Norm Bolen's New Jersey

THERE'S A LOT of people I've talked to lately who had stories about Norm Bolen, mainly from his days at Alliance Atlantis. In the Globe & Mail today, there's a profile by Gayle MacDonald of Norm in his new role as spokesman and President for Canada's producer's group, the CFTPA. He was a frankly surprising choice for the CFTPA. In the article, I appreciate his categorization of his time at Alliance Atlantis as his phase of being a "born again capitalist."

“I see a gap that needs to be filled. A leadership gap. I've always had a strong affinity with producers, and at Alliance we were focused on Canadian content. We did not see it as a cost of doing business or a tax or a liability.”

In recent years, Bolen says he's seen a huge shift in the broadcasters' muscle over the production community. “There is an imbalance in the system. … Because of the broadcasters' strength, they make a decision and dictate to producers, who don't have much leverage to negotiate reasonable terms. Producers have to take it or leave it. And if you leave it, you have no work,” he adds.

On average, Bolen says broadcasters are currently paying 37 per cent of the total budget of Canadian productions. In return, he adds, they are demanding non-negotiable, unlimited plays on all their channels (conventional or specialty) for up to seven years. He says broadcasters are also demanding all digital media rights.

“Producers can't speak out as individuals because they're in jeopardy of alienating broadcasters who control their fate.”

The networks argue that they want to retain more rights to their content, including subsequent broadcast windows and digital platforms. CTV has told the CRTC that if it gets another hit like Corner Gas it wants to be able to make more money off the show. The producers, who generally retain some of those rights, are concerned about this, since they put up a considerable amount of the money upfront and take on the risk if a show flops.

And then there was this:

At the end of the day, everyone involved in this cat-and-mouse game “has to rise above narrow self-interest and see if we can find bigger solutions,” he says.

“The first thing I did when I took the job was dig up the Broadcasting Act, and read it,” he adds, noting that section three is about the primacy of Canadian content and how the airwaves belong to the people. “The purpose of the broadcasting system is to see that Canadian stories are told. It's not just to be a rebroadcaster.

Hear hear. I still think that individual producers fear of speaking out is a lot more of an excuse than an actual problem. But I guess some of us just feel more comfortable with a target painted on our ass.

Well, now Bolen gets to wear that paint. He's got his work cut out for him, that's for sure. We could use another articulate voice making the case for creatives in this country, though, so I say, "Welcome back to the fight, Mr. Bolen."