Netflix may be celebrating 10 years in Canada, but the global streaming service is still hitting its stride.

“I think the massive move toward on-demand and subscription will reshape things for decades to come and we’re at the very beginning of that now,” said Ted Sarandos, co-CEO and chief content officer at Netflix on the opening day of the Banff World Media Festival (BANFF).

Speaking with Kirstine Stewart, head of Shaping the Future of Media, Sport and Entertainment at the World Economic Forum, in a keynote conversation, Sarandos delved into how the pandemic has shaped media trends in the last year and the company’s expansion into Canada with its new Toronto base.

Since 2017 the company has continued to invest in production in Canada – its initial promise of $500 million spend within five years has snowballed into $2.5 billion, and the company is making a significant investment into original Canadian content as it searches for a local content executive.

The keynote conversation took place the same day Netflix posted its job listing for a Toronto-based content executive. The role – titled manager, original series, Canada – will see the selected candidate develop and produce scripted content in Canada for the streamer and liaise with established and emerging creative talent.

Sarandos said Netflix wants to be “more aggressive about telling Canadian stories” and are looking for “best in class” ideas from Canadian creatives. “We’re looking for that story that you’re dying to tell, and no one can tell it as well as you,” said Sarandos, noting the streaming is open to any and all genres in scripted and unscripted.

Sarandos also announced the streamer’s first English-language Canadian original film with Code 8 Part II and a new partnership with Women in Animation Vancouver to take its Animation Career EXCELerator Program global, with a focus on attracting BIPOC talent. “Here in the U.S. only about 5% of producers of animation are women of colour, so we have an opportunity to bring more voices to the table,” said Sarandos.

Diversity is a key component of Netflix’s global strategy, according to Sarandos, both at the content level and within its ranks. A diverse executive team results in a trickle down effect across its departments, according to Sarandos, since diverse decision-makers are statistically more likely to hire diverse creatives who, in turn, are likely to create and cast diverse roles. “I want my team to look like the world that they’re serving,” said Sarandos.

He noted that on a content level the pandemic has made viewers more open to stories from foreign countries, stating that, in the U.S., viewership of non-English content is up 50% from the beginning of the year, with Korean-language content up by 100%. As well, series such as Lupin from France are among the top-performing series globally. The streamer has also had a positive impact on tourism in countries like Spain.

The hope is that a similar effect will happen for Canadian content.

“We’ve made it a point to come in and be a partner in each of these countries we operate in and put a meaningful investment into the marketplace,” said Sarandos. “Not just export Hollywood to the world, but to actually export content and local stories to everywhere else in the world.”

The service has already had an impact on Canadian acting talent – Sarandos pointed out that Amybeth McNulty, who starred in the hit series Anne with an E, is among the new cast members of one of the streamer’s largest success stories, Stranger Things.

As for global viewing trends, Sarandos said the pandemic has likely permanently changed how audiences consume content. He pointed to the rise of blockbuster films premiering day and date on streaming platforms and on-demand services as a continuing trend. While he suspects traditionally high-grossing films will continue to perform well theatrically, windows will shrink as consumers become accustomed to at-home access to new releases.

As a result, however, Netflix has had more success negotiating with exhibitors about theatrical releases for some of its films, such as Army of the Dead, which had one the streamer’s widest releases to date with approximately 600 screens.

The streamer’s release strategy will likely remain the same, according to Sarandos, who said that, initially, dropping full seasons of original content was a practical decision rather than a conscious choice on their part to disrupt distribution strategies. Now the release strategy is part of their focus on giving consumers as much choice as possible; while streaming services such as Disney+ have followed the weekly release model, Sarandos doesn’t see Netflix’s model changing.

One thing Sarandos does hope will change as the pandemic slows: a return to in-person meetings. While he said video conferencing is a practical solution that will have its place in reducing some unnecessary travel in the future, it won’t be a full replacement in all situations. For instance, he expects most writers’ rooms will return to in-person – and, of course, hopes that BANFF will return to its namesake in the Rocky Mountains.

BANFF runs from June 14 to July 16.

Pictured (L-R): Ted Sarandos and Kirstine Stewart