Tourism, Culture and Recreation
May 28, 2009
The following statement was issued today by the
Honourable Clyde Jackman, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Recreation.
It was also read in the House of Assembly:
Local Film-makers Have Works Screened
at Cannes
I rise in this Honourable House today to acknowledge
and congratulate two of our province�s talented young film-makers, who
have recently had their films screened at the 62nd Annual Cannes Film
Festival in France.
Crackie, a feature film,
written and directed by Sherry White and produced by Jennice Ripley and
Rhonda Buckley, was featured at the festival on May 14th and 20th as
part of Telefilm Canada�s Perspectives Canada screening series.
In addition, The Hall, a short film written and
directed by Stephen Dunn, a Ryerson University student and native
Newfoundlander and Labradorian, was also screened May 18th during the
Short Film Corner series at Cannes.
The film industry in Newfoundland and Labrador is
filled with talent that has been recognized locally, nationally and
internationally. You may recall that the Newfoundland and Labrador
feature film Down to the Dirt was also screened at Cannes last
year.
With the screening of Crackie and The Hall
at this year�s festival, the investment by the Government of
Newfoundland and Labrador and its agencies in the development and
marketing of local film projects is clearly paying off. We are a
presence on the international film scene. Ms. White and Mr. Dunn, along
with their production teams, are to be commended for their outstanding
achievements.
I would be remiss if I did not mention a short film
called Countdown, directed by Jordan Canning, which was selected
as one of the top 10 finalists in the 2009 National Film Board/Cannes
Short Film Corner online competition. While that film was not
screened at Cannes this year, to have been a finalist in the online
competition is an achievement in itself.
In the past five years, from 2004 to 2008, the
Government of Newfoundland and Labrador has invested over $17 million in
film production activity. Most importantly, this investment has, in
turn, enabled another $51 million to be leveraged from other public and
private sources, resulting in total production activity of over $68
million.
And this year is shaping up to be a banner year for
local film production. Tax credits included, Budget 2009 investment is
expected to total about $7.7 million � due in large part to the filming
of a new, hour-long CBC television series, Republic of Doyle.
This is indeed an exciting time in our local film
industry and I invite all members of this House to join with me in
congratulating the young film-makers featured in Cannes, and to wish
them well as they move forward in their film careers.
