Banff, Alta.: Telefilm Canada has announced a series of guidelines which eliminate publicly traded production companies’s access to the agency’s development and production revenue-sharing funds.

Telefilm executive director Francois Macerola says the initiatives are aimed at increasing support for small and medium-sized film and tv producers who make up more than 90% of the agency’s clientele.

Effective immediately, pubcos with a capitalization of $10 million or more are no longer eligible for Telefilm’s $7-million annual development envelope.

The pubcos are also excluded from receiving funds from the Production Revenue Sharing Program.

Canadian operations director Peter Katadotis says most of the prsp envelope had been going to the largest producers. The rule changes effectively redirect approximately $2.5 million a year away from the publicly traded production companies.

Macerola says the issue has been in review ‘for a certain number of years,’ and the new initiatives represent ‘the first phase of a complete review’ of the agency’s funding policies.

Telefilm has discussed the issue at length with producers who had been looking for corporate or infrastructure support, in view of the agency’s strong opposition to curtailing pubco access to Equity Investment Program funding.

Telefilm also announced the annual $1-million International Marketing Assistance Fund will be available exclusively to small and medium-sized producers and the cost of rental space at Telefilm’s umbrella stand at mip-tv and mipcom will be reduced by 20% to 25%.

Katadotis says most of this year’s film and tv development money remains available.

Telefilm is currently in contract negotiations with producers. At the Banff press conference, Katadotis said more information on the agency’s equity investment patterns, including the share invested in projects sponsored by the larger pubcos, would be known within four to six weeks. Without the actual dollar figures, producers and other funding agencies are unable to accurately determine category and regional funding levels.