News
July 13, 2022
July 13 FilmOntario Update
FilmOntario Welcomes New Cabinet, Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport
At the end of June, Premier Ford announced his new Cabinet, including the appointment of The Honourable Neil Lumsden as the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport. Minister Lumsden represents the riding of Hamilton East-Stoney Creek and, following a successful CFL career, has spent many years working in sports marketing. He was inducted in to the CFL Hall of Fame in 2014.
Several Ministers were also re-appointed to their previous positions, including Peter Bethlenfalvy as Minister of Finance, Vic Fedeli as Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade, and Monte McNaughton as Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development.
At FilmOntario we have been reaching out to all members of the new Cabinet to continue the dialogue about the industry’s economic and cultural contributions to the province. We look forward to working with the new government on implementing the tax credit changes announced in the 2022 Provincial Budget. It is expected that the government will re-introduce this Budget when the legislature resumes sitting on August 8, after they deliver their first Speech from the Throne.
Finally, we would like to thank the outgoing Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries, Lisa MacLeod, for her work on behalf of the industry during her time as Minister.
Last Day for the Ontario Creates Stakeholder Survey!
As many of you know, Ontario Creates is currently undertaking a strategic planning process to set the strategic foundations and future direction for the organization over the next 5 years. To support them in completing this important work, they have partnered with Optimus SBR, an independent management consultancy, to lead and manage the initiative.
You may have already received an invite to participate in a brief 15-minute survey to capture your critical feedback on their value and services, and to better understand your future needs. You can find the survey here.
The survey closes today, July 13, 2022. Please note that all individual responses will be kept strictly confidential – all findings reported back to Ontario Creates will be done in aggregate.
If you have any questions about this process, please contact research@ontariocreates.ca.
Congratulations to the LMGI Nominees
Two municipal film offices in Ontario have received Locations Manager Guild International Award nominations for Outstanding Film Commission – the City of Brantford, for their work on The Handmaid’s Tale, and the City of Kingston, for their work on The Mayor of Kingstown. Local film offices are important partners in production, and it is great to see their hard work highlighted here.
In addition, the shot-in-Ontario Station Eleven was nominated in the category of Outstanding Locations in a TV Serial Program, Anthology, or Limited Series.
Congratulations to all the nominees. The awards will be presented at a live in-person ceremony in Los Angeles on Saturday, August 27.
Industry Deadlines
July 14 – Next deadline for the Ontario Creates Film Fund – Production. The Film Fund provides support to Ontario producers for feature film projects in the final stages of production financing. The Fund is intended to increase the level of domestic film production in Ontario.
July 25 – Deadline to apply for the Canadian Academy Women in Post program, which provides higher-level industry access and professional development for emerging to mid-level creatives working in all areas of post production.
July 25 – Applications for the second round of the Rogers-Black Screen Office (BSO) Development Fund for Black and People of Colour Creators close. The $750,000 Rogers-BSO Fund provides funding for selected writers to create pitch-ready content. It also includes additional support from mentors, story editors, script evaluators, a pitching coach, and opportunities for successful applicants to pitch their content to producers, networks, studios, cable and/or streaming platforms in Canada and internationally.
August 29 – Deadline for the Ontario Creates IDM Fund: Production and Concept Definition. This Fund provides IDM content creators with funding for high quality, original interactive digital media content projects that make a positive contribution to the Ontario economy. The Concept Definition program provides early-stage development support, and the Production program provides support for the creation of a market-ready content project that will be released to end users. Several information sessions will be held in July and early August; registration is required.
November 30 – Applications for the Ontario Creates Film Fund – Development will be accepted on a continuous basis until this date. This program is intended to support development activities that lead to the increase of domestic feature film production in Ontario, for all stages of development activities.
Reminders for Members
Don’t forget to send Cynthia a copy of your logo or photo that represents your company to be featured in our member directory on the website.
News to Share?
If there are any updates or announcements you would like to share with your fellow FilmOntario members, please don’t hesitate to let me know at clynch@filmontario.ca and I will include them in the next member update.