Newsroom

Press Releases

Revamped CTF Important Step Towards Boosting CANCON

The Canadian Television Fund has finalized its strategy for revamping and streamlining the production fund. The new guidelines intend to cut down on administration costs and simplify the application process, which were two of the main concerns of the Canadian Film and Television Production Association.

"After a tumultuous year of budget cuts and lost production activity we believe this new and improved fund will put more money into production instead of administration. I think the board has done a lot of hard work here. These changes will send a message to the government that the whole industry will do whatever it takes to make the fund work," says Guy Mayson, acting CFTPA president and CEO.

Under the new guidelines financing should become more predictable. There will be only one application process, which will see English-language drama funding based on a selective evaluation process. All other genres will be administered through broadcaster envelopes, meaning broadcasters will now know how much money they have to green light projects. Audience measurement will also play more of a role, something the Department of Canadian Heritage and the CRTC have both signaled as a government priority for the industry. The CTF has also reiterated its commitment to Aboriginal, French-language and regional production.

"Now that issues at the fund have been addressed we feel comfortable going back to the government and making our case for more money for Canadian programming. Let's face reality, only Canadians can make Canadian shows. The government has to decide if its cultural policy includes funding shows only Canadians can make," said Laszlo Barna , CFTPA chair, and executive producer, Barna-Alper Productions.

According to the CFTPA and research conducted by Nordicity Group Ltd, the $12.5 million dollar cut this year to the CTF means 175 fewer hours of programming and $85 million less in production activity. The association predicts 2004 will be even worse if the government carries through with its intention to reduce its commitment from $100 million to $62.5 million.

The CFTPA is a non-profit, trade association representing almost 400 Canadian companies involved in the media content production industry. With offices in Ottawa, Toronto and Vancouver , the association promotes the interests of media content producers by lobbying government on policy matters, negotiating labour agreements, offering mentorship programs , copyright initiatives, and producing industry publications.

For more information on this, please contact:

Jane L. Thompson
Director of Communications
Canadian Film and Television Production Association

Tel: 613 233 1444 ext 227