Key industry figures reflect on the role the Canada Media Fund has played since its 2010 inception, and how it has become far more than just a funding body.

Since the creation of the Canada Media Fund (CMF) 15 years ago, the organization led by president and CEO Valerie Creighton has dedicated itself to serving our country’s audiovisual industry.  

It hasn’t always been easy. 

From the emergence of digital platforms and the explosion of streamers, to competition from foreign productions with massive budgets, the challenges have been numerous. The fact that the CMF’s budget has been shrinking in recent years doesn’t help.  

Despite these challenges, the CMF has financed more than 19,000 linear, interactive digital, and industry development projects, generating more than $24 billion in economic impact for Canada’s GDP. 

Here, those who witnessed the industry’s evolution firsthand share what the CMF has meant to them. 

Read more: The story of the CMF told by Valerie Creighton

CMF and Canadian Identity

For Charles Lafortune, senior vice president, content and creation, at the independent television producer Pixcom, the Fund’s role goes beyond content financing — it directly impacts our identity.  

“I’d even say that without the CMF, Canadian identity would take a real hit,” says Lafortune. “Thanks to the CMF, the industry in Canada has been able to create content that speaks to Canadians and reflects the issues they face.” 

Lafortune gives the CMF extra points for not only surviving the arrival of digital platforms, which have transformed the industry over the past 15 years, but adapting to support this evolution. 

More Than TV

The CMF is not just about television. The Fund also backs the audiovisual industry’s most innovative sectors — video games, virtual and augmented reality, and immersive and interactive content. 

That wide range is something Prem Gill, CEO of Creative BC, an organization that supports British Columbia’s creative sector, likes to remind people of.  

“That is a big part of what the CMF does,” says Gill. “Fuelling that innovation and that [innovative] thinking and creating that IP in different ways in Canada that, prior to the CMF existing, there wasn't a centralized place nationally that was really focused and looking at that.” 

Reynolds Mastin, president and CEO of the Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA), agrees. “Platform agnostic — I think that's one of the key strengths of the CMF. Yes, it’s about television, but it's also about every other platform in the ecosystem.”  

Two Success Stories: Empathie and North of North

The funds to bring an idea to life are often scarce, but sometimes small miracles happen. Empathie is one of them. 

Julia Langlois, partner and fiction producer at Empathie’s production company, Trio Orange, is thrilled their series about a criminologist-turned-psychiatrist has resonated here and abroad, even winning the Audience Award at the prestigious Séries Mania festival in Lille, France. 

“The CMF gives creators wings,” she says. “It allows us to dream bigger, to enhance our budgets so that our series can compete internationally, and to ensure that production quality is reflected on screen. Without the CMF, our projects wouldn’t have the same momentum or scope needed to compete with other productions around the world.” 

While applying to CMF programs is often seen as a complex process, Huw Eirug, CEO of the Nunavut Film Development Corporation, says he felt supported while developing the series now known as North of North, about a single Inuk mom navigating life in a small Arctic town. 

“We go back to 2021, and the CMF gave funding through their performance envelope to APTN and CBC for a newly minted comedy series which was under the working title People,” he recalls. “And while CMF recognized the potential of the series, what we didn't know [is] that it would become the worldwide hit that is now known as North of North.” 

Eirug says the CMF’s assistance went beyond monetary. 

“Not only have we received support and encouragement from Valerie and the staff at CMF, but they've also taken the time to visit us [on set] in Iqaluit to understand the industry, the challenges we face. And they've been advocates and supporters to us throughout our history.” 

Listening and Acting to Foster Change

Kerry Swanson, CEO of the Indigenous Screen Office (ISO), highlights the CMF’s willingness to listen.  

“In the early stages, the CMF, and Val in particular, heard from Indigenous producers that we needed our own institution, an organization that was led by Indigenous people supporting Indigenous screen content in Canada, and she spearheaded bringing together broadcasters and funders to pull the money together to start the ISO. And we really needed that institutional champion for the ISO to come out of the gate strong, which we did.” 

Creighton’s name comes up often.  

Tonya Williams, founder and executive director of the Reelworld Screen Institute, recalls meeting her for the first time five years ago and being struck by her commitment to real change. 

“She totally started about, how can we make changes? How can we make diversity more important? How can we make the policy changes that are needed?”  

“I feel heard when I'm talking to her, and she doesn't try to placate me by saying what she thinks I want to hear. She actually does something that helps me.” 

The CMPA’s Mastin agrees that the Fund must continue to champion underrepresented genres.  

“Without the CMF, so many shows, so many dramas, documentaries, comedies — they simply wouldn't get made,” he says. “Great shows wouldn't get made.” 

The post CMF: 15 Years of Getting Things Done  appeared first on Canada Media Fund.

In a new report, filmmaker and producer J. Joly advocates for the decentralization of the Canadian film and TV industry.

As the cost of living continues to rise in major cities like Toronto and Vancouver, and along with it the cost of production, more filmmakers are turning their attention elsewhere. One of them is J. Joly, CEO and co-founder of prodco Branded to Film (B2F), who left Toronto during the pandemic to return to Kingston, Ontario, with an idea: What if mid-sized cities were to become the next generation of film production hubs in Canada? 

Together with Canadian historian Joanne Archibald, Joly authored a report called the Hyperlocal Ontario Action Plan (HOAP), which aims to future-proof Ontario’s domestic film and TV sector. Using case studies from the making of two of Joly’s feature films — Den Mother Crimson and Doom Boogie — the report examines the practical challenges and opportunities for mid-sized cities like Kingston to grow into successful hubs. 

Now & Next met with J. Joly to discuss the report and learn more about his vision for shifting the centre of Canadian film production to mid-sized cities. 

How did mid-sized cities become the focus of your report, and of your vision for the industry? 

I really love Kingston, and I always have. And when I was in my mid-20s I didn’t necessarily want to go to Toronto, but I had to if I wanted to work in film. At that time there was lots of domestic production in Toronto. I worked a lot. You could get permits anywhere. There was this real sense of creativity because a lot of us were aspiring independent filmmakers, and Toronto was still a very affordable place to live. But later, one of the pain points I came to realize is that low- and mid-level domestic producers can’t really afford to shoot in Toronto anymore.  

During the pandemic I remembered my love affair with Kingston and moved back. What I realized was that mid-sized cities like Kingston represent the hope, affordability and efficiency, and those things that I first saw in Toronto in the late ’90s and early 2000s. You know, permits are still easy to get here, and the city wants to build a creative industry. That’s why I think we need to start deurbanizing the industry, to facilitate greater opportunity for independent, domestic and young filmmakers. 

It’s not just about making movies; it’s actually about investing in the future. I want to make sure the next J. Joly, no matter who she is, can stay in her little town and do her stuff.  

How would decentralizing film production away from major urban centres benefit the industry?  

I use the example of Victoria, in B.C., as a case study in the report because it demonstrates it well. Last year, it was published that Kingston made roughly $2.6 million in production, which is what you would expect for a growing city like this. Victoria was making that around 2014. Five years later, in 2019, it was making $25 million in production. I asked the film commissioner there how they turned a $2- to $3-million industry into $25 million in just five years, and he told me that it basically started with someone like me — an independent producer who couldn’t afford to make his films in Vancouver came to Victoria. And his three small $1-million movies alone created a real catalyst effect.  

Also, when you’re building a business, you don’t want to put all your eggs in one basket. If you look at what happened in L.A., with the Palisades fires at the beginning of 2025, it was devastating for the industry. How do you shoot a movie when your friends’ houses are burning? Same thing with the COVID-19 pandemic. When everything was on lockdown in Toronto, Kingston and the Thousand Islands remained a green zone for a while because they were less congested. This aggregation in one place can cripple an industry. So, I think deurbanizing can create greater resiliency overall by dissipating the risk.  

What are the “must‑haves” that distinguish a true production hub from a one‑off shoot location? 

For a hyperlocal production hub to function, you need producers to actually live there. Because once everything is in your own backyard, that’s when things really start to grow. You don’t want producers from Toronto coming to your town, exploit it, and go back home to cut their movie. A true sector has both a worker labour class and a producer class. But how does a city attract filmmakers? You need a nighttime economy, a cultural scene, easy access to and from other cities. You need really good broadband. And to get a full-stack ecosystem, you build a film studio at the same time as building crew capacity. 

What are the hardest skills or roles for mid‑sized cities to source locally and, in the longer term, to retain? 

The hardest roles to source are what I would call specialized roles — special effects, stunts, pyrotechnicians, the people who blow stuff up, or gun wranglers. Those are harder to find because there aren’t many of them in the country. Then there are what we call the “above-the-liners,” meaning the directors, the actors, producers, etc. But when you look at a film crew, what’s interesting is that most of the roles are technical jobs, like sound, lighting, makeup, catering and so on. You can find that kind of talent in most mid-sized cities. For the online part, like the final mixing suite and the colour grading, that’s not something you’re going to find right away, and might have to start by sourcing these roles in Toronto or Montreal.  

On our first film, Den Mother Crimson, the goal was to get 60 percent of the crew locally, and we managed to get to 63 percent. For the second film, Doom Boogie, we hit 87 percent of local hires. One of the ways we got there was to put out an open call for local actors, and we were able to find a lot of people that way. Part of the hyperlocal model is being able to control the creative side of things like that.  

The model you propose envisions a revenue ecosystem that supports the creative sector and flows back into the community. Could you give examples of how that takes shape? 

I find that film and art done successfully is when the private and the public come together. When we started the production company it was important for me to show that we could raise $1 million locally, and we raised $1.3 million. We targeted influential cultural and business leaders from the region who believed in our vision — to create a vital cultural sector that will attract and retain young people. The money we received from investors to power our small movies helped build a local crew, but it also went to local vendors and services, like restaurants, hotels, hardware stores, porta-potties, etc. You realize how much money flows back into a community when you start thinking in a hyperlocal way. 

The post Why mid-sized cities could be the future of Canadian film production appeared first on Canada Media Fund.

Newfoundland and Labrador’s screen industry is a little busy at the moment, with three series calling St. John’s home.

“This might be our best year yet,” says Laura Churchill, Chief Executive Officer of PictureNL, Newfoundland and Labrador’s film commission. “Our production season is full-on and filled up.” That season starts in May and runs until October, but there’s some leeway. “We don’t get really wintery until December,” she adds.  

The province supports local screen industries through six different programs, two of which are tax credits. One is a standard provincial labour tax credit for local producers. The other is the All Spend which covers 40 percent of eligible production costs to a maximum of $10-million per year, available to outside producers as well. This incentive in particular is generating more interest in shooting on location, Churchill says, with producers even considering winter filming. 

There was a time when Newfoundland and Labrador didn’t even have a regular production season. While low-budget independent shorts and features have been a cultural mainstay, the local industry earned its bread and butter from the bigger-budget projects that came and went.  

“Republic of Doyle was really kind of the jumping-off point,” Churchill says. The successful CBC procedural produced by Take the Shot Productions premiered in 2010. During its five-season run it turned the province’s capital city into a colourful televisual playground. Early on the show relied heavily on outside labour. By the end it had cultivated a strong local crew. St. John’s had matured into a solid one-series town.  

Saint-Pierre Makes Three 

Today, St. John’s — where most production continues to take place, for now — hosts not one but three successful Canadian series: Hudson & Rex, Son of a Critch and Saint-Pierre. 

Hudson & Rex (Pope Productions/Shaftesbury) is a Citytv police procedural from showrunner Ken Cuperus based on a popular European format about a police detective and his canine partner. They’re working on season eight.  

Son of a Critch (Take the Shot/Hawco Productions/ Project 10/Gary Breakfast Corporation) is CBC’s half-hour adaptation of comedian Mark Critch’s coming-of-age memoir of the same name. It was just renewed for a fifth season. 

Saint-Pierre (Hawco Productions) premiered this year and has already been renewed after becoming CBC’s most-watched new series. Another police procedural, it is set and partially filmed in the titular French territory off the coast of Newfoundland.  

Incidentally, Allan Hawco got the idea for Saint-Pierre while scouting locations for an episode of Son of a Critch. Janine Squires of Hawco Productions recalls their fateful visit to Saint-Pierre. “We were sitting on a little cobblestone street outside of the bar having a beer at the end of our day and Allan was like, ‘Nobody has filmed something that's uniquely about this place.’”  

This trio of shows forms the keystone of the province’s local screen ecosystem, but the industry continues to diversify. Netflix just announced a new limited series from creator Jesse McKeown, starring Josh Hartnett, which will be set and filmed in Newfoundland.  

Here, boom-and-bust cycles feel as natural as the tides. But the local screen industry aspires to survive regardless of the tidal range, focusing instead on sustainable growth.  

There’s lots of work to be had 

“TV has kept me really busy,” says filmmaker Deanne Foley, who has guest-directed episodes of both Hudson & Rex and Son of a Critch. Though she continues to work on her own feature films, branching out into television allows her to earn a living and develop her craft while raising her family in her home province.  

She’s hoping this current upturn in production opens doors for emerging, above-the-line talent.  

It’s certainly creating opportunities for positions below the line.     

“We’re scrambling for crew,” says Lisa Porter, quick to add, “and that’s not a bad thing.” Porter is president of Pope Productions and executive producer for Hudson & Rex. 

When production started on Rex in 2018 they had a pretty strong Newfoundland crew. Now, with so many productions going on, she says they’re spread a little thin. “It's giving us that moment of, okay, what's next? What else can we do? How can we support this?” 

“I know it's a ‘rah, rah’ kind of thing to say, but we have good people,” she insists.  

She credits her late husband Paul Pope for getting everyone ready. The champion of the local industry who died in 2022, was a prolific producer and mentor to many.    

“He really set the bar high in terms of having a crew that's fast and efficient and open, able to pivot, and fun and kind and respectful,” Porter adds.  

The province also has strong unions, she says. Not just ACTRA (Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists), but also IATSE (International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees) and the DGC (Directors Guild of Canada). “We have real cooperation between labour and producers in the drive to grow the industry,” says Porter.  

‘We’ve been plugging away at this for a long time’ 

Any industry that grows is bound to have growing pains, especially if it grows fast. “The good thing about our industry is that we've been plugging away at this for a long time,” Porter says, referencing the province’s rich history of independent, low-budget filmmaking. 

The Newfoundland Independent Filmmakers Co-operative (NIFCO), founded in 1975, is celebrating its 50th birthday this year. It’s an important reminder that the commercial industry rests on a sturdy foundation. 

“Ultimately, it's a good thing to have lots of work,” Porter insists. “We probably had more diversity in our crew [this year] than we've ever had before. And more younger people than we’ve had in a while. It’s really exciting.”  

While competition might be more common in larger centres, here in Newfoundland and Labrador it’s cooperation and reciprocity that matter most.   

Case in point, Saint-Pierre took a two-month hiatus from shooting last year so some of the crew could return to work on Son of a Critch.  

Nurturing a new workforce 

“Over the last number of years, we've been working really hard to grow our crew, to get them into the unions, to get them enough hours, whether that's on movies of the week or smaller productions, so that when it came time for all of these three productions to exist together we almost have enough people to support them,” says Squires. 

Productions hire from other parts of the country when appropriate but are trying to bring new people into the local industry. Squires says the film school has helped with that, referring to the Paul L. Pope Centre for TV & Film which was established at the College of the North Atlantic in 2024, dedicated to Porter’s late husband.  

Students graduating from the centre are getting work on smaller, non-union projects, like those produced by Bell Fibe or the Picture Start program. “We have the lower-budget Hallmarks and the Lifetimes as well,” Porter adds. “Having those are incredible for the feeder system.”   

‘A film-friendly environment’ 

“It's such a film-friendly environment here,” Churchill says. “The cultural industries are well-supported by governments, regardless of what way those governments lean.”  

While there is a lot of investment in the sector, “the ecosystem around us has to grow to support the industry too,” says Squires.  

“Things as simple as renting cars for the crew becomes a really big challenge when you have so many productions going at once, or trailers for our cast, or trucks to support the set.” Given the limitations, “you end up bringing in more from outside temporarily, until the local ecosystem grows to support it.”  

Getting flights in and out can also be tricky as can booking accommodations for visiting cast members. Hawco Productions uses local service providers as much as possible.  

A shot in the arm for local businesses 

Ted Perrin, the owner and operator of Perrin’s Marine Services Ltd., was delighted to offer his skills and services to meet the screen industry’s emerging needs. Initially, he was hired to consult and provide a safety vessel and crew for an episode of Hudson & Rex. After a visit to his home in Conception Bay South near St. John’s, the production team decided they wanted to use his property as a key shooting location.  

Perrin obliged. He also took the team around on his boat, using his local knowledge to provide them with more options. They found the perfect location, adapted the script to accommodate it, and the episode evolved into something that exceeded everyone’s expectations.  

Perrin is proud of the result. The whole experience was personally and professionally gratifying. Financially too.  

“It was a great shot in the arm for the expansion of my business and the acquisition of new equipment,” he says. It’s almost inevitable that productions in the province will shoot something close to or on the water.  

As he sees it, it’s a good investment for the future. “If they call me this year, I can offer more services.”  

The post For St. John’s, good things come in threes appeared first on Canada Media Fund.

Four filmmakers from across the country discuss reshaping Canada’s creative landscape while contributing to our GDP. 

Across Canada, a new wave of filmmakers is proving that film and television isn't just being made in Toronto, Vancouver or Montreal. In places like Alberta, Manitoba and Saskatchewan independent producers are telling local, deeply personal stories, growing their regional economies, nurturing talent and reshaping Canadian film. 

In 2023/24, Canada’s screen industry recorded a total production volume of $9.58-billion. While that number represents an 18.5 percent decline from the previous year, largely due to Hollywood strikes, the industry still supported 179,130 jobs and $11.04-billion in GDP impact, according to Profile 2024, a report published by the Canadian Media Producers Association.  

While major centres remain dominant, regional production is playing an important role. 

Building Calgary’s Creative Capacity

Kevin Dong, founder of Tall Hero Films, is part of Calgary’s growing independent scene. His work spans features, documentaries and shorts, including Events Transpiring Before, During and After a High School Basketball Game and the Telus-commissioned doc Starry Night. 

While Calgary hosts major Hollywood productions like The Last of Us and A Minecraft Movie, Dong emphasizes the need to strengthen the local ecosystem. His short film Now, I Am a Bear, which screened at Fantaspoa and the Brussels International Fantastic Film Festival, brought together local crews between service gigs. "I find myself so lucky to learn from these brilliant craftspeople in bringing to life the visions of our local creatives," he says. 

But Dong says talent retention and access to national distribution are major challenges. "Many key creatives in Alberta, including myself, have had to take a stint in Toronto or Montreal to build our track records," he says.  

He argues that addressing the brain drain requires stronger training programs, travel support and cross-regional mentorships. Another hurdle is the competition for gear and crews when major productions arrive.  

"When they leave, there's often not enough ongoing production to keep everyone employed," Dong adds.  

A more sustainable year-round production culture is essential.  

Provincial numbers show both opportunity and growth. Alberta attracted nearly $1-billion in film and TV production spending between January 2020 and August 2021. In 2021/22, the first season of The Last of Us alone added more than $182-million to Alberta’s GDP. The province’s cultural industries (which also include publishing and music) contributed $2.5-billion to its economy in 2022, supporting more than 19,000 jobs. In 2023/24 foreign location and service production grew to $192-million, from just $49-million the year before.  

"Supporting these industries is crucial to Alberta's economic momentum," said Tanya Fir, the province’s minister of arts, culture and status of women, at a recent media conference. 

Impact in Saskatchewan

In Saskatoon, producer Fabiola Caraza is helping to drive Saskatchewan’s next wave of growth with her company Prowler Pictures. Originally from Mexico, she has worked in Vancouver, Toronto, New York and now Saskatoon, building an international network while focusing on elevated genre films and co-productions. 

Since relocating, Caraza has helped launch a crew training initiative with ScreenSask, supported by the Canada Media Fund, Warner Brothers Discovery and the Indigenous Screen Office. "The industry in Saskatchewan is growing rapidly and we want to create jobs and opportunities for people," she says. 

Caraza sees major potential but stresses the need for talent retention and investment. "There’s real opportunity here. Having lived in Vancouver and Toronto, I’m not sure there’s much more room for growth in those cities," she notes. "We need people and we need investment."   

Prowler is moving fast, with two new horror features in the works. This summer they shoot Split Rock with IFC Films and Shudder, followed by There Were Witches in Guadalajara. 

Reflecting on the move to Saskatchewan, Caraza says, "We’ve grown more in two years here than we did in a decade in Vancouver and Toronto." 

While the province has had some growing pains in terms of funding, a September 2024 press release from Creative Saskatchewan stated that since April 2023 approximately $22-million has been committed to 36 productions via its Feature Film and Television Production Grant, with the supported projects expected to generate spending of about $55-million within the province and create more than 900 jobs. 

Grassroots Storytelling in Manitoba

In Winnipeg, filmmaker Bisong Taiwo runs Taiwo Pictures, an independent production company focused on spiritually resonant stories from underrepresented communities. His recent project, Mary’s Way of the Cross, explores suffering through the Virgin Mary’s eyes and was shot across Manitoba with local crew. The film exemplifies how micro-budget filmmaking can create both cultural and economic impact. It’s now streaming on Amazon Prime and archived in the Winnipeg Film Group’s library. 

"We engaged Winnipeg-based talent for everything, from production design to post," Taiwo says.  

He identifies visibility and access as major challenges. "It’s difficult to scale when your stories fall outside the mainstream mold," he says. His solution combines streaming, grassroots marketing and partnerships with niche outlets like Black Catholic Messenger. 

Taiwo advocates for funding that prioritizes cultural contribution as much as commercial viability. "We need sustained investment in development and pre-production,” he says, “especially for stories that push boundaries or explore specific cultural identities." 

Another Winnipeg-based producer, Alice Teufack of Ninis Productions, echoes these concerns. Focused on French-language documentaries and stories about immigrant communities, she praises Manitoba’s strong tax credits but flags talent retention and funding access as key issues.  

"We have good film schools, but many graduates move to bigger hubs like Toronto or Vancouver," she says. “And while regional and language-minority funding programs exist, accessing them can still be challenging and the budgets often don’t match the expectations for quality.” 

To adapt, Teufack suggests producers coordinate production schedules so crews can move seamlessly between projects. She’s also exploring co-productions with Ontario and Quebec to scale her slate and build sustainability for her company. 

The province’s screen sector continues to grow. Manitoba Film & Music backed 11 projects produced in the province in 2023/24 and its marketing and communications director Janice Tober estimated a record-breaking $434.9-million in production volume for 2024. 

A Paradigm Shift

The work of creators like Dong, Taiwo, Caraza and Teufack shows the economic and cultural power of regional production. With better infrastructure, funding and national support, Canada’s screen industry could become more decentralized, diverse and resilient. 

“Every dollar that broadcasters put into production multiplies six times over,” noted Directors Guild of Canada’s executive director Dave Forget after a recent report showed a decline in financing from Canadian broadcasters.  

As Canada’s creative scene spreads beyond major hubs, regional storytellers are reshaping the national creative landscape, and investing in them will bring fresh perspectives to Canadian content and drive local growth.

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