Bloc Québécois MP Martin Champoux questioned Minister of Canadian Heritage Pascale St-Onge on Tuesday in the House of Commons on the new eligibility criteria envisaged by the NFB for its assistance program for Canadian independent cinema (ACIC).
The NFB would like the projects submitted to it to correspond to the editorial line of its programming. “When a State Corporation wants to impose a message, it’s called propaganda, will the minister let that pass? » asked Mr. Champoux.
“The NFB has a clear mandate,” replied Minister St-Onge, “that is to say, to support producers in all their freedom, including French. I will ensure that they continue to respect their mandate, and I invite producers to raise their concerns with the management of the NFB, which is independent and which will make decisions accordingly. »
La Presse revealed on Monday changes planned by the NFB to “modernize” its Assistance to Independent Cinema of Canada (ACIC) program. In its new version, independent filmmakers would, for example, no longer have access to editing rooms. They would no longer have to pay 10% of post-production costs, but in return, they would be required to offer their films on the NFB platform.
More than 500 filmmakers, producers, distributors and other members of the film industry have denounced the measures.