E1 Entertainment’s Throop Calls for Stable, Ongoing Commitment to Canada’s Independent Film and Television Sector
19 February 2009
Pledges E1 will continue to provide strong support to Canadian producers
OTTAWA – February 19, 2009 — Today, Darren Throop, chief executive officer of E1 Entertainment (“E1”), gave a keynote address to more than 700 leaders assembled in Ottawa for the Canadian Film and Television Production Association’s annual conference, “Prime Time in Ottawa.” In his address, Mr. Throop called for the introduction of several significant measures to ensure the survival and prosperity of the Canadian film and television industry in the coming years, including:
- Making the Canadian Television Fund permanent rather than
subject to year-to-year renewals. Throop said the current system is
“like uprooting the grapevines every two years and thinking
you’re going to get great wine. The production cycle is
longer than that.”
- Providing the CBC with stable, long-term funding in exchange
for a recommitment to its mandate, support for the Canadian feature
film industry and getting it out of advertising. Once this happens,
“We expect the CBC to be a stronger partner,” Throop
said.
- Requiring broadcasters to spend programming dollars on Canadian
content on a 1:1 ratio with foreign spending, as the CRTC has
recently tabled for discussion, both in any interim administrative
licence renewals, and in the next round of seven-year renewals.
Spending on foreign programming has outpaced Canadian spending in
recent years.*
- Requiring conventional broadcasters to support the Canadian
feature film industry, a mandate that no broadcaster currently
executes with the admirable exception of Radio-Canada’s
French-language television service.
- Including leaders from the independent filmed entertainment sector in consultations about government funding and solutions for the film and television industry. “That support has never been more important. We will continue to need public money and regulatory standards that foster a rich and creative Canadian culture and industry,” Throop told the audience.
Throop signalled E1’s intention to become a larger player in the national dialogue on the industry’s future, including participation in ongoing policy and regulatory processes. He also pledged that E1 will, as the emerging flagship Canadian company, providing the industry with the benefits of a one-stop shop that meets all their distribution needs, in a spirit of “respect, diligence, competence—and a passion for Canada.”
About E1 Entertainment
E1 Entertainment (AIM: ETO) is a leading
independent entertainment content owner that acquires film,
television and music rights and exploits these rights in all media
in more than 190 countries.
The company currently operates in Canada, the U.S., the UK, Holland and Belgium through its four primary businesses units: E1 Television, E1 Films, E1 Music and E1 Distribution. These businesses collectively represent E1’s extensive expertise in film distribution, television and music production/distribution, Kids content, Licensing and Distribution.
E1 Entertainment is the largest distributor of entertainment content on the Canadian market. Since the acquisition of Seville Entertainment in 2007, E1 has held a leading position in the market for theatrical releases in Canada via E1 Entertainment Canada and Seville Pictures in Quebec, and International Sales via E1 Films International.
E1’s content library includes more than 3,700 feature films, 2,700 hours of original television programming and 15,000 music tracks.
For more information, please contact:
Julia Oosterman
Edelman for E1 Entertainment
Julia.oosterman@edelman.com
416-979-1120 ext 346
*Excerpt from Broadcaster and BDU Financial Data, CRTC Feb. 2009: Expenditures on Canadian programming were essentially flat at $619.6 million; of this amount $146 million was paid to independent producers, up slightly from $143.5 million in 2007. Expenditures on foreign programming increased by 7.4% to $775.2 million in 2008 from $721.9 million in 2007.