Encouraging independent producers to embrace digital media priority for new CFTPA boss

The newly appointed president and CEO of the Canadian Film and Television Production Association (CFTPA) says his policy directions will mainly centre on pushing for more shelf space for Canadian content and encouraging independent producers to exploit new digital platforms - but not at the expense of traditional broadcasting. Norm Bolen, who took over duties on April 15, told the CRTC licence renewal hearings yesterday that broadcasters’ claims that their industry is “broken” are unfounded. “Rumours of its demise are vastly overstated,” he told the commission. “It may be under strain locally, but it is not broken overall.” Even with the downturn in the economy and the adverse effects this has had on the broadcast industry, Bolen argued that pedalling a solution that involves less Canadian programming is “an absolutely wrong approach.” A self-described “Canadian content” person, courtesy of his long career in the broadcast industry (CBC executive, director at Alliance Atlantis, chair of the Banff World Television Festival, and director at the National Screen Institute), Bolen has the credentials to agitate for more shelf space for Cancon. The issue of Canadian content also falls under bigger policy plans to stimulate growth for independent producers, who he says—like everyone else—have been adversely affected by the recession. “The most important thing is to continue advocating for independent producers across the country, to bring diversity to the system, to bring financing to the system, to bring jobs and economic growth,” he said in an interview with Tech Media Reports. (Full transcript available here) Bolen says it’s also time independent producers woke up to the reality of emerging digital platforms for marketing and distributing their content. Having a national digital strategy in place, he adds, would help. “That’s definitely the path because we are seeing the media landscape evolving very quickly. We are seeing significant changes in the ways young people particularly consume content and we are going to see a digital revolution in content creation and consumption over the next five to 10 years, and we need to be involved in that.” Calls for Canada to enact a national digital strategy have of late acquired a high profile with CRTC chair Konrad von Finckenstein and National Film Board chair Tom Perlmutter, reminding stakeholders of its necessity and importance in a knowledge-based economy. While testifying before the Commons committee on Canadian Heritage earlier this week, Bolen urged MPs to lend support for a royal commission that will look into issues about a national digital strategy. “We believe that Canada has an opportunity to play a role in digital content creation and distribution and exploitation internationally. We see consumers spending more and more disposable income on content and we see the pie growing, not shrinking. We’ve got to stop looking at the narrow Canadian focus and look at the global focus,” he says. The process of exploring a national digital strategy should be a non-partisan one, involving all stakeholders, he says. Another issue that Bolen hopes to push is a fair terms of trade agreement with broadcasters. Currently, he says independent producers’ rights over content are being eroded by broadcasters who are increasingly pushing for caps on delivery of this content on digital platforms. Broadcasters, he says, have “too much power” over content utilization and this needs to be checked. “We want to get clarity particularly on online digital rights and how they are going to be used and who’s going to benefit from that.” Bolen replaces Guy Mayson, who stepped down in March after 12 years with the CFTPA. “My immediate thought was, well that’s good, I achieved the objective I set out to achieve, I got the job, and then my immediate next reaction was one of a sense of awe and may be a little bit of dread about how big the job is. But I have been in the job for three weeks and I am feeling very comfortable and I am enjoying it,” he says.

Encouraging independent producers to embrace digital media priority for new CFTPA boss

Broadcast | May 8, 2009

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