TORONTO – With its official launch less than a week away, the new Canadian Media Fund will pay out over $350 million in funding support to Canadian content through two distinct streams.
An ‘Experimental Stream’ will invest in content and software applications for eventual integration into mainstream Canadian media platforms, while a ‘Convergent Stream’ will fund the creation of convergent television and digital media content.
Flanked by CMF board chair Louis Roquet, and president and CEO Valerie Creighton, Heritage Minister James Moore said that the CMF’s mandate is to champion the creation of successful, innovative, Canadian content and software applications for current and emerging digital platforms through financial support and industry research.
“In launching the Canada Media Fund, we’ve taken an important step towards supporting a truly modern, multi-platform industry and a digital content strategy for Canada”, Minister Moore said Friday morning at the agency’s kick off event in downtown Toronto. “The CMF will allow our industry to do what it does best: create, entertain, and connect with Canadians. We must all work together to ensure the Canada Media Fund’s success and provide Canadians with exciting content that is reflective of new digital realities."
Through its Experimental Stream, the CMF will support the development of non-linear, interactive digital media content and software applications. Eligible projects will include content and applications created for the Internet, wireless, mobile, and emerging platforms or devices.
Projects must demonstrate leading-edge characteristics, and no television component is required. Examples include web and mobile applications, video games, web series, and software applications with a connection to the Canadian cultural sector.
Eligible applicants will include Canadian-controlled, taxable Canadian corporations with their head office in Canada or Canadian broadcasters, including television, interactive, and web-based production companies, Internet service providers; mobile service providers; broadcasting distributors; private and public broadcasters; and broadcaster-affiliated production companies.
Funding allocated to this stream is $27 million. The maximum contribution per project is 75% of eligible costs or $1 million, whichever is less, and funding will be delivered as equity investments in projects.
Through its Convergent Stream, the CMF will support the creation of television shows and related digital media content in the genres of drama, documentary, children’s and youth, and variety and performing arts. Eligible projects will include content produced for television and distribution on at least one digital media platform, and must include high levels of Canadian elements, including Canadian creative talent.
While basic digital media components, such as basic websites and video-on-demand, will be allowed for the purposes of rendering the entire convergent project eligible, the CMF will encourage the creation of rich, value added content by requiring at least 50% of a broadcast corporate group’s envelopes be spent on this type of content. Examples include video games, podcasts, webisodes, mobisodes, and interactive web content. The streaming of a production on the Internet at the same time as the television broadcast (i.e. simultaneous streaming) will not be considered an eligible digital media component for the purposes of rendering the entire convergent project eligible.
Eligible applicants will include Canadian-controlled, taxable Canadian production corporations with their head office in Canada and Canadian broadcasters (public or private), including television, interactive, and web-based production companies; private and public broadcasters; and broadcaster-affiliated production companies.
The majority of funding in the Convergent Stream will be disbursed through the performance envelope program, which encourages partnerships between broadcasters, television producers, and digital media producers to create convergent content that Canadians want to consume. Forms of funding will include licence fee top-ups, equity investments, recoupable advances and non-repayable contributions that are paid directly to the applicant producer, depending on the program.
The full business policies and program guidelines of the CMF are available for download on the corporation’s website at www.cmf-fmc.ca.
