaporated. The only trouble is - the damage had already been done. This hinderance to Canadian film production probably did more to solidify the Hollywood's strangle hold on the nation's movie houses, stifle Canadian movie producers who were fledgeling at the time and train Canadian viewers to recognize themselves in American film over their own.

This interesting documentary in the CBC archives from 1975 called Bright Lights & Political Fights: The Canadian Film Industry, illustrates just how poorly this reflects on the Liberal government of the day. It serves to underscore the troubles Canadian film has had throughout the last century.

Enjoy. That is to say, roll your eyes and throw up your arms.

Hosted By: Don McNeill.

"The Canadian Cooperation Project". The CBC Digital Archives Website. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Last updated: 25 Aug. 2004. "http://archives.cbc.ca/IDC-1-68-1406-8999/arts_entertainment/film_industry/clip1"> [Accessed 8 Sept. 2006.]