Ontario Creates – Film Fund – Development Stream (2022)

ByMaurice

Description:

The Ontario Creates Film Fund, Development Stream is intended to support development activities that lead to the production of domestic feature film in Ontario. The Film Fund provides support to Ontario producers for all stages of development activities.

Comments on Funding:

Funding is up to $25,000 for the selected stage of development.
Ontario Creates support cannot exceed 75% of the budget for the selected development stage.
Ontario Creates’ contribution is an interest-free loan, which must be repaid at the commencement of principle photography.

Eligibility:

Eligible applicants must:

  • production companies;
  • individual producers.

Production companies must:

  • incorporated in Ontario or incorporated federally and registered in Ontario;
  • Ontario-based: 
  • have a permanent establishment in Ontario which serves as head office and base of operations (i.e. applicant is eligible to pay corporate income taxes in Ontario and Ontario address is listed as head office in T2 filing); and,
  • be able to demonstrate that they had a permanent establishment in Ontario for at least one year prior to the deadline. 
  • a Canadian-owned and controlled organization as defined in the Investment Canada Act (Canada);  
  • in good standing with Ontario Creates at time of application submission (applicant companies and any associated production entity).

Individual producers must:

  • be Ontario residents and Canadian citizens within the definition of the Citizenship Act or permanent residents within the definition of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (Canada);
  • have previously produced at least one of: a dramatic or documentary feature film theatrically released in Canada; a television movie; a dramatic or documentary series; or, two one-hour documentaries that have been broadcast in Canada.

Ontario Creates will consider applications from producers who do not meet the above minimum applicant producer requirements provided that they can demonstrate in writing the attachment to the project of an Ontario based executive producer who does meet the above qualifications. In this instance, applicants are required to seek pre-approval of the executive producer by Ontario Creates prior to application.

Applications Steps:

1

submit their application to Ontario Creates electronically through the Online Application Portal (OAP) later than 5:00 pm ET on the applicable deadline;

2

create a user account on the OAP and click on “Register”;

Applications will be evaluated on a continuous basis. Decisions will be announced 8 to 12 weeks after the application has been submitted; Successful applicants must accept and sign an agreement within one month of notification.

Documentation needed:

Applicants must submit the following documents:

  • Project Synopsis (1 page maximum). Note: any information provided over the 1 page maximum may not be considered in the evaluation of the application;
  • A detailed Development Plan including:
    a. A breakdown of the development activities for the applicable development stage;
    b. Development history of the project.
  • Schedule/Timeline of the applicable development stage’s activities within the presented development plan;
  • Budget and Finance plan for the applicable development activities – must be provided per the Ontario Creates template;
  • Commitment letters from all financial sources listed in Budget/Finance Plan
    Document;
  • Producer statement– (maximum 2 pages) detailing:
    a. The Applicant Company’s profile & track record in the development and
    production of feature films;
    b. The projected benefits of the project to Ontario including the estimated
    production budget and estimated Ontario expenditures of the production;
    c. Demonstrated market support for the project (if applicable);
    d. Diverse elements reflecting key creatives and/or voice/story (if applicable).
    Note: any information provided over the maximum 2 pages may not be considered
    in the evaluation of the application.
  • Complete chain of title documentation, including:
    a) A chronological summary of the chain of title documentation, and
    b) All supporting agreements (this is not applicable to the ‘Story Optioning –
    First Option’ stage).
  • Certificate of Incorporation for Applicant Company. Note: Applicant company must
    be incorporated for minimum 1 year prior to applying;
  • Director’s Registry of Applicant Company (a list of shareholders detailing names of
    directors, ownership shares, and citizenship.

Other Things to Note:

The Ontario Creates Film Fund supports a range of projects across genres with both industrial and cultural benefits. Ontario Creates measures the results of the Film Fund primarily based on net benefit from the project to the province which includes but is not limited to return on investment and jobs created in the Ontario film industry.

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    Film Fund – Development

    About the author

    Maurice

    Maurice (Moe) Muise learned the ins-and-outs of government while an employee of the Government of Canada in Ottawa for 10 years. His current focus is helping small businesses in Ontario to identify and maximize government grants to grow their business. Click here to learn more about Moe’s background and how he can help your business.

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