Old film news still good

This Ottawa film industry-related story broke earlier this month, but it's definitely worth revisiting the following article in Playback:

"Ottawa sees $83 million in film and TV production, by Etan Vlessing, Playback

"Overshadowed by Toronto and Montreal, Ottawa last year posted $83 million in film and TV production activity, the Ottawa-Gatineau Film and Television Development Corporation reports.

That translated to around 600 shooting days and $23 million dropped directly into the local Ottawa economy in 2010.

“These numbers are modest compared to Montreal and Toronto’s film activity, but our production value is greater than some US states and is increasing every year,” Roch Brunette, general manager of the Ottawa-Gatineau Film and Television Development Corporation, said in a statement."

playbackonline.ca/2011/05/10/ottawa-sees-83-million-in-film-and-tv-production/

Checking with a similar article posted in January 2011 by the Canadian Media Production Association (www.cftpa.ca), "the Canadian film and television production industry showed limited growth from 2008/09 to 2009/10, with an overall increase in production volume from $4.8 billion to $4.9 billion."

The actual number is $4,921 million. $1,900 million of that comes from Ontario, putting this province at the top of the 2010 statistics chart. British Columbia (curiously including Yukon, NWT and Nunavut) and Quebec come in second and third, with Alberta and Nova Scotia rounding out the top five list.You can read the entire PDF document which includes specific feature film production stats by province at www.cftpa.ca/newsroom/pdf/profile/Profile2010Eng.pdf

"Production companies spent a grand total of $903.35 million filming on-location in Toronto in 2010", $726.47 million coming from major productions, according to the Toronto Film and Television Office (www.toronto.ca/tfto/).

The Montréal Film and TV Commission site (ville.montreal.qc.ca/portal/page?_pageid=4497,7006316&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL&playMovie=false) doesn't seem to freely offer up this info - for now.


Thanks for checking in.

Fest starts with Finnish

CFI - Bright Nights: The Baltic-Nordic Film Festival
May 27-28 & June 3-4, 2011, Library and Archives Canada, see CFI site for tickets

"Bright Nights: The Baltic-Nordic Film Festival will take place May 27-June 4, 2011 in the Auditorium at Library and Archives Canada in Ottawa. In collaboration with the embassies of the Baltic and Nordic nations, the Canadian Film Institute is proud to present this inaugural festival of films from Finland, Estonia, Sweden, Latvia, Norway, Lithuania, Iceland, and Denmark (...) All films are Ottawa premieres!"

http://www.swedenabroad.com/News____8338.aspx?slaveid=125418

http://www.cfi-icf.ca/index.php?option=com_cfi&task=showevent&id=68


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OIFF clicks on

"'(The Ottawa International Film Festival) is quickly becoming the stand-out platform to promote and launch filmmakers in the Ottawa area,” said Nina Bains, Executive Director of OIFF. 'Based on the high quality of films we received last year, we anticipate a slate of outstanding films from Canadian and international filmmakers that will make OIFF a must-attend event.'

"Categories for OIFF 2011 include: narrative full-length feature and short films, documentary full-length feature and short films. Narrative genres can vary from drama, comedy and action to horror and thriller. The submission fee is $40 CAD for feature-length films and $20 CAD for short films. The submission deadline is July 1 2011." - www.firstweekendclub.ca/ottawa-international-film-festival-2.html

While the OIFF site at www.oiff.ca gets back online and set up for this year's annual flick fest slated for August 17-21 2011, check out its fun peripheral hub for filmmakers and cinephiles from around the corner and across the globe:

www.facebook.com/pages/The-Ottawa-International-Film-Festival/116708135013441


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It's time to dress up right

Organized annually by The Motion Picture Theatre Association of Canada (www.mptac.ca), ShowCanada celebrates 25 years by bringing national cinema industry delegates to Ottawa's Westin Hotel this year. ShowCanada 2010 was held in Vancouver.

Highlights from ShowCanada 2011's 3-day convention and tradeshow include lunches hosted by Paramount Pictures Entertainment Canada, Warner Bros & Technicolor, and Twentieth Century Fox, Fujifilm Canada & Deluxe, an awards presentation for such achievements as best promotion of Canadian films, and a "Most Sensational, Inspirational, Celebrational, Muppetational Disney Cocktail Show" from Walt Disney Studios.

Hi-ho!

http://www.showcanada.ca

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Reels on wheels

Gear-heads and road warriors rejoice. The Drive-Ins are coming soon - again.

Opening this friday, the near-Ottawa single screen Port Elmsley Drive-In first opened in 1952 (drive-ins.com). It closed in 1991, but reopened in 2000 with the capacity to admit 349 cars. The first drive-in movie theatre, invented in Camden, New Jersey by Richard Hollingshead Jr., reportedly could accommodate 500 cars when it opened in 1933 (wikipedia.org). Also according to wikipedia, the Britannia Drive-In (1949-1996) was the capital's last remaining drive-in movie theatre, replaced by the Coliseum Ottawa Cinemas in 1996.

Here's the Port Elmsley Drive-In site:

http://www.portelmsleydrivein.com

Also nearby and opening this friday, the Gatineau region's Ciné-Parc Templeton boasts two Drive-In screens - one screening in French and the other in English - and can admit an impressive total of 530 cars. Check it out:

http://www.cineparc.ca/

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Managing One World: Fest gig

This One World Film Festival job came up on the moviequips.ca radar and I thought I'd pass it along:

"Program Manager: One World Film Festival 2011
One World Arts (formerly World Inter-Action Mondiale, WIAM)

Applications due May 16, 2011.
Please send your cover letter and CV to: oneworldfilmfestival@wiam.ca

"The OWFF Program Manager will coordinate all aspects of the 2011 Film Festival (October 2011), in liaison with the One World Arts Board of Directors and the volunteer committee for the One World Film Festival. This position is a part-time contract position, approximately 1-2 days per week from June 2011 until end of October 2011, with more time required in August-October. Some volunteer time is expected. Remuneration for the full contract will be $5,000."

http://www.idealist.org/view/job/SKNgFm529NH4/

Thanks for checking in.