Feature film funding in this country must place a greater emphasis on marketing and promotion. It's not enough to create Canadian stories and leave them on the shelf. They must be shared with the world. This means supporting Canadian feature films at home and abroad and finding new and innovative ways to help Canadian productions stand out from the pack and be seen. Canada sits on top of the world's largest generator of English language entertainment. Our physical proximity to the United States and our disproportionate population bases mean that all too often Canadians are overwhelmed by the sheer volume of productions from south of the border.
Outside of Quebec, getting Canadian films in front of Canadian eyeballs is a monumental challenge. The Ontario Media Development Corporation's 2013 industry profile showed that in 2012 Canadian English and French language feature films generated $27 million worth of revenues, or a 2.5% share of the national box office sales, which totalled $1.9 billion. In the English language market, though, Canadian features only captured 1.5% of total box office sales compared to American features, which made up 82.4% of sales.
There's an opportunity being missed here. Canadian creators are making award-winning feature films and the sad fact is that Canadian audiences never get a chance to see them because our cinemas are dominated by U.S. product. The CRTC has not helped either. By diluting its Canadian broadcast exhibition requirements the CRTC has taken away any incentive for Canadian broadcasters to air Canadian feature films. Our domestic feature film industry has suffered as a result of this decision. Instead of being exposed to Canadian stories, the stories that matter and resonate with us, Canada is little more than an afterthought to the American entertainment behemoth, which simply includes us as part of its own domestic box office. Until Canada reclaims, celebrates, and actively promotes the work being done within its own borders, Canadians will continue to have their own cultural heritage treated as second-best and not be given the opportunity to see distinctly Canadian films. It is crucial that we reform Canada's film broadcast and distribution sectors and give Canadians the opportunity to experience their own rich and diverse cultural heritage.
We ask this committee to consider our modest proposals for improvements in the funding and distribution of Canadian feature films, which must feature Canadian performers in leading and challenging roles in order to create distinctly Canadian films that Canadian and international audiences will want to see.
Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.