TORONTO – The Canada Media Fund (CMF) is adding new programs and tweaking others to keep pace with market developments, it said Friday while laying out its $353 million program budget for 2019-2020.
The CMF said that the changes to its program guidelines include revisions to its Convergent Stream and Experimental Stream, which were influenced by policy direction from the Department of Canadian Heritage through the Creative Canada Policy Framework as well as feedback received from stakeholders during its consultation.
“The CMF is aware of the impact program changes have on the industry and strives to offer some stability in the system at a time of disruption,” said CMF president and CEO Valerie Creighton, in the guide's news release. “These updates to our programs are the result of the added flexibility which has been accorded to the CMF by the Government of Canada. As we await the results of the Broadcasting and Telecommunications Legislative Review and the legislation that may stem from that, this is the first step in implementing progressive change with the intent to bridge the current environment until the review of the Acts is concluded.”
A summary of changes to 2019-2020 program guidelines is available here. The CMF will host webcasts in English and French on April 9 to provide an overview and answer questions related to program changes. Click here for more details.
“I am pleased that in 2019–2020 the Canada Media Fund is adapting its programs even more to the new ways in which Canadians access content,” added Minister of Canadian Heritage and Multiculturalism Pablo Rodriguez. "This will allow Canadian platforms to launch major productions and, for the first time, let creators receive funding in the preliminary stages of a project. Thanks to these changes and to our additional investment of $172 million over five years, the Fund will continue to act as a catalyst in the digital realm and support the production of high-quality audiovisual and interactive content.”
