Honouring Paul Almond by MATTHEW HAYS Canadian film pioneer Paul Almond, who was way ahead of his time with such breakthrough features as The Act of the Heart, Journey and Ups & Downs, is being honoured with a retrospective this month at the Cinematheque quebecoise. Almond, who is now writing novels in his beach-front home in California, consistently broke ranks with other North American filmmakers with his decidedly European approach to cinema. He is also noteworthy for his collaborations with his ex-wife, actress Genevieve Bujold. In '83, Almond told the now-defunct film mag (and it's a real pity this one went under, but that's another column) Cinema Canada about his creative process and its accompanying frustrations: "My raw material is to go away, figure it all out. I put out antennae. I pick up on the planet waves, the ideas circling the globe, waiting to be realized. Where are we now? I receive. And I write. So far, it works, because I've been ahead of the game. Solstice? Miles ahead, when it started. Ups & Downs? Way before the spate of preppie films. But by the time I find the money, then make the film, then market it, I'm at the tail-end." The Paul Almond retrospect screens until Nov. 8. See repertory listings for showtimes. Playing this week at the Egyptien are the Cannes Lions 2000 advertising award winners. Yes, we are stuck with particularly odious, dreadful and dreary TV ads in Canada, especially those stinking rotten McCain ads. But don't be fooled. People in other countries actually put some creativity into their creation, meaning many of the spots in this collection are brilliant and/or hilarious. This year's Budweiser plugs are standouts. Showing for a limited run only--see film listings for showtimes. A lucid and highly intelligent analysis of U.S. indie film can be found in Cinema of Outsiders: The Rise of American Independent Film (New York University Press), the latest book from prolific film critic Emanuel Levy. The author, a senior critic at Variety, examines the burgeoning phenom of maverick filmmakers working outside the Hollywood epicentre, with cogent arguments formed around such celebrated films as Safe, Poison, El Norte, The Living End and I Shot Andy Warhol. Interestingly enough, Levy reports that the inspiration for writing the book came to him while attending the Toronto International Film Fest in '92, an event he praises as "a glorious forum that has been much more selective in its choice of indies than most American festivals." One of my favourite quotes Levy culled from filmmaker Alan Rudolph (The Moderns, Trouble in Mind), who ruminates on that old charge of selling out: "It's what people are choosing to do with their success. That's where you have to really respect the true independent. Everybody's corruptible on one level. It's hard to turn down a million dollars when you're broke." For his part, Levy welcomes indie filmmakers moving onto bigger-budget projects. This, he argues, will lead to "the continuous renewal of American independent cinema by artists who are likely to be outsiders." : COMMENTS: mhays@mtl-mirror.com