A little politics...

This is an open letter to my MP, Mike Wallace of Burlington, Ontario, Canada.  

Dear Mr. Wallace,

I hope this note finds you well.  Thank you for the good work you're doing on our behalf.

I'm writing today to express my strong opposition to our tax dollars being used to bail out General Motors or any other automaker that's not cutting it in today's economy.

I don't know if you heard the reports on the news yesterday estimating the total hourly value of a GM worker's wage package--including benefits--at $78 per hour.

Seventy.  Eight.  Dollars.  Per.  Hour.

That's $162,240 to bolt rivets onto pieces of sheet metal.

I cannot emphasize how absurd that number is.

The auto industry and it's workers seem to have sadly fallen into a culture of entitlement and are living as if we're still in the post war boom years.  Even at $58 per hour I would oppose our tax dollars being used to bail the auto sector out.

For too long the auto companies have been making products no-one wants.  Any kind of government incentive to keep those companies going is a waste of our tax dollars.

I understand that some would state how vital the auto sector is to our economy but I would remind them that the sector has failed.  Regardless of how important it used to be, it is clearly no longer viable and has been on a downward spiral for at least 15 years.  Propping up a non-viable sector is hiding our head in the sand, throwing good money after bad, and refusing to acknowledge the patently clear; it's time for a new industry (or industries) to rise up and form the backbone of our economy.

We need to invest our tax dollars in developing new technologies and industries to see ourselves, our children and their children into the future.  Continuing to prop up a dinosaur of an industry that pays its workers ABSURD wages for the kind of work they do is mismanagement of the public trust and funds of the grossest kind.

As a self-employed entrepreneur, when tough times come, no-one is lining up to bail me out. Routinely over the past ten years my wife (and four kids) and I have had to do without, cutting costs, reducing expenses, and living a very lean existence in order to continue building our life. The thought of my tax dollars, earned with such difficulty, going to support some auto worker who thinks he/she is entitled to a $162,240 a year job for playing with nuts and bolts is infuriating beyond belief.

It's time for GM and the other auto companies to wake up.

1) Supply has outpaced demand.  No-one needs a new car every two years.  The auto companies must stop using planned obsolescence as part of their product development strategy and start making 'green' cars that last a lifetime.

2) Oil is non-sustainable long-term so we--as a so-called "progressive nation"--must move now to begin adjusting by investing in public transit and in our cities, stopping suburban sprawl, and focusing on local initiatives from farming, to resource development, to healthcare etc.  The auto companies should be making fewer cars, bottom line.  Our public funds need to go everywhere BUT to the auto sector.

3) The old-timer 'union model' is an obsolete approach from two generations past.  Government needs to stand up to the unions and call their bluff.  I cannot express how angry I am at the prospect of our tax dollars being held hostage by a bunch of throwback bullies.

I believe that in unprecedented hardship lurks hope as yet unseen.  I believe that our country can survive this season and emerge stronger.  I believe in ingenuity and hard work.  I reject in the strongest terms giving handouts to people working for an industry that's become fat, lazy, non-productive, non-environmentally aware and possessed of an attitude of entitlement.

No-one should be entitled to $162,240 a year.

And we tax paying Canadians certainly don't deserve to be footing that bill.

I sincerely hope you take this very seriously and bring  this to the attention of the powers that be in Ottawa, urging them to do what's right, and visionary, and responsible despite the short-term stress and difficulty that may ensue.  Now is not the time for looking back to the way things were.

Now is the time for looking, and moving towards, the future with hope, passion and courage.

Sincerely,

Todd Andrew Cantelon

Just finished...

So, for the last part of the day they moved us into the 'big room'.  If you have kids, you'll have seen the Veggie Tales Movie called "The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything".  Well that film was mixed in this same exact room.

The reason it's called 'big' is because it has the 'big' projector (a Christie) and big--THX certified--sound.  You experience the film as it will sound in a proper movie theater.

Pretty cool experience.

And my little film still feels like it's going to do what we'd hoped.

We hope.

T

And...

They just brought me some berries.

Pretty nice of them.  They asked me if I wanted something to drink and they came back with water, ice, and berries.

As I've said before, there are some moments--very few and far between--that are nice moments. A very once in a while experience that feels 'Hollywood'.

Today is one of those.

I'm in a suit, eating berries, watching my movie get tweaked.

In an hour or so I'll post again to show you the 'big' room where we'll do the actual real-time layback with a proper projector, screen, and THX-certified sound.

My reminder to myself (and perchance to you...) is to be oh so deeply thankful for those small moments of mercy.

T

In process...

That's the projector.  The 'crappy one'.  We're in the 'low rent' theater today.  Notice the baffling on the ceiling?
The patch bay in-studio.  This is nothing compared to the one on the other side of the wall where the 'brains' for the whole system live.  These are just so we can hear what's going on to make sure it's matching properly.

The mixing station.  Where audio and picture meet.

The back of the room has these panels to diffuse and re-direct the sound.  

And the full-view.  I sit at the second desk, the op at the front.  That's the first bit of reel two running up there.

Movie-making, in the process...

T

behind the scenes...

So, first-off, oh man but did we ever tie one on for my birthday.

Love my friends.  Love my wife.

Secondly, seems like my sense of impending 'Our World's in trouble and I've got to do something about it...' is being shared by one of my bosom-friends.

That sense of urgency--the drive to put the truth and some positivity and some hope back into the World--will drive what I do today.

And here's what I'm doing.

Going downtown to re-stripe the 5.1 audio to the continuous reel master of my first feature-film.  I'll take some shots of the five-hour process and upload 'em here for you later tonight.

The reason we're doing this (essentially getting the final audio laid back over the final picture) is that our domestic (and international) distribution deal on THE STORM is just about done. We have to send a final screener off to get the deal locked.

Fun stuff.

A lesson to me in this is that of perseverance.  We shot the film Feb/Mar 2006 finished it March 2007 it's now two years later and we're just now locking distribution.  I'm sure there's many a person out there who was involved with the picture that thinks it died the death of most small indie-films.  Truth is, we've been quietly, simply, and slowly (because we don't have the funds to do it fast...) working and working and working towards getting the film to an audience.  We're almost there.

The day the deal gets signed and the day the thing finally releases is going to be a great one for me--and for those who worked with us on it.  The new wrinkle is that one of the distributors is seriously thinking about going limited theatrical with it.

We never expected that, but it'd be awesome if it ended up going that way.  As usual, still no guarantees but things are looking hopeful.

So, if you've been at it a long time, keep at it and keep believing.

The light of day will be seen friend.

T

35 and counting...

So, I turn 35 today.

Pretty interesting stuff.

I thought I'd take a minute to try and write down some of the things I've done in the past 35 years. Obviously I'll miss a bunch of things and the things I'll recall will probably be self-serving to some degree.  I'm really doing this for me but I'm also mindful of the fact that a big point of this blog is to--hopefully--inspire some self-reflection on your part.

I try to evaluate and re-evaluate my life a couple times a day, never mind once every 35 years.

So here goes, stream of consciousness-like...

Born, March 7th, 1974.  Sudbury, Ontario Canada.

1-6 in Newmarket, Ontario Canada.  I remember the backyard--a farmer's field--and endless exploration.  I remember school and my Dad driving me there on his motorcycle and feeling like the coolest kid in the World.  I remember our next door neighbors the Stahli's.  I remember lego in the basement with my brother on weekends and flinstones on TV during lunch.  I remember Monday Night Football with my Dad.  I remember the hard wood pews at my Dad's Church and listening to him preach and thinking he was cool.

7-14 in Jerusalem, Israel.  I remember a new school a new language and new friends.  I remember fitting in within three months.  I remember walking to school down little alleyway-like streets and picking pomegranates off roadside trees on the way home.  I remember school choir and singing for heads of state one 'Yom Ha'Shoah'.  I remember school trips and swimming in the ocean and the Jordan river and the Sea of Galilee.  I remember my teachers and my schools.  I remember many adventures with my brother and Ariel and Richard.  I remember doing sound and seeing my Dad 'transfigured' and realizing in that moment what I needed to do with my life.  I remember seeing 'The Goonies' for the first time and realizing that, in addition to preaching, I needed to make movies.  I remember topless babes on European beaches.  I remember snorkeling in Eilat and flying to South Africa and being so sad that I had to leave Israel to go back to Canada.

14-21 in Mississauga, Ontario Canada.  I remember high school.  I remember loving football and drama and english and girls.  I remember the surprise I felt at starting to become 'popular'.  I remember my 'first love'.  I remember failing my driver's license then finally getting it.  I remember hanging with Jer and Ty and Craig and Marty and Pete and Cole and Jess and Steve and Sam and Kev and Stanley.  I remember my English teacher changing my life.  I remember singing in Choir and acting on stage.  I remember getting my first motorcycle and Pioneer Camp.  I remember starting to preach and starting to do TV.  I remember noticing that people responded to me.  I remember life guarding for hours upon hours upon hours.  I remember dinner around the harvest table that now sits in my house.  I remember our first pool and feeling like my family had finally crawled up out of missionary poverty.  I remember my grandpa dying. I remember starting to do what I do today and being scared shitless and doing it anyway.  I remember heartbreak and then--wonder of wonders--meeting a girl who redefined what 'first love' meant.  

22-34 in Hamilton, Burlington, Vancouver, Burlington, Ontario Canada.  I remember getting married.  I remember Gord and Michelle.  I remember our first youth Church succeeding then another then our planting our first Church.  I'll never forget how hard it was to get that thing off the ground.  I remember my first TV series getting canceled.  I remember deciding to do my own.  I remember that first show and feeling like a million bucks.  I remember pitching to CTV and Global and CH and getting 'no' and 'no' and 'no' from everybody.  I remember CTV stealing my concept and the bitterness at seeing them do my idea better than I ever could 'cause they had more money than money.  I remember near bankruptcy and collection agencies calling 18 times a day.  I remember my wife and I hanging on by the skin of our teeth.  I remember renting our first house so we wouldn't lose it and finding out we were unexpectedly pregnant the day my second TV series died it's last death.  I remember moving into my Grandmother's cottage and feeling like a failure.  I remember almost getting a job stocking shelves and a call out of the blue that saved our bacon.  I remember BC for six months and living in Mom and Dad's condo while Dad slowly descended into the deepest depression of his life.  I remember Hugo.  I remember Aaron and Katie and becoming fast friends.  I remember Whistler in summer and Granville Island and hours of staring at boats.  I remember Taber and heartbreak and feeling like I had nothing to say.  I remember our house given back to us like a miracle and taking my wife home and seeing her so, so happy and I remember her giving birth to my firstborn son.  I remember this guy named Tore calling and asking to go out for lunch.  I remember Freedomize and Gord leaving and everybody thinking I was going to fail and I remember terror and stress as I tried not to.  I remember the Sunday when we first passed 200 in attendance and the year we topped $300,000 in revenue and realizing that we were going to be okay.  I remember getting bored.  I remember God telling me I could leave and I remember that last Sunday with almost 400 there and an ovation after my last sermon and how great it felt to quit on top.  I remember our script getting financed and leaving my job to start another.  I remember directing my first feature film and nearly dying.  I remember running out of money three months in and living for two years with almost no income.  I remember the day I transferred the last $150 from our bank account so we could buy groceries and I remember a couple days later the call coming from my business partner that told us we were going to be alright.  I remember a very busy 2008.

I remember the moment I first laid eyes on Chris and Cate and Sam and Jen and Tam and Derek.  I remember Steve and his advice.  I remember Doug and Sandy and realizing I had a 'mentor' in addition to my Dad.

I remember preaching to 12,000 and to 12.  

I remember drumming for my brother.

I remember moments of glory and shame.

I remember the births of my babies.

I remember the twinkle in my wife's eye.

I remember, that this story is not about me.

It's about He, and thee.

That's why I do what I do.

"Happy Birthday to you."

T

Variety says...

That's what you read in every 'serious' production company's waiting room.

"Variety".

It's the Wall Street Journal of the entertainment industry.

If you're not in our industry you'd never read it.  It's kind of obtuse, doesn't have many pictures and is highly specialized.

It also costs $12 to buy and a subscription is something like $260/year.

"Dang, I'm certainly NOT reading that."

Okay, but it's got stuff in it that will help illuminate the trends that are shaping our industry and, like it or not, our industry shapes pop culture in a way that's almost singular.  Also, because our industry is so highly-charged, the things happening in it can give you some clues as to the larger movements that are going on in pop-culture at large and those movements are sure to be influencing you and what you do as well.

So, I thought I might start filling you in on the things I'm noticing as I read it.  Should be a weekly post.

From this week...

-American Idol's ratings are down.  Last year they averaged 28-30 million.  This year--so far--they're averaging 24-26 million.  Seems to me that this is related to their attempts to mix things up.  It's coming across as more complicated than anything.  The lesson for us?  Be VERY careful before changing something just 'cause you think change is needed AND be very careful of adjusting your vision and ideas to try and suit or match what you think the market demands.

-Online advertising is way down.  Our industry was thinking that web advertising would be the new 'holy grail' of keeping the studios in business.  It's just not panning out that way.  For the small folk like us it's still viable but if you're looking to make HUGE amounts online it's just not happening.  The lesson for us?  This economic slowdown affects companies and they have less to spend on advertising so as content providers we have to continue to make compelling art and make sure we know our audience.  Targeted seems to be more and more the case these days.

-Blue Ray is NOT blowing up.  Families are waiting to buy DVD's 'cause they're expecting to upgrade at some point to Blue Ray so that means DVD's aren't selling and Blue Ray's not selling.  The lesson to us?  Sometimes 'good enough' is 'good enough'.  Think very carefully before building planned obsolescence into your product or service.  At some point your audience is going to be tapped out.  This whole "I'm waiting on Blue Ray" thing is certainly true in my family.

-Every the biggest companies there are (NewsCorpt, GE, Disney) are really suffering right now. 

-Movie attendance and TV viewership are up.  This is typical for a recession.  Entertainment is typically recession-proof.  Problem is, the multi-nationals who own the studios are taking the profits from the studios and sending them to their other more troubled divisions leaving the studios struggling even though they're succeeding.  If you have a business (or a Church) be careful about robbing peter to pay paul 'cause eventually it'll bite you.

-International distribution is more and more important and this means high-concept, male-driven, action-oriented films are more and more in demand.  This is why you're seeing what you're seeing at the multi-plex.  The lesson for us?  Broad, universal appeal is what works best, no matter what business you're in.

That's what I got this week.

Hopefully that's useful for you as you continue working to build your life.

Peace,

T