Industry Advisory – Cannes 2009 – Report of an Exceptional Edition for Canadian Industry
Friday, May 29, 2009 – Telefilm Canada reports positively on Canadian presence at Cannes. Telefilm wishes to highlight the success of Canadian filmmakers and provide salient facts concerning its activities at the world’s most prestigious film event.
First we wish to highlight the vitality of the Canadian film industry that presented a total of six works, four of which were in the prestigious Director’s Fortnight: Amreeka by Cherien Dabis, Carcassesby Denis Côté, J’ai tué ma mère by Xavier Dolan and Polytechnique by Denis Villeneuve. Canada was also represented by thecoproduction The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus by Terry Gilliam, chosen for the Official Selection, Out of Competition section, and by the short Runaway by Cordell Barker, chosen for the International Critics’ Week. Telefilm congratulates Canadian creators whose talent and imagination stood out on La Croisette, especially Xavier Dolan, who won three of the four awards at the Directors’ Fortnight, and Cordell Barker, who won a Petit Rail d’Or.
Telefilm applauds the creation of the Development Fund for French-Language Films. This agreement, initiated by Telefilm Canada in 2007, aims to encourage cinematic alliances between the signatory Francophone countries: France, Belgium, Luxemburg and Switzerland, and to reinforce creative exchanges in French-language fiction feature films. The fund will operate with an annual budget of €300,000, with €200,000 provided by Telefilm and SODEC and €100,000 provided by the European partners. The funding will be managed by a committee of signatory agency representatives. The maximum assistance for each project selected will be €40,000.
Telefilm Canada’s team at Cannes held approximately forty strategic meetings with counterpart agencies in partner countries including France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Belgium, Luxemburg, Switzerland, Hong Kong, Mexico, Spain and the European Union.
Approximately 250 buyers and distributors from the United States and elsewhere in the world attended screenings of the 11 Canadian films presented as part of Telefilm’s Perspective Canada initiative.
Activity was booming at the Canada Pavilion, where more than 150 Canadian companies had recourse to various business services offered by Telefilm. More than 2000 copies of the USB key, a new promotional tool leading to an Internet microsite promoting Canada as a partner of choice, were distributed on the premises. More than 1000 people visited the microsite between May 13 and May 26. Finally, Telefilm and its partners hosted five networking events bringing together decision-makers and creators from Canadian, American, German and British industry.
Canada Pavilion is an initiative of Telefilm Canada in partnership with:
Principal Partners
British Columbia Film
Ontario Media Development Corporation
Major Partner
Manitoba Film & Music
Associate Partner
Alberta Film
Canadian Film and Television Production Association
Film Nova Scotia
Newfoundland and Labrador Film Development Corporation
SaskFilm and Video Development Corporation
Silver Sponsor
National Bank Financial Group
Developing and Promoting the Canadian Audiovisual Industry
Telefilm Canada is a federal cultural agency dedicated to developing and promoting the Canadian audiovisual industry. Telefilm provides financial support to the private sector to create distinctively Canadian productions that appeal to domestic and international audiences. The Corporation also administers the funding programs of the Canada Feature Film Fund, the Canadian Television Fund and the Canada New Media Fund.
For more information about Telefilm, see the full webcast of our first annual public meeting, held on April 8, 2009, available at www.telefilm.ca