Banff: Multimedia has been a hot topic at the Banff Television Festival, where Canadian Heritage Minister Sheila Copps announced a $30-million multimedia fund to be administered by Telefilm Canada.

The Multimedia Fund will earmark $6 million per year over the next five years in interest-free repayable loans for the development, production, distribution and marketing of multimedia products.

The fund is intended for commercially viable, culturally oriented edutainment programs aimed at the general public, says Copps. The intent, says the minister, is to put more Canadian content on the worldwide information highway, reflect Canadian culture through multimedia, and tell Canadian stories to Canadians and the world.

At the development stage, interest-free advances of up to 50% of the budget, to a maximum of $75,000, will be available. For production, loans are capped at 50% of the production budget to a maximum of $250,000, and up to 50% of the marketing budget to a maximum of $150,000, can be accessed.

One-third of the funds will be allocated to French-language production. An incentive will be offered for projects delivered in both English and French.

Eligibility criteria is vague but Telefilm’s Francois Macerola says a committee is being formed to lock details. The general criteria calls for the fund to be open to Canadian companies active in multimedia content production, including other cultural businesses (such as film and tv production).

Priority will be given to small- and medium-sized companies, although the criteria defining ‘small’ and ‘medium’ is a work in progress.

Products with a specific corporate, industrial or promotional focus, and games intended for the video arcade market will not be eligible.

In 1996, Telefilm created the Pilot Program for Multimedia Production and Publishing Assistance, which allocates $1 million per year and will inject an additional $750,000 this year to support industry and professional development of the multimedia sector and Canadian participation at the major multimedia markets.

The Banff Centre for the Arts and CBC Newsworld’s Rough Cuts announced a $10,000 development fund for up to two new media projects from Canadian producers this year. They also issued a call for proposals from Canadian producers to apply digital technology to documentary making and interactive new media.