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©Photo by Lois Siegel
Michael Spencer, 2003
In my mind “Hollywood North” is synonymous with the phrase “runaway
productions” which the new governor elect of California has sworn to
terminate. The British Columbia film industry is firmly convinced that
it has an exclusive license to the name, and that it should only be
applied to Vancouver. Mike Gasher’s 2002 book (published appropriately
by University of British Columbia Press) was the first to use the title
for a publication, and it had the subtitle “The Feature Film Industry in
British Columbia.” They’re welcome to it.
©Photo by Lois Siegel
Richard Dreyfuss, 1972
As catchy as it may sound, I wouldn’t use it in relation to government
sponsored Canadian film production. Alternate titles might include:
Gimme Shelter, Porky’s and the Pork Barrel, or Night of the
Living Tax Crazed Dentists & Doctors. Something more creative like
Katherine Monk’s wonderfully irreverent 2001 title Weird Sex and
Snowshoes; anything but Hollywood North.
©Photo by Lois Siegel
Mordecai Richler,
1972
Putting this quibble aside, Michael Spencer, with Suzan Ayscough’s
assistance, has written a very readable memoir. There is undoubtedly no
other Canadian film executive who is in a better position to tell the
story of the peaks and valleys on the road to creating an indigenous
film industry. Michael Spencer got his start in film working for the
Canadian Army Film Unit and Crawley Films during WWII, before joining
the National Film Board of Canada in 1945. He moved rapidly through the
Film Board’s senior ranks; becoming the head of Studio “D” in 1950 and
Director of Planning in 1960. Spencer was the author of a brief memo to
Jack Pickersgill (minister of the day responsible for the NFB) on
September 11, 1963, which launched the legislative mechanism that lead
to the establishment of the Canadian Film Development Corporation (now
Telefilm Canada) on March 10, 1967. He started as the acting secretary
of the newly minted government agency and subsequently became its
executive director from 1969 - 1978.
©Photo by Lois Siegel
Claude Jutra, 1979
Professor Peter Morris, in his 1884 directory The Film Companion, states
that “opinions differ markedly about the quality of his contribution at
the Canadian Film Development Corporation, but it is indisputable that,
during his tenure, the film industry in Canada was irrevocably
transformed.” Following his retirement, a lively roast was given by the
film industry at the Sheraton Centre in Toronto. Spencer recalled an
early encounter with pioneer independent producer Budge Crawley: “When I
was making only twenty bucks a week, I asked
Budge Crawley
for a raise, and he gave me the classic response: ‘Do you
want to make money or make films?’”
©Photo by Lois Siegel
Harold Greenberg, 1980
In the following years Spencer took on other roles as a producer, Cannes
Festival juror, president of a Quebec production association,
consultant, and for many years a completion bonder for Film Finances
Canada. He became a member of the Order of Canada in 1989.
©Photo by Lois Siegel
Michel Brault, 1986
The style of Hollywood
North is informal and anecdotal with many stories about film shoots,
which provided an opportunity for Spencer to realize one of his personal
passions - bird watching. The double forwards to the book by Donald
Sutherland and Carole Laure speak well of the respect that Spencer
received from the acting community in Canada. The photographs of notable
Canadian film industry figures by director/photographer Lois Siegel add
greatly to the overall publication. Like Osmond Borradaille (author of
Life Through a Lens) Michael Spencer began writing this work in his
eighties, and the span of his observations from WWII army films to
current productions like Mambo Italiano is unparalleled. Throughout the
book he addresses the underlying problem for Canadian features - the
lack of space on the nation’s cinema screens. I’m sure that many readers
will find his reflections on the development of a feature film industry
very revealing.
©Photo by Lois Siegel
Andre Forcier, 1985 |
