Ottawa-born Montrealer Jay Baruchel is a bit of Hollywood darling of late, with several film successes already behind him.
Appearing at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) recently to promote his latest film, The Art of the Steal, he expressed frustration over American films shot in Canada. He also expressed concern for Canadian films which downplay their Canadianess.
The Art of the Steal is a cross-border film shot in Hamilton and Niagara Falls.
“I’m just sick of watching Canadian movies with Canadian actors and Canadian backdrops and then they exchange money and it’s American cash,” he said.
He went on to say, “They seem to think that the moment Americans see Canadian cash on the screen, no matter how long they’ve watched the movie already, they’ll say: ‘Aw, (screw) this then!”‘
Usually when American films, or scenes are shot in Canada, the locale are disguised to look like generic American locales. Many years ago there was a bit of a kerfuffle when an American film company shooting in Niagara-on-the-lake, took down the Canadian flag and raised the US flag in its place.
Although a few more films are being set in Canada, Baruchel says its still a problem to a few, including Canadians.
Still, Baruchel argues that rooting Canadian films in Canada is still a problem for some — including Canadians.
“I remember when The Trotsky came out,” he says, referring to his 2009, Montreal-set comedy about an eccentric high-schooler leading a student rebellion.
“All the reviews were like: ‘Ohh, some of the Montreal inside jokes will take some getting used to.’ I was just like, what inside jokes? We reference the town we were shooting in…. We got a lot of flack. More in Canada than the States. Americans just watched it.”
Although his star continues to rise in Hollywood, he hopes to do more in Canada including doing his own sequel to the film “Goon”.
It should be noted that the Quebec French-language film industry is very healthy indeed and most of those films are very clearly set in Quebec, unlike many English-language films, or certainly American films shot here.
Baruchel has advice for Canadian filmmakers who are nervous about setting their films clearly in Canada; “Turn the camera on, walk down the street,” he said. “Where you’re shooting, that’s where it takes place. Simple as that.”
(with files from CBC)
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