The Governor in Council has appointed former CRTC secretary general Claude Doucet (pictured left) and Calgary-based business leader Deborah MacPherson (pictured right) to Telefilm Canada’s board of directors. The five-year terms went into effect on May 9.

Doucet has held various positions at Canadian Heritage and the CRTC since 1996, most recently serving as the Commission’s secretary general until late 2023, and has decades of experience in public policy. MacPherson spent more than two decades at the accounting firm KPMG and is chair of the board for Special Olympics Alberta.

The Telefilm board is led by recently-appointed chair Sylvain Lafrance, who also began his five-year term on May 9.

Earlier this month, Telefilm unveiled $1.3 million in funding for 24 medium- to large-scale film festivals in Canada. The funding round covers festivals that will have events between Oct. 1 and March 31, and therefore does not capture festivals such as Hot Docs and the Toronto International Film Festival.

Among the supported festivals are the Reelworld Film Festival, Whistler Film Festival, Rendez-vous Québec Cinéma, image+nation. festival, Forest City Film Festival, St. John’s International Women’s Film Festival and the Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival.

Forum RIDM, Telefilm name Cannes Docs delegation

Producers Alejandro Valbuena (Curare Films), Farnaz Jurabchian (F&M Productions) and Patricia Bergeron (Productions Leitmotiv) make up the Canadian delegation for the Cannes Docs section at the Marché du Film.

Running from May 16 to 21, the doc-focused section of the market showcases projects and producers in the global documentary sector. The Canadian delegation will showcase their companies during the Co-Pro Social Club sessions, which also hosts delegates from Spain and Greece.

The delegation was announced by Forum RIDM in partnership with Telefilm. As part of the initiative, Forum RIDM offers pre-event training and networking opportunities with festivals, sales agents, and other film professionals.

NFB animation on display in L.A. museum

Animation work from the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) is now on display at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in L.A.

The 1949 short film Begone Dull Care by Norman McLaren and Evelyn Lambart and artwork from Ishu Patel’s 1984 short Paradise are being featured as part of the Inventing Worlds and Characters: Animation gallery. Begone Dull Care sees colours and shapes painted onto a filmstrip, forming an interpretation of music from the Oscar Peterson Trio. Paradise was nominated for animated short at the 57th Academy Awards and compares the lives of birds in and out of captivity.

The NFB is currently undergoing a survey on the development of its 2025-28 strategic plan. The 30-minute survey is geared toward filmmakers, industry filmmakers and partners, and is meant to help guide the NFB’s planning. The deadline is Friday (May 17).

IPF launches program to support applications from the north

The Independent Production Fund (IPF) has partnered with the Nunavut Film Development Corporation, Northwest Territories Film Commission and Yukon Media Development to launch the IPF Pre-Application Training Program for Northern Producers.

The program is dedicated to producers in Canada’s northern territories and will provide training on how to create a competitive application for series development funding. The training will be provided by the Whistler Film Festival Society. Whistler’s Brendon Sawatzky serves as the program facilitator and mentor.

Photo of Claude Doucet by Sébastien Lavallée; photo of Deborah MacPherson courtesy of KPMG