MONTREAL — Anxious content providers pushed Telefilm Canada’s top execs to act as a voice for their industry on Wednesday as the funder held its first online public meeting.

To grapple with the uncertainty facing the sector, executive director Wayne Clarkson appeared to pin his hopes on Heritage Minister James Moore and on the predictions of futurist Richard Florida — author of The Rise of the Creative Class:

‘Florida believes we are experiencing a creative revolution. It’s the creative class that will build a new society… We are going into uncharted territories. But it’s full of opportunity,’ Clarkson, joined by chairman Michel Roy, told roughly 100 industry players at Montreal’s Cinematheque. More than 100 also watched online from across the country.

Attendees drilled the executives for concrete answers on how to survive in the near future — filmmakers want more cash for features and TV, documentary and multimedia producers are flummoxed by the new Canada Media Fund.

Producer Pierre Even (C.R.A.Z.Y.) encouraged the institution to do more for feature films. ‘I read today that Minister Moore may help the broadcasters with a $150-million fund,’ he said, referring to a Canadian Press story that said Ottawa is considering efforts to help private broadcasters such as TVA, CTV and Canwest weather the recession and preserve local programming.

‘In light of that, couldn’t he find more money for feature filmmakers?’

Roy said he will not ask the government for more money. He hopes to find support for features through coproductions with other countries and the private sector.

The former director of the Montreal International Games Summit, Jean-Pierre Faucher, echoed Even’s comments. ‘You should use your power of influence. Your analysts know our industry. They need to be heard,’ said Faucher, who is now with Inno-centre Quebec, which helps advanced technology start-ups.

Faucher wants Telefilm to use its experience administering the Canada New Media Fund to make the case for judging TV and multimedia projects separately. (CNMF and the Canadian Television Fund will be combined into the Canada Media Fund.)

‘I really think that the NMF needs to stay independent. You can’t ask a video-game maker to make a TV show as well,’ he said.

But both Roy and Clarkson drove home the point that their job is to work with the government, not lobby it. ‘We don’t want to pressure the minister. He will make his decisions. We will do that best with what we have,’ said Roy.

Regarding the CMF, Clarkson told industry members to participate in the upcoming discussions that the government says it will use to hammer out the new guidelines.

Clarkson later told Playback Daily that he believes merging the two funds was a ‘smart decision’ because it’s the way of the future. He says he isn’t worried, as some are, that the CMF will favor multimedia projects from big-name players such as Canwest or Quebecor Media which are also involved in TV.

‘The minister knows that 80% of the applicants to the New Media Fund were independent of TV,’ said Clarkson.