Canuck TV needs bucks
Talent abounds, support lacking Five- year plans needed, say some
Degrassi: The Next Generation and Corner Gas are breakout TV hits — so why isn’t Canada producing more of them? While there seems to be no shortage of talent — even given the traditional brain drain to Hollywood — the country’s financing model for Cancon may be in need of serious repair as the industry looks ahead.
Producers and broadcasters say they intend to do their best to make funding for quality homegrown television fare a high- profile issue in the current federal election campaign.
Before Parliament was dissolved, Heritage Minister Liza Frulla doled out millions for various high arts programs, but not aword about the Canadian Television Fund, that public- private sector fount of money for domestic TV budgets.
Stephen Waddell, president of ACTRA, the actors’ union, says they’ve been lobbying Ottawa intensely.
“We’re going to be also demanding that the four parties show us what they are going to do with respect to culture in their election platforms.”
Chris Haddock, creator and producer of the CBC drama series Da Vinci’s City Hall — formerly Da Vinci’s Inquest, which has seen its ratings dip into the 300,000 neighbourhood — says it’s equally important to fund Canadian drama for export.
“ The Americans got this down pat, they’re all about hype, they know all about it, they ship those films abroad. This is how they build their image of themselves,” Haddock says.
“ We don’t seem to understand this politically that if you want to have Canada’s voice in the world, you’ve got to get Canada’s voice out in the world.” Among the few truly successful domestic series are the CTV teen drama Degrassi: The Next Generation and the prairie sitcom Corner Gas, which regularly gets close to two million viewers per episode. Degrassi producer Linda Schuyler says it’s not so much the amount of money that’s the problem but the need for consistency, for a long- range, stable commitment from those holding the purse strings.
“ That’s the best gift the government could give,” Schuyler says. “ If we know we’ve got that, then the industry can look at a five- year plan. Right now, our industry scrambles from year to year ( and) the rules as to how that money will be dispensed change every year.” Back in 1999 the CRTC, the federal broadcast regulator, relaxed the rules for what constitutes acceptable domestic drama content. Private broadcasters fled from the traditional but costly series format, opting instead for cheaper reality shows, quick movies of the week and more glossy U. S. imports. The CBC, meanwhile, was emerging from a decade in which its usual funding was gutted.
Ian Morrison, spokesman for the watchdog group Friends of Canadian Broadcasting, believes whoever forms the next government will feel pushed to deal with the funding issue, because Canadians want Canadian programming. But Morrison says tax subsidies lower the cost of domestic productions, which lowers the cost for the private broadcasters to acquire them which, in turn, leaves them with more money to buy U. S. imports.
“ So you could make the case that some of the subsidy is going to Hollywood,” he said.