Screen Split

RTE have rejected claims by Shimmy Marcus, film-maker and the man behind the Aidan Walsh documentary Master Of The Universe, that RTE has turned down the film.

Speaking to hotpress, Brian Walsh, who is Programmes Assessor within RTE s Acquisitions Department, told us, Master Of The Universe is still under consideration. There are several people in RTE who are still reviewing the film, and it s totally untrue for anyone to say that we ve turned it down . Asked how Marcus could possibly be under the impression that RTE had already given the film the thumbs down Walsh was unable to offer any explanation for the confusion.
However, Shimmy Marcus is insistent that the documentary was turned down for funding and eventual broadcast in RTE s True Lives slot.
When we spoke to Marcus he was vehement in his condemnation of RTE. RTE are the most reviled people in the independent film industry, he claimed. They have a civil service mentality. When you put it up to them, they throw out the party line. It s like you re talking to a robot, he claimed.
His evident frustration was tempered by the overwhelmingly positive public and critical response including a five-star review in hotpress to what he believes is yet one more successful film to be the recipient of the two fingers award from the national broadcaster.
When the film was shown at the Cork Film festival, Marcus states, two people there tried unsuccessfully to get an RTE representative to explain the national station s decision not to fund the film. But BBC Choice and Channel 4 are keen to talk business about it so I don t need RTE to validate the quality of the film now.
It s Shimmy Marcus belief that RTE considered the documentary voyeuristic and exploitative of Aidan. What they couldn t see, although it was plain to others, he adds, is that Master Of The Universe is the complete reverse, in that it actually counteracts that idea of Aidan. But then RTE can t see anything, in my opinion.
Part of the problem within RTE, he reckons, is that you often can t get to talk to anyone who s in a position to give you a clear answer. Maybe that observation holds the key to the present confusion. You come up against this brick wall all the time, he says. At this point nobody who s seen the film can believe that RTE don t want it.
When Master Of The Universe was shown recently at the Irish Film Centre, five of the six nights were sold out. We had some people who came three times to see it, , claims Marcus. A lot of mainstream film fans were really taken by the way the film showed Aidan s courage and his frustration and they were able to judge it on its own merits. I ve had numerous people on to me looking for video copies. Even those who initially might have been sceptical loved it once they sat down at looked at it.
A lot of people seem to be unaware that Aidan is a much-loved man all over the country and he s a very imaginative person. Marcus is now trying to speed up the process of getting the film out on video for the Christmas market while a UK television release seems highly probable: If we go with BBC Choice we ll have to edit it down as it s not a good length for television. But the BBC saw it and were delighted with it, and we can edit out the bits that might make less sense to an overseas audience without losing the overall impact. I d also like to get it on to the festival circuit .
He could do with the loot in the meantime, as he has to deal with some outstanding debts, including the repayments on a soft loan of #19,000 from the Irish Film Board who to their credit did back the movie as well as money borrowed from personal contacts.
Still, if Brian Walsh s claim that the film is under consideration turns out to the good, maybe this is one saga that might have a happy ending. Watch this space.