FINANCING

CANADA AS A MINORITY CO-PRODUCTION PARTNER
One of the key value added activities of Cameron Thomson Entertainment is to facilitate Minority Treaty co-productions and co-ventures.

FINANCING - TOP UP
In addition to providing creative, production and financial expertise on projects originating outside Canada, we also assist our international production partners in effectively utilizing Canada's co-production treaties as a means to trigger a higher end "content" Canadian broadcast license to top off production financing on minority co-productions. Were these international TV projects sold into Canada without Canadian content status, they would attract only the lower end "acquisition" broadcast license fees.

Many of the larger Canadian production studios will often require majority control of treaty co-productions as a means to ensure that their studio capacity is filled, that high studio overheads are funded from co-production budgets and that significant levels of annual revenue growth are achieved for their shareholders. At Cameron Thomson Entertaiment, our production philosophy is different. We have designed our production partnerships and process so that we are in a position to offer our international partners the attractive alternative of a minority co-production on those foreign projects which do not need or want to take on a majority Canadian partner to complete the financing.

LEVERAGE
Once a Canadian license fee is in place, additional leveraging is created by this license fee's triggering of tax credit financing on eligible Canadian labour expenditures. By managing the work split undertaken in Canada and the location and nature of labour expenditures, tax credit funding can offset 20% to 30% of the total "Canadian" portion of production expenditures.

Overall a minority co-production can often be used to secure 20% to 30% of the Total TV production budget through North American broadcast licenses and tax credits. On bigger budget productions, the Canadian producer may require additional broadcast territories for the co-production structure to work. Various creative, financial and technical criteria must also be met under co-production rules. The domestic broadcast exposure for the foreign property may also support and enhance revenue streams of related new media products in North America.

POINT OF ENTRY
Minority co-production offers our international clients a unique and exciting point of entry. It is the optimum solution for following the "path of least resistance" in gaining access to this effective financing opportunity and in accessing creative and production expertise in Canada on current and future products. Once established and recognized in Canada as a "bankable" co-producing partner, additional opportunities to co-produce on original Canadian series will often present themselves.