NLIS 1
July 4, 2002
(Industry, Trade and Rural Development)

 

Producer receives funding to market Rare Birds in New England

A St. John�s film producer has received funding to promote and distribute a Newfoundland and Labrador film in the North East United States. Paul Pope, producer of the film Rare Birds, has received $25,000 from the Department of Industry, Trade and Rural Development�s Business and Market Development Program to help market Rare Birds in the New England area.

"While Rare Birds has been well received by filmgoers in St. John�s, Toronto and Vancouver, Canadian films of this nature have historically had difficulty in gaining wide acceptance in U.S. markets," says Kelvin Parsons, Minister of Industry, Trade and Rural Development. "This funding will help underwrite the cost of marketing Rare Birds in the Boston area."

Producer Paul Pope says Canadian films are deemed by many U.S. viewers to be purely art films, "serious low-budget films with no stars and sad endings which oftentimes are doomed from the start." Pope believes Rare Birds will succeed in the U.S. market because the star, William Hurt, is a well-regarded American actor, and because off-beat comedies are currently very popular. Pope also believes the Newfoundland and Labrador setting is an added bonus as it is considered by Americans as an exotic locale.

"Our experience in Canada has been that Rare Birds performs well in markets where it is promoted and benefits from positive word of mouth, so our intention is to have a limited American release to test the film�s marketability there," says Pope.

The distribution rights to Rare Birds have already been sold in Spain, Argentina, Italy, Greece, France, Iceland, Israel, Russia, the Middle East, the Philippines, Poland, Serbia, Turkey and Venezuela.

The department�s Business and Market Development Program is designed to provide new entrepreneurs and expanding small businesses with funding to help them acquire expertise to pursue new business ideas and new markets for their products and services.

Media contact: Josephine Cheeseman, Communications, (709) 729-4570.

2002 07 04                              3:35 p.m.


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