Canadian Heritage has responded to the open letter from the Canadian film and television industry regarding permanent Telefilm Canada funding.

In total, 1,388 signatories signed an open letter dated Nov. 7 that was addressed to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland and Minister of Canadian Heritage Pascale St-Onge. The letter urged the federal government to permanently increase Telefilm’s funding to $50 million in the upcoming fall economic statement.

In January, the federal government renewed funding for Telefilm to the tune of $100 million over 2024-25 and 2025-26. However, the funding has yet to be made permanent. A spokesperson for Canadian Heritage told Playback Daily the intent behind the funding is to ensure “that they continue to provide better access to a diverse range of creators and producers.”

“The government is continuing to work to modernize the tools that support Canada’s audiovisual sector and remains attentive to the numerous challenges faced by all stakeholders in the audiovisual sector,” the spokesperson said.

The federal government first made a promise in 2019 to increase Telefilm’s funding by 50%, followed by a 2021 promise to permanently increase its funding by $50 million. In the 2021 budget, the government provided $105 million over three years to Telefilm.

“For those outside the production sector, 2026 may sound like a long way off. But developing, writing, producing, marketing and distributing a film takes many years,” read the letter. “The clock is already ticking. Even today, decisions are being made based on that 2026 expiration date.”

Signatories include Denis Villeneuve, Sarah Gadon, Atom Egoyan, Clement Virgo, Colm Feore, Deepa Mehta, Paul Gross, Jennifer Podemski, Sophie Deraspe, Xavier Dolan, Philippe Falardeau and Kim Nguyen.

The 2024 Fall Economic Statement is expected to be tabled later this month, providing an update on any additional spending.

A second open letter was published shortly after the first on Tuesday (Nov. 12) but this time Telefilm was the recipient, not the subject.. Signed by eight guilds and unions, this letter urged Telefilm to make a change to its Production Program guidelines requiring that applicants remain in good standing with industry unions and guilds in time for its Annual Public Assembly on Nov. 28.

With files from Kelly Townsend

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