Filmed in Greater Sudbury last year, the movie “40 Acres” has been receiving headlines for all the wrong reasons, with the insolvent company behind the film leaving various bills unpaid.
The controversy reached a head earlier this week, when it was screened at the Toronto International Film Festival despite not everyone behind it being compensated for their work.
A trio of film industry unions (IATSE Local 634, IATSE Local 411 and ACTRA) issued a media statement earlier this month denouncing the movie’s inclusion in the festival, noting in a media release that their members were still owed “tens of thousands of dollars,” and that vendors were still owed “substantially more.”
In the wake of the production’s unpaid bills, they wrote that other film productions “are now met with hesitation instead of elation when they are seeking services from local businesses on behalf of film productions. Some businesses are understandably refusing to provide their services to any film productions.”
Local filmmaker Richard Barlow of Low Bar Productions said that he hopes the controversy doesn’t push Greater Sudburians away from the local film industry.
“I would hope that people are still willing to go out and work, and this doesn’t turn them off from working in the industry,” he said. “Hopefully there aren’t any future instances of this happening locally, again.
“My worry about this, as a small producer, is that this was a big production that left so many people high and dry. Part of my worry was that if this production didn’t pay people, how can they trust this little guy?”
“40 Acres” was filmed in Greater Sudbury last year with an initial budget of $8 million, according to the CBC, though the movie’s producer, Jennifer Holness, said during a panel discussion in Toronto earlier this week that it went over-budget.
The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees and Moving Picture Technicians joined the Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States by issuing a media release earlier this month in which they note they were “profoundly disappointed” those behind “40 Acres” wrapped filming in October 2023 with unpaid invoices and wages.
“The actions of this production company are highly troubling and highlights their disregard for professional ethics and responsibility,” they wrote. “The making of ‘40 Acres’ should not have come at the expense of the well-being and financial security of its actors, crew and local businesses who provided their services.”
Although Barlow said he hasn’t heard of any other large productions failing to pay people in Greater Sudbury, it’s not uncommon in the industry.
Barlow is still waiting on full payment for an acting role he performed a year ago in Toronto.
Although Low Bar Productions’ short films have much smaller budgets than “40 Acres,” Barlow said it’s not uncommon for expenses to snowball. It happens, he said, but should never affect a company’s ability to pay those who work on a production.
“You take a contract, and you just hope they actually have the money to pay,” he said, adding that the best thing those working in the film industry can do is homework on the production companies they’re dealing with.
Local filmmaker Benjamin Paquette, who recently wrapped filming of the feature-length movie “Ripping Off Othello,” told Sudbury.com that he shares the union’s concern. He’s worried Northern Ontarians’ experiences with the people behind “40 Acres” will end up costing future film productions, and that it will give “our fledgling industry a bad name.”
Although Paquette said that those behind “40 Acres” are unlikely to return to Northern Ontario after burning local bridges, their negative impact will linger in the minds of those left unpaid.
In an industry where various expenses are paid at the end of productions, he said that trust is particularly important.
“This kind of unprofessionalism will hinder all film productions in the region, more so for local filmmakers like myself who are already working with less funding compared to the out-of-region based productions that have more money.”
“This changes everything now,” Paquette added. “The upfront costs are going to cause a lot of problems, monetarily, going down the road.
On this front, Paquette noted that Holness was well-regarded in the industry.
4T Productions Inc. and Jennifer Holness now have a spot on the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists’ list of “unfair engagers,” whom they discourage people from working with.
Sudbury.com reached out to Holness for insight regarding the insolvency but did not receive a response. This story will be updated in the event a response is received.
Earlier this month, The Hollywood Reporter quoted Holness as saying vendors would be paid after the movie was sold out of the Toronto International Film Festival. The CBC quoted her as saying the matter has been taken seriously and that through “sheer hard work, passion and many sleepless nights” the movie was completed and that vendors would be paid once the movie was sold, which it was this week.
“40 Acres” is a dystopian movie starring Danielle Deadwyler, who plays a disillusioned war veteran who moves to rural Nova Scotia to raise her son. The movie is screening at SilverCity Sudbury at 4:45 p.m. on Sept. 21 as part of Cinefest Sudbury.
Tyler Clarke covers city hall and political affairs for Sudbury.com.