The Drama Dilemma: The Battle for Canadian Drama
News | 11/06/2008 3:11 am EST
While the industry – from performers to creators to producers to broadcasters to distributors to even the regulator – all agree more Canadian TV drama needs to be produced and watched, there is little agreement on how it should be financed. A major problem is that broadcasters can’t generate sufficient advertising dollars to cover the cost of producing indigenous TV drama. Because while everyone argues that Canadians must be able to “see their own stories on television,” for the most part, at least in English-Canada, Canadians just aren’t tuning into homegrown dramatic TV series in sufficient numbers. Fundamental questions include “How can Canadian drama be made viable?” and “What are the problems that plague it?” There isn’t agreement on the answers to these questions.