[This article appeared as part of an advertising supplement in Playback.]

After five years of supporting Canadian drama and kids programming, the Maclean Hunter Television Fund is ready to spread its reach in an evolving industry.

At a press conference in 1991, Maclean Hunter Limited announced that it had created a special fund to help finance the production of prime-time adult drama and children’s series for private broadcast in Canada.

Calling the press conference was appropriate, since the emergence of the Maclean Hunter Television Fund was big news indeed. A new source of private financing had suddenly become available to independent producers in need of the vital last 10% of their budgets.Equally newsworthy was the fund’s structure as a charitable foundation operating independently of its parent. Taking its mandate and funding criteria from a board of directors with immediate ties to the Canadian television industry, the MHTVFund quickly became a model of effective private financing – informed and in touch with the producers it was supporting.

The MHTVFund invests the more than $3 million it earns each year from an original capital endowment of $29.2 million. Over the first five years, 58 series, 16 pilots and 97 special projects have received more than $15.6 million of support from the MHTVFund. Literally hundreds of hours of Canadian television programming have been produced with its financial assistance.

‘I’ve always been amazed at what we have been able to accomplish with a relatively small amount of funding,’ says Michel Tremblay, a board member of the fund since 1993.

‘But it’s our goal to distribute funds strategically where we can make a real difference in helping to bring top-notch Canadian productions to the air.’

Investing in a diversity of programming

The impact has been considerable. Witness the fund’s involvement in a diversity of engaging and creative programming for audiences of all ages. From widely acclaimed children’s programs like Groundling Marsh to the high profile of adult dramatic series such as Traders and Alys Robi, the range of projects crosses a wide spectrum of genres.

‘There is a strong demand for Canadian programming,’ says Tremblay, ‘so it’s rewarding to have contributed to big success stories. They demonstrate that we are fulfilling our mandate by helping to enhance the quality of programs that Canadians have available to them.’

Many of those success stories, such as Insight Productions’ Ready or Not, are thriving as they enter a third or fourth season, drawing loyal viewers not only from across Canada but around the world.

‘The MHTVFund has been with us for multiple seasons, but they were a huge help especially at the pilot stage,’ says Barbara Bowlby, Ready or Not’s executive producer. ‘The first dollars are always the hardest to get when an investor has to catch your vision without videotape. We’re delighted MHTVFund saw our potential. Thirty-two Double A (Ready or Not’s pilot episode) could not have been produced without their support.’

Demand for financing on the rise

The MHTVFund was originally designed to complement various sources of funding in the public arena. However, major cuts to federal agencies and an indefinite freeze on the Ontario Film Development Corporation budget, have turned up the pressure on private funds. Applications for financial assistance are swamping offices in unprecedented numbers with requests for larger investments and faster decisions becoming the norm.

Andra Sheffer, executive director of MHTVFund since its inception, says that ongoing cutbacks are straining the limited resources of private funds.

‘Financial structures are tenuous,’ she says, ‘so demand for our support is much higher today. Technically, we provide top-up financing – the last 3% to 15% of a production budget. But economic realities often force us to come into a project sooner and to make decisions earlier and faster.’

As an independent entity, the MHTVFund has adapted to market impulses by expanding eligibility guidelines and broadening its mandate to match the needs of the industry as they change.

‘The beauty of a private fund is our flexibility,’ says Sheffer, citing the fund’s support of certain kinds of programs which, had they been assessed under stricter, more narrow definitions, may have fallen just outside written rules for funding eligibility.

For instance, supporting the launches of prime-time drama and family programming was an establishing priority of the MHTVFund. However, financial constraints in subsequent seasons of those series prompted a review of the policy. Now the fund lends its support at the pilot stage and often returns as a partner for two, three and, sometimes, four seasons.

Adapting to the needs of industry

Peter Mortimer, MHTVFund president, says it is essential for the board of directors to interpret the role of the fund openly in order to remain sensitive and responsive to the industry. That’s possible with this board, he adds, because each of its members is directly involved in various segments of the business. Their work with the MHTVFund is rooted in experience.

‘I am confident in their experience,’ says Mortimer.

‘Being able to act independently from an informed base has allowed the fund to adapt and make significant contributions where they are needed most. And I think our track record speaks for itself. There is hardly an important series we haven’t been involved with over the last five years.’

In October 1995, Bernard Montigny stepped down from his position as MHTVFund president and board member after five years. During the fund’s formative stage, as resources and information were being gathered, Montigny says that the main goal of supporting private independent production seemed straightforward.

‘But we soon realized that we would have to dedicate our resources to certain areas – like adult drama and children’s programming – that most needed the support,’ he remembers.

Mortimer says that while the origins of the fund are based in public policy, it must increasingly operate with an astute business sensibility, assessing not just the cultural value of work but its potential for recoupment.

‘We make public-spirited decisions but, ultimately, television is a commercial business which relies on private financing,’ he explains.

‘Public content is encouraged significantly through Telefilm and it’s a necessary spark plug. But they can’t and shouldn’t fund the stuff completely. As a private fund, we try to operate as a sort of benign bank.’

A growing league of funds

There are now 20 private funds supporting various niches of Canadian television. The majority are national in scope, with budgets ranging from less than $1 million to the more than $45 million administered by the Cable Production Fund.

Michel Tremblay welcomes the proliferation of funds but is concerned about the effect increased involvement from the private sector may have on already shrinking levels of federal and provincial financing.

‘We’re seeing an ever-expanding group of private funds pouring more money into the bucket,’ he says, ‘but the bucket may be leaking.

‘We have to be careful that we’re not sending a signal that says it’s okay for public funders to step back. It shouldn’t mean that because the industry is doing more, less should be done elsewhere.’

The MHTVFund, now considered medium-sized in the growing league of funds, is envisioning how it might collaborate with other private financing groups and individual investors to maximize their overall contribution to Canadian television programming.

Stronger political clout

Mortimer says the stronger voice of a federation of private financing groups would carry farther in political circles, prompting legislative and policy changes needed to encourage more private investment in the business.

‘As a group, we would have more clout and influence,’ he says.

‘There has been a sad inability of the industry to convince government of the real value of Canadian television production from both an economic standpoint as a creator of jobs and as a vehicle of cultural expression,’ Mortimer continues.

‘Every source of domestic public financing is shrinking but the costs of production don’t go down.’

Problems facing the industry are serious but not unsolvable, he insists.

‘But in my experience, I’ve discovered that there is no good addressing the problem after the situation has evolved.’

In Ontario, the recent announcement of a long-fought-for tax credit system for producers is good news and strong evidence that the industry can influence government policy. But the tax credit, while a useful step forward in the right direction, isn’t enough, says Mortimer.

‘There remains little investment inducement for private investors. So if the scope of the MHTVFund and others was to become larger and more influential politically, I think we could all be more useful.’

Mortimer suggests a possible framework for collaboration among other financing groups would see their administrative functions grouped under a single umbrella fund.

‘Ideally, we would like to create a kind of one-stop shopping opportunity for producers,’ he says, ‘with the understanding, of course, that the corporate name behind every fund would still feature prominently and publicly.’

Coordinated financing efforts

In addition to the economies of sharing administrative functions, Mortimer says a coordination of policies and services among funding agents could open a floodgate of opportunities to stretch investment dollars further in joint or multiple financing efforts.

As an example he points to the MHTVFund’s involvement in children’s television.

‘We were drawn into children’s programming because no other private fund was really there at the time,’ Mortimer says.

‘Now that there are other financing groups focusing specifically on television for kids, it would be of great benefit to somehow consolidate our efforts. With a collaboration, we could better define our collective roles.’

The same holds true for other sectors of the industry. The MHTVFund, having identified multimedia as an important part of its future agenda, is eager to forge partnerships with others who see multimedia as an evolving and critical form for the industry.

Notably, that interest in striking partnerships extends beyond areas the MHTVFund has identified as priorities for itself, Mortimer adds.

‘For example, we haven’t become involved in supporting documentary production, but we would certainly be happy to encourage other funds to support it.’

The MHTVFund already works cooperatively with the Cogeco Program Development Fund, a Quebec-based group which supports the writing and development of new series for prime-time audiences.

Cogeco loans the annual revenue generated each year by a $5-million fund. In 1995, it assisted in the development of 16 new projects.

‘Cogeco selects its own board of directors and remains very much a separate entity,’ explains Claire Dion, MHTVFund’s associate director based in Montreal. ‘But we handle their administration, allowing them to allocate more to the industry by avoiding a costly duplication of services.’

Streamlining the application process

Michel Tremblay says that one of the goals of striking other similar partnership arrangements is to simplify the application process for producers.

‘The expanding number of funds is good for the industry in general,’ says Tremblay, ‘but it can be a bit of a nightmare for producers.’

‘So we’re asking aloud to what extent we can pool our resources and provide a simpler approach for applicants.’

For the independent producers who are applying for financing, the benefits of ‘one-stop shopping’ could mean a single application for all funds and the submission of just one script, not the three or four copies required now.

Tremblay envisions a committee of funds that bridges the gaps between development, interim and production financing, and allows for application deadline dates to be coordinated.

‘For the MHTVFund, it’s a chance to expand our potential and spread our reach to new producers, new sources of financing and new productions,’ he says, ‘while maintaining the solid relationships we value with government funding agencies, broadcasters and producers.’

The stronger, the better

Tormented by the constant uncertainty of financing, the Canadian television industry has proven to be remarkably resilient, producing top-quality series and gaining appreciation from audiences in Canada and around the world. Award-winning Canadian series are also becoming great economic successes with record international sales.

But the industry’s growth, while significant, hasn’t diminished the challenge of working in the shadow of American television.

Pulling back support for the development and production of new Canadian series could quickly erase the gains the industry has made in the last decade.

‘We are still in great danger of being overwhelmed by American programming,’ Mortimer warns. ‘That’s why I think it’s so important that financing groups work as partners in supporting the industry. The stronger the support, the better for everyone.’