 | |
| Formerly |
|
|---|---|
| Industry | Film |
| Predecessor | Niagara Films Amerivision |
| Founded |
|
| Defunct | 1996 (as brand) |
| Fate | Most assets acquired byLions Gate Entertainment |
| Successor | Lionsgate Films |
| Headquarters |
|
Area served | Canada United States |
Key people | John Dunning (founder, chairman of the board)[1] André Link (president)[1] |
| Subsidiaries |
|
| Website | cinepix |
Cinépix Inc., once doing business asC/FP Distribution andCinépix Film Properties, was a dormant Canadian film production and distribution company. It was established in 1962 inMontreal,Quebec, byJohn Dunning, who soon teamed up with André Link. A key player in the development of commercial Canadian cinema, it is perhaps best known for the comedicMeatballs franchise, the thrillerMy Bloody Valentine and the controversialIlsa series of sex and violence films. In the mid-1990s, the company became an important distributor of independent films in the U.S., before being acquired by the newly formedLions Gate Entertainment and morphing intoLions Gate Films in 1998.
Cinépix started as the successor company of Amerivision, a Montreal film distributor specializing in prestige French imports, which it sold toTélévision de Radio Canada (the Francophone equivalent ofCBC). When Amerivision's parent Niagara Films was abruptly shut down by its founder Fernand Séguin in 1962, one of his partners, John Dunning, established Cinépix to take over its catalogue and pay their creditors.[2] Dunning put the films in local theatres, but it was not enough to make the company viable.[3] After a few months, he brought in theatrical booker André Link to help. The latter would become his lifelong friend and associate.[4] To make ends meet, they expanded into exploitation films of wildly varying origins and quality,[5][6][7] often tweaking titles to make them appear more salacious than what was allowed at the time.[8] Among audience favorites were European imports concerning prostitution.[6] Around 1968, Cinépix opened an office in Toronto, headed by industry veteran Orval Fruitman,[9][10] who would remain with the company until 1979.[11]
Also in 1968, the company signed up directorDenis Héroux for its first production,Valérie, which retained the tried-and-true prostitution theme. To placate Quebec's harsh censorship, the filmmakers purported to showcase a gentler, more politically aware view of sex. Nonetheless, Dunning and Link used the collective pseudonym "Julian Parnell" in the credits, which would become their go-to alias.Valérie was the first Quebec film to top $1 million at the box office.[12] Its sole profits were enough to finance two quick follow-ups iterating on thesoftcore formula,Here and Now (Cinépix's first color production) andLove in a Four Letter World (its first English-language production).[13] For the most part, Dunning was the creative half of the duo, while Link was the businessman.[14] Other producers followed suit, and this trend was coined as "Maple Syrup Porn" by U.S. trade magazineVariety.[15] In late 1970, Dunning hired lawyer Alfred Pariser to assist him as director of production. He would stay until 1975.[16][17]
The commercial success of Cinépix's films initially trumped their risqué nature in Quebec media and, to some extent, in other provinces.[18] Several local celebrities includingDonald Lautrec,Serge Laprade andChantal Renaud, and evenBoston Bruins playerDerek Sanderson, appeared in them.[19][20]Valérie and some of its successors were supported by the CFDC (laterTelefilm Canada), whose presidentMichael Spencer understood the need for commercial product to strengthen the country's burgeoning film industry.[21][22]Saturday Night criticMarshall Delaney wrote: "What is so beautiful and so historic aboutValérie is the way it defines, in 1969 terms, the traditional morality ofRoman Catholic French Canada."[23] However, reviewers typically had little to say about the film beyond its sociological novelty.[18]
Between 1969 and 1970, Kalvex, the parent company ofAllied Artists, built a majority participation in Cinépix, which was supposed to help it reach a broader market.[24][25] AlthoughHere an Now andLove in a Four Letter World were nominated for the1970 Canadian Film Awards, bad buzz ahead of the event convinced Dunning and Link to withdraw them from the competition.[26] Calling it a publicity stunt, jury member andLoyola teacher Marc Gervais nonetheless welcomed their decision and dismissed Cinépix's work as "candy coated skin trash".[27] Dunning and Link opened a distribution office inNew York called Cinepix-U.S.A., and producedKeep It in the Family, a virtually non-nude sex comedy starring former American heartthrobJohn Gavin.[28][29] But Kalvex's support proved limited. The pair bought back their controlling stake in early 1973 and repatriated operations to Canada.[30][31][32] The Cinepix-U.S.A. label was retained for some bookings south of the border, although it was effectively operated from Montreal.[33][34][35][36]
The company kept mulling options to find better financing, such as a stock market introduction,[31] and a sale to Montreal-based TV stationTélé-Metropole, but nothing came of them.[37] Instead, Cinépix announced a two-film joint venture withPierre David's Films Mutuels in 1973, which saw them distribute the documentaryWrestling Queen and produce yet another sex comedy,The Apple, the Stem and the Seeds.[38][39] Also that year, Cinépix was one of ten companies who set up the Association of Canadian Independent Motion Picture Distributors, of which Fruitman was named the inaugural president.[40] In its home province of Quebec, it claimed to distribute up to 100 films a year.[41]
As a distributor, Cinépix helped bring many more artistic films to the screen. A 1973Montreal Gazette article assessed that "last year [Dunning] handled almost every acclaimed Canadian feature in both French and English."[42] In 1974, it took over the distribution of two projects from Canada's leading helmers,Claude Jutra'sFor Better and for Worse andDenys Arcand'sGina, when their competitor, Société nouvelle de cinématographie, backed out of their financial participation.[43] However, their practice of misrepresenting their films' contents in promotional materials occasionally extended to the more artistically oriented product they carried.[44][45][46]
By then, the liberalization of film content had only exacerbated Cinépix's dual profile, which Dunning once described as "schizoid".[47] While courting acceptance from the mainstream entertainment industry, it relied on less savory language to peddle more explicit wares to exploitation film exhibitors.[6][48] Although Link was Jewish and a holocaust survivor, the company dabbled in the controversialNazi exploitation subgenre, distributing the pioneeringLove Camp 7, before commissioning the infamousIlsa, She-Wolf of the SS.[49] Link and Dunning typically went uncredited for these fringe activities.[50]
Regardless of its standing with critics, Cinépix's commercial ambitions made it one of the few alternatives to theNFB among aspiring Canadian filmmakers. In 1973,Christian Larouche joined the company as a truck driver. He would ascend to the position of vice president, producing mainly Francophone films and eventually striking out on his own withChristal Films.[51] That year, Loyola studentDon Carmody also joined, working as a gofer onU-Turn before becoming a production executive.[52] The company's reputation soon extended beyond Quebec's borders.Hamilton'sIvan Reitman initially approached them to help him find a distributor for his bawdy comedyThe Columbus of Sex.[53] Cinépix funded part of his sophomore effortFoxy Lady, and Link eventually offered Reitman to become an in-house producer for them in 1974.[6][54] Toronto'sDavid Cronenberg also reached out to Link and Dunning and shot a test scene for a sex comedy,Loving and Laughing.[6] Cronenberg's style was deemed unfit for it, but they encouraged him to keep in touch if a better project presented itself.[55][56] This was representative of Dunning's meticulous production style, which involved considerable tinkering.[57]
For their role in kickstarting several notable careers, Link and Dunning have sometimes been called the "Roger Cormans of Canada", a sentiment most notably echoed by Cronenberg.[56] However, film historian Paul Corupe has contended that the Canadian market was too different from Hollywood for such a comparison to apply,[7] whileLarry Kent, a two-time director for Cinépix, has argued that its output often possessed a level of creativity beyond that of Corman's more derivative product.[58]
As the box office was becoming saturated with softcore pictures, Cinépix opted for the next commercial genre, horror.[59] Their first attempt was theThe Possession of Virginia, which laced its trademark eroticism with mild esoterism. But it was not successful.[60][6] They also offered a distribution deal to Ivan Reitman forCannibal Girls, which helped him secure CFDC financing.[6] Even the liberal CFDC dragged its feet, however, when Cronenberg returned to Dunning with a project that ushered in what came to be known asbody horror. Eventually released in 1975,Shivers generated unprecedented international sales for a Canadian film, and much publicity at home for its ill-advised use of taxpayer money.[6][56][61] Marshall Delaney, one ofValérie's chief apologists, led the charge againstShivers and the CFDC. In response, Link sent a pamphlet titled "Is there a place for horror in Canada's film industry?" to critics nationwide.[62] Similarly violent works followed withWilliam Fruet'sDeath Weekend and Cronenberg'sRabid, which featured the novelty casting of adult film starMarilyn Chambers, although CFDC support became inconsistent in the wake of theShivers controversy.[22][6] To keep up with inflating budgets, Dunning and Link turned to Lawrence Nesis' Filmco ofWinnipeg, atax shelter broker, for their next batch of projects.[14][63]
In 1978, Cinépix merged its sales division with that of Saguenay Films, a short-lived outfit started by formerAstral boss Martin Bockner. They shared a new office onBloor Street in Toronto.[64] In January 1980, theRCMP seized 275 films from Cinépix for failure to payperforming rights on some of them. Dunning countered that no exhibitor paid the tax, which would add 32 percent to releasing costs and make the entire theatrical business unviable in Canada.[65][66] Charges were ultimately not laid.[67]
Although Cinépix had seemingly lost Ivan Reitman after the 1978 success of his firstmajor productionAnimal House, Hollywood's reluctance to let him direct led him back to his previous employer for a spiritual successor,Meatballs. Reitman sold it toParamount and it became the highest grossing Canadian film up to that point.[68][69] Although the sale's flat fee did not drastically boost Cinépix's finances, it did improve its profile.[70] The company landed another Paramount pickup withMy Bloody Valentine, whileColumbia boughtHappy Birthday to Me. Both films exploited the ongoingholiday horror film craze.[71][72]
Reitman again came through when he helped arrange Dunning and Link's first studio production,Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone. However, it was repackaged as a3D film and rushed to the screens to compete withReturn of the Jedi, which proved an insurmountable task.[73] After further disappointments with20th Century Fox onThe Vindicator andITC Entertainment onState Park, they decided to focus on independent productions. They also lost their connection to Reitman when they opted to churn out low qualityMeatballs sequels (two of which were actually licensed to other companies),[74][75] which displeased the director.[76] In 1986, Vancouver's Jeffrey Barmash joined the company's legal department, and later graduated to producing.[77] In 1988, Cinépix moved into the video-friendly action genre withSnake Eater, the first in a series ofLorenzo Lamas vehicles that made the latter a B-movie staple, while earning the company more criticism for some jarring instances of bad taste.[78][79]
In 1989, Cinépix merged its distribution business with Cinexus Famous Players, itself a recent alliance of producer Cinexus and theater chainFamous Players, to form C/FP Distribution.[80][81][82] The move was motivated by a similar union betweenAlliance andCineplex Odeon.[83] Cinexus quickly left the partnership, and Cinépix became the majority stakeholder.[84] Christian Larouche was in charge of French distribution, while Famous Players higher-ups managed English operations.[82] C/FP scored early coups withCyrano de Bergerac andLionheart, in an effort to nab Canadian rights to indie films before its U.S. distributors could get them bundled with their own territory, as was the norm.[82] In 1991, Link brought in Jeff Sackman, previously vice president ofCineplex Odeon, to beef up Cinepix's English distribution staff.[85][86] Sackman helped reach an output deal withMiramax between 1991 and 1994,[87][88][89] which was followed by a briefer association withSony Pictures Classics in 1994–95.[88][90] In 1992, Cinépix acquired Vancouver-based Festival Films, an ailing arthouse distributor formed by formerToronto andVancouver Festival boss Leonard Schein.[91]
With the emphasis put on distribution, founder John Dunning started feeling alienated from his own company, as Cinépix distanced itself from the hands-on, Quebec-based productions that had been his lifetime's work, in favor of outsourcing direct-to-video product to Ontario-based third parties, chiefly producers David Mitchell andDamian Lee,[92][93] with whom Sackman had a working relationship from their days atRose & Ruby and Cineplex, respectively.[94] In 1994, Cinépix acquired Famous Players' share of C/FP Distribution. To keep the same initials, the company was renamed Cinepix Film Properties.[93] When the partnership with Toronto-based Famous Players was disbanded in 1994, a company called First Ontario Film Distributors was spun off from CFP by Sackman to keep taking advantage ofOntario subsidies.[95][93] The company also shot on the West Coast, as with the twoBounty Hunters movies, made in cooperation with CineVu Films, a Vancouver company co-founded in 1991 by Barmash andSnake Eater director George Erschbamer.[77]
In 1995, Dunning and Link opened a New York City office. Michael Paseornek, a New York writer turned executive, was tasked with setting it up in the new position of VP of U.S. operations.[96] The site was home to a new U.S. production unit, CFP Productions, headed by Paseornek himself, assisted by Lauren McLaughlin andErnie Barbarash.[97][98][99] Its project portfolio largely consisted of character pieces that followed the direction of contemporary independent cinema, rather than the high concept exploitation that had been Dunning's bread and butter.[100][101] A 1997 article named CFP as the only Canadian film producer with a permanent U.S. office.[102]
It also housed CFP Distribution, the company's new U.S. theatrical division.[103] It was originally managed by Adam Rogers, a former Miramax executive who had consulted with C/FP since 1991.[104] Its first release was Ang Lee'sPushing Hands.[90] CFP Distribution added a West Coast unit in 1996. FormerHemdale executiveTom Ortenberg was the company's first SoCal staffer, briefly working from his own home before offices were set up inSanta Monica.[105] He was credited for much of the company's U.S. growth.[106] Its output featured some of the top independent films of the time, including multipleSundance winners,[107][108] as well as product deemed too edgy by more established indies likeMiramax.[109]
Meanwhile, Canadian operations were also reorganized to account for CFP's ambitions. The company acquired a majority stake inCinéGroupe, an internationally recognized Montreal-based animation studio,[110] and launched CFP International, a new sales division based out of the same city and headed by formerMalofilm executive Marie-Claude Poulin.[110][111] In 1997, signalling its reorientation towards the U.S. market, CFP outsourced its Canadian video distribution toColumbia TriStar Home Video,[112] and its Canadian theatrical bookings toCineplex Odeon.[113] That year, its final one as an independent entity, CFP had revenues of CAD$58 million.[114]
In 1996, CFP raised CAD$10 million by selling 35 percent of its shares to three investment firms, with an eye towards furthering the growth of its U.S. theatrical business.[115][116] This move was presented as a prelude to apublic offering in 1997.[110][111] It was instead announced in the summer of 1997 that Cinépix's principals—in addition to Link and Dunning, Sackman and Larouche owned 10 percent[110]—had sold their remaining shares for CAD$36 million to financierFrank Giustra. The company officially becameLions Gate Films on January 12, 1998,[117] while its CFP Distribution unit was rebranded as Lions Gate Releasing.[96] Together withVancouver'sNorth Shore Studios andLos Angeles'Mandalay Television, LGF became one of the three main divisions of Giustra's newLionsgate Entertainment.[22] Just before the name change,Mark Urman replaced Rogers as president of U.S distribution.[118] Sackman was appointed president of Lions Gate Films Corporation, the Canadian subsidiary of Lions Gate Entertainment that replaced CFP,[86] while Dunning and Link respectively became chairman and CEO.[22][119] However, a Francophone branch managed by Christian Larouche, Les Films Cinépix, kept the Cinépix brand alive until early 2001, when Larouche reorganized it asChristal Films Productions.[120][121]
The original Cinépix Inc. entity remains in control of the Dunning estate. It is primarily used by Greg Dunning, the son of John Dunning (who passed in 2011), to curate the company's archive and promote the John Dunning Foundation, which commemorates his father's legacy and presents theJohn Dunning Best First Feature Award in association with theAcademy of Canadian Cinema & Television.[122][123]
A sister company of Cinépix overseeing Link and Dunning's operation of several cinemas,[4] including two chains called theMidi Minuit (for Francophones) and the Eve (for Anglophones),[124] as well as an eponymous theatrical distribution label.[125] It also branched out into home video under the CIC[126] and CIC Video names.[127] Not to be confused withCinema International Corporation, a joint venture betweenParamount andUniversal, which had its ownCIC Video division.
A sister company focused on production rather than distribution, whose initials simply stood for "Dunning And Link."[125][128] In 1981, it was one of nine companies that left the longstanding Canadian Association of Motion Picture Producers and Quebec Film Producers Association to start the dissident Association of Canadian Movie Production Companies.[129]
In the final year before the Lionsgate transition, CFP established a sublabel called Avalanche Releasing for theatrical and Avalanche Home Entertainment for video. Those were kept in operation under Lions Gate.[130][131]
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| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1969 | Valérie | French-language film |
| 1970 | Here and Now | French-language film First color production Released in the U.S. asRoommates |
| 1970 | Love in a Four Letter World | With Multivision First English-language production[132] |
| 1970 | Virgin Lovers | French-language film Also known asThe Awakening |
| 1971 | Heads or Tails | French-language film With Productions Nouvelle France |
| 1971 | Foxy Lady | WithIvan Reitman Productions |
| 1971 | Loving and Laughing | Released in the U.S. under original title as well asGetting High,Getting Off andTurning On |
| 1972 | The Possession of Virginia | Also known asSatan's Sabbath |
| 1973 | Oh, If Only My Monk Would Want (Ah! Si mon moine voulait...) | French-language film Also known asJoyeux compères andL'heptaméron With Citel andPierson Productions |
| 1973 | Keep It in the Family | Via DAL Productions With Kit Film Productions Released in the U.S. asLove Brats |
| 1973 | Across This Land withStompin' Tom Connors | Concert film With Kit Film Productions |
| 1973 | U-Turn | WithGeorge Kaczender Productions[133] Also known asThe Girl in Blue Opening film –23rd Berlin International Film Festival |
| 1974 | The Apple, the Stem and the Seeds (La pomme, la queue et les pépins) | French-language film |
| 1975 | Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS | |
| 1975 | A Woman Inflamed (Tout feu, tout femme) | French-language film With United Theatres |
| 1975 | The Mystery of the Million Dollar Hockey Puck | Via DAL Productions Also known asPee Wee |
| 1975 | The Parasite Murders | Released in most Canadian provinces asShivers Released in the U.S. asThey Came from Within |
| 1976 | Death Weekend | Via DAL Productions Released in the U.S. asThe House by the Lake |
| 1976 | Ilsa, Harem Keeper of the Oil Sheiks | |
| 1977 | Ilsa, the Tigress of Siberia | Also known asThe Tigress |
| 1977 | Rabid | Via DAL Productions With Cinema Entertainment Enterprises and Dibar Syndicate |
| 1978 | Blackout | Via DAL Productions With Productions Agora and Maki Films |
| 1979 | Meatballs | Via DAL Productions 1980Golden Reel winner |
| 1980 | Hot Dogs | Via DAL Productions With Rose Films Also known asHot Dog Cops,The Clean-up Squad andUnder the Cover Cops Released in the U.S. asCops and Other Lovers |
| 1981 | Happy Birthday to Me | Via DAL Productions WithFamous Players |
| 1981 | My Bloody Valentine | Via DAL Productions |
| 1981 | Yesterday | Via DAL Productions Also known asGabrielle andScoring Released in the U.S. asThis Time Forever |
| 1983 | Spacehunter: Adventures in the Forbidden Zone | With Columbia Pictures |
| 1984 | The Surrogate | With Télé-Métropole International |
| 1985 | Junior | |
| 1986 | The Vindicator | With 20th Century Fox and Michael Levy Enterprises Also known asFrankenstein '88 |
| 1987 | Making It... Safe | Sex education video[134] |
| 1987 | Meatballs III | Via Dalco Productions |
| 1988 | Heavy Metal Summer | WithITC Entertainment Released internationally in a different cut calledState Park |
| 1989 | Snake Eater | With Carota Films |
| 1990 | Princes in Exile | WithNFB and CBC Best feature – 31stMonte Carlo Television Festival |
| 1990 | Whispers | With ITC Entertainment Also known asDean Koontz's Whispers |
| 1991 | Snake Eater II: The Drug Buster | |
| 1992 | Snake Eater III: His Law | |
| 1994 | Ski School 2 | With Active Entertainment |
| 1995 | Bullet to Beijing | WithLenfilm |
| 1995 | Ski Hard: The Movie | Released in the U.S. asDownhill Willie Also known asSki Nuts |
| 1996 | The Ex | With American World Pictures[135] |
| 1996 | Mask of Death | With Moonstone Entertainment |
| 1996 | Midnight in Saint Petersburg | With Lenfilm |
| 1996 | Bounty Hunters | With Moonstone Entertainment and CineVu Films |
| 1996 | Vibrations | With Tanglewood Films |
| 1996 | Hawk's Vengeance | |
| 1996 | The Ideal Man | French-language film With Quatrième Vague |
| 1997 | Bounty Hunters 2: Hardball | With Moonstone Entertainment and CineVu Films |
| 1997 | Stag | With Rampage Entertainment |
| 1997 | The Haven | French-language film Also known asThe Caretaker's Lodge |
| 1997 | The Heist | Also known asHostile Force WithShavick Entertainment andProSieben |
| 1997 | The Kid | With Melenny Productions |
| 1998 | The Incredible Adventures of Marco Polo | With SFG Film Group |
| 1998 | Buffalo '66 | With Muse Productions |
| 1998 | Johnny Skidmarks | |
| 1999 | Elvis Gratton II: Miracle in Memphis[136] | French-language film As Les Films Cinépix With ACPAV |
| 2000 | The Bottle[137] | French-language film As Les Films Cinépix With Yul Films |
Started development as Cinépix Film Properties / Released as Lionsgate Films | ||
| 1998 | Dog Park[138] | With Accent Entertainment |
| 1998 | Hi-Life[138] | With Gun for Hire Films |
| 1998 | Jerry and Tom[138] | |
| 1998 | I'm Losing You[139] | |
| 1998 | Vig[138] | Also known asMoney Kings |
| 1999 | The First 9½ Weeks[140] | With Barnholtz Entertainment and Carousel Picture Company |
Started development as Les Films Cinépix / Released as Christal Films Productions | ||
| 2002 | The Collector[141] | French-language film |
Note: This list excludes self-produced films. Canadian distributor unless otherwise noted.
| Year | Title | Production company | Notes | Refs. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1967 | Belle de jour | Paris-Film Production, Five Film | Quebec only during original run Also Canada-wide reissue in 1979[142] | [143] |
| 1969 | Z | Réganne Films,ONCIC | [144] | |
| 1970 | Lorna | Eve Productions | [145] | |
| 1970 | The Unfaithful Wife | Les Films La Boétie, Cinegai | ViaAllied Artists | [146] |
| 1971 | The Anonymous Venetian | Ultra Films | Via Allied Artists | [147] |
| 1971 | Trafic | Les Films Corona,Les Films Gibé, Selenia Cinematografica | [148][149] | |
| 1972 | Wedding in White | Dermet Productions | [150] | |
| 1973 | Cabaret | ABC Pictures International | Via Allied Artists | [151] |
| 1973 | Kamouraska | Les Productions Carle-Lamy, France Cinéma Productions, Parc Film | [152] | |
| 1973 | The Pyx | Host Productions | [153] | |
| 1973 | Réjeanne Padovani | Cinak | [154] | |
| 1976 | The Twelve Tasks of Asterix | Dargaud Films,Les Productions René Goscinny, Studios Idéfix | French language only | [155] |
| 1977 | The Margin | Paris-Film Production | Also known asThe Edge | [156] |
| 1978 | Violette Nozière | Filmel,FR3,Cinévidéo | [157] | |
| 1980 | The Coffin Affair | Les Films Ciné Scène, Les Productions Vidéofilms, United Theatres, et al. | International sales only | [158] |
| 1980 | Despair | Geria Film,Bavaria Studios, SFP | French version only | [159] |
| 1984 | The Twin | Fidéline Films,Les Productions La Guéville | Through Cinema International Canada WithLes Films René Malo | [160] |
| 1986 | The Quiet Earth | Cinepro,Pillsbury Films | Through Cinema International Canada Quebec only | [161] |
| 1988 | Buster | The Movie Group,Vestron Pictures | Quebec only | [162] |
| 1989 | All Dogs Go to Heaven | Goldcrest Films,Sullivan Bluth Studios | ViaMGM/UA | [163] |
| 1990 | Cyrano de Bergerac | Hachette Première,Camera One,Films A2, et al. | [116][164] | |
| 1990 | Metropolitan | Westerly Films | Quebec only | [165] |
| 1990 | King of New York | Reteitalia,Scena International | ViaSeven Arts | [166] |
| 1991 | Lionheart | Imperial Entertainment | [167] | |
| 1992 | Indochine | Paradis Films, Générale d'Image,BAC Films, et al. | French version only | [168] |
| 1992 | Reservoir Dogs | Live America | ViaMiramax Films | [169] |
| 1993 | Farewell My Concubine | Beijing Film Studio, China Film Co-Production Corporation, Tomson Films | Via Miramax Films | [170] |
| 1993 | The Piano | Jan Chapman Productions,CiBy 2000 | Via Miramax Films | [171] |
| 1993 | The Visitors | Gaumont | French language only | [116] |
| 1993 | The Crying Game | Palace Pictures,Channel Four Films, EuroTrustees, et al. | Via Miramax Films | [84] |
| 1993 | Jamón jamón | Lola Films | [172] | |
| 1993 | Strictly Ballroom | M&A Productions | Via Miramax Films | [173] |
| 1994 | The Crow | Miramax Films | [174] | |
| 1994 | Little Buddha | CiBy 2000,Recorded Picture Company | Via Miramax Films | [174] |
| 1994 | Faraway, So Close | Road Movies,Tobis Filmkunst | ViaSony Pictures Classics | [175] |
| 1994 | Belle Époque | Fernando Trueba P.C., Lola Films, Animatógrafo, et al. | Via Sony Pictures Classics | [176] |
| 1994 | October | ACPAV | [177] | |
| 1995 | Angel Baby | Australian Film Finance Corporation, Stamen Films, Meridian Films | Also U.S. distributor | [109] |
| 1995 | The Basketball Diaries | Island Pictures | Via New Line Cinema | [178] |
| 1995 | The Monster | Melampo Cinematografica, Iris Films,UGC Images, et al. | Also U.S. distributor | [179] |
| 1995 | Little Indian, Big City | Ice Films,TF1 Film Productions,Canal+ | French version only | [180] |
| 1995 | Les Misérables | TF1 Film Productions,Les Films 13,Canal + | French version only | [181] |
| 1995 | Queen Margot | Renn Productions, NEF Filmproduktion,RCS Films & TV, et al. | French version only | [116] |
| 1995 | Ulysses' Gaze | Paradis Films, Basic Cinematografica,Theo Angelopoulos, et al. | Quebec only | [182] |
| 1996 | Antonia's Line | Bergen, Prime Time, Bard Entertainments, et al. | [183] | |
| 1996 | Cyclo | Les Productions Lazennec, Lumière,La Sept Cinema, et al. | Also U.S. distributor | [184] |
| 1996 | Heavy | Available Light Productions | Also U.S. distributor | [185] |
| 1996 | The Daytrippers | Nancy Tenenbaum Films | Also U.S. distributor | [186] |
| 1996 | Hype | Helvey-Pray Productions | Also U.S. distributor | [187] |
| 1997 | Another 9½ Weeks | Jones Film, Saga Pictures | Also known asLove in Paris | [188] |
| 1997 | Sick: The Life and Death of Bob Flanagan, Supermasochist | Kirby Dick | Also U.S. distributor | [189] |
| 1997 | I Love You, I Love You Not | Polar Entertainment, Die Hauskunst & Rimb, The Shooting Gallery, et al. | U.S. distributor only | [190] |
| 1997 | The Pillow Book | Kasander & Wigman Productions, Alpha Films, Woodline Films, et al. | Also U.S. distributor | [191] |
| 1997 | Sunday | Goatworks Films, Double A Films | Also U.S. distributor | [192] |
| 1997 | The Return of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre | Ultra Muchos, River City Films | Also U.S. distributor Also known asTexas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation | [179] |
| 1998 | Love and Death on Long Island | Skyline Films, Imagex,BBC Films et al. | Also U.S. distributor Branded as both CFP and Lions Gate Films[193] | [194][195] |
In1993, Dunning and Link were presented with a specialGenie Award for career contributions to Canadian cinema.[54] In 1999, they received a special Grand Prix des Amériques at theMontreal World Film Festival, and were joined by director Denis Héroux for a presentation of a new print ofValérie.[196] Canadian film trade magazinePlayback also inducted the pair into their Hall of Fame in 2007.[197] In 2008, theQuebec Cinematheque hosted a homage to Cinépix in the form of a cycle of seven screenings ranging fromValérie toThe Ideal Man.[198] In 2011, Montreal'sFantasia festival hosted a Cinépix tribute in presence of Link, Dunning, Heroux andShivers leading womanLynn Lowry.[199] In 2024, Fantasia awarded its Denis Héroux Prize for contributions to the development of Canadian cinema to Dunning and Link. The event was accompanied by a screening ofSnake Eater.[200]