...we should be loosening up.
Let me explain...
I was fortunate enough to take part in a conversation with some of the fine folks over at Telefilm Canada recently. The conversation centered around one of the projects my company had submitted with the aim of getting development financing. Eventually we just started talking about the types of submissions that Telefilm gets in general, practically all of which are serious, earnest, dark dramas.
Now don't get me wrong. I like serious, earnest, dark dramas as much as the next guy (which probably isn't as much as the next girl, but that's a subject for another post), but I don't think that they're the kind of films we should be making loads of. Why? Because they're just not that popular.
The general public wants to go and see the latest Shrek or Pirates or Spiderman. Given the choice between some piece of light fluffy entertainment and a serious drama, they're going to choose the fluff.
We need to start making fluff.
Now that's not to say I think we need to start making commercial crap. Fluff doesn't mean commercial crap (no matter what serious artistic types are wont to tell you). We need to take a page out of the Brits book and start making movies that are smart, quirky, funny or scary, but most importantly, that are commercially viable.
Let's toss out some examples, shall we? I'm talking about movies like Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz. The Descent and Severance. There are already some Canadians who're doing this. If you haven't seen Andrew Currie's Fido you're missing out.
EDIT: I can't believe I forgot to mention Bon Cop, Bad Cop. Mea Culpa.
My point is that it's making those kind of movies with a Canadian spin that's going to save our industry (or at least it's the way that I think our industry should be moving).
It's time to start catering to what people want to see, not what we think they should see...
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
You neglect BON COP BAD COP which I thoroughly enjoyed.
But yes, this an the right direction to go...stuff that entertains first and foremost.
I call it "Rule #1"
I can't believe I forgot to mention BCBC. An early sign of senility no doubt...
I remember a job interview I went on years ago for a Telefilm job. They asked me what can be done to make the Canadian movie industry more viable.
I said make better movies. Don't compete with american movies but give new blood a chance to make movies that appeal to the general populace.
I didn't get the job.
As a sidebar, I sent my sister to pick up a dvd copy of "Interns", I think the name is.
It's a Canadian movie written and directed by Dave Thomas, with Dan Ackroyd and Saul Rubinick. It was in theaters a few years ago for like a Tuesday night, but I was curious to see it.
But my sister came home from HMV without it. She said she refused to buy the only copy in the store which was $42!
She brought home the full Beverly Hill Cop series, and a Pink Floyd concert, and we still had money left over for pizza.
Post a Comment