The Canada Media Fund (CMF) has triggered a record-setting level of production industry activity, according to its 2021-22 annual report.

The funder reported $1.9 billion of industry activity for the fiscal year, a 24.9% increase from the $1.5 billion reported in 2020-21.

CMF invested a total of $359.3 million in television and digital media projects through 34 programs in 2021-22, read the report, with every $1 dollar triggering $5.16 in activity. The dollar ratio is the highest since the CMF was formed, according to a news release.

A total of 1,433 projects were supported during the fiscal year, up from 1,326 from the previous year. CMF received more than 2,000 applications overall, also an increase from 1,815 in 2020-21. Funding from CMF helped contribute to roughly 217,000 new jobs in the sector.

Within the program highlights, approximately $18.9 million in emergency relief funds were given to 1,108 applications during spring 2021-22, according to the report, with an additional $2.4 million given to 62 prodcos for third-language content through the COVID-19 Recovery Fund.

English- and French-language television productions accounted for the majority of production volume triggered, with English projects coming to over $1 billion – a 19.8% increase from the previous year – and French at an estimated $653.9 million, up by 39.6%.

The Pilot Program for Racialized Communities, which was launched during the fiscal year, accounted for $46.6 million in production volume across French and English projects.

CMF also saw an increase in the dollar amount of sales from funded projects, coming to more than $150 million in 2021-22, up from $143.5 million in 2020-21.

In terms of revenue, CMF reported a 13.9% decrease in overall revenue, coming to $404.2 million in 2021-22 compared to $469.6 million in the previous year, which is largely due to the drop-off in emergency funds from 2020-21.

CMF saw a 14.5% increase of funding from the federal government, coming in at $183.8 million in 2021-22 compared to $160.5 million in the previous year. The increase was attributed to a boost in funding to offset decreased contributions from BDUs and additional support to serve equity-deserving communities, according to the report.

Contributions from BDUs decreased by 2%, hitting $183.1 million compared to $186.9 million in 2020-21. Additionally, revenue from tangible benefits decreased by 36.1%, coming to $2.3 million in 2021-22 compared to $3.6 million in the previous year, while revenue from production investment recoupment fell by 23.4% to $5.9 million from $7.7 million in 2020-21.

Overall expenses decreased by 13.6%, hitting $402.1 million in 2021-22 compared to $465.4 million, with CMF reporting excess revenue of more than $2.1 million. Roughly 93% of expenses were attributed to program commitments.

The full results of the annual report are available on the CMF website.

Image: Unsplash