Sask.-made film to premiere in Calgary
Saskatchewan-made movie Supergrid will premiere this weekend at the Calgary International Film Festival, with local screenings slated in the months ahead.
The film was shot over 17 days in the Regina area in June 2017. Made by the creators of Wolfcop, Supergrid is a post-apocalyptic adventure reminiscent of Mad Max.
The out-of-province premiere is not a slight on Saskatchewan, said director Lowell Dean.
“It’s very rare that you would premiere locally,” Dean said.
“None of the Wolfcop films did. Wolfcop premiered in Montreal; they have an amazing genre festival there. And Wolfcop 2 premiered in Austin, Texas, actually at Fantastic Fest, which is even bigger.
“It’s kind of just what’s the best audience for that film.”
Wolfcop is the 2014 gory actioncomedy that starred Leo Fafard as an alcoholic police officer who becomes a werewolf.
“I think people maybe are expecting Wolfcop, but it’s really more earnest and heartfelt than that,” Dean said of Supergrid. “But still a lot of F-bombs and people getting killed all the time. So it’s walking this weird middle ground.”
Dean considers the film a “prairie future western” in which two brothers embark on a dangerous mission in a Prairie province that has been destroyed by international mining conglomerates.
Dean will attend the Calgary International Film Festival, where Supergrid has scheduled screenings on Friday night and Sunday afternoon.
He is “very nervous” about attending.
“It’s a little different than things I’ve done before, so I don’t know if people will dig it or what they’re expecting from the movie,” said Dean. “I’m proud of it. … It was a big meal to bite off in 17 days.”
While Wolfcop had a Canadawide theatrical run in Cineplex theatres — as its creators won the national Cinecoup contest — that’s not a guarantee in this case.
“It could go straight to VOD (video on demand). I’m pretty sure we’re getting a Blu-ray release. I’d be shocked if it wasn’t playing the theatre or on itunes in the next four months or so,” said Dean.
Supergrid is scheduled to screen at the Saskatoon Fantastic Film Festival in mid-november.
He said a Regina screening is likely before December, although nothing has been scheduled yet.
Since Supergrid, Dean has been diversifying his work. In the next couple of weeks, he plans to start crowdfunding for his first comic book, Atomic Victory Squad.
He also continues to work in the film industry, with more of a focus on television.
While he is still based in Regina, that time is coming to an end.
“I still have a place in Saskatchewan, but I doubt it’ll be for much longer just because there’s not any film work here,” said Dean, who has worked lately in B.C. and Ontario.
“I hope it can be turned around and I hope the powers that be realize there is so much money to be made, and literally all my friends are working in other provinces.”