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By now, if you are a fan of any of the TV programs done in Vancouver, or even just a fan of TV & movies in general. You have heard or read about the uproar in the filming community of British Columbia over the fact the current Premier of the Province, Christy Clark, has essentially washed her hands of the multi-billion dollar industry & is happily letting it die. More disturbing, she has gone as far as to have facebook comments protesting this decision deleted from her facebook page...by the 100s & maybe even now 1000s. A website devoted to screecapping & cataloguing the deleted posts http://www.ninja12.com/cc/ is so long, I couldn't read it all in 1 sitting (and its a read worth reading) An article early this morning by political journalist Bob Mackin http://www.biv.com/article/20130110/BIV0103/130119995 caught the eye of many, especially in the industry. The groundswell of anger & frustration from the deleted comments moved into a plan of action, as tweets, tumblr posts and of course a petition were created to demand action from Christy Clark. Currently, the petition http://www.avaaz.org/en/petition/SAVE_BC_FILM/?wgxOzcb (yes, I generally mock online petitions...but it is still a way to make your voice heard) has garnered over 3,500 signatures in about 24 hrs. It's goal is 10000 signatures, and at its current pace, probably will get there by tomorrow or Tuesday at the latest. From the handful of times I stared at names rolling across the screen of recent signees, mostly Canadian, I saw many connected to the B.C. filming industry that I was familiar with lke Callum Keith Rennie, Crystal Lowe, Erica Cerra, Tanya Hubbard and Frank Cassini scrolled down the ticker in the time I watched. I saw a few others, who work behind the scenes, whose names I recognize also pop up. These are not millionaire actors who are griping over losing a couple thousand dollars. These are people making a barely livable wage in this province, and more specifically VANCOUVER, recently called the most expensive city in North America, angry that she wants to eliminate their jobs all together. For every Jensen Ackles, Jennifer Morrison, Robert Carlyle or Joshua Jackson making millions annually from the B.C. film industry, theres 100s more who make not much more than you or I, put in far longer hours than you or I (I often talk to crew on set who have put in 16+ hour days...then do it again the very next day) & do not have the luxury to just fly off to Los Angeles, Toronto or New York when things dry up here. They have families, secondary jobs, small businesses (many in the industry have invested heavily into it with businesses HERE that will surely have to close up if the industry continues failing) & responsibilities HERE. Tweets from actors & actresses on the Save B.C. Film Campaign "Primeval New World" actress Crystal Lowe https://twitter.com/RealCrystalLowe/status/290562419875528704 "Eureka" actress Erica Cerra (2 tweets) https://twitter.com/AirikahChaira/status/290526320335659009 https://twitter.com/AirikahChaira/status/290615372858654720 "Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes" actress Chelah Horsdahl https://twitter.com/chelahhorsdal/status/290537138813014017 Actor & Producer Kenji Maeda https://twitter.com/kenjimaeda/status/290557782401376256 "Glee" actor Patrick Gallagher https://twitter.com/PatrickGman/status/290579555683561473 "Continuum" Actress Jennifer Spence https://twitter.com/SpenceJen/status/290581532349964289 These arent millionaires, these are all actors you have likely seen on TV or movies, who work a handful of days a month when things are going well, and might work 1 or 2 days, maybe even none, when things are not. Without a film industry in B.C. these people, who have trained to be actors & actresses, who care so much for the industry, would either be unemployed or forced to move out of the Province that they have called home & developed roots in. They are just a fraction of the industry too. There are writers, stunt people, entire crews who build & tear down sets, make up & hair stylists, publicists, casting agencies, location scouts, CGI specialists, artists, prop makers and countless other professions directly tied to this industry....not to mention 100s of other smaller sub-sections of industries that survive because of the addition of the film industry here, such as hotels, drivers, police, medical, fire staff, reporters, and yes, even us lowly autograph hounds. The reality is, there are few large or small industries in Vancouver that arent affected directly or indirectly by filming. The loss of this industry would have a large trickledown effect throughout the entire province. I was so annoyed, I made a tumblr blog post...something I almost never do, because I wanted the message to reach the broadest audience I had available & twitter just doesnt do it in 140 characters.... here was my statement on there... http://canadagraphs1.tumblr.com "British Columbia Film Industry is responsible for 100s of films & television shows you all know & watch. I have posted tweets at Christy several times over the past months of different newspaper articles, tv reports & blog posts about the struggling film industry.
NONE of them did she ever everrespond to. Make matters worse, the Premier FOLLOWS me on twitter, and I even contacted her via DM if she wanted to discuss this privately...still no reply to that attempt either. It is blatantly clear, she HATES TV & Movies & wishes they would go to Ontario, Louisiana or California... which has happened in droves over the past couple years. To say the industry needs a massive boost right now is a gross understatement. There is an election May 14th, but what damage will Christy have inflicted by that time? (NOTE- I edited this section.... it previously said 2 yrs till next election. Thanks to those who corrected my inaccuracy). It will consist of shows that were already here before the intentional murder of the industry started and no new, fresh shows will come to open up spots of employment for the 1000s of unemployed people in the industry this Province worked so hard to build through the 80s & 90s. It is hard for me to believe I am saying this, but it is possible Christy Clark is a worse Premier than Gordon Campbell, a man who implemented laws so absurd it nearly financially cripled myself & many others who are in the low income backet. Christy Clark seems to have no business sense. She seems to be oblivious to the fact there is a multi-billion dollar industry in her Province that is slowly moving to places where they WILL give tax breaks. Christy Clark would rather tax it, have it leave, create 1000s of unemployed workers surviving off Unemployment Insurance & Welfare, instead of working in an industry that has made B.C. a desired place for people to visit (tourism $$), relocate to & do business in. If you WANT shows like Supernatural, Once Upon A Time, Arrow or Psych to keep making the quality products they have been making... you need to have your voice heard. Sign the petition, blog about it, tweet about it, comment on Christy Clarks page & make her P.R. team know we wont quietly heed to her tyrranical actions. This is an industry with MONEY, POPULARITY and MANY OUTLETS to have its VOICE heard. My recommendation to Christy Clark... BACK DOWN from your demands to kill the industry before you end up portrayed as an incompetent, addle minded, crazy person character on 1 of the shows.... afterall, they have the power to make it happen. .. and if you keep poking the bear, I am sure 1 or more of them will make it happen. Other articles referring to this campaign that I've seen today... http://www.timescolonist.com/film-tv-gaming-left-out-of-bc-jobs-plan-1.44327 - Victoria Times Colonist http://www.vancitybuzz.com/2013/01/save-bc-film-petition/ - Vancitybuzz http://vancityfilming.com/save-bc-film/ - Vancity Filming http://www.facebook.com/GlobalBC/posts/10151322419517808 - Global TV story on the noon news http://www.globaltvbc.com/video/save+bc+film+campaign/video.html?v=2325159573#stories - Save B.C. Film twitter account (200+ followers already) https://www.facebook.com/savebcfilm?fref=ts - Save B.C. Film Facebook page (already 1200+ likes) http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/savebcfilm
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