Canadian Film was honoured at the 28^th annual Genie Awards. The event was of new Canadian talent, Canadian legends of the industry and a couple of humanitarians. Foremost, the evening was to congratulate all the filmmakers on a job well-done and having a film, of any description, be produced into physical presence.

By: Kindah Mardam Bey
March 3^rd 2008

Canadian Film was honoured tonight at the 28^th annual Genie Awards. The event was filled to the brim with new Canadian talent, Canadian legends of the industry and a couple of humanitarians. Foremost, the evening was to congratulate all the filmmakers on a job well-done and having a film, of any description, be produced into physical presence. Now that Canada has a thriving industry of film, how do we get those films seen in theatre, and shelved enmasse in video rental stores? How do the ideas and thoughts behind Canadian films integrate into an international society? If you were looking for the ‘who are you wearing' section on the Genie's I am afraid you will have to search elsewhere, as AnEVibe discovered at this years Genie's that although the clothes were very nice, it was more about the representation of Canadian films that was on the minds of these filmmakers.

Star-studded indeed, the event had such actors in attendance as Sarah Polley, Sandra Oh, Kim Cattrell, Rossif Sutherland, Gordon Pinsent, Wendy Crewson, Molly Parker and Marc Labreche. For those interested in the filmmakers; a room with David Cronenberg, Atom Egoyan, Robert Lantos, and Kevin Tierney can only provide a source of great energy and talent. The event was rounded off with risk-taker filmmakers like Rob Stewart (Sharkwater) who was inspired to wear a kilt for the evening to garner some notice for his film, and the real-life hero Romeo Dallaire that the film Shake Hands With The Devil was about.

Executive Producer of Away From Her and Director in his own right, Atom Egoyan said that it was ‘Gratifying to see Sarah (Polley) go the distance. She's a brilliant young woman and Away From Her is an incredible story. Sarah has learned a lot from all the different sets that she has been growing up on for all these years. Supporting young talent is incredibly gratifying in general.' Egoyan also spoke about what Canadian audiences can do to give films made within its own country a higher profile ‘we can be acknowledging that we are making some of the finest films in the world. It is difficult to work against the marketing push that a lot of sub-standard American films are getting and that we just don't have that marketing budget. For the most part our films tend to get buried unless a friend sees it and recommends it to their friends. We are making the most exciting films in the world and we as a country need to realize that.' I saw Egoyan a decade previous with the film Felicia's Journey at the Cannes Film Festival when I was an assistant buyer and very little has changed within Canada towards Canadian films, but such Film Festivals as Cannes have gained a higher respect for Canadian filmmakers within that same amount of time.

Genie award winner for Best Actor Gordon Pinsent (Away From Her) was of a similar mindset to Egoyan ‘I suppose that we need to stop thinking that the entire entertainment world starts and stops in Hollywood. We need to take up the interest on some of these Canadian films that are beautiful and we need to get caught up on what films are being made in Canada.'

Sarah Polley, who received the Claude Jutra Award for first time Director, best adapted screenplay, best director and best film awards this evening acknowledged that the primary problem, among many, is that ‘we need to improve accessibility to Canadian films.' 

A singularly unique visionary for Canadian film is producer Robert Lantos (Serendipity Point Films ), who developed the twelve-time Genie nominated Eastern Promises into being, was also on hand this evening to also discuss the matter ‘you could call my films many things, but you could definitely not call them generic. I have a very eclectic taste and I make films that I like to watch, but they are getting harder and harder to make because the film industry has become globalized. Films open simultaneously, in every country of the world at the same time, and now we are focused on a demographic bulk. In order to create global awareness for the studios that make interesting movies, they need a hundred million dollars just to be noticed within that bulk.'

Wendy Crewson who recently was seen in Away From Her took a strong stance as to what needs to be done in raising awareness about Canadian films. After the very recent bill suggested by the Conservative Party that Canadian films be pre-screened for content and subject matter before they get the green light, Crewson feels it is a political issue ‘Sarah Polley found her creative voice without the heavy hand of the government, they have to get rid of that bill right away. Vote for a government that supports the arts, not one that censors the arts.'

Yet a thriving film industry exists within Canada, with an active and interested audience focused towards locally produced films, but most Anglophone Canadians don't know about that sub-culture, as it is the Francophone film industry. Marc Labreche who was nominated for best actor this evening and was in the third of director Denys Arcand's film to follow the theme of The Decline Of The American Empire and The Barbarian Invasions in The Days Of Darkness says ‘I loved working with Denys Arcand, he is funny, and someone I admire very much. Getting into my character was easy as soon as the costume and makeup went on; I did identify with the characters loneliness; that was what I focused on the most when trying to draw out that character from myself. I think it is very important that people find out what films are being made, in Quebec we don't know all the films that are being made in English speaking Canada and it is the same the other way around as well. We need to be better informed about each others films as well as more distribution within the cross-cultures is necessary.'

From UN Force Commander to author to Senate member and humanitarian, Romeo Dallaire who was the subject matter for twelve-time nominated film Shake Hands With The Devil, sees the concern of Canadian participation for film and international change in general, on a much larger scale. He believes that Canadians should simply ‘get involved! Maximize your potential! We are a leading power in the world and we act as though we are some sort of a small insignificant country. We gutted our diplomatic core, and we gutted our forces, and we have not provided our money to the minimum for development and I think we are holding back our youth, and they want to get involved and be a part of the diplomatic and cultural community.'

Documentary Director Robert Stewart whose film Sharkwater has managed to garner international acclaim as well as a Genie nominated this year (look for our interview with Robert Stewart for our Earth Day Theme Week in April) believes that ‘we need awareness. No one knows what we are doing to our own planet. All the fish will be extinct by 2048. No one cares if Sharks become extinct because we have a misdirected fear of them, but if we knew that Sharks controlled the ocean and were a vital part of the process within nature, we would be more inclined to make changes. We need to become more aware of what our planet needs from us. Film has become a great way to inform people and make them more aware of such subject matter.'

An unprecedented Canadian talent Molly Parker was also nominated for a Genie in the category of best actress, even though she lost out this year to Julie Christie, she has won Genie's for her work in Kissed and Last Wedding. Parker is also well known for her role as the romantic lead to Paul Gross in Men With Brooms. She was especially pleased to be nominated for a film her husband wrote and directed. Parker is in a new TV show called Swing Town which she says she is enjoying shooting, which is set in 1970s Chicago centred around some swingers ‘it is like the Ice Storm, but where the kids don't die!' she light-heartedly explains.

A new face to the industry was Rossif Sutherland who was at the Genie's to show support for the nominated film Poor Boy's Game he was most recently in. If the last name Sutherland rings a bell it should, Rossif is son to Donald and half-brother to Kiefer ‘I started acting at 24 years old. My whole family are actors and so I am considered a late starter. I wanted to be a singer-songwriter originally and my Father suggested that I take some acting lessons and so I did. I discovered that acting helped me to learn more about myself and it has been a great way for me to do so. Coming to the Genie's is all very exciting; this is just the fun part for me.'

As in many countries, the shadow that American films cast within the industry can be rather large-sized; it would appear that Canadian films are being swallowed up by a much larger force. Yet, this years Genie's suggested otherwise, as many of the films nominated did have a strong showing in both international and local markets. It does seem that Canadians can actively participate in making Canadian films garner a greater exposure by requesting Canadian films at your local video store, or requesting Canadian films in movie theatres (and when Canadian films are in theatres, to go and assert your purchasing power), or by voting for a government that supports the arts. These seem like simple acts, but they will bring to the foreground a country's talent, and a country's own stories.  The 28^th annual Genie Awards was a delightful way to showcase and congratulate such talent, such stories and such individuals within the film industry.