Banff, AB: Citing a need for ‘greater fairness, transparency and consistency,’ Telefilm Canada’s executive director Richard Stursberg announced a series of measures at Banff2002 aimed at improving his organization’s decision-making processes and overall performance.

The foundation for the new initiatives – which include an extensive overhaul of the agency’s management structure – were recent industry consultations at Mont Tremblant and a research study, both of which were undertaken late last year.

Stursberg told a packed CFTPA luncheon in the Banff Springs Hotel June 12 that industry respondents were ‘moderately to somewhat satisfied’ with Telefilm as an organization. ‘While this may sound acceptable, it really is not. If we were a commercial organization, you would be abandoning us to our competitors in droves.’

To complete the report, which was released to coincide with Stursberg’s address, researchers attempted to contact and interview everyone who had applied for support in the last three years.

The report and restructuring come at a time when Telefilm is under fire for failing to fund approximately half the English-language applicants to its Equity Investment Program, many of which appeared to be commercially viable projects.

‘That is a different problem altogether. The problem there is that there are just too many good projects and not enough money,’ Stursberg told Playback after the lunch.

Still, both issues spotlight Telefilm’s struggle to balance its limited resources with a sharply increasing demand for its support.

In his speech, Stursberg cited a series of developments that have increased the burden on resources, beginning in 1996 with the merging of the Cable Fund with Telefilm’s Broadcast Fund, establishing the Canadian Television Fund.

Since then, Telefilm has taken on the development and administration of the $10-million Canada New Media Fund. It has also seen a doubling of resources to $100 million to support several new feature film programs that has resulted in an additional surge in applications. The agency has also been responsible for the administration of the Music Entrepreneur Program since 2001.

‘All these developments have dramatically changed the role of Telefilm and created significant management challenges. It has become very clear that we need to change the way we do things,’ he said.

The new management structure is designed to better integrate operations with policy and planning, Stursberg said, with an eye on achieving national standards and developing national expertise in such sectors as feature film, television and new media.

To achieve this, each regional director’s role has been expanded to additionally take on responsibility for decision making in a particular sector. For example, the regional director for Quebec, Michel Pradier, has become sector head responsible for national standards for television.

At the same time, Telefilm is moving to reduce the costs and workload involved in submitting funding applications. ‘It will allow you to focus more on what matters, the television programs, and it will allow us to cope better with the workload increases that have come with Telefilm’s new responsibilities,’ Stursberg told producers.

To that end, producers will have less supporting documentation to submit and will be able to do so online. Telelfilm will also decrease processing and assessment times. At the same time, draw-down schedules will be revised so that payments can be made at fewer intervals, with the bulk going out as early as possible.

Finally, the agency will draw up a customer service charter, he said, that will set out what the industry can expect from Telefilm in terms of application processing and assessment and with respect to accurate and fair decision making.

Stursberg also announced that he will set up a Toronto office, allowing him to spend more time in English Canada, a first step toward increasing Telefilm’s presence in various regions.

-www.telefilm.gc.ca