Federal gov’t $60M investment for underrepresented creators has measurable, positive impact: Valerie Creighton
Toronto, March 25, 2024 – Canada Media Fund (CMF) President and CEO Valerie Creighton recently spoke to The Hill Times deputy editor and reporter Stephen Jeffery to discuss the impact of the Budget 2021 $60M investment in the CMF to support equity, diversity, and inclusion initiatives in the Canadian screen industry. The current investment is set to expire on March 31, 2024.
Below is an excerpt of the article, which you can read in full on The Hill Times’ website.
“To bolster its case, the CMF produced a document outlining the economic impact of that funding. Approximately 57 per cent of funding went into the fund’s Pilot Program for Racialized Communities, which provided support to productions from companies owned and controlled by Black people and people of colour. That program contributed to projects with combined production budgets of $152.7-million which, in turn, contributed $176.4-million to GDP, 2,208 full-time equivalent positions, and $322.3-million in total economic output.
‘This now is a clear demonstration of actual outputs that are measurable,’ said CMF president and CEO Valerie Creighton. ‘If you have statistics, regardless of what they are, then you can start to make different kinds of decisions about where any money that you have—whether it’s public or private—should be spent, in terms of the mandate of this organization in particular, but also the mandate of the government and of what the country needs.’
Creighton said that economic argument also contributed to a broader discussion about the cultural importance of such initiatives.
‘I think that there’s a demonstration that that investment of $60-million over three years has returned spades in terms of identity, culture, jobs, storytelling, and economic impact on the GDP in the country,’ she said. ‘A lot of other really important areas in the country need attention, but I think this is a sector that can contribute to the overall economic engine of the country. It’s not often looked at that way, but I think the stats are in now.’
About the Canada Media Fund
The Canada Media Fund (CMF) fosters, develops, finances, and promotes the production of Canadian content and applications for all audiovisual media platforms. The CMF guides Canadian content towards a competitive global environment by fostering industry innovation, rewarding success, enabling a diversity of voice, and promoting access to content through public and private sector partnerships. The CMF receives financial contributions from the Government of Canada and Canada’s cable, satellite, and IPTV distributors. Visit our website for more information.
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