45 years ago, Scanners’s sparked a controversy and put David Cronenberg on the map

During the late 1970s, a young David Cronenberg was able to procure financing from the Canadian government for his body horror feature debut, Shivers. “It took me four years to get Shivers made, and I got $13,000 for it,” Cronenberg told CBC, chronicling the challenges surrounding his controversial debut, which was perceived as a “horrific, perverse” entry during release for its depiction of graphic sexuality and gore.