YORKTON — A spirit of honesty and collaboration took centre stage at the Yorkton Film Festival as industry professionals gathered for an open forum to confront funding issues and map out a sustainable path forward for Canadian cinema.
The industry session featured a conversation with Valerie Creighton, president and CEO of the Canada Media Fund (CMF), who set an optimistic yet urgent tone. Creighton declared that "Canada is having a moment," pointing to 15 homegrown projects that have recently taken the world by storm. Among them is Heated Rivalry which has captured global attention, tracking 12 times more viewership than other international properties. Despite this innovation and demand, both panel and audience members agreed that the current foundational framework is flawed, prompting moderator Daniel Cross to remind the room that "all evolution comes out of the swamp."
Reforming a broken funding system
A central theme of the forum focused heavily on how structural problems limit independent creators from growing sustainable production companies. Attendees argued for a major shift in capital distribution so filmmakers do not have to fight for survival by chasing separate funding for every individual project.
Highlighting these long-term goals, Creighton emphasized that the industry must develop a system that supports storytellers and finds sustainable pathways for people who want to share their work. Currently, the modern, market-driven system presents a major scale problem by favouring large-scale players who possess the financial resources to travel to Ottawa for massive pitches.
To solve this, participants noted that room must be carved out for smaller independent filmmakers who possess world-class ideas but lack the corporate capital needed to navigate the existing bureaucratic highway.
Radical change and authenticity
Creighton noted that the domestic film landscape is entering a period of change that is "scary but necessary". To survive, the system must prioritize the inclusion of youth through mentorship, paving new pathways for young creators to flourish and give back to the community.
The open forum also directly addressed the necessity of maintaining cultural legitimacy. Panellists criticized empty diversity metrics, highlighting a systemic trend where organizations "check the Indigenous box" on an application form while non-indigenous teams’ step in and control the actual production. Speakers collectively urged for systemic accountability to ensure true creative ownership remains in the hands of diverse storytellers.
For Creighton, the setting for this much needed conversation was highly intentional.
"It's my favourite place to come because it's on the ground and you can connect with people," she said.
