Government of Canada Supports Arts and Culture in Minority Official-Language Communities

OTTAWA, September 14, 2009 -
- On behalf of the Honourable James Moore, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages, Shelly Glover, Parliamentary Secretary for Official Languages and Member of Parliament (Saint Boniface), during a visit to Zones Théâtrales, announced funding for arts and culture in minority official-language communities.

"I am very pleased to make these important announcements in the field of arts and culture as part of the celebrations marking the 40th anniversary of the implementation of the Official Languages Act," said Mrs. Glover. "Our Government is thus affirming its leadership in the promotion of our two official languages and the development of communities."

The Parliamentary Secretary for Official Languages began by announcing a first round of projects awarded funding under the Cultural Development Fund. In all, 37 such projects submitted from across Canada, in both French and English minority communities, will benefit from government support totalling $2,185,990.

Next, on behalf of the Government of Canada, Mrs. Glover signed the renewal of the Agreement for the Development of Francophone Arts and Culture in Canada, together with representatives of the National Arts Centre, the Canada Council for the Arts, CBC/Radio-Canada, Telefilm Canada, the National Film Board of Canada, and the Fédération culturelle canadienne-française, an organization representing arts and cultural groups in Francophone and Acadian communities.

Finally, Mrs. Glover announced $150,000 in funding from the Department of Canadian Heritage for the 2009 edition of Zones Théâtrales. This event is produced by the National Arts Centre, in collaboration with the Canada Council for the Arts.

Government support for this project is provided under the
Canada Arts Presentation Fund (formerly the Arts Presentation Canada Program) and the Development of Official-Language Communities Program.

The renewal of the Agreement for the Development of Francophone Arts and Culture in Canada is intended to establish a framework for cooperation between the parties in order to foster development of Canada's Francophone and Acadian minorities and promote their contribution to Canada's cultural and artistic richness.

The Cultural Development Fund, originally announced at the time of the release of the Roadmap for Canada's Linguistic Duality 2008-2013: Acting for the Future, is part of the Community Life component of the Department of Canadian Heritage's Development of Official-Language Communities Program. This program is aimed at fostering the development of Canada's Anglophone and Francophone minorities and enabling them to fully participate in all aspects of Canadian life.

The announcements were made as part of the celebrations marking the 40th anniversary of the adoption and implementation of the Official Languages Act.

Information:


Deirdra McCracken
Director of Communications
Office of the Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages
819-997-7788
deirdra.mccracken@pch.gc.ca

Media Relations
Canadian Heritage
819-994-9101
1-866-569-6155
media@pch.gc.ca

BACKGROUNDER

Canada Arts Presentation Fund

This program gives Canadians direct access to a variety of quality artistic experiences through financial assistance to arts presenters or the organizations that support them. The outcome will be that Canadians have more access to artists' works from all regions of Canada, reflecting its rich cultural diversity. Canadian communities of all backgrounds will have the opportunity to participate in and benefit from the broadest possible range of artistic experiences.

Agreement for the Development of Francophone Arts and Culture in Canada

A first Agreement for the Development of Francophone Arts and Culture in Canada, also known as the Multipartite Cooperation Agreement on Culture, was signed in June 1998. It was for an initial period of three years, was renewed up to 2007, and was then extended to March 31, 2008.

A key instrument of cooperation, the Agreement and its coordination mechanisms--especially the working groups set up for each artistic discipline--have encouraged the presentation and promotion of cultural products and artistic events of Canada's Francophonie for more than 10 years. The Agreement thus contributes to the growth and visibility of Francophone minority communities.

Cultural Development Fund

The Fund has the following objectives:

  • Support and strengthen the cultural and artistic activities and cultural expression of minority official-language communities to enhance their vitality.

  • Promote the contribution of arts, culture, and heritage to the sustainable development of minority official-language communities and Canadian society.

  • Develop and promote the arts, culture, and heritage of minority official-language communities in Canadian society.

  • Foster identity-building and a sense of belonging within Canada's minority official-language communities.

  • Give Canadians access to the richness of the minority official-language communities' culture, arts, and heritage.

Following is the list of projects awarded funding in this first round, by province:

Organization name / Project titleAmount awarded

Newfoundland and Labrador

FÉDÉRATION DES FRANCOPHONES DE TERRE-NEUVE ET DU LABRADOR $40,000
Training and visibility of Francophone artists and artisans of Newfoundland and Labrador

Nova Scotia

CONSEIL ACADIEN DE PAR-EN-BAS $30,000
 Acadian showcases and educational workshops

CONSEIL DES ARTS DE CHÉTICAMP (LE) $20,000
Four-sector arts project

FÉDÉRATION CULTURELLE ACADIENNE DE LA NOUVELLE-ÉCOSSE $30,000
Implementation of the ArtsSmarts program in Nova Scotia

SOCIÉTÉ ACADIENNE DE CLARE (LA)  $20,000
Music performances and workshops

New Brunswick

CONSEIL PROVINCIAL DES SOCIÉTÉS CULTURELLES $26,000
Establishment of a network for exhibition exchanges in galleries or public exhibition centres

FILM ZONE INC.  $50,000
Screening of Acadian and Francophone films

GALERIE SANS NOM COOPÉRATIVE LIMITÉE $10,000
Public activities

Quebec

ARCMTL $20,000
Making It Montreal: A view on English artists who chose to make Montreal home


ENGLISH-LANGUAGE ARTS NETWORK - QUEBEC $150,000
Recognizing Achievements and Enhancing Visibility (RAEV) for Quebec's English-language Artists - a Pilot Project

GASPESIAN BRITISH HERITAGE VILLAGE $69,000
Treasures of the Village Travelling Exhibit

LITERARY AND HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF QUEBEC $46,000
Quebec Literary Happening Project

QUEBEC-LABRADOR FOUNDATION (CANADA)  $147,000
A Virtual Heritage Corridor: Promoting the Arts, Culture and Heritage of the English-speaking Community
along the Richelieu River and Missisquoi Bay

STUDIO XX  $100,000
First Person Digital

THEATRE WAKEFIELD $32,700
Our Hidden Hills

YOUTH EMPLOYMENT SERVICES $50,000
Business Skills for Creative Souls - YES Arts Fair

Ontario
ASSOCIATION DES AUTEURES ET AUTEURS DE L'ONTARIO FRANÇAIS $25,000
La couleur des mots

ASSOCIATION DES FRANCOPHONES DE KITCHENER-WATERLOO $8,000
Semaine de l'art francophone à Kitchener-Waterloo

CARREFOUR FRANCOPHONE DE SUDBURY (LE) $75,000
La Rentrée culturelle

SOCIÉTÉ FRANCO-ONTARIENNE D'HISTOIRE ET DE GÉNÉALOGIE $17,500
Le patrimoine historique et familial des Franco-Ontariens accessible à tous

THÉÂTRE ACTION $56,550
Ongoing theatre training program for amateurs

THÉÂTRE FRANÇAIS DE TORONTO (LE) $40,000
Cinq ans de théâtre en Ontario français

Manitoba

100 NONS (LE) $50,000
Community "boîtes à chanson" (coffeehouses)

ASSOCIATION CULTURELLE FRANCO-MANITOBAINE (L') $110,000
Support for artistic creation and the community book

FESTIVAL DU VOYAGEUR $125,000
Le spectacle à ciel ouvert : C'est une histoire que l'on ne saurait taire...

MAISON DES ARTISTES VISUELS FRANCOPHONES (LA) $110,000
Cultural events in the Jardin de sculptures

Saskatchewan

CONSEIL CULTUREL FRANSASKOIS $80,000
Les Cellules formatrices 2009-2011

SOCIÉTÉ HISTORIQUE DE LA SASKATCHEWAN (LA) $62,450
Presentation of Fransaskois history through theatre and re-enactments

TROUPE DU JOUR (LA) $30,800
Visibility campaign

Alberta

SOCIÉTÉ FRANCOPHONE DES ARTS VISUELS DE L'ALBERTA $60,000
Historical quilts

British Columbia

ASSOCIATION FRANCOPHONE DE CAMPBELLRIVER (L') $24,000
Mural representing the history of Francophones in the Campbell River region

SOCIÉTÉ RADIO COMMUNAUTAIRE VICTORIA $35,000
Creation and performance competition: composers, singers and storytellers from the Greater
Victoria area on CILS-FM

VISIONS OUEST PRODUCTIONS $96,000
Un nouveau rendez-vous d'été: L'ÉTHÉÂTRE

Northwest Territories

ASSOCIATION FRANCO-CULTURELLE DE YELLOWKNIFE (L') $50,440
Reflet identitaire : arts et culture franco-canadiens

Yukon

ASSOCIATION FRANCO-YUKONNAISE $36,600
Development of the Franco-Yukon arts platform 

National Projects

RÉSEAU ONTARIO DES ARTS DE LA SCÈNE $53,000
Development of tools to strengthen presentation in Francophone communities

BLUE METROPOLIS FOUNDATION / FONDATION METROPOLIS BLEU $200,000
A Community of Words / Une communauté, des mots

Projects Already Announced

Prince Edward Island

ASSOCIATION DU MUSÉE ACADIEN DE L'ÎLE-DU-PRINCE-ÉDOUARD INC. $10,100
L'histoire acadienne de l'Île-du-Prince-Édouard : des photos témoignent du passé

BELLE-ALLIANCE LTÉE $25,000
Sur les traces des Acadiens de Summerside, Miscouche et des environs

CONSEIL ACADIEN DE RUSTICO INC.   $17,000
Les arts : la manifestation multilingue d'une culture