Bye, Bye Blues a rare treat for film enthusiasts
Jun 19 2007
By Alex Browne - Arts Reporter
It’s a rare screening of a rare film by a local director.
Anne Wheeler’s upbeat musical Bye Bye Blues (1989) will be seen tomorrow (Thursday) at 7:30 p.m. at Vancouver’s Vancity Theatre as part of the monthly Canadian Classics series.
The screening will reunite Wheeler (A War Story, Loyalties, The War Between Us, Better Than Chocolate) with the film’s star, Rebecca Jenkins, cinematographer Vic Sarin and many other cast and crew, most for the first time in 18 years.
‘Inspired’ by the experiences of Wheeler’s mother during the Second World War, it follows the adventures of Daisy Cooper (Jenkins), a young wife and mother in Alberta, who learns her husband has been captured and imprisoned by the Japanese.
To make ends meet, she joins a dance band as singer and pianist. It’s an exciting interlude of independence in her life, but eventually she is forced to make a choice – to continue her career or consider her responsibilities to her family.
At the time of its original release, the film won Genies for best actress (Jenkins), best supporting actress (Robyn Stevan) and best original song and a Seattle International Film Festival award.
While it’s one of Wheeler’s most celebrated works, it’s also a rarity, she said.
“I doubt if there are more than six 35mm copies in the world, and at least two of those must be locked up in archives somewhere. This screening is probably the last time it will be seen anywhere in 35mm – and, like most of my movies older than 10 years it’s not available on DVD.”
The Department of Canadian Heritage-sponsored screening marks the 10th anniversary of the Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada, a charitable non-profit organization dedicated to preserving films and other audio-visual works, and increasing access to regional and national collections. The screening has been made possible partly through the work of the trust, and its work Wheeler supports.
She said the precarious ways in which many Canadian movies have been funded and distributed over the years means they are often controlled by companies that go out of business, or have sold off their backlog to other companies.
DVD re-releases are unlikely when ownership of the films is unclear, she said, quite apart from making it difficult to determine how residuals can be paid to actors and other creative participants.
“Bye Bye Blues has changed hands eight times, always as part of a package,” she said, and its not a unique situation for a Canadian film-maker.
“Most of us don’t even know who owns the films anymore. I’ve spent days on the phone trying to find out who owns my films.”
Each evening in the Canadian Classics series, which highlights award-winning films from the past, features a post-screening discussion on the making of the film and its impact on Canadians and the industry.
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Jun 19 2007
By Alex Browne - Arts Reporter
It’s a rare screening of a rare film by a local director.
Anne Wheeler’s upbeat musical Bye Bye Blues (1989) will be seen tomorrow (Thursday) at 7:30 p.m. at Vancouver’s Vancity Theatre as part of the monthly Canadian Classics series.
The screening will reunite Wheeler (A War Story, Loyalties, The War Between Us, Better Than Chocolate) with the film’s star, Rebecca Jenkins, cinematographer Vic Sarin and many other cast and crew, most for the first time in 18 years.
‘Inspired’ by the experiences of Wheeler’s mother during the Second World War, it follows the adventures of Daisy Cooper (Jenkins), a young wife and mother in Alberta, who learns her husband has been captured and imprisoned by the Japanese.
To make ends meet, she joins a dance band as singer and pianist. It’s an exciting interlude of independence in her life, but eventually she is forced to make a choice – to continue her career or consider her responsibilities to her family.
At the time of its original release, the film won Genies for best actress (Jenkins), best supporting actress (Robyn Stevan) and best original song and a Seattle International Film Festival award.
While it’s one of Wheeler’s most celebrated works, it’s also a rarity, she said.
“I doubt if there are more than six 35mm copies in the world, and at least two of those must be locked up in archives somewhere. This screening is probably the last time it will be seen anywhere in 35mm – and, like most of my movies older than 10 years it’s not available on DVD.”
The Department of Canadian Heritage-sponsored screening marks the 10th anniversary of the Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada, a charitable non-profit organization dedicated to preserving films and other audio-visual works, and increasing access to regional and national collections. The screening has been made possible partly through the work of the trust, and its work Wheeler supports.
She said the precarious ways in which many Canadian movies have been funded and distributed over the years means they are often controlled by companies that go out of business, or have sold off their backlog to other companies.
DVD re-releases are unlikely when ownership of the films is unclear, she said, quite apart from making it difficult to determine how residuals can be paid to actors and other creative participants.
“Bye Bye Blues has changed hands eight times, always as part of a package,” she said, and its not a unique situation for a Canadian film-maker.
“Most of us don’t even know who owns the films anymore. I’ve spent days on the phone trying to find out who owns my films.”
Each evening in the Canadian Classics series, which highlights award-winning films from the past, features a post-screening discussion on the making of the film and its impact on Canadians and the industry.
Back to articles