Talk:The Defender (1989 film)

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Year[edit]

Bit of a problem here in that the film appears in three films by year categories, 1988 through 1990. WP:MOSFILM has some useful pointers. I know the NFB classifies it as a 1988 film, but according to our guidelines it may need be renamed as a 1989 film, because of the release. Also, the 1989 and 1990 categories are being auto-generated by the infobox, I guess. User:Bovineboy2008 seems to patrol new film articles and he may sort this out, if we don't. Rome wasn't built in a day! It's a great article and we'll just need to tweak it this. Shawn in Montreal (talk) 23:44, 1 October 2014 (UTC)[reply]

I probably would "err on the side of caution" as to the date. I hosted a NFB film festival last year and had to come up with some resolution as to the date of the film, eventually settling on what the NFB considered was its date of completion, not release. The actual film end title says "© 1988". The same film was also screened in an earlier film festival, two years previously, and the same issue arose, again, ending with the NFB's official date being used. The 1990 date is from IMDb and reflects a broadcast air date, rather than a date for general release. Turner Classic Movies has the first screening as the Vancouver International Film Festival September 30 and October 4, 1989. I was at the premiere of The Defender in Winnipeg but I do not remember the exact date. In the past, I have hosted the duo featured in the film, Chris Ball and Bob Diemert, and have spoken to Charles Konowal, the producer. I wonder if it makes sense to contact these individuals again, still cognizant of the slippery slope of acquiring and using first-hand resources. FWiW Bzuk (talk) 07:23, 2 October 2014 (UTC)[reply]

On Director Stephen Low's website, he lists The Defender as a 1998 release. I have also contacted him after writing the Wikipedia article, and am awaiting a reply to some of my queries, including fixing the date of release of the film. FWiW Bzuk (talk) 07:32, 2 October 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Yes, it's possible that the film was completed in late 1988 but only premiered in 1989, in which case, there would be an unfortunate discrepancy in the years, as Wikipedia's guidelines do seem clear (?) that we classify films by year of release rather than copyright. Or so I believe. Anyway, it's fortunate that you know the director and no doubt he can shed some light. thanks, Shawn in Montreal (talk) 10:24, 2 October 2014 (UTC)[reply]

Stephen Low contacted me today and indicated that the film was a 1988 release, which tends to tell me that the premiere dates were wrong or the only ones that other sources could get ahold of. I will keep searching for a showing that occurred in 1988, that would solve the conundrum. FWiW Bzuk (talk) 21:51, 2 October 2014 (UTC)[reply]

See Further discussion on this topic. FWiW Bzuk (talk) 16:14, 3 October 2014 (UTC)[reply]