The Shotgun Blog
« Elections Canada vs Free Speech | Main | Imputing income out of thin air »
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Yorkton to host film (and pork barreling) festival
Did you know that Yorkton, Saskatchewan is home to one of Canada’s most prestigious film festivals? Well, you would if you had read Sheila Thistlethwaite's report in the Western Standard on the Yorkton Short Film & Video Festival.
In “The biggest little film fest,” Thistlethwaite writes:
"OK, you film buffs: what do the Oscars, Emmys and Genies have in common with Yorkton, Sask.? If you answered that Yorkton is home to the Canadian film industry's most prestigious awards for films and videos under an hour long, you're savvier than most people. But did you also know that the Yorkton Short Film & Video Festival is the longest-running film festival of its kind in North America?"
Founded in 1950, another annual Festival is just around the corner. On May 22-25, film producers will gather in Yorkton to share their films and collect awards in categories including Aboriginal, Lifestyle, Nature/Environment, Best of Saskatchewan and many others.
They are also there to pitch Telefilm Canada for government money for film projects.
As part of its Outreach Tour, Telefilm Canada has invited film producers to pitch their ideas at the Festival. Winning pitches will receive money from the agency, which is the primary federal cultural body responsible for providing financial support to Canadian film productions.
What kind of films receive financing?
In April, Telefilm Canada announced it had financed a successful pitch by the producers of Making Babies. The film, which received $134,862 in Telefilm Canada money, is described this way:
"Two adventurous women in love are desperate to have their own biological child. They take a chance on an experimental scientific process and make sperm from their own stem cells. Pregnant with humour and unexpected twists, their journey ultimately confirms that all life is a gift and all families are crazy."
I don’t know if all families are crazy, but what is crazy is forcing taxpayers to pay for a film about controversial subjects like same-sex relationships and stem cell experiments.
On April 16th, Canadian Family Action Coalition (CFAC) president Charles McVety appeared before the Senate committee studying Bill C-10. CFAC supports the proposed legislation that would deny tax credits to Canadian film and video productions that are offensive and contain messages and themes that are contrary to government public policy. McVety doesn’t like the idea that government money is being used to fund offensive films and wants the Heritage Minister to have the power to decide which films receive tax credits, and which do not.
But is a tax credit really the same as a government subsidy?
CFAC has raised an important issue, but they’ve taken aim at the wrong program. As I’ve written here and here, Bill C-10 would only make changes to the Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit program...a program that allows private film producers to write off expenses related to the production of Canadian films. This tax credit program is a tax relief program designed to ease the tax burden on the fragile Canadian film industry.
Telefilm Canada, on the other hand, is a program that uses tax dollars to directly subsidies film and video productions...productions that are often offensive to conservative values.
So to allow a Canadian film industry to grow in Canada, the government should enhance its tax credit / tax relief programs and keep them free from ministerial interference. But to respect the values of Charles McVety, CFAC and countless conservative taxpayers, programs like Telefilm Canada should be scrapped.
Posted by Matthew Johnston on April 19, 2008 in Film | Permalink
TrackBack
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.typepad.com/services/trackback/6a00d834515b5d69e200e551eb9aeb8833
Listed below are links to weblogs that reference Yorkton to host film (and pork barreling) festival:
Comments
Screw the values of an American plant like McVety.
Since when does any conservative Canadain kowtow to an American Fallwell wannabe?
BTW, How do you plan to 'scrape' Telefilm, Matt?
Posted by: joe bleau | 2008-04-19 6:01:24 PM
To quote from The Conservative Secret Agenda:
"The CBC, National Film Board, and Telefilm Canada are to be expunged from the Earth as if by the Hand of God. No physical trace of their existence shall remain afterwards. All buildings torn down and the rubble incinerated or otherwise destroyed. Their archives are to be seized and buried in a secret location for the next century to ensure that their warped ideas cannot continue to pollute. Their staffs are to sign non-disclosure agreements in exchange for compensation. Any breech thereof will be severely punished."
Posted by: Zebulon Pike | 2008-04-19 6:52:34 PM
I don't really plan to do anything, Joe, except continue to draw the distinction between valuable government initiatives that remove barriers to industry success (barriers like taxes) and counter-productive initiatives (subsidies) that amount to corporate welfare.
As for McVety and CFAC, they are the voice of social and Christian conservatives in Canada – and they have effectively highlighted anti-family policies for over a decade. I don’t always agree with them, but I do agree with a pro-family agenda.
Posted by: Matthew Johnston | 2008-04-19 7:12:45 PM
Screw the values of an American plant like McVety.
Since when does any conservative Canadain kowtow to an American Fallwell wannabe?
Joe,
Since when does any Canadian kowtow to caring which American Fallwell wannabe presents himself.
Obviously, insecure wannabes such as yourself...the rest of us ignore you and them.
Posted by: h2o273kk9 | 2008-04-19 7:27:10 PM
Canadian made films are a sure cure for insomnia.
Grants don't make good art of any kind. They do however, create a wine sipping class of phonies.
And the "We love ourselves and what we do" award events are enough to send any self-respecting, decent person to the vomitorium.
Posted by: John V | 2008-04-19 8:02:35 PM
More of this silliness.
For all those who want a return to the "good old days" before Telefilm started investing in culture, perhaps you should consider what "family values" films were being made, just off the top of my head:
PORKY'S
BLACK CHRISTMAS
MY BLOODY VALENTINE
PROM NIGHT
RABID
CANNIBAL GIRLS
MEATBALLS
Back then, if you do a little research, you'll see the nutty evangelists were bouncing off the walls, too. It's all about power for them. They need to point at a "devil" of some sort, to consolidate their power.
There is no bigger mistake a government can make than to bow to religious leaders when it comes to public policy. That's how you get destructive insanity like Prohibition to "parental advisory" labels on lousy records to increase their sales. And, left unchecked, theocracies like the Taliban.
Posted by: Trevor M | 2008-04-20 8:20:59 AM
It is very sad that Telefilm supports the porn industry using my tax dollars. When will this insanity ever stop. How can they rob from the hard working moms and pops? They should be ashamed of themselves.
Posted by: Ben | 2008-04-20 8:33:59 AM
Every so often something worthwhile comes from this system. I defy anyone to tell me "Trailer Park Boys" was a waste of taxpayer's money.
Posted by: dp | 2008-04-20 10:14:45 AM
Trailer Park Boys should cost nothing because it's a reality show isn't it?
Posted by: John V | 2008-04-20 11:09:21 AM
The comments to this entry are closed.