Montreal: Equity Investment Program funding from Telefilm Canada’s Quebec operations office has helped to fuel production on 500 hours of new TV programming in drama, children’s, documentary, and variety and performance categories. Telefilm says the numbers are subject to change, with a significant number of contracts still to be signed.

‘There’s a lot of continuity in TV in the past two or three years,’ says Quebec operations director Joelle Levie. She says there have been many more funding applications for children’s shows this year and more funding requests for variety shows and English-language projects.

An EIP summary for French-language productions in 2001/02 includes:

In drama, $15.4 million has been invested in 17 Quebec-based projects making up 132 hours of new programming, and $2.1 million in four projects originated out of Quebec, for a combined total of $17.5 million invested in drama.

In children’s, $3.6 million is being invested in 12 Quebec projects representing 214 hours, a significant increase over last year, and $600,000 for one non-Quebec project, for a total of $4.2 million.

In variety and performing arts programs, $1.3 million has been invested in seven Quebec-based projects making up 19.5 hours, and $100,000 for one out-of-Quebec project.

In documentaries, $4.5 million has been invested in 34 Quebec projects making up 130 hours of programming, in addition to $900,000 for seven non-Quebec projects.

The EIP share of production budgets is approximately 30%.

The total for French-language EIP investment in 2001/02 is $24.8 million for 70 Quebec TV productions representing 495.5 hours of new programming and $3.7 million for 13 projects originated out of Quebec, for a current cumulative total of $28.5 million invested in 83 TV projects.

New Quebec primetime drama with EIP support in the 2001/02 season includes:

* Zone 3’s Exils, a ‘tele-theatre’ (stage play adaptation) shoot for Radio-Canada; Hotel des Horizons, a 90-minute stage play adaptation for Tele-Quebec; and Tag, l’Epilogue, a five-hour, delinquent-youth drama sequel for SRC

* Pixcom’s 24 Poses, a tele-theatre production for SRC and ARTV

* Match TV’s Cauchemar d’amour, a new series for Reseau TVA

* Aetios Productions’ top-rated crime profiler series Fortier III for TVA, and the six-hour miniseries Music-Hall, the most expensive Quebec drama this year with a budget of just over $1 million an hour, for SRC

* Telefiction’s Grande Expedition, the only EIP-funded family drama this year, commissioned by Tele-Quebec

* Videofilms’ high-budget miniseries Jean Duceppe, Homme de Theatre for Tele-Quebec

* CCH Plus’ 24P series (10 hours) Lance et Compte: The Next Generation II for TQS

* Productions JI’s Real-TV, a family show for VRAK-TV

* Vendome’s Si la tendance se maintient, a political satire miniseries for TVA

* Cirrus Communications’ ‘teleroman plus’ series Tabout, a sort of follow-up to the critically acclaimed series Deux Freres, for TVA

* Sovimed’s (Sovimage) ad agency drama series Tribu.com for TVA

Three other French-language drama projects are being financed with additional funds from the CTF Licence Fee Program.

Levie says the EIP funding process ‘is really selective …and the big competition in drama is between TVA and Radio-Canada, the two broadcasters able to pay out the [required[ licence fee [worth 20% on the EIP point evaluation]. Our choices are really based on project. And the evaluation grid, which works very well,’ she says.