Uhoh Mr Alberta culture minister!
This from the Globe and Mail - rest of the article is here:-
http://tinyurl.com/275r3y7 Mr Gross was not amused :))
“I sit here as a government representative for film and television in the province of Alberta and I look at what we produce and if we’re honest with ourselves, why do I produce so much shit? Why do I fund so much crap?,” Lindsay Blackett, Minister of Culture and Community Spirit, told an industry panel at the Banff World Television Festival. “Why aren’t broadcasters picking up more Canadian content? It’s because Canadian content isn’t what it should be.”
The Alberta government’s annual budget for film, television and digital production is $20-million. In an interview with The Globe and Mail on Wednesday, Mr. Blackett reiterated his concerns that some of that money is being spent on poor quality fare, or productions that never see the light of day.
“We’ve got some great stuff, but we can be better,” he said. “[We need to] up our game. Because I fully believe we are more than capable of doing that.”
Actor and director Paul Gross replied in an e-mail after being told about the comments by The Globe: “It’s sad for the thousands of talented people working in Alberta to have their efforts reduced to a four-letter expletive and sad for all Albertans that this is what passes for responsible government,” he wrote. Mr. Gross has worked on several projects in Alberta as an actor and director, most notably his feature film Passchendaele, which received $5.5-million in funding from the Alberta government.
http://tinyurl.com/275r3y7 Mr Gross was not amused :))
“I sit here as a government representative for film and television in the province of Alberta and I look at what we produce and if we’re honest with ourselves, why do I produce so much shit? Why do I fund so much crap?,” Lindsay Blackett, Minister of Culture and Community Spirit, told an industry panel at the Banff World Television Festival. “Why aren’t broadcasters picking up more Canadian content? It’s because Canadian content isn’t what it should be.”
The Alberta government’s annual budget for film, television and digital production is $20-million. In an interview with The Globe and Mail on Wednesday, Mr. Blackett reiterated his concerns that some of that money is being spent on poor quality fare, or productions that never see the light of day.
“We’ve got some great stuff, but we can be better,” he said. “[We need to] up our game. Because I fully believe we are more than capable of doing that.”
Actor and director Paul Gross replied in an e-mail after being told about the comments by The Globe: “It’s sad for the thousands of talented people working in Alberta to have their efforts reduced to a four-letter expletive and sad for all Albertans that this is what passes for responsible government,” he wrote. Mr. Gross has worked on several projects in Alberta as an actor and director, most notably his feature film Passchendaele, which received $5.5-million in funding from the Alberta government.