Telefilm Canada on Wednesday reported a portfolio performance improvement of 23.7% in 2011 versus 2010, according to its first Success Index results, which measures the performance of Telefilm-supported projects.

The primary source of growth in the period came from the index’s commercial component, with box office receipts showing an 11.6% increase, and a doubling of domestic and international sales, according to Telefilm.

“Domestic box office used to be the only measurement of success but that no longer reflected the true reach of our films culturally, internationally, and on other distribution platforms,” said Telefilm exec director Carolle Brabant in a statement.

“The Index is an information, management and promotion tool. As the trends become clearer over the years, it will serve as a useful reference source for Telefilm and the industry. It will also enable us to adjust our strategies if necessary,” she added.

The Success Index was first introduced last November, as a method to measure year-over-year results for Canadian film projects supported by Telefilm, and the Canadian film industry overall.

The index is made up of three weighted attributes: commercial (60% of the total index and includes box office receipts in Canada and gross domestic and international sales); cultural (30% of the index and includes number of selections and prizes at certain Canadian and competitive international festivals and events); and industrial (10% of the index and includes the ratio of private versus public funding in Telefilm-supported productions).

Telefilm earmarked 2010 as the benchmark year for the index, assigning it a value of 100, and for 2011, the index increased to 123.7.

In 2011, the commercial component showed an overall increase of 45% over 2010.

Box office receipts rose from $24.6 million to $27.5 million, with Telefilm citing films like Starbuck, which drew $3.5 million at the box office and Barney’s Version (pictured), which drew $3 million, as reason for the increase.

Domestic sales rose from $15 million to $34 million, while international sales increased from $22 million to $51 million, citing The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus and Mr. Nobody as main sources of domestic sales, and Quebec films Monsieur Lazhar and Le Vendeur as main sources of international sales.

The agency also noted Barney’s Version and Incendies as two of the main sources of both domestic and international sales.

Telefilm reported a decline in both the cultural and industrial index components, 20.4% and 4.8% respectively.

“Despite [a] significant cultural performance [in 2011], the Index indicates a 20.4% decline from 2010 since that was a truly exceptional year, thanks mainly to Incendies and Barney’s Version, which were at the peak of their international careers,” Telefilm reported.

And the private and foreign investment share in 2011 was 24.5%, down slightly from 35.2% in 2010.