OTTAWA – The Canadian Media Producers Association and 10 other producer associations, funding agencies, as well as provincial and municipal agencies will announce Friday morning a new task force to monitor the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the media production industry in Canada.
“We understand every sector of our economy is being affected by the pandemic; the lockdowns, travel restrictions, urgency to self-isolate and maintain social distancing have put our country on pause. This includes the screen-based sector, where productions have been halted, studios emptied, and cast and crews no longer working,” says the statement announcing the new working group.
As the virus and governments’ efforts to contain it continues to impact the Canadian screen-based industry, representatives of the producer associations, funding agencies, as well as provincial and municipal agencies will work together to inform governments at the federal, provincial and municipal levels on the need for critical support for the sector.
“We are in regular contact with key stakeholders across the industry and all levels of government to assess and alleviate the potential scale of the impact. Our aim is to support the industry during this challenging period and work to ensure a strong, robust rebound for Canada’s production sector, when the pandemic subsides,” says the statement, sent by the CMPA.
“We will be reaching out to other key stakeholders – our broadcaster, distributor, union and guild, and independent production fund partners – to exchange information and collaborate on common industry solutions. Each of them, and the thousands of artists, employees, and workers they represent, play an essential role in our system.”
Early next week, the task force will send a survey across the country to attempt to determine the projected impact on the production sector. “Many of you may have already had, and will continue to receive, requests for information at the municipal and provincial levels to capture specific jurisdictional information. An assessment of the national impact, as quickly as we can determine it, is critical at this time,” says the statement.
All of the task force’s organizations remain operational and staff are working remotely to ensure the industry is supported. The organizations on the task force are:
- Association of Provincial and Territorial Funding Agencies (APTFA)
- Association québécoise de la production médiatique (AQPM)
- Canada Media Fund (CMF)
- Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA)
- City of Toronto Film Office
- Creative BC
- Indigenous Screen Office (ISO)
- National Film Board of Canada (NFB)
- Ontario Creates
- Société de développement des entreprises culturelles (SODEC)
- Telefilm Canada
More to come.
