0 1998 National Film Board of Canada Published by Communications Service P.O. Box 6100, Station Centre-elle Montreai, Quebec H3C 3H5 Telephone: (514) 283-9246 Fax: [ 514) 283-8971 Intemet: http9/www.nfb.ca ISBN: O-7722-0764-X 3rd quarter 1998 Graphic design: Cormier Communication Publicité Printed in Canada @ recycled paper NATIONAL FILM BOARD OF CANADA OFFICE NATIONAL DU FILM DU CANADA Ottawa, September 1998 The Honourable Sheila Copps Minister of Canadian Heritage Ottawa, Ontario Minister: I have the honour of submitting to you, in accordance with the provisions of section 20(1) of the National Film Act, 1950, the Annual Report of the National Film Board of Canada for its fifly-nine year, ended March 31. 1998. The report also provides highlights of noteworthy events which occured during the fiscal year. Respectfully, &- Sandra Macdonald Government Film Commissioner and Chairperson Table of Contents NFB's profile .Management Committee ......................... 6 Members of the Board of Trustees ........................... 7 Chairperson's Message ...................................... 9 Year in Review .............................................. 11 AFew Figures ............................................... 15 Productions ................................................. 16 Versions and Adaptations ................................... 28 Summary of Activities - Production ..........................32 Summary of Adivities - Canadian Distribution .................33 Summary of Activities - International Distribution ..............34 Summary of Activities - Technical Services ....................35 Awards ..................................................... -36 Financial Sîatements ........................................ 43 NFB Offices and Partners ...................................55 NFB's Profile - Management Committee he National Film Board of Canada is a unique centre for the creation of audio-visual materials. Its man- date remains to produce and distribute films and other audio-visual works intended for Canadian audiences and foreign markets, in order to increase viewers's knowledge and understanding of the social and cuitural realities of Canada. Its films are produced in both official languages through its French and English Programs, by in-house and independent filmmakers across the country. The NFB maintains production facilities in Vancouver, Edmonton, Winnipeg. Toronto, Montreal, Moncton and Halifax. The NFB has a network of distribution partners, the majority of which are public libraries, to provide access to NFB films and videos, thus ensuring the NFB's presence in al1 provinces and territories. N FB productions are often aired by conventional and specialty broadcasters alike, and Canadians can easily purchase NFB videos seven days a week by calling its toll free-number. Intemationally, the NFB has offices in London, Paris and New York. The NFB is an integrated production and distribution organization. with an extensive film collection, a conservation laboratory, post-production and research and development facilities located at its oper- ational headquarters in Montreal. Its Government Relations service operates from Ottawa, while Corporate Affairs. Human Resources. Administration, Planning and Evaluation services are principally located in Montreal. Sandra Macdonald Government Film Commissioner and Chaitperson Barbara Janes Director GeneraJ English Program Doris Girard Director GeneraJ French proSram Maryse Charbonneau Director, Administration Lyette Doré Director, Corporate AiTairs Guy Gauîhier Director, Human Resoumes JoanneLeduc Director, International Program Ciaude Parent Director, Planning, Program Evaluation and Audit René Villeneuve Director, Technical Senrices and Informatics Sandm Macdonald John Douglas Kenny Patricia R. O'Brien Governrnent Film Cornmissioner Kce- Chaiperson vice-Chairperson [since Mar& 1998) and Chaiperson Photographer Adjunct Professor; Mernorial Vancouver, British Columbia University of Newfoundland Deceased February 26.1998 St. John's, Newfoundland Michelle Courchesne Camlyn Fouriezos Cheny L Karpysliin General Manager Writer/Journalist General Manager Orchestre symphonique de Sudbuiy, Ontario Prairie Theatre Exchange Montréal Winnipeg. Manitoba Montreal. Quebec François N. Macemla Norah Mallory Executive Director Pamer - Harley & Malloiy Telefilm Canada Strategic Communications Fredericton, New Brunswick The Board of Trustees of the National Film Board of Canada con- sists of eight mernbers. Six mernbers represent the people of Canada, while the seventh mernber is the Executive Director of Telefilm Canada. The Government Film Comrnissioner acts as Chairperson of the Board. During the period covered by this Annual Report, Cherry E. Karpyshin and Norah Mallory were appointed to the Board of Trustees for a three-year mandate on March 1O, 1998. Following the untimely death of Vice-Chairperson John Douglas Kenny. Patricia R. O'Brien was elected Vice-Chairperson on March 18. 1998. At the end of the year, only one Trustee position remained vacant. s a public producer with a mandate to produce films “in the national interest”, the National Film Board of Canada has a special responsibility and a special challenge. Our productions often deal with diffi- cult and controversial topics. We rnake it Our particular mission to give voice to those Canadians whose voices are seldom heard - aboriginal people, people of colour, new Canadians from a variety of origins, Canadians from parts of the country seldom seen on the screen - and to do so in both offi- cial languages. As a matter of principle, we also make a significant proportion of Our films with new talent and in experimental forms. Al1 of these preoccupations operate within the overarching goal of making films which are notable for their excellence, relevance and innovation. Once again in 1997-98, the NFB completed more than 100 new in-house productions and co- productions, not counting versions of different lengths and in other languages. on topics across the spectrum of Canadian life. The details of those titles appear on the pages which follow. Once again, Our productions aim to serve a broad range of Canadian audiences, frorn the general public, with films like The Game offier Life about the odyssey of Canada’s national women’s hockey team to reach the Nagano Olympics, to very specifically targeted audiences with productions like The Nitinaht Chronides about one native community’s long journey toward healing the wounds of child sexual abuse. Productions for young audiences, including a number of interactive projects, were also a highlight of 1997-98, as they are every year. Particularly notable were Our prize-winning Website The Prince and // Le Prince et moi, where tens of thousands of young Canadians became friends of the Prince and increased their reading and spelling skills along the way. and the CD-ROM Making History: Louis Re/ and the North-West Rebellion of 7 885, which won the prestigious Best Interface Design Award at the 4th Annual International Digital Media Awards. On the subject of awards, 1997-98 was another banner year for the NFB. A total of 143 interna- tional awards and honours were accorded to N FB productions and co-productions. We are proud of these results, since fiscal 1997-98 was the third year of the budget reduction exer- cise which affected the NFB, like most federal departrnents and agencies. During the year we were operating with a Parliamentary appropriation some 28% lower than the pre-cut norm. Nevertheless, the number and quality of titles released was maintained. In large part, on the production side. this result was achieved through administrative efficiencies. In fact comparative studies we have done indicate that the portion of the budget of an NFB documentary devoted to overhead - costs which do not appear on the screen - is typically lower than a sirnilar private-sector production supported with public funds. In addition to its rote as a public producer. the NFB also has the mandate to distribute its productions. The preoccupations which inform Our production choices, which we consider central to Our mandate “to interpret Canada to Canadians and the world”, pose challenges in finding the most appropriate and effective avenues for reaching Our intended audiences. The diversity of Our production means that we must tailor Our distribution strategies almost case-by-case. We are not a broadcaster: we must there- fore forge alliances with broadcasters to reach television audiences. We do not operate Our own cinema circuit: we must therefore find cinerna partners. We do not run retail outlets; we consequent- ly seek out and work with a variety of private distribution and marketing companies to place Our productions in the most appropriate venues for the viewers we hope to reach. We do operate Our own well-established network for distribution to schools and institutions, serving both Canadian and foreign clients via the Internet, direct mail, and a 1-800 telephone service. One of the great challenges we have faced in recent years in dealing with Our significant budget reductions has been to maintain or even increase the effectiveness of Our distribution activities white reducing costs as much as pos- sible Chairperson’ s Message The NFB’s marketing and distribution personnel have risen to the challenge by making 1997-98 the year that more Canadians (and non-Canadians) saw an NFB production than ever before, at the Iow- est net cost in Our history. A consetvative estimate of the total audience for