Rights, diversity and the need for a strong, sustainable Canadian production sector
LAST WEEK, HUNDREDS OF independent producers, broadcast executives, government officials and countless other industry stakeholders made their annual pilgrimage to the heart of the Rocky Mountains for the Banff World Media Festival.
Although this year’s conference was similar to previous years in many ways – projects were pitched, deals were made, and drinks flowed freely – this year’s event felt different. Over the course of the conference there seemed to be a collective realization that the future of our industry, which has been endlessly discussed at Banff for years, was finally upon us. This was accompanied by a realization of the massive opportunities and unique challenges that lay ahead.
Global rights
The festival launched with a discussion among the leaders of Canada’s largest broadcasters on the state of the industry. Encouragingly, the members of the panel expressed their belief in the inherent value of Canadian stories. More concerning was their claim that ownership of intellectual property is the only way that Canadian broadcasters will be able to compete on the international stage.
The future is indeed global, and that means there is enormous potential for Canadian stories to reach huge new audiences around the world. But do to so, deals between broadcasters and independent producers must be structured in such a way that producers retain a meaningful portion of intellectual property (IP) rights. This is needed so producers can generate revenue, finance early stage development, and ultimately create the next great piece of content for broadcasters to bring to the viewing public.
Increasingly, I hear from our members that broadcasters expect independent producers to assume the financial and legal risk associated with the development of original content, but are offered no chance to recoup costs through the monetization of the IP once a project is complete.
“Corus is leading this race to the bottom through its dubiously titled ‘Producer of Record’ program.”
Corus is leading this race to the bottom through its dubiously titled “Producer of Record” program. Projects commissioned under this program see Corus vacuum up all the rights and revenues to a project, placing producers in an extremely precarious financial position.
This is unsustainable. Producers want broadcasters to be successful. Their success is our success. But the reverse is also true: competitive, well-capitalized production companies are best positioned to deliver the great content that Canadian broadcasters need to attract audiences and define their brands.
Among the opening panelists, some did speak of a need for fairness in dealing with producers to sustain our industry. From our standpoint, this must translate into an equitable sharing of risk and reward. Without it, Canada will soon find itself with a shrinking production sector and significantly less diversity of content.
A seat at the table for indigenous creators
That would be a terrible loss, because diversity of content is arguably one of our sector’s greatest strengths. On this, the industry took a huge step forward last week with Minister Joly’s announcement of the creation of a national Indigenous Screen Office. I’m extremely proud that the CMPA was one of the founding partners for this important and long-overdue initiative.
The day after the Minister’s announcement I was sitting in the audience for the Indigenous Creators, Stories and Partnerships roundtable and was struck by the optimism in the room. As Michelle Latimer – an esteemed filmmaker, producer and actor of Métis and Algonquin descent – noted in her opening remarks, it felt as if the industry has finally reached a point where indigenous creators have a rightful seat at the table.
It was an inspiring session and I believe it represents one of Canada’s greatest opportunities; however our next steps will determine if this was a one-off moment or the beginning of new era. I’m hopeful for the latter, which is why it’s incumbent on each of us who work in media production to ensure indigenous and non-indigenous partners work together to bring these stories to life on screen in a way that respects the stories’ keepers and their origins.
Rapid change
I suppose it’s a testament to the rapid pace at which our sector is changing, that much has happened in the few days since Banff wrapped up.
Last Thursday, the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage released a report addressing some of the technological challenges facing Canada’s media landscape. It included proposed measures to ensure sustained investment in our sector in response to changes in how Canadians access and view content. Although some of the specific mechanisms put forward were quickly dismissed, I was encouraged by the thoughtful considerations that went into the report and want to thank MPs for their effort on this file.
The undeniable fact remains that we are in the midst of a massive shift. The current federal system that was set up to facilitate investment in Canadian productions is based on a model that is becoming obsolete. We need a new approach that reinforces an old ideal – namely, that the corporations which profit from bringing on-screen content to Canadian audiences must also invest back into our national production sector, to ensure the industry continues to grow and succeed.
Since taking the reins at Heritage, Minister Joly has consistently lauded the economic and cultural contributions of Canada’s media production sector, which last year alone created more than 140,000 jobs and generated $8.5 billion in GDP. We look forward to the presentation of her vision for the future of our sector in September, and are optimistic that it will point to a viable way forward that sustains our industry for decades to come.
Finally, on behalf of the CMPA, I’d like to welcome Judith LaRocque as the newly-appointed interim chair of the CRTC. To echo her outgoing predecessor, we look forward to working with her to help ensure Canada’s independent producers can continue to focus on the business of creating world-class content for Canadians and the world.
Reynolds Mastin (pictured) is president and CEO, Canadian Media Producers Association.
