The big speech from Heritage Minister Mélanie Joly about Creative Canada drew a major deal with Netflix for $500 million over 5 years as well as a lot of smaller moves.
Creative Canada is the first significant change to the cultural funding process in more than a quarter century.
Is the Netflix deal a huge deal? What should we note in the smaller moves? What areas did Creative Canada miss?
The $100 million per year sounds like a lot but from several accounts, Netflix is already spending that kind of money now. There is also some concern over whether the Netflix deals will be along the line of its work with Anne with an E and Alias Grace or producing original content on its own that may not be as "Canadian."
Netflix will also contribute $25 million for French-Canadian programming. The investment include activities such as "pitch days" for producers, recruitment events and other promotional and market development activities.
This isn't Netflix's fault, but the American-based company contributions will save that $100 million in U.S. currency, assuming the exchange rate stays reasonably stable.
The investment was supposed to be in lieu of a threatened Netflix tax that the Liberals were not fond of proposing.
Let's rise to the challenge, embrace the digital shift & create winning conditions for our creators. #CreativeCanada https://t.co/o6iQ7VGahM pic.twitter.com/oWdpVmB234
— Mélanie Joly (@melaniejoly) October 1, 2017
While this might not be all that great for Canadians, the Netflix deal does offer an advantage to U.S. viewers who won't work as hard to find Canadian content. When I would have conversations about Orphan Black, so often people would ask if the show was on Netflix. (In some countries, Orphan Black is on Netflix.)
Transcript of the speech from Mélanie Joly, Minister of Canadian Heritage
The Canada Media Fund will get more money to compensate as more Canadians are cutting the cord on cable with the amount to be determined. There will be $125 million in new funding over 5 years to boost the sales of CanCon around the world with a Creative Export Strategy. We mentioned Karine Vanasse in her CTV series Cardinal, which is available in England.
There is $300 million going towards "creative hubs" where "creators can build their entrepreneurial skills, create, collaborate and innovate." Not sure what that means.
What the 2015 Canadian federal election means to CBC and other arts funding
The larger list consists of plans that are surprisingly vague.
The news industry is in really horrible shape. The minister spoke of keeping the Canada Periodical Fund as the main tool to help the news industry. The CBC will be taken care of in part by the new senior executive team coming in 2018.
The Broadcasting Act, Telecommunications Act, and Copyright Act, as well as the modernization of the Copyright Board of Canada are on the list. So is adapting the eligibility criteria for the Canada Music Fund and the Canada Book Fund by 2020. And there is a proposed Creative Industries Council, chaired by the ministers of Heritage and Innovation, to foster growth in cultural industries.
Helping CBC Part I: Show more Canadian content
Helping CBC Part II: Making money through cable channels
Helping CBC Part III: Filling programming holes
Canadian film and, to some extent, Canadian television are focus areas for us here at CanadianCrossing.com. And we recognize that Minister Joly has to concentrate over multiple forms of Canadian content. The general consensus is that people thought the Ministry of Canadian Heritage would be further along.
Canada Screens uses Internet to showcase Canadian film
CanadianCrossing.com film coverage
CanadianCrossing.com TV coverage
We would have liked to hear more about better distribution of Canadian film in Canada and elsewhere. Though the future of that quest may not be theatres but at some point, the equivalent of Canada Screens outside Canada as a online presence.
We applaud what the Minister and her team have done so far. But we know the louder applause will come when more of these items actually become reality.
photo credit: Ministry of Canadian Heritage
Twitter capture: @melaniejoly
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