Drying Up the Streets

Drying Up the Streets is a 1978 Canadian feature from Robin Spry produced by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

Drying Up the Streets
Directed by	Robin Spry
Written by	Anne Cameron
Produced by	Ralph L. Thomas
Starring	Don Francks Len Cariou Sarah Torgov August Schellenberg Laurie Brown Frank Moore Warren Davis
Cinematography	Kenneth Gregg
Edited by	Myrtle Virgo
Music by	Patrick Russell
Distributed by	Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Release dates	September 1978 (1978-09) (Montréal World Film Festival) February 28, 1979 (1979-02-28) (CBC-TV)
Running time	86 minutes
Country	Canada
Language	English
Budget	$300,000 (estimated)

Synopsis

This film was originally planned as a one-hour drama for the CBC's For the Record, series but was expanded into a feature while it was being shot cinéma vérité-style on the streets of Toronto between October 11 and October 27, 1977. It concerns the search for a runaway (Laurie Brown) by her father (Don Francks), an aging hippy who is coerced to do so by a member of the RCMP drug squad (Len Cariou). Exploring the darker side of the ‘flower power’ generation, Drying Up the Streets mixes documentary realism with stylized set pieces.^[1][2]

It's one of director Robin Spry’s finest films; however, it never received theatrical distribution and was eventually aired on the CBC in 1979 to good notices.^[3][4]

Awards and nominations

Year	Award	Category	Individual	Result
1978	29th Canadian Film Awards	Actress, Non-Feature	Sarah Torgov	Nominated
1980	9th ACTRA Awards	Best Acting Performance on Television in a Leading Role (Earle Grey Award)	Don Francks	Won
1980		Best New Television Performer	Sarah Torgov	Won
1980		Best Television Program of the Year	Ralph L. Thomas	Won

References

1. Morris, Peter (1984). The Film Companion. Toronto: Irwin Publishing. pp. 90–91. ISBN 0-7725-1505-0.
2. Clandfield, David (1987). Canadian Film. Toronto: Oxford University Press. p. 95. ISBN 0-19-540581-1.
3. Adilman, Sid (March 7, 1979). "Drying Up the Streets (review)". Variety: 74.
4. Isaac, Doug (September 1978). "Drying Up the Streets (review)". Cinema Canada (49): 69–72.

External links

• Drying Up the Streets at IMDb