The global media industry is in crisis. Established studios, emerging creators and everyone in between are competing for fragmented audience attention. Production companies are finding it difficult to secure green lights while grappling with AI and economic pressures. Industry leaders struggle to innovate within legacy systems.
So why am I optimistic?
Crises sharpen focus and constraints drive innovation.
In Canada, many industry leaders are tackling these challenges with vigor, but no single entity can dig us out. We need an active, ongoing exchange of ideas, experimentation, and shared learning across the industry to imagine a path forward.
Here’s an offering from my vantage point.
Producers …
Start Small, Think Big
Even modest steps beyond traditional models can unlock new opportunities. Use platforms like YouTube to test content, build audiences on TikTok, and explore monetization channels such as Patreon or Substack. Kickstarter’s revived role in funding pilots—especially in animation—can offer added value by sparking early community engagement around a project.
Embrace AI
The role of artificial intelligence in the creative sector is a hot-button issue—and rightly so. But leveraging AI to streamline repetitive tasks and optimize workflows is simply smart business. Organizations that resist this inevitable shift risk falling behind.
Tap into Existing Communities
The future of media lies in understanding and engaging with communities already gathering online. Tap into these collectives—or better yet, build your own. Take Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan, who used insights from TikTok and Instagram to shape their Netflix series Monsters: The Erik and Lyle Menendez Story. Meanwhile, Tubi, Fox’s ad-supported streaming service, is thriving by doubling down on fandoms. Tubi CEO, Anjali Sud, recently spoke about green lighting a project based on Western horror fans in Canada that “got 600 million video views on social in a day.”
Think About Content as an Ecosystem
Deloitte Insights recently confirmed what many producers already know: to truly engage audiences, you need to reach them across multiple channels. The ecosystem of content that surrounds a film or series is often overlooked, yet it can yield valuable audience insights. This universe of content, along with the engagement and impact it generates, needs to be recognized and properly supported.
Leverage Data
Producers have long been frustrated by the lack of access to meaningful audience data. The CMF’s latest Perspectives report frames the power of data but mistakenly claims producers' access is "likely confined to public sources." In reality, a wealth of audience data is accumulating on producer-owned channels where today’s audiences engage with content. The challenge? Pulling it all together is a nightmare. That’s why my company built ScreenMiner™—to effortlessly aggregate data and deliver unprecedented audience insights. Whatever tools you choose, the point is clear: if you’re not paying attention to audience metrics, you’re operating in the dark.
Industry Leaders …
Look to Quebec
Quebec’s Minister of Culture and Communications, Mathieu Lacombe, recently announced the formation of a “Working Group on the Future of Quebec Television and Film Production.” This initiative brings together leaders from various disciplines, with a mandate to shape a future unbound by past limitations or the interests of any single organization. Minister St-Onge, we need a similar effort at the federal level that sits above and is unencumbered by the mandate of any one entity.
Develop a National Audience Development Strategy
The success of Canada’s media system, both economically and culturally, begins and ends with audiences. If we measure success only by job creation and GDP contributions, why frame publicly funded content as a cultural initiative? I call again for national audience development strategy—starting with the federal working group suggested above—that places audiences at its core. For starters this strategy should contemplate:
Marketing Support – Why do we continue funding content with little to no marketing budget?
Skills Training – Producers are now responsible for building audiences, but many lack the expertise to do so.
Expanded Definitions of Content – We need to evolve how we define content, budgets, and tax credits to include complementary content.
Data – As audiences drift away from traditional TV and cinema, we need expanded datasets that reflect engagement across platforms.
Bridge the Gap Between Legacy Media and the Creator Economy
Legacy media and the creator economy continue to operate largely in isolation, with only a few experimental funding pilots bridging the divide. Many veteran producers are entrenched in proven, legacy workflows, hesitant to pivot toward the creator economy, where monetization models are still evolving. Meanwhile, self-publishing creators enjoy direct control over their content, faster production cycles, immediate audience access, along with lower budgets and typically smaller returns. However, some established production companies are eager to explore new models, and certain creator economy entrepreneurs are equally intrigued by the potential of larger budgets and broader range of distribution platforms. A knowledge exchange between these two worlds could reveal untapped opportunities for collaboration and growth.
The Canadian media sector is filled with creative, tenacious, and resilient professionals. From established veterans to innovative creative entrepreneurs, we have the talent and vision to succeed. But innovation can’t happen in silos—we need to come together. It will take action, experimentation, and courage at every level. Please, share your ideas!
Thanks to everyone working tirelessly to steer us through these turbulent times.
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