Evidence of meeting #24 for Canadian Heritage in the 39th Parliament, 1st session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was fund.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Co-Chair, Canadian Independent Film and Video Fund
I could be very categorical and answer no.
Bloc
Maka Kotto Bloc Saint-Lambert, QC
Very well.
I would like to check the accuracy of the numbers I have before me. How many projects that were refused, and yet met the conditions, could have qualified if the fund had received more financial support?
Co-Chair, Canadian Independent Film and Video Fund
Robin, do you have those statistics?
Executive Director, Canadian Independent Film and Video Fund
Last time, we received 201 applications, a dozen of which were turned down. So there were 190 acceptable projects. We funded 68 of them.
Bloc
Maka Kotto Bloc Saint-Lambert, QC
Some 190 projects were acceptable, but because of a lack of means, they were rejected. Could you indicate the proportion of francophone projects that were rejected compared to the number of anglophone projects?
Executive Director, Canadian Independent Film and Video Fund
Last time, we received 47 French-language projects and accepted 18 of them. There were 25 projects from Quebec, including French and English language projects.
Bloc
Maka Kotto Bloc Saint-Lambert, QC
Very well. Do you think the request by the Conseil québécois des arts médiatiques to increase the fund to $3 million would help reactivate the multimedia component, which was abandoned owing to a lack of means?
Executive Director, Canadian Independent Film and Video Fund
We would like to do so because, as you know, there are cross platforms.
Bloc
Maka Kotto Bloc Saint-Lambert, QC
I will restate Mr. Simms's question. Ideally, how much money would you need to meet the demand from eligible project applicants, taking into account the fact that the new government is very tight-fisted with its money?
Co-Chair, Canadian Independent Film and Video Fund
We have asked for $3 million.
Bloc
Maka Kotto Bloc Saint-Lambert, QC
That request is similar to the one made by the Conseil québécois des arts médiatiques. Is that a minimum amount?
Executive Director, Canadian Independent Film and Video Fund
I think so, it is a minimum.
Bloc
Maka Kotto Bloc Saint-Lambert, QC
Very well.
Since when have you been working with the emerging generation?
Co-Chair, Canadian Independent Film and Video Fund
Since about the year 2000.
Bloc
Maka Kotto Bloc Saint-Lambert, QC
Since that time, have you in any way been reprimanded for having mismanaged funds that were allocated to you?
Co-Chair, Canadian Independent Film and Video Fund
On the contrary. An assessment was made of our management system, and we received very high marks for the way we manage the funds that are granted to us.
Co-Chair, Canadian Independent Film and Video Fund
In a clear and transparent manner.
Executive Director, Canadian Independent Film and Video Fund
We can send you the report, if you are interested.
Bloc
NDP
Charlie Angus NDP Timmins—James Bay, ON
I'd like to just ask, first off, in the transformation from analog to digital, has there been a complete transformation? Are people still using analog?
Secondly, in terms of digital, has it made a major change in the price of projects and in the kind of people who are coming to the tables who wouldn't have been there before?
Executive Director, Canadian Independent Film and Video Fund
It's interesting that in documentary almost everybody has made the switch to digital. In terms of the price of projects, I can't say that I've noticed a real increase.
