Hundreds of Canadian film and TV organizations and industry members have called for the federal government to renew the additional funding given to the Canada Media Fund (CMF) to support equity-deserving groups.

Letters addressed to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and other government officials were published this week, including one from the Reelworld Screen Institute and a joint letter from the Racial Equity Media Collective (REMC) and BIPOC TV & Film.

The letters call on the government to continue a $60-million funding initiative, established in the 2021 budget, to support productions from equity-deserving groups. That funding will sunset on March 31.

The funds were partially put toward the creation of the Pilot Program for Racialized Communities (PPRC) and the Sector Development Support programs, in addition to support for Persona-ID and the Indigenous and Diverse Languages program.

More than 200 organizations signed the letter from Reelworld, which warns that the “consequences would be dire” without the continued support for racialized communities.

“Over the past three years, with the $60 million CMF received, hundreds of content creators from Black, Indigenous, People of Colour, and other equity-deserving communities were able to access funding for their projects which finally allowed us all to see true authentic characters and stories on our screens… It created a demonstrated return on investment in capacity building (skills training, professional development, mentorship) and market access (international sales of high-quality content, presence at international events, festivals, and markets),” read the letter.

The signatories include organizations such as the Indigenous Screen Office (ISO), the National Screen Institute, the DOC Institute, the Black Screen Office and the imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival. Production companies include Hungry Eyes Media, Freddie Films, Fae Pictures, Conquering Lion Pictures and Isuma Productions.

The letter from REMC and BIPOC TV & Film said it would be “gravely concerning that budgetary constraints could imperil the CMF’s equity and inclusion programs just as their benefits are becoming clear.”

CMF issued a report in January outlining the impact of the $60 million, which estimated that PPRC generated an estimated $176.4 million in GDP and 2,208 full-time equivalent jobs in a three-year period.

The letter also pointed to the recent confirmation of permanent funding at the ISO as an example of why the renewed funding would be critical. “Just as a refusal to fund the ISO would have risked undermining years of remarkable, hard-won strides towards equitable representation and narrative sovereignty for Indigenous creators, failure to renew funding for the CMF’s equity and inclusion programs would be a profound setback for racialized creators and the Canadian viewing public more broadly.”

More than 150 individuals signed the letter in solidarity, including producers Karen Harnisch, Lauren Grant, Alison Duke, Ngardy Conteh George, Anam Abbas and Tyler Hagan, and writers and filmmakers such as Jennifer Podemski, Anthony Q. Farrell and Sasha Leigh Henry.

The 2024 federal budget is expected to be tabled by Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland on April 16.

Image: Unsplash