Telefilm fund going strong heading into five-year review

Although a lifeline was extended last year and the successful recipients of another round of funding have just been announced, the turbulence of the past may soon return for the Telefilm Canada New Media Fund (CNMF). "Overall, the financing is in place ," says Bruno Légaré, new media sector head for Telefilm Canada. "The question is, what’s going to happen in the coming months?" In March 2004, the CNMF looked set to draw to a close within the year (Telefilm’s fiscal year-end is March 31); a near-last-minute reprieve, however, came in December last year when Canadian Heritage minister Liza Frulla announced that the Tomorrow Starts Today program - under whose umbrella CNMF falls - would be extended for at least one more year until March 31, 2006, and possibly until the same date in 2007 (CNM, Dec. 16/04). Shortly into 2005, Frulla surprised the industry by announcing additional funding for the CNMF, taking it from $9 million to $14 million for the 2005-2006 fiscal year (CNM, Feb. 4/05). Part of the uncertainty stems from CNMF turning five years old this year; as such, it’s due for review by the department before it can be renewed for additional fiscal years. Add to that the fact that Canadian Heritage is in the midst of reviewing and renegotiating the terms of all its funding commitments, most notably the caps in place on project funding. For example, Légaré says, "Right now in production we can fund up to 50% or $250,000 - sometimes that’s enough, but for other kinds of projects it isn’t." While those terms will stay the same for the current fiscal year as well as 2006-2007, Légaré and his team are working on the assumption that the CNMF’s mandate will be renewed in time for the 2007-2008 fiscal period.That state of flux gives Légaré hope that the fund can be brought into step with the new media industry today to allow variations on that rigid 50%-or-$250,000 funding cap, as well as the possibility of more money for the fund. "You know, last year we moved from nine to 14 , so think about that," he says. CNMF has three components: the product assistance program, which is the main funding component and provides money for the creation of original content; the distribution assistance program, which is meant to fund distributional and transactional outlets online or offline; and the sectoral assistance program, which addresses industry education and professional development with its contribution. While the product assistance program has been consistently oversubscribed, Légaré says others have languished. "The distribution assistance program within the CNMF...has been really underused since its inception in 2001," he says, "and it’s really because those programs, the terms and conditions are negotiated once every five or seven years. If you’re stuck with...very rigid terms and conditions, in this business it’s not very helpful." The distribution assistance program is a glaring example of the rationale for updating the terms and conditions of the CNMF, Légaré says. "Since 2001 the market has changed so much you can find those CD-ROMs through Amazon or other transactional sites, so there’s no need really to start up a new thing," he says. "But the program is in place, it has some strict parameters, and in fact there are very few programs that meet the requirements." Légaré says the most common submissions to the fund involve convergence ventures between a new media developer and a broadcast producer. Part of their popularity is no doubt due to their eligibility for money from both the CNMF and broadcast-centric funds such as the Bell Broadcast and New Media Fund and the Vidéotron Fund. "When you go outside of convergence projects, apart from Telefilm there aren’t so many other sources of financing," he says. With the last 12 months seeing high points - a nearly 50% increase in funding - and low points - the program nearly coming to an end - the future of the CNMF is still in limbo. However, with Canada’s new media industry seemingly heading into a boom period, Légaré says there’s a case to be made for continuing the fund. "I would say there’s no question new media cultural products must still exist and must be supported," he says, "and I think there’s no question that the CNMF is one of the major tools in order to support the industry and the creation of original content." While the review process introduces an added note of uncertainty, "I would really be surprised to have the fund disappear by the end of fiscal 2006-2007," he says.

Telefilm fund going strong heading into five-year review

Broadcast | October 14, 2005

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