The Canada Media Fund (CMF) has collaborated with two French partners to launch the Canada–France Co-Development and Co-Production Incentive for Digital Media Projects.

The incentive is a partnership between the CMF, the Conseil régional Nouvelle Aquitaine, and the Conseil départemental de la Charente and has a total funding budget of $450,000. It was established to support the development and production of virtual and augmented reality copro projects between Canadian and French producers.

Projects selected for the fund will receive a maximum of $60,000 for development and $150,000 for production. The application deadline is June 15, and funding decisions are expected to be announced in December.

CMF-Quebecor IP funding

The CMF has also announced seven funding decisions for the CMF-Quebecor Fund Intellectual Properties Intended for International Markets Production Support Program, totalling close to $627,000.

Series receiving funding include Mont-Rouge by Productions Casablanca and Connections Productions, which has Radio-Canada attached as a broadcaster; Société distincte from Blachfilms, which has Groupe TVA attached; and C’est comme ça que je t’aime (pictured), season three, from Productions Casablanca and Radio-Canada.

The list is rounded out by: Animaux noirs from Passez Go, which has Bell Media attached; La collecte from Fair-Play Group, which has Groupe TVA attached; Projet Innocence from Les Productions ALSO, which has Bell Media attached; and Nuit blanche, season two, from Pixcom and Corus.

The CMF and the Fonds Québecor also announced the renewal of their Export Assistance Program Partnership to develop audiovisual content adapted to markets outside Quebec and internationally, as well as marketing efforts.

Short film blooms in Vancouver

Vancouver writer-director Kasey Lum has attached Ted Lasso and For All Mankind actor Jodi Balfour to his short psychodrama Bloom, produced by Vancouver-based creative studio Boldly. The short, now in production, follows a young woman (Balfour) who forms an attachment to a houseplant.

Producers on Bloom are Kristoff Duxbury and Angelica Stirpe, with Lum, Shelby Manton, Geoff Manton and Sebastien Galina as executive producers. It is supported by the Canada Council for the Arts.

Cape Town-born Balfour won a Canadian Screen Award in 2015 for her work in Bomb Girls, and will next appear alongside Anthony Hopkins and Matthew Goode in the film Freud’s Last Session.

ELLE Fictions orders Zone 3 fashion show

French-language channel ELLE Fictions has ordered an original magazine-style show produced by Zone 3. J’aime ton style will premiere in the fall and see host Marie-Josée Gauvin speak with various personalities and their stylists about their fashion sense, according to a news release.

The 10 x 30-minute series follows original Elle Fictions programs C’est cool d’aimer Céline Dion and Elle a dit oui. Marie-Hélène Potvin, director of channels at ELLE Fictions owner Remstar Media, said in a statement that J’aime ton style fits into the vision of the channel with a subject that speaks to viewers’ passions, dreams and nostalgia.

Rodeo FX gets federal support

The Government of Canada is supporting Montreal-based visual effects company Rodeo FX with a repayable contribution of $1.5 million. The financial assistance will go toward Rodeo FX’s expansion project valued at $3.75 million, and “strengthen the country’s competitive position in the animation and visual effects industry,” according to a news release.

The support was announced last week by Minister of Canadian Heritage Pablo Rodriguez, on behalf of the Minister of Sport and Minister responsible for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec, Pascale St–Onge.

Rodeo FX was created in 2006 and has 900 employees in Montreal, Toronto, and Los Angeles. Its expansion project will help increase its production capacity and meet growing demand amid a “sustained growth” in the sector, said the release.

CCE Awards fete editors

The Canadian Cinema Editors association has announced the winners of its CCE Awards. Best Editing in TV Drama went to Dev Singh for CBC’s The Porter (Inferno Pictures, Sphere Media) while Jay Prychidny took Best Editing in TV Comedy for Netflix’s Wednesday and Sophie Leblond won Best Editing in Feature Film for Viking (micro_scope).

Landing Best Editing in an Animated Pre-School Series were Jessica Hoffman and Andrew Blyskosz for Sesame Street animated spinoff Mecha Builders (Guru Studio, Sesame Workshop). Mike Munn and Dave Kazala took Best Editing in Documentary Feature for To Kill A Tiger (Notice Pictures, the National Film Board of Canada). Dominique Champagne won the Best Editing in MOW/Mini-Series Award for Motel Paradis (Zone3), while Best Editing in a Short Film went to Arthur Tarnowski for Suzanne et Chantal, produced by Sebastien Letourneau and Christian Larouche.

Other TV winners included Steve Taylor, who won Best Editing in Docuseries/Docudrama/Factual/Documentary Short Form for The Unsolved Murder of Beverly Lynn Smith, produced by Amazon Studios in association with Muse Entertainment; and Roderick Deogrades with Best Editing in a Live Action Family Series or MOW for Amazon Freevee’s High School, co-created by Canadian indie pop duo Tegan and Sara Quin and produced by Amazon Studios and Plan B Entertainment.

The list of winners is rounded out by Ashley Brook, David Schmidt and Kyle Cucco for Best Editing in Web Series/Digital Content for Canadiana: The Werewolf of Quebec; Jeremy Montgomery for Best Editing in Animation for Netflix’s He-Man and the Masters of the Universe; and Jonathan Dowler for Best Editing in Lifestyle/Competition/Reality for Crave’s Canada’s Drag Race (Blue Ant Studios, Saloon Media).

With files from Kelly Townsend

Photo courtesy of CBC