... But some young filmmakers are showing what can be done outside of the system. Toronto writer/producer/editor Michael Sparaga's wacky comic book-inspired feature Sidekick, directed by Blake Van de Graaf, had no budget, but he was able to somehow convince Hollywood actor Daniel Baldwin to appear in it alongside the production's unknowns.

The film premiered recently at the Calgary International Film Festival.

"I see a surge in the indie scene in Canada," Sparaga says, "because those of us that grew up on Spielberg and Lucas right alongside The Littlest Hobo and Danger Bay are now making movies, and we want to make commercial movies in American genres, but with our distinctly Canadian points of view."

Hollywood's Focus Features liked Sidekick so much that it hired Sparaga to pen the script for a remake.

Many emerging filmmakers seem unaware that you can work with a seasoned screenwriter for $5,000 or less under the WGC's low-budget provision, and they fear dealing with the guilds.

"We never considered using any of the unions," notes Sparaga. [Sidekick] was a true indie, made on credit cards and favors and shot on weekends." ...