Short-Term Compensation Fund for Canadian Audiovisual Productions (STCF)

Context

On October 28th, 2020, Telefilm Canada launched The Short-Term Compensation Fund for Canadian Audiovisual Productions (STCF), a temporary measure whose purpose is to minimize the consequences of the void created by the lack of insurance coverage for interruptions in filming and the abandonment of productions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in the sector of audiovisual production.

Overview of the program

Through the Fund, Telefilm Canada  will indemnify eligible producers for reasonable Canadian production costs directly caused by an interruption of more than one day in filming or the producer’s abandonment of the production prior to the end of filming due to: 

(i) a confirmed diagnosis  (COVID-19) of an Actor or Director declared on the insurance policy covering the project or;

(ii) any confirmed outbreak (COVID-19) on set that requires a complete production shutdown in accordance with current standards required by the applicable authorities. 

Who can apply

To be eligible for the compensation provided by the STCF, the applicant must: 

• Be a Canadian corporation eligible for the Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit (CPTC); 
• Have and apply a COVID-19 safety plan in accordance with the current applicable sanitary requirements and ensure that the project and all its participants systematically comply with the sanitary safety measures throughout the filming in accordance with the standards currently in effect as required by the applicable authorities and keep such plan updated. Among other things, this plan must provide for the implementation of measures in situations where social distancing is not possible and identify a person responsible for its application; 

• Hold all the copyrights in the project necessary for its development, production and exploitation, as well as the control of the project; in the case of a coproduction, the applicant must hold these rights and control the project in proportion to its participation in it.

Note: only one application for pre-eligibility will be processed per project. Therefore, in the case of national coproductions, the coproducers will be required to designate one coproducer from among them to submit the application.  

Overview of eligibility requirements

Important: The project must be the subject of a pre-eligibility agreement under the STCF between the applicant and Telefilm prior to the appearance of any cases of infection amongst the cast and crew.

At the time of pre-eligibility: 

To be eligible for the compensation provided by the STCF, a project must meet the following criteria: 

• Be an audiovisual production eligible for the Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit (CPTC); 
• Be covered by an insurance currently in effect provided by an insurance company specialized in audiovisual production (comprehensive producers insurance and general liability insurance) containing an exclusion relating to COVID-19 with respect to the project subject to the application;  
• Not benefit from any coverage for interruptions or abandonment of filming caused by COVID-19 under any other compensation program or insurance policy; and 
• Have a fully confirmed financial structure. 

The fulfilment of the Fund’s eligibility criteria does not guarantee access to the Fund. Applications will be processed on a first come, first served basis, incumbent on earliest date of start of principal photography. However, Telefilm reserves the right to apply its discretionary judgment to ensure a diversity of projects that reflects the many perspectives of the audiovisual industry. 

At the time of the compensation request, other eligibility criteria will be taken into account. Please refer to the Guidelines for the full eligibility criteria.

Note: our clients have 24 hours to notify us of a confirmed diagnosis (COVID-19) on set. Please let us know via covid-19@telefilm.ca.

At a glance, here are the results of the STCF since its launch in October 2020

2021-2022

Program Opened: March 4^th, 2021
Term period: April 01, 2021, to March 31, 2022 at the latest*
Envelop Coverage: $100M
Extended Envelop: $149M

• As of August 19th, we have received 431 applications for a total coverage requested of $284.2 million, for productions filming between April 1^st 2021 and March 31^st 2022
  • 85.5% of this amount is for television projects, 13.4% for feature films, 1% for web series and 0.1% short films.
• In terms of decisions, 392 projects have been covered to date for over $258.8 million.
• There are currently 3 claims under evaluation by the external adjuster.

*The STCF may come to an end upon the occurrence of the earliest of the following events :

• The implementation of a permanent alternative solution to cover interruptions in and the abandonment of filming due to the COVID-19 pandemic for the entire audiovisual industry;
• Notice from the Federal Government;
• The exhaustion or lapse of the budget envelope allocated to this Fund; or
• March 31, 2022.

2020-2021

Term period: October 28, 2020 to March 31, 2021
Envelope:  $50M

• The STCF covered 187 productions between October 28, 2020 and March 31^st 2021 for a total coverage of $105 million.
• 4 claims received for a total amount of $265,335.