In the wake of Sheila Copps’ $100-million feature film fund announcement, the cbc has emerged with a newly created Regional Program Development Fund that will inject $5 million into tv program development outside of Toronto.

‘We’re trying to reach the independent community and the citizens to say the cbc is very interested in having a creative relationship across the country,’ says Slawko Klymkiw, executive director of programming for cbc Television.

A combination of factors have engendered the cbc’s decision to invest $1 million a year for the next five years into regional script development, says Klymkiw, including: cbc’s reduced investment in program development over the last five year of roughly 20%, pressure from the production community to foster more indigenous projects in the regions, an emphasis on regional programming through cbc Television’s Transformation Plan and the crtc’s call, in the Corp’s latest licence renewal, for increased levels of production outside of Toronto.

Only a year away from the first fully transformed schedule (to be completed October 2001), now is the best time to start ‘capturing the muses out there and give them the opportunity to become full proposals,’ adds Klymkiw.

The new money, which Klymkiw says is coming from head office and will have no impact on cbc’s current operating budget or any of its programming budgets, almost triples the Corp’s current financial commitment to the regions.

cbc currently spends roughly $1 million in program development, close to half of which is allocated in the regions.

Allocation of the fund will be based on programming and geographical priorities set annually by Klymkiw.

For the first year, starting April 1, 2001, the fund will be skewed slightly toward the Prairies. ‘Since North of 60 became a yearly movie and not a series, we have not done as much out of the Prairies as we should. They have about 10% more this year,’ says Klymkiw. The rest of the money will be split evenly among b.c., the Atlantic region, Quebec and Ontario (outside of Toronto).

‘Although what’s really key is that most of these dollars are going to be administered and driven by regional directors, allowing us to create a more intimate and more meaningful relationship on the ground with creators. So it simply doesn’t come directly to Toronto or to the major centres and I think that’s how you get your best shows,’ says Klymkiw.

Regional directors will be doling out 60% of the fund, with 40% being allocated in the regions by programmers in cbc’s network Arts & Entertainment division and News, Current Affairs and Newsworld.

Genres that make up the core of cbc’s Transformation Plan – documentary, performing arts, public affairs, drama and comedy – take priority with the new fund, says Klimkiw.

As condition of its licence renewal handed down by the crtc in January 2000, the cbc has been ordered to broadcast, in peak time, 13 original half-hours of regional non-news programming in each of its nine regions each year. Beginning in the fourth year of the licence term, the number will be increased to 26.

Also, in order to further broaden the pubcaster’s scope, in each of the first two years of the licence term, the cbc must broadcast a minimum of five hours per week of priority programming, which has been shot more than 150 kilometres outside of Toronto. *

-www.cbc.ca