Vancouver: Documentary filmmakers like facts. So here are a few:

* In May, British Columbia documentary producers claimed 30% of the English-language productions that successfully navigated the lfp process.

* Funding agency British Columbia Film says that 15 documentaries and broadcast singles received $350,000 in the current fiscal year, an improvement of 52% since fiscal year 1995.

* A recent study commissioned by the Department of Canadian Heritage indicates that Telefilm-assisted western production budgets grew from $2.2 million or eight hours in fiscal 1994 to $13.3 million of 78 hours by fiscal 1999 – most of it in b.c.

* That same study suggests the $6.8 million increase in b.c.’s production budgets last year is due mainly to the growth of documentary production.

* In the year 1998-99, 11 documentaries and documentary series with a combined production value of $6 million were issued tax credit eligibility certificates through Film Incentive b.c. Across all genres 36 certificates were issued.

The unavoidable conclusion ? Documentaries are a vital and increasingly important staple in the West Coast production diet.

‘We consistently see year-in and year-out a large number and wide range of documentary proposals,’ says Rob Egan, president and ceo of B.C. Film. ‘There is a long-standing interest and strength in local documentary production, which I think is unique. There are a couple of reasons for this. British Columbia is a breeding ground for documentary markers because of its unique politics. Also, b.c. is a gateway to the Pacific Rim and British Columbians are outward looking. This may explain the interest and growth in documentaries, especially those with international focuses like [Nettie Wild’s] A Place Called Chiapas.’

What also spurs production is the relatively low cost of making a fact-based show versus a dramatic show. Also, the onset of specialty channels and their immediate need for Canadian productions has been a boon to local documentary filmmakers. wtn and Vision, to name only two, are often signatories to a British Columbia filmmaker’s broadcast licence fee.

But despite the documentary sector’s apparent vibrancy, its overall health is still in question.

Changes at the crtc regarding priority programming in primetime may reduce total volumes of documentary production and new regulations that productions be ‘visibly Canadian’ are disincentives for international documentary producers resident in b.c. and other parts of the country. And because public funding bodies are financially constrained, up to two-thirds of documentary production companies that are small to begin with are un-funded or under-funded.

What does get made, though, is praised. Louise Clark, head of western independent production at ctv, applauds the quality of documentary producers in b.c. and says her office supports more documentaries than other ctv development offices.

However, while her licence fee payments will increase this year, the number of actual documentary titles will drop – a function of making bigger budget shows that appeal to evening viewers. ‘We’re raising the bar so [these documentaries] will fare well in primetime,’ she explains.

Regional documentary support at ctv will drop from 13 hours last year to at least nine hours this year. On the flip side, licence fees can go to $75,000 for a regional broadcast and significantly higher for a national broadcast.

Still, Clark is trying to do more by partnering with other broadcasters such as Vision. A key example of that partnership is the May airing of Island of Shadows, a documentary by new Vancouver filmmaker Erik Paulsson about lepers banished to D’Arcy Island (just off Vancouver Island).

ctv-owned vtv gave the show a regional broadcast while Vision aired it nationally. ‘The audience numbers were fabulous,’ says Clark, predicting more documentary broadcast partnerships with Discovery, and even tsn. ‘There will be consistent demand for high-quality, network-savvy documentary productions.’

However, b.c. documentary makers will have to build their businesses to meet that demand over the long term, explains local doc producer Cari Green, chair of the 150-member b.c. chapter of the Canadian Independent Film Caucus.

With the exception of companies such as Omni Film and Force Four Productions, b.c. has too many small companies, each doing too few projects, she says. That means few companies have the critical mass to diversify or reach the global markets – in other words, reach the next level of business.

At her own Nimpkish Wind Productions, for example, Green and partner Barb Cranmer continue with projects such as the First Nations-themed I’Tusto To Rise Again (about the reconstruction of the ceremonial Bighouse in Alert Bay) and We Weave Our History (about the ancient art forms of chilkat and northern geometric weaving). But Green is also looking at cd-roms and diversifying with a new series about indigenous healers that has development money from aptn. The cifc’s b.c. branch – which has been active in mobilizing the sector – has sponsored a series of workshops called Producing the Business, designed specifically to educate filmmakers about building their businesses. (Related to its efforts to make a more business friendly environment for producers to excel, the b.c. chapter successfully overturned legislation regarding the Film Incentive b.c. domestic tax credit that initially did not allow for documentary projects that shot outside the province to claim the credit.)

In other areas of support, cablecaster Rogers – through its drive to win a new licence for Vancouver (lmtv) – sponsored the recent Doxa festival that wrapped May 21 and promises a documentary focus should the crtc give it the go ahead.

Also, b.c. film has its new Passport to Markets support program, which supports filmmakers who want to attend international film markets such as the Banff Television Festival, mipcom, u.k. Drama Immersion and the Amsterdam Forum to expand the business network.