Tomorrow Starts Today news warmly received; CNMF waits on review results

Producers will have to wait for a technical review of Telefilm Canada’s Canada New Media Fund (CNMF) before finding out whether the program will receive additional resources. The CNMF received a one-year extension and one-time cash boost to $14 million for 2005/2006, announced by Canadian Heritage minister Liza Frulla at this year’s Canadian Film and Television Production Association conference in Ottawa. The program is now in its fifth year, and must be reevaluated by the department before either being renewed or changed. Last month’s federal budget did, however, contain some good news for new media producers, with renewed funding for arts and culture included. In its budget, the federal government announced on February 23 that the Tomorrow Starts Today umbrella of arts funding, under which the CNMF falls, would be renewed for five years with $172 million per year in the kitty. The news was a relief to interactive media creators who have lobbied strongly for a stable base of funding (CNM, Oct. 29/04). The budget confirmed the one-year renewal for Tomorrow Starts Today announced in February for an additional five years, with $172 million per year. The fund falls under a series of initiatives devoted to the digitization of new and existing cultural content called the Canadian Culture Online Program (CCOP). The head of that group, Canadian Heritage’s Ted Bairstow, tells Canadian NEW MEDIA that a request for proposals to evaluate the CNMF will be issued within a couple of months. "Where we are in the program cycle with the Canada New Media Fund is that under the federal transfer payment policy, which is a policy of Treasury Board, every program has to be reviewed, evaluated and renewed every five years. We’re in the fifth year of the cycle for the (CNMF). We’re in the process of commissioning a summative evaluation of (it). It would be in the context of looking at the renewal of the fund following that summative evaluation, that there would be an opportunity to consider any further changes in the quantum of the fund. So, (in) 2005-06, the $14 million, the $5 million additional, is the increase that is there. And, that’s what we’re going to work with for this year. We’ll be evaluating the renewal of the fund and everything to do with the renewal of the fund during the course of this year and by 2006-07, I hope – although we have a technical way to extend it to 2007-08 if the work can’t be done that quickly – we would hope to renew the fund for another cycle." While new media producers are looking for an increase in the fund to around $32 million in subsequent years, Bairstow says several hurdles will have to be cleared before major changes can be made. Still, he notes, the February announcement of a 50% increase is good news. "(It’s) a good step towards addressing the needs of the industry. The second good news is that there’s an opportunity to re-evaluate the whole thing and to see what kind results have been delivered and for Cabinet and Treasury Board to determine whether it’s a good program, still relevant, still appropriate, still efficient, (whether) the federal government should still deliver it, and it’s at the right amount. And that gives us an opportunity to have a conversation about whether or not it should be at a significantly higher amount." In the meantime, producers who heard the news while on a trade mission to Australia (see stories in this issue) reacted positively to the Tomorrow Starts Today extension. Dan Fill, VP of interactive at Decode Entertainment was pleased with the news, but looks forward to changes in the CNMF now that the funding seems stable. "I think that the fact that it’s sustainable for five years is going to be a relief for the existing new media community, and I think it’s going to stimulate the growth of new companies that will probably come into play and help Canada move into a leadership position if it’s spent wisely. I think one of the most important things, though, is to then take the money that comes from Tomorrow Starts Today and invest it in original content production, which is totally key because just setting up an infrastructure to maybe just sort of profile existing stuff is never going to take us to the next stage. I think it’s really important that the investments are made in original ideas and original intellectual property that’s created." Producers have long chafed that many millions of dollars from the Tomorrow Starts Today program and from the CCOP have been used to digitize existing museum content, for example, and on the Culture.ca digital site despite their demands for higher levels of spending for the CNMF. Fill’s comments were echoed by fellow producer Steve Comeau, who tells CNM that he hopes to see both increased funding to the CNMF and a greater focus on independent production stem from the budget announcement. "I think it’s tremendously positive. I think it’s a real sort of statement that the government understands and realizes how the cultural mediums in our country are evolving and are stepping up to take that challenge on. So, we’ve always been huge supporters of the Canada New Media Fund as administered by Telefilm, and we feel that the increased funding to the CCOP, Tomorrow Starts Today, will only help strengthen that fund and the good that it’s done in creating relevant, and I must stress relevant, content to us as Canadians… "To me, the independent producer is the lever or the linchpin or the most effective manner in being able to identify what Canadian audiences want to experience online and providing them that content. So, when I say relevant, it is things that are true destinations and true valuable content offerings that Canadian audiences want to see and experience. And, I think that they are best provided by the independent producer, whether they’re in partnership with a museum or in partnership with another government program. The independent producer is the first to put their finger on the pulse of the online audience in this country and can really deliver those programs… "What I think will happen is that you will get a better idea of how the guidelines actually do work (with increased funding). With such little money right now, it’s almost impossible to say what works and what doesn’t work because there’s just so much incredible pressure on the system. I think with more resources available now, as a community, Telefilm and the producers (will) begin to refine those guidelines to achieve maximum use and maximum leverage of those funds."

Tomorrow Starts Today news warmly received; CNMF waits on review results

News | 03/14/2005 5:00 am EST

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