Despite the marked decline in the state of public television, attendance at Input 2000, to be held in Halifax, is still worthwhile, according to organizers.

Mike Fentiman, a u.k.-based broadcasting consultant and cofounder of the event, bemoans public television’s move toward ‘the lowest common denominator,’ a ‘dumbing down’ that he says has gained pace over the last 20 years

‘We haven’t achieved anything if you look at what’s on tv. Nothing’s got better in 20 years. I don’t believe that, other than the technology, tv has improved in 20 years, but we do have a dialogue going. Without that we wouldn’t have an exchange of ideas.

‘The fact is there is still good programming around the world and it’s great to see programming from other programmers around the world. It’s a very learning, educative process for all the producers there. What we’re doing is trying to educate ourselves to make better programming for a critical audience, not a consumer audience.’

Colorado-based filmmaker Diane Markrow, who says she has been to ‘about eight’ Inputs, goes to see the product she would not otherwise encounter in the u.s. ‘As an independent filmmaker I go because it’s a way to see how in different countries and cultures people are looking to make innovative and bold film and television.’

She says Input offerings tend to be ‘innovative in style or controversial in content, which means different things in different countries and it’s interesting to see how people address concepts.’

Also the curator of the Denver International Film Festival, Markrow finds some of her lineup at Input: for 145 Denver screenings, she says ‘I’ll choose as many as five or 10 films from Input and include them in the festival. I’m looking for things for all genres, so it’s been very helpful and sometimes things have gone on [to other festivals] when other curators see them.’

Daniel Schwartz, producer with cbc’s The Magazine, also finds programming and ideas through Input. ‘For me it’s a great opportunity to see some of the best-produced documentaries from around the world. A lot of it results in programming.’ He cites the examples of the survival show, the real-life soap and the wholly improvisational drama (now screening in the u.k.) as genres first sighted at Input. ‘I’ve seen other things I haven’t seen before. It’s about being able to get together with producers and filmmakers to discuss and argue about it.’

cbc is set to host the Input 2000: Television on the Edge conference, being held in Halifax, n.s. May 14-20.

The 23rd edition of the international public television confab will screen 89 public service television programs, selected from 37 countries, putting the focus of the week-long industry gathering on content. Attendance is mandatory for filmmakers who have a program screening at the conference.

Among the films being screened this year are Canadian Oscar-nominee When the Day Breaks, the bbc’s Walking with Dinosaurs and Hisaaki Wakaizumi’s Blue Fireworks.