Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Hi, everybody. I'm going to speak in French, but I understand English pretty well.
I represent the Alliance des producteurs francophones du Canada, which has 24 members who are producers. These producers all work in French in areas where it is a minority language, from Newfoundland and Labrador to British Columbia, and are mainly developing the television production and digital media industries.
A few members have produced feature films, and a number of them dream of being able to develop projects like this in the future. The example that the growth of the television industry and the development of its talents and capacities in the regions through active participation in the Canada media fund lead me to believe this will happen. Our members currently develop and produce major drama series for major Canadian broadcasters.
To give you a better understanding of our current situation, I have prepared an overview of the status of French-language feature films in Canada in minority situations from the perspective of an Acadian producer working in his area. It's a portrait that I submitted on March 11, 2015. Since the document was written, I have participated on behalf of the APFC in a bilateral meeting with the FCCF, the Fédération culturelle canadienne-française, and with Telefilm Canada. The conclusions we came to following this meeting were very telling. That is why we have modified our presentation for your committee. It is essential for the APFC to have feature films that show the reality of francophones across Canada and that showcase the cultural wealth of our great country.
In the document submitted on March 11, we showed that, for francophones outside Quebec, the feature film industry hasn't changed much in the last 10 years. There was one feature film in 1998 in Acadia, another made for $1.2 million in Ontario in 2011, and three projects made on very small budgets for emerging talents in the last six years. It's a very poor record. Francophone feature films in minority situations is a rare thing.
Almost all French-language feature films in Canada are produced in Quebec. Francophones in minority situations make up 12.5% of the country's francophone population. The Official Languages Act stipulates that federal organizations must take positive action to be equitable toward francophones in minority situations.
The issue of funding a feature film project is often what prevents it from being made. Telefilm Canada, which recently had it's budget cut by 10%, provides up to 30% to 35% of funding to feature film projects. The rest of the funding comes from federal tax credits and provincial programs, as well as distributors or other broadcasters. Otherwise, producers must be clever to find sources of funding to cover the budget and produce the film.
Provincial funding is the main problem faced by francophones in minority situations who want to produce feature films. Quebec invests $25 million a year in cinema. Manitoba is the other Canadian province that provides enough assistance to cinema to make producing projects possible. However, there is no equivalent assistance for francophones in minority situations in the rest of Canada.
The various provincial organizations that help television production in particular do not have specific programs for feature films, and the current conditions do not indicate that the situation of producers in minority situations will improve in the coming years.
The APFC believes that it is essential to support the development and production of feature films in minority situations. Sections 41 and 42 of the Official Languages Act indicate that federal institutions have a duty to ensure that positive measures are taken to enhance the vitality of French linguistic minorities in respecting jurisdictions like the feature film industry. APFC has the following possible solutions.
We think the government should put in place a special assistance program for screenwriters in minority situations. A small amount would be enough to develop three or four projects professionally. It is also essential to create a special envelope to provide an additional incentive for production projects. An extra incentive in the financial structure to highlight the importance of producing feature films in official language minority communities is necessary to make up for the lack of provincial funding. This type of measure would strongly encourage producers to get involved in producing feature-length films. It would surely have a snowball effect with time, and the number of films made would proliferate.
For the last 10 years, the Canada media fund has set aside a special envelope entirely for producers in minority situations. It has led to the growth of the television industry for francophones outside Quebec. Initiatives like this enable our talent to stay where they live and develop projects in their respective regions.
Through the Canada media fund, we are now producing dramatic series, as well as variety shows, documentaries and programs for young people. These are the same people who often end up on set with seasoned television series performers. They hone their skills and eventually make feature-length films. It is also the same scriptwriters from the regions who have feature-length film projects in their back pocket.
Let's imagine for a moment that there were a way that would enable us to make feature films in French outside Quebec. It would be a marvellous way to see to the future of films conceived and made in the regions that would show the richness of Canadian heritage through the stories and cultural diversity of the people and the landscapes. It is very easy to believe that such a possibility exists and that the federal government's good will could make it possible for such incentives and programs to be created, be it at Telefilm Canada or the Official Languages Secretariat of the Department of Canadian Heritage.
The APFC believes that the programs that govern Canadian feature film financing must develop and provide equitable support to francophones involved in production in minority communities and contribute to the industry's development, as well as the promotion of Canadian culture. An acceptable assistance program would support one or two films a year, worth $500,000 for production and $200,000 for writing. We think that is quite modest to facilitate the production of a few feature-length films and the promotion of this industry for francophones in minority situations. A well designed program would not require much in the way of administration fees.
If the funding that the federal government provided to Telefilm Canada before the 10% cut was restored and was subject to an obligation of putting in place a program like this, it would be a very good policy initiative that would contribute to the promotion of the Canadian feature film industry.
The APFC is sure that the committee will take into consideration these recommendations and obligations under the Official Languages Act of Canada. It also believes that the committee will see to the adoption of conditions that will help ensure the development of the feature film industry. It will eventually allow our members to create, produce and distribute independent francophone feature-length films that will give a voice to francophone communities in minority situations.
Thank you, ladies and gentlemen and Mr. Chair.
I would be pleased to answer any questions.