Evidence of meeting #44 for Canadian Heritage in the 41st Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was dancers.
A recording is available from Parliament.
NDP
Pierre Nantel NDP Longueuil—Pierre-Boucher, QC
Now you are suggesting steering towards the new media, but in what form?
Executive Director, Regroupement québécois de la danse
We are suggesting both. Television networks are still more mainstream than social media. We need a combination of mainstream media and social media creating the buzz. We have to create some buzz.
NDP
Pierre Nantel NDP Longueuil—Pierre-Boucher, QC
But when you say that you have to steer towards the new media, what do you mean? More views?
Executive Director, Regroupement québécois de la danse
More and more dance videos are being developed. More and more events are being shown.
NDP
Pierre Nantel NDP Longueuil—Pierre-Boucher, QC
For example, the Excentris cinema shows art films. You can go and see the film in the cinema or you can pay to see it in your home. Would that kind of initiative be possible, like showing things locally?
Executive Director, Regroupement québécois de la danse
I am not sure because the fact remains that dance requires contact with the public. That is very important. But showing beautiful images might be used for something else.
NDP
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Gord Brown
I remind members that we also have Ms. McLaren with us by video conference from Toronto, if anybody wants to direct some questions to her.
Mr. Dion, the floor is yours for seven minutes.
Liberal
Stéphane Dion Liberal Saint-Laurent—Cartierville, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Madam McLaren, welcome, and thank you so much for being with us.
My thanks to Ms. Mongrain, Ms Hancox, Ms. Cornell and Ms. Hébert, as well as Mr. Rhéaume.
I'm not sure we'll have questions for all of you in seven minutes.
I was intrigued by some of your recommendations. So I would ask you to briefly elaborate on some of them. If we spend seven minutes on the first one, we will not be able to discuss the other ones.
Ms. Hébert, you made a recommendation on the Canada media fund.
Liberal
Stéphane Dion Liberal Saint-Laurent—Cartierville, QC
Let me read it:
Create a new program or section in the Grants to Media Arts Program to meet the needs of the dance sector with regard to the creation, production and presentation of digital content, and to provide the required resources and specialized skills in managing, designing and developing digital projects.
What will that program do? What will it do compared to existing programs?
Executive Director, Regroupement québécois de la danse
How will we fund those projects? What type of equipment do we have? How are we paying for the specialized skills we need? Without exception, that is the situation of the dance sector. We don’t have an access program like the one the industry has access to. We don’t have research and development funding or tax credits. Our sector is made up of non-profit organizations. We have to receive some sort of assistance to get our projects off the ground. We don’t have access to that right now.
Liberal
Stéphane Dion Liberal Saint-Laurent—Cartierville, QC
Would you like the government to make a major investment in that program?
Executive Director, Regroupement québécois de la danse
It should make an investment.
Liberal
Executive Director, Regroupement québécois de la danse
One day the Canada Council for the Arts has the most money allocated to help us, the next day Heritage Canada does. Set it up any way you like, but we need funding.
Liberal
Stéphane Dion Liberal Saint-Laurent—Cartierville, QC
I was wondering why a new program is needed. Why is the current program not appropriate?
Executive Director, Regroupement québécois de la danse
The program was designed for industry. It is not suitable for our arts sectors.
Liberal
Stéphane Dion Liberal Saint-Laurent—Cartierville, QC
Okay. Thank you.
Madam Cornell, in recommendation number 4 you state the following:
That the federal government recognize those dance organizations working to improve Canadians’ health and well-being by providing access to federal funding at agencies such as Health Canada and Industry Canada.
What do you have in mind here?
Executive Director, Canadian Dance Assembly
There are many dance organizations that are working in schools across Canada, helping those teachers who are afraid to teach dance, to have the benefit of a professional artist in the schools to give them exposure to professional dance. Those dance organizations are helping to keep Canadians healthy.
Because education obviously is a provincial concern, currently these programs come under operating funding from the Canada Council, and possibly from the Department of Canadian Heritage. There is no special funding directed toward these programs.
I can't help but notice that at Industry Canada they have in their Canada 150 program a pillar that is culture, and yet several—I believe that most of their programs are not-for-profits—aren't actually eligible to apply for those programs. It may be examining that.
I'm certainly not an expert in health. But I also wonder, in terms of the incredible benefits Mr. Dalrymple was speaking about with the Sharing Dance program, getting a million Canadians dancing, if there could possibly be some funding there to recognize the health value of dance and the work that's going on at these important dance organizations.
Liberal
Stéphane Dion Liberal Saint-Laurent—Cartierville, QC
Thank you very much.
I have more questions for you, and if I have time, I will come back to you, but in the meantime I will ask Madam Hancox and Madame Mongrain to respond.
Ms. McLaren could comment on that.
Can you explain to us one of your recommendations? You insist on the Monaco declaration. What do you mean by that? What is the status of Canada regarding the Monaco declaration? Why did you insist on making it a recommendation?
Executive Director, National Office, Dancer Transition Resource Centre
It was an international recommendation for all countries to adopt.
Executive Director, National Office, Dancer Transition Resource Centre
Well, it's out there and as an organization that looks after professional dancers, we are doing that work, but it's a way of saying the governments of countries should definitely put a focus on this issue.
Liberal