The Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA) is among the domestic signatories of a global petition urging support for independent audiovisual sectors around the world.

The other Canadian participants as of May 12 are the Association québécoise de la production médiatique (AQPM), the Alliance des producteurs francophones du Canada and the Association des réalisateurs et réalisatrices du Québec.

More than 100 global organizations have signed the petition in response to political and corporate actions poised to “dismantle the regulatory protections” that ensure the diversity and accessibility of cultural expression.

“This includes direct challenges to essential protections such as the Audiovisual Media Services Directive in the European Union, proposed local content obligations in Australia, screen quotas in Asia and requirements that streaming services contribute to domestic production in Canada, among others,” the petition reads.

“More than enriching our cultural lives, [films & audiovisual works] are essential to a healthy democracy: they support freedom of expression and give voice to the diverse stories and perspectives of humanity. Today, the support for independent film and audiovisual storytelling is under growing threat.”

CMPA president and CEO Reynolds Mastin tells Playback Daily he anticipates more collaboration between domestic stakeholder groups in the screen industry going forward, as he sees the petition as a reinforcing of “the ties that bind” domestic production industries globally.

“I think there are two core messages in the statement. The first is that countries get to decide how best to support their own cultural industries, and not the current U.S. administration or big tech,” he says. “The second is how important intellectual property rights are in allowing the domestic industry to benefit from the economic value that’s generated by the works that they produce.”

Domestically, the petition serves as a reminder that Canada isn’t alone in facing threats to its cultural industries. But also that for Canada in particular, this year will be pivotal in determining the future of the industry, in part due to the U.S. trade threats as well as the upcoming CRTC hearings.

In its own statement to accompany the petition, AQPM president and CEO Hélène Messier encouraged all Quebec audiovisual industry members to “join in order to instill in our elected officials the courage and determination necessary to allow our stories to occupy all screens.”

While Mastin acknowledged that each year is critical for the Canadian screen industry, 2025 is different.

“If the scale is zero for ‘not concerned at all,’ and 10 [is] ‘very concerned,’ I would give it 11 because we have reached a pivotal point, a key juncture in making decisions about what kind of industry we want to have and what kind of country we want to be and continue to be,” says Mastin.

The petition reinforces the right of countries to maintain their own cultural policies and regulatory systems. It also reaffirms support for the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year.

For the individual producer in Canada, Mastin urges them to not underestimate their own voice, “and they should use that voice,” he says. “That includes simple gestures like calling up their newly elected federal MP and asking for a meeting so that they can talk about their business.”

A public petition, created by Margaux Chielle, policy advisor at the European Audiovisual Production Association, was also launched on change.org.

“I’m really emphasizing active engagement and public policy and with governments at all levels,” says Mastin. “Because we are first of all, facing pressure from the most powerful government in the world at the moment, and that needs to be countered by the federal government, first and foremost, with provincial governments supporting our federal government in that fight.”

Image courtesy of change.org