BY TAMARA BELKOV
Canadian writer and producer Michael Sparaga financed his
low-budget feature-length movie Sidekick with  his credit
cards.
Sparaga has since sold the option for Sidekick, which cost
$35,000 to produce, to Focus Features, the producer of the
acclaimed Breakback Mountain.
Sidekick, a dark-comedy, tells the story of Norman, a mild-mannered computer consultant obsessed with heroes of the comic book variety. One fateful day, he discovers his swaggering co-worker, a salesman named Victor, is slightly telekinetic.Norman decides to train Victor to become a superhero with the help of his friend and comic bookstore owner Chuck.
Norman envisions himself as Victory Man's faithful sidekick
battling the city's criminal element. Of course, the story
takes a turn and Norman is forced to realize not everyone is
cut out to wear tights and a cape.
Sidekick will be showing for one night only at SilverCity
Aug. 3, at 7 pm, as part of Cinéfest Sudbury's Canadian
Spotlight. It is rated for 14-year-olds and over. The
mini-film-fest is a two day event showcasing four of Canada's
most innovative films of the year.
The rookie Toronto filmmaker's unconventional financing was
not the only creative approach he deployed to bring his
laugh-out-loud script to the screen.
Sparaga shot Sidekick on weekends over a period of four
years while he supported himself working as a waiter at the Keg
in Toronto. No one told Sparaga it is usually the actors who
wait tables in the film biz, not the producers.
Made up of mostly family and friends, the crew worked for free
on the production while his mother fed them home-made lasagna.
Co-star Daniel Baldwin, known for playing cops and tough
guys, was an unusual pick for the role of Chuck. Baldwin is
reported to have heard about the role while working on another
film in Toronto and jumped at the chance to play the nerdy
comic book store owner. Baldwin also enjoyed Mrs. Sparaga's
lasagna along with the crew.
When the movie was finished, the ever imaginative Sparaga,
jumped in a car with the director and main actors and toured
the country giving talks and screening his film in eight
cities. Like all the other unusual moves the novice producer
made, the coast-to-coast road trip paid off and Sidekick became
the buzz of the biz.
Sidekick recently won the Cineplex Odeon People's Pick for
Best Flick awarded at the 2006 Canadian Filmmakers Festival.
Sparaga is currently developing another original screenplay
and is considering a sequel to Sidekick.
He expects to have his credit cards paid off in six months.
Other films being screened at this mini-festival are: Bon
Cop, Bad Cop (Aug. 2, 7 pm), Kamataki (Aug. 2 at 9:30 pm) and
L'Audition (Aug. 3 at 9:30 pm).
Tickets are $7.50 each or four films for $25. For more
information, phone 688-1234.
This year's festival will be held from Sept. 16 to 24. A news
conference will be held this Thursday and organizers will
discuss some of the highlights of the 18th annual festival.
The deadline for the festival's CTV Amateur Videomakers' Competition is Aug. 11. This is an annual event to encourage the film and videomakers of Northern Ontario.The competion is only open to amateurs and $10,000 in cash prizes are at stake. More information is available at Cinéfest's website.
