Radio Starmaker Fund

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Radio Starmaker Fund Annual Report

2013 / 2014

Radio Starmaker Fund Annual Reports » 2013 / 2014 Annual Report

Message From The Chair

Sylvie Courtemanche

It is with great pleasure that I present the Radio Starmaker Fund’s outstanding results for the fiscal year 2013/2014.

This year marks an important milestone for the Radio Starmaker Fund as we were informed by the CRTC in September 2014 that we have been renewed for another policy period under the tangible benefits regime. Last year we worked closely with CRTC staff and KPMG consultants to conduct a full review of the operations of Starmaker and we received very positive feedback. In particular the observations by KPMG were that our delivery mechanisms, accountability, clarity of process and reporting on results was excellent. We are very grateful to the CRTC for this vote of confidence and I would like to thank the staff and Commissioners for their assistance and diligence in reviewing the operation and providing excellent feedback that we will be implementing as we move forward.

Another important milestone for this past year was the launch of our highly successful Festival Music House event on a national basis. We once again hosted a successful two day music festival in cooperation with TIFF in Toronto, but this year we also expanded to the Atlantic Film Festival in Halifax as well as the Vancouver International Film Festival in Vancouver. Both of these “coastal” events were well received and we are looking forward to building on that success this year to have an even greater impact in bringing together Canadian music with key creative stakeholders in both film and television.

The highlights from this year’s statistics continue to be impressive. We have an approval rate for applicants of close to 90% which has been consistent year over year. This means people who meet our criteria can be assured of support in some form. In addition this year we saw 50% of our funding devoted to international initiatives for both touring and marketing. This is very impressive and shows that our artists are making waves and finding opportunities in world markets. I am proud to say that Starmaker continues to be the single largest funding support for international markets. The vast majority of this money is placed directly in the hands of artists to pursue their touring objectives and build fan bases in foreign territories which is critical to their long term success. In a presentation this past year to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Heritage our Artist Board member Alan Doyle (musician, actor, author, and lead singer of Great Big Sea) pointed out to the Committee that it is this international marketplace that is the most costly and contains the highest risk for Canadian artists. We remain committed to reducing this risk for Canadian artists and helping with these very important costs.

I am very excited to see these excellent results. I want to thank our Board members for their dedication and commitment over the past year and most importantly I would like to thank our excellent Starmaker staff, Chip Sutherland, Rachel Oldfield and Jerry Leibowitz, who continue to provide the highest level of dedication and support for our very important constituency of Canadian labels and emerging artists.

Sylvie Courtemanche
Executive Chair
Radio Starmaker Fund