Cinema Canada Octo.E

CINEMA CAN A D A • Event: The Atlantic Film and Video Producers' Conference Case Study: John Walker THE BIG DEAL Place: University of Prince Edward Island, Charlottetown Time: 15 minutes before lunch (applause and foot-stomping) instinctively, start selecting and adapting and pulling the bits of text, she had an instinct of how Chaimum :Thankyou very much. (more to translate that written language through to whistling and cheering) Our next guest speaker dialogue. We all came together for the first is from Toronto- selection, which was about 200 pages thick, and (Boos and catcalls) began discussing our approach to the film. We came together every couple of weeks and that Chairman : - from Toronto, home of the Big took about a year of discussions. Deal. He is a cinematographer, documentary We had all worked on big-budget films butwe filmmaker and brown-eyed handsome man. decided to make this one a low-budget film Ladies and gentlemen, John Walker. because we wanted to get it made. Too many of (smattering of applause) our friends have spent anywhere from three to John Walker : (clears throat) I know you're all seven years with their two or three-million-dollar anxious to get to lunch, but I'mhere today to talk budgets, and they are still trying to raise money about how to produce a low-budget feature, as for the film and getting depressed about not opposed to The Big Deal that is so prevalent in making the film . Our aim from the start was to Toronto these days. Specifically, I will talk about work with something that was manageable, in my own experiences in the making of AWinter terms of the amount of money, and what we Tan, and how we got the project off the ground. could accomplish on a low budget, based on our (murmurings of suspicious minds) experience. It's very easy to come up with a John Walker : Have any of you seen A Winter two-million-dollar budget. We could have done Tan? it with a snap of our fingers in an afternoon. The Heckler: Seen it? Man, I've lived it! difficult thing is to know how to come up with a John Walker: Great! We do have something in very small budget. What is the least amount of common then. (coughs) The project was put money we can have to actually get this thing together by a team of five people who all came made ? out of the so-called 'industry' . We all had Heckler: In Toronto? How about 3.4 million varying degrees of experience from 15 to 25 years not counting deferments? in our fields. We set out to make a film that ran John Walker: Maybe some, but not us. In trying in the opposite direction of the industry, in to raise the money, we immediately ruled out terms of our approach and strategy. television because of the dialogue. It is fairly Jackie Burroughs, whom I'msure most of you rough language for those of you that have seen know, was given abook called Give Sorrow Words it. We realized that most TV networks would by a friend of hers. It is based on the letters never be able to show it. The first place we went written by a woman who went to Mexico, to was the Canada Council and the Ontario Arts essentially to write a novel in the tradition of Council. The arts councils are always a ray of Malcolm Lowry, and wrote some 2,000 letters in hope for filmmakers that want to do something a period of two years. She ended up being that is against the stream and a little bit murdered down there and her friend that she experimental. It's a very comforting process if wrote the letters to edited and published a book you're successful with it because you are judged of the letters. Jackie found a profound by your peers. There are five filmmakers that are connection with the character and liked the judging your script. They are scrutinizing it writing - that was really the starting point of the based on their own experiences as filmmakers, project. It's really a project that grew from not as deal makers. That is an important first within, as opposed to "What's the market out step, to gain that confidence from your peers. there?", "How are we going to make money on We were fortunate to receive the requested this?" It was developed from the inside out. amount from both councils and had close to a We each had a craft that we brought to the hundred thousand dollars at this point. film, Jackie as an actor, Louise Clark who was a When we took the scriptto Telefilm one reader producer and production manager, John rejected the script so we didn't get anywhere . Frizzell, a writer, Aerlyn Weissman, a sound there. We had a meeting with then director Peter recordist and myself as cinematographer. We Pearson, and he put his arm around Jackie and had three Mexicans working with us on location said to her, "When I was your age dear, Iwa nted a gaffer, an assistant cameraperson and a to make a film like this too, but now we are Mexican line producer. That was it. making serious films " or something to that We clearly decided that this was going to be al effect, and that was the end of the meeting. film by five people. There wasn't a hierarchy. Jackie didn't remind him tha t she was older than There wasn't one vision in terms of a director. he was but that's beside the point. Anyway, We shared in the shaping of the film, but we all back to the drawing board, we've got ahundred came with our particular strengths and were not thousand, what to do next? . competing wit h each other's strengths. Looking at the script again, we decided that Although we all felt that this was" our" film. the camera was going to play the character of The first step was to start the screenplay Edith , the person that Jackie Burroughs' adaptation. Jackie takes the primary credit for character was writing letters to. There would be that. It's interesting - it really took an actor to, a direct address to the camera which is a very PAGE gO CINEMA CANADA OCTO.E. i." CINEMA CAN A D A • difficult thing to do. Like in cinema verite, the bones of the written script. the Festival theatres in Toronto and independent of rather orthodox industry circumstances, intervention of the camera changes the scene So we shot the film in February. We were theatres across Canada. They pick up a lot of would you like to continue that way or do you and plays a role, so we began working within down in Mexico for six weeks. We shot for 23 European films and were interested in think that was something special to this project ? that context. The budget that we finally came up days. We came back and started editing. We had distributing more Canadian film, so Ron went John Walker: That's a very good question. Yes, I with was $150,000. and we thought we could do a rough cut in June-July. With the rough cut, the with us and, being an enlightened distributor would like to continue working this way. It has something with that. Festival of Festivals was interested in the film with the Canadian rights, was able to pitch the always been my strategy, as a filmmaker, to We approached the Ontario Film Develop and wanted to show it. It was dear that with our project and make the right connections. He make films that are cost-effective. An ment Corporation with the script and they small editing staff, it would be impossible to made a deal with Cineplex and the international understanding of that way of working is rooted supported us through a special fund. It was finish the film bySeptember. We could have still deal went to Films Transit who took it to the in the documentary tradition which we have in called aSpecial Projects Fund - a very small finished the film for $150,000 if we continued Berlin Film Festival and sold it to 10 countries. this country, and which I value as very amount 01 money set aside for projects that I with one editor on deferred salary for months Audience Member: But you had great press. important roots. This film could not have been guess they thought were risky but interesting. and months, but we decided that the Festival of John Walker: We were very luckyto have good made the way it was without documentary I'd just like to point out that three of the films Festivals was a very important starting point for press. Along with the great poster by Tim Forbes experience. I think that we should build our that came out of that special fund were, I've .A Winter Tan . We convinced Telefilm to come and a promotional campaign, we got positive industry from the ground up and I know I'm Heard the Mermaids Singing, Family Viewing and A into it and were able to hire a large crew of sound reviews in Toronto and Vancouver. There is no speaking in the opposite direction than the way Winter Tan. We were supported by the OFDC, .editors to get the film ready in time. The final guarantee that you will get good press but it is trade forums work and market orientations and and Imust say that if you read the script, it could budget was about $300,000, with Telefilm's final good free publicity and it helped the film so on.

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