The Canada Media Fund (CMF) has kicked off what it calls “an exploration of Canadian content” to facilitate industry-wide discussions about the definition of Cancon.

CMF president and CEO Valerie Creighton (pictured far right) delved into the topic while moderating a panel at last week’s Content Canada in Toronto. The funder says it will continue the conversation over the next several months during its fall industry consultations, through an industry-wide survey, in a series of articles on its Now & Next site, and at other events. It’s also started the hashtag #CanConDef to encourage social media posts on the subject.

The initiative comes as the proposed update to the decades-old Broadcasting Act, Bill C-11 (a.k.a. the Online Streaming Act), gets reviewed in the Senate. The bill would give the CRTC the ability to define Canadian content, which is currently determined by a points system centred on Canadians in key creative positions on productions.

Some industry stakeholders have called for amendments to the definition of Cancon. In May, Stéphane Cardin, director of public policy at Netflix Canada, told the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage that “quality stories no longer have borders.” And last Thursday, David Fares, VP of global public policy at The Walt Disney Company, pleaded a similar case before the Standing Senate Committee on Transport and Communications.

Fares touted the amount of feature films, TV and VOD original series Disney has produced in Canada as well as its “uniquely Canadian stories,” such as Pixar animation film Turning Red, which he called “a love story to growing up in Toronto” created and directed by Canadian-raised Domee Shi. Such stories “do not qualify as Canadian programs under the CRTC’s current definition, notwithstanding their unique Canadian stories,” he added, calling for “a flexible regulatory regime” that “would recognize that each company offers a different proposition to its consumers.”

In a statement, the CMF said the “screen-based sector is at a crossroads — and Canadian content, in all its forms, is at the centre of the debate.”

The funder pointed to “new power dynamics” from the growing presence of streaming services as well “debates about intellectual property, and questions about our cultural sovereignty.”

“According to the CMPA, Canadian production has decreased by 9% over the past decade, while foreign location and service production in Canada has increased by 212%. Important questions have been raised about ownership, authorship, and what exactly is Canadian content?” said the CMF.

With C-11 poised to usher in new regulatory and legislative changes, the CMF said it wants to “spark a much-needed discussion across our industry” about the topic and “make space for as many voices as possible as we head into the continued legislative and regulation process working towards a definition of Canadian content.”

“When we have listened, we will share what we have learned — because rethinking Canadian content is one of the most important challenges facing our industry,” it added.

Image courtesy of the CMF; L-R: Melanie Nepinak Hadley, executive director, Warner Bros. Discovery Access Canada; Vinay Virmani, partner and chief content officer, Uninterrupted Canada; Laura Michalchyshyn, CCO and co-president, Blue Ant Studios; Richard Jean-Baptiste, executive producer; Valerie Creighton, president and CEO, Canada Media Fund