Telefilm Canada announces 18 Micro-Budget Production Program finalists for 2016-2017

Talent Fund financing 77% of the Program this year

Montreal, June 16, 2016—Telefilm Canada today announced the 18 finalists, representing all regions of the country, for the Micro-Budget Production Program for 2016-2017. Telefilm also announced that the Talent Fund, a private donation fund, is financing 77% of the Program this year, thanks in particular to numerous donors and principal partners Bell Media and Corus Entertainment. Technicolor is also continuing to offer free digital distribution encoding to finalists.

Hartley T. Richardson, Chair of the Talent Fund Advisory Committee, stated: “Investing in emerging talent means investing in innovation, creativity and passion. Members of the advisory committee witnessed this when they recently met with the teams behind two projects funded through the Program, Cardinal and The Space Between. We were tremendously impressed by their vision and engagement. The Talent Fund provides Canadians with a unique opportunity to support homegrown talent and realize that their investments have a profound impact.”

Carolle Brabant, Executive Director of Telefilm Canada, added: “The Micro-Budget Production Program shows that Canada’s new generation of filmmakers is diversified. After the success achieved at both Canadian and foreign film festivals by Christian Sparkes (Cast No Shadow), Julie Lambert (Un film de chasse de filles), Kyle Thomas (The Valley Below), Adam Brooks and Matthew Kennedy (The Editor), Suzanne Crocker (All the Time in the World) as well as Aboriginal filmmakers Sonia Bonspille Boileau (Le dep) and Adam Garnet Jones (Fire Song), it’s worth noting that two films funded through the Program will be screened at the 2016 Shanghai International Film Festival: The Devout (Connor Gaston) and The Space Between (Amy Jo Johnson).”

This is the fourth annual round of projects in the Micro-Budget Production Program. The Program supports emerging filmmakers seeking to produce their first feature-length films and emphasizes the use of digital platforms and developing the films’ potential for distribution and audience engagement. Project budgets are capped at $250,000.

Three of the projects for the fiscal year are by filmmakers from official-language minority communities and two are Aboriginal projects. For the first time, Web content was an eligible format; four narrative works created especially for digital distribution are funded by the Program.

Also worth noting is the new partnership between Telefilm and the National Film Board of Canada, which will ensure access to feature films funded under the Micro-Budget Production Program via the NFB.ca’s Emerging Talents channel.

A program that yields results
More than 40 educational institutions and film cooperatives associated with the Program, from across Canada, recommend projects to Telefilm by promising emerging filmmakers. In four years, the Program has supported 55 debut feature films, including this year’s projects. Thank you to all our partners for their collaboration.

Talent Fund
The Talent Fund helps the film industry diversify its funding sources and promote its successes. Guided by an advisory committee of business and community leaders, the Fund mainly supports the discovery and career progression of emerging Canadian talent in the audiovisual industry. Thanks to principal partners Bell Media and Corus Entertainment, and to several foundations and individuals, the Fund has raised $15 million to date.

Nicolas Savoie, Vice-President, Sales, Marketing and Customer Service at Technicolor Montreal, added: “Technicolor is proud to contribute to the success of emerging filmmakers by renewing its partnership with Telefilm Canada’s Micro-Budget Production Program. As a company that offers post-production and visual-effects services, we are interested in getting involved in the development of emerging filmmakers by providing them with content distribution services. For us, sharing our expertise is essential in order to ensure that tomorrow’s creative talents have a promising future.”

Jean Bruce, PhD, Chair, School of Image Arts at Ryerson University, further added: “Ryerson University is a proud partner in Telefilm Canada’s Micro-Budget Program. As a partner, we help assess the quality of applications to the Fund and invite in only the brightest and best of recent grads to pitch proposals. Our panel assesses these projects and suggests one film and one online Web project to Telefilm. It is a testament to government and industry collaborators that our combined strengths can come together in supporting the future of Canada’s emerging talent in the film, television and online creative worlds.”

Telefilm would like to acknowledge the contribution of the promotional partner for the Program, imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival.

Promotional videos
Coming soon: 30-second promotional videos produced by each of 18 finalist teams will be posted on Telefilm’s YouTube channel. 

2016-2017 Micro-Budget Production Program finalists

• 3.0, Eli Batalion (director, writer, producer), Quebec, partner: Main Film
• Abigaëlle et le date coaching, Web format, Jessica L’Heureux (director), Stéphanie Bourgault-Dallaire (writer), Corey Loranger (producer), Alberta, partner: On Screen Manitoba
• The Amundsen Icebreaker, Christopher Paetkau, Sira Chayer (directors, writers), Carlyle Paetkau, Trevor Gill (producers), Manitoba, partner: On Screen Manitoba
• Black Cop, Cory Bowles (director, writer), Aaron Horton (producer), Nova Scotia, partner: Atlantic Filmmakers Cooperative
• Les Faux Tatouages, Pascal Plante (director, writer), Katerine Lefrançois (producer), Quebec, partner: Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema, Concordia University
• Final Cut, Patrick Condon (director, writer), Elsa Morena (producer), Newfoundland and Labrador, partner: Newfoundland Independent Filmmakers Co-operative
• Firecrackers, Jasmin Mozaffari (director, writer), Caitlyn Grabham (producer), Ontario, partner: Ryerson University
• Geek Girls, Gina Haraszti (director, writer), Michael Massicotte (producer), Quebec, partner: Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema, Concordia University
• Hier encore, Judith Plamondon, Lessandro Socrates (directors, writers), Caroline Bergoin (producer), Quebec, Institut national de l’image et du son
• In Plainview, Matt Watterworth (director), Kevin Doree (writer), Scott Westby (producer), Alberta, partner: Calgary Society of Independent Filmmakers
• Lovely Witches Club, Web format, Renee Laprise (director, producer), Patti Larsen (director, writer), Prince Edward Island, partner: Island Media Arts Cooperative
• Luk’Luk’l, Wayne Wapeemukwa (director, writer, producer), Spencer Hahn, Matt Drake (producers), British Columbia, Ontario, partner: Cineworks Independent Filmmakers Society, Department of Cinema & Media Arts, York University
• Mary Goes Round, Molly McGlynn (director, writer), Matt Code (producer), Ontario, partner: Canadian Film Centre
• The Road Behind, Kelton Stepanowich (director), Derek Vermillion (writer), Eric Janvier (producer), Alberta, partner: Film and Video Arts Society of Alberta
• The Road Trip, Allan Hopkins (director, writer, producer), Manitoba, partner: Adam Beach Film Institute
• Les Scènes fortuites, Web format, Guillaume Lambert (director, writer), Laurent Allaire (producer), Quebec, partner: Institut national de l’image et du son
• Talent, Lucas Frison (director, writer), Élise Beaudry-Ferland (producer), Saskatchewan, partner: University of Regina
• Why Good People Do Bad Things, Web format, Tim Rayne (director, writer), Arthur Thomson (producer), New Brunswick, partner: New Brunswick Filmmakers’ Co-operative 

About Telefilm Canada—Inspired by talent. Viewed everywhere.
Created in 1967, Telefilm is dedicated to the cultural, commercial and industrial success of Canada’s audiovisual industry. Through its various funding and promotion programs, Telefilm supports dynamic companies and creative talent here at home and around the world. Telefilm also makes recommendations regarding the certification of audiovisual treaty coproductions to the Minister of Canadian Heritage, and administers the programs of the Canada Media Fund and the Talent Fund, a private donation initiative. Visit telefilm.ca and follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/telefilm_canada and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/telefilmcanada.

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Media enquiries:
Douglas Chow, Head of Public Relations, Telefilm Canada
(514) 283-0838 ext. 2048 or 1-800-567-0890
douglas.chow@telefilm.ca