New Multilateral Development Fund for French-Language Films
Cannes, Tuesday, May 19, 2009 – Telefilm Canada chair Michel Roy and Société de développement des entreprises culturelles du Québec (SODEC) president Jean-Guy Chaput, together with their counterparts from the Communauté française de Belgique, France, Luxembourg and Switzerland, are pleased to announce the conclusion of negotiations begun several months ago concerning the creation of a development fund for French-language films.
The agreement, initiated by Telefilm Canada, aims to encourage cinematic alliances between the signatory Francophone countries in a rapidly evolving international context. The fund will serve to foster creative exchanges on French-language fiction feature films with the object of developing projects that have broad audience appeal.
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. The guidelines and operating details will be announced on a date to be confirmed.
“We are pleased and proud of the outcome of these negotiations,” said Telefilm Canada chair Michel Roy. “This agreement is fully consistent with Telefilm Canada’s volition to bank on international coproductions as a means to drive industry development.”
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 Canadian Feature Film Fund, the Canadian Television Fund and the Canada New Media Fund.
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Media inquiries
Alejandra Sosa, Communications Officer & Press Attaché,
416-973-6436 or 1-800-463-4607, sosaa@telefilm.ca
Steve Flanagan, Interim Director, Communications,
(514) 283-6363 or 1-800-567-0890, flanags@telefilm.ca