Telefilm Canada has updated its development program, adding more funding for women-led projects and support for emerging talent.

The program, which opens for submissions on July 4, provides support for Canadian production companies looking to finance the development of a feature film. The changes, announced Thursday, were made to support Telefilm’s goal of achieving a representative and diverse feature portfolio by 2020, according to a statement by the funder.

New this year, production companies submitting films with a female writer and producer attached will have access to an additional $15,000 per project. Telefilm has also expanded its eligibility criteria, allowing prodcos that have produced a film under the micro-budget production program to apply, which the government agency says will help support “emerging talent with demonstrated expertise.”

The program, which was previously open to producers of scripted feature films, is also now open to filmmakers who have produced a theatrically released documentary. Telefilm doubled its investment in documentary in 2017 for a total of $1.7 million.

Also new this year is its partnership with Creative BC to support filmmakers from the province. B.C.-based prodcos that receive less than $30,000 in development funding from Telefilm will be eligible to receive a top-up amount from Creative BC to reach $30,000 in total funding.

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