TORONTO – A new audience study has identified two groups of Canadian viewers as primary targets for homegrown content.
Understanding and Engaging with Audiences was commissioned by Telefilm Canada in partnership with the Canada Media Fund (CMF), Creative BC, the Ontario Media Development Corporation (OMDC) and the Société de développement des entreprises culturelles (SODEC) and conducted by Nielsen.
According to the report, Canadians are consuming more content across all mediums. Compared to last year, viewers said they watched 13% more TV shows, 3% more movies, 15% more non-traditional videos (such as YouTube, Web series and shorts), and 2% more documentaries. More than half (53%) of Canadians say that they watch TV shows at least once a day, and 50% watch movies at least once a week.
The report recommends that Cancon producers and funding organizations engage primarily with two segments of Canadian content viewers: “Curious”— highly committed movie buffs who love all sorts of movies, blockbusters as well as smaller-scale, bringing excitement and novelty; and “Belonging”— viewers who watch to expand their horizons and who consider movies an opportunity for growth and learning.
Specifically, the report suggests that they should:
– Ensure that Canadian films and productions are distributed to streaming sites;
– Consider marketing trailers and shorter videos to sites like YouTube;
– Ensure trailers for Canadian feature films are readily available online;
– Find ways to improve film distribution of Canadian films in larger multiplexes or improve the ways in which they are promoted there;
– Consider fostering relationships with, or subsidizing, small theatres to continue to present cinema to their niche audiences; and
– Consider new ways to curate content, such as posting different lists of Canadian productions in different categories on sites consumers frequent (like IMDB).
