Montreal: Producers in Quebec, along with the film and television industry’s two principal unions, recently joined forces to create Regroupement pour la formation en audiovisuel du Quebec (RFAVQ), a government-certified collective that will fund training and professional development programs for technicians and salaried staff at production companies.

RFAVQ’s board of directors is comprised of two members from l’Association des producteurs de films et de television du Quebec (APFTQ), Syndicat des techniciennes et techniciens du cinema et de la video du Quebec (STCVQ), representing film technicians, and l’Association des professionnel-le-s de la video du Quebec (APVQ), representing technicians who work strictly in video. Benoit Dubois was recently named RFAVQ’s director-general.

The scope of RFAVQ’s activities includes collecting dues and contributions from producers; working with certified teaching agencies and individuals; establishing policy guidelines; and planning and evaluating training programs on behalf of members.

While RFAVQ was officially certified as a recognized collection organization in December 2002, it only became operational recently through a pilot, two-year grant ($200,000) from a dedicated government fund known as Fonds national de formation de la main-d’oeuvre (FNFMO).

On the training issue, Catherine Loumede, STCVQ policy advisor, says a cooperative working climate allowed the three associations to reach a quick agreement. ‘Everyone agrees training is important. It proves we can work together, although some subjects are certainly more fragile or delicate than others,’ she says.

Quebec law requires businesses, under specific payroll conditions, to make an obligatory contribution to training and professional development equal to 1% of their annual salary mass (applying to companies with more than $1 million in salary mass according to the most recent Quebec budget).

Within the A/V production industry, producers can either allocate the 1% expense to RFAVQ, or to their own internal staff training programs, or they can ultimately make the payment to the government’s consolidated coffers through their annual business taxes.

Dubois says the training and teaching resources eligible for RFAVQ funds must be recognized by the provincial government and include instructors from professional-level organizations such as l’Institut national de l’image et du son, Quebec’s advanced film and TV school.

Claire Samson, president and CEO of the APFTQ, says the RFAVQ has the merit of keeping employer contributions within the A/V sector, instead of having the contributions redirected to the general national training fund. ‘STCVQ used to have a ‘collector’ organization, but producers had a tendency not to remit to that organization, which only took into account the needs of technicians,’ says Samson, who is also a member of the Canadian Television Fund board.

For producers, Samson says key development requirements include a deeper knowledge of production financing, the tax-credit programs and various other funding programs.

‘Financing of coproduction is another big issue,’ she says. ‘There is very little training [in coproduction], and people tend to learn as they go along. Project development is also an issue. We also know there’s a need for more training on issues of on-set security [CSST regulations] and transportation.’

Samson says production managers need information on the latest technological options and equipment issues as they relate to cost-savings and sound and picture quality.

As for the STCVQ, it directly offers to its members both introductory-level and advanced development courses, and in the future, through RFAVQ, will be involved in shared programs with producers, says Loumede.

The union identifies training requirements each year, she adds. This year, for instance, courses are being offered to camera assistants who work in an underwater environment. Meanwhile, the APVQ recently organized a workshop for members on high-definition production.

-www.apftq.qc.ca

-www.stcvq.qc.ca

-www.apvq.qc.ca