There’s not enough money to go around at the Canadian Television Fund, and applicants to the fall round of both its Equity Investment Program and Licence Fee Program have been warned that the programs have been ‘oversubscribed’ by some $23.2 million.

According to its November newsletter and a brief press release, the LFP received 221 applications for a total of $33.3 million in October, greatly exceeding its allotted $21.1 million. Similarly, 155 applicants came looking for $14.5 million from the EIP, which has only $3.5 million available.

CTF spokesperson Phil Serruya says it is still too early to guess how many productions will be left without funding. The LFP should have its rankings worked out by the last week of November, he says, and the EIP should know by early next month.

EIP applicants may receive smaller payments, in contrast to the all-or-nothing LFP system. ‘In terms of impact across the number of projects, we don’t reduce the amount of dollars paid out at the LFP,’ says Serruya. ‘We do a straight percentage of the budget. When that runs out, that’s it for the year. The EIP, which is administered by Telefilm, is a bit more flexible.’

Producers, it seems, are getting used to tight budgets. ‘There has never been enough money,’ says Christina Jennings of Toronto’s Shaftesbury Films. ‘Now there are more broadcasters ordering more shows, so it should come as no surprise that they can’t service everyone. It’s just another reminder that we have to look at other ways to finance our movies,’ she says.

The CTF also announced changes to its 2003/04 guidelines, most notably a reworked LFP ranking system that replaces the ‘Canadian Elements’ criteria with a ‘Broadcaster Priorities’ point system based on the production’s importance to the broadcaster schedule. The changes come in response to complaints about the Canadian Elements system, introduced in 2000, which, according to critics, carried too much weight in the decision-making process. It is hoped the new system will be more objective and market-driven.

-www.canadiantelevisionfund.ca