March 31, 2014 – The Independent Production Fund evaluators in Toronto and Montreal reviewed the 188 applications for web series funding which were submitted this year from across Canada. Nearly 40 industry professionals, consultants and advanced media students selected a short-list of twenty-three (23) projects, including 14 proposed English-language and 9 French-language web series. In addition, approximately a dozen web series previously funded by the IPF will be eligible to apply for second season financing. The selected projects are now invited to submit complete Production Applications by May 5, 2014. The Board of Directors of the IPF will make final funding decisions in June.

List of short-listed projects:

À temps pour Noël Comedy QC Productions Pixcom Nadine Dufour, Marie-Ève Belleau Bérubé
Avec pas de parents Teen QC Banana productions Vincent Lafortune, Benoit Lach
Bait Crime/Thriller/Horror ON Are They Human / Jared Pelletier Productions Jared Pelletier, Michael Chwastiak, Gabriel Napora
Disorderly Comedy ON DHX Media Ltd. Mazin Elsadig, Jonathan Malen, Al Mukadam
Doppel Gander Comedy BC CocoMilk Productions Matt Clarke, David Milchard
Entendu dans les bars Comedy QC Be Happy productions Louis-David Jutras, Jean-Sébastien Di Fruscia
Haphead Sci-Fi ON No Media Kings Jim Munroe, Sean Lerner, Anthony Cortese
Haute mer Thriller QC Télévision Parallèle (Productions J) Benoît Clermont, Marianik Giffard, Julie Snyder
Guerriers Fantasy QC Productions Haka Catherine Moreau, Mathieu McCollough Bouchard
Inconvenience Comedy ON Chili Films Joe Pingue, Samir Rehem, Andrew Ferguson, Matt King
Inhuman Condition Urban Fantasy ON Smokebomb Entertainment Jay Bennett, Bob Lackie
Les Presqu’histoires Romantic Comedy QC Pouding Film France-Aimy Tremblay
L’étrange province Fantasy Comedy QC Version 10, Solofilms Carolinie Gaudette, Louis-Philippe Rochon, Véronique Parenteau
March Family Letters Comedy ON Cherrydale Productions Wil Noack, Lauren Evans, Sarah Shelson
Mr. Fantasy / The Portal Fantasy Comedy ON First Love Films Inc. Andrew Smith, Laura Perlmutter, Jonathan Williams
Paranormal Solutions Inc. Sci-Fi Comedy BC Sociable Films, Rare Little Bird & BiG RiG Productions Nicholas Carella, Michelle Ouellet, Christina Sicoli, Kevin Rigney
The Plateaus Comedy ON Screen Asylum Inc. Matt Raudsepp, Annie Murphy, Chris Agoston
Sing and Sail Away Pre-School ON Hunky Dorey Entertainment Inc. Robert Mills, Fred Stinson
Sports Bar Heroes Comedy ON 83 Pictures Matt Kloske, Pat Smith
Sudden Master Action Comedy ON TUD Productions Samantha Wan, Davin Lengyel, Richard Young
TEZO Pre-Teen QC Zone 3 Jacques Payette
Thomas est nerveux Comedy QC Jimmy Lee Carolyne Goyette
Werewoman Supernatural Dramedy NS Kingsberg Studios Kimberly-Sue Murray, Kevin Kincaid, Surita Parmar

The Independent Production Fund thanks all of the evaluators for undertaking this selection challenge and sharing their insights and viewing experiences.

PROFESSIONALS

Alex Kolodkin(Founder/CEO, Set Scouter)

André Gulluni(Concepteur-scénariste)

Annelise Larson(Search and Social Media Strategist)

Astrid Rosemarin(Business & Community Development)

Barbara Bailie(Director, Digital – Family Channel)

Carly Beath(Communications Manager)

Emily Yaegar(Production Coordinator)

Erika Kumar(Business Analyst – BC Film + Media)

Erin Dean(Program Officer – Creative Saskatchewan)

Gina Desjardins(chroniqueuse et consultante nouveaux medias)

Ipsa Desai(Access Principal – Google)

Jacques Augustin(Consultant en développement des affaires)

Jean-François Grenier (concepteur multiplateforme)

Jessica Adams(Production Manager)

Julia Bennett(Media and Communications Specialist)

Kelly Lynne Ashton(Consultant, Screen-based media)

Patricia Lee(Digital strategist)

Ramona Pringle(Multiplatform Media Producer)

Steve Szigeti(Digital media consultant, Professor)

 

DIGITAL MEDIA STUDENTS

Institut national de l’image et du son (INIS)

Eric Ballandras

Guillaume Boyer-Robert

Laurent Simon Lapierre

 

Ryerson University and Humber College

Allison Vorstenbosch

Brittany Starkman

Claire Francis

Eli Weinstein

Elizabeth Mayer

Janine Wyslobicky

Jon Wayne Brown

Julia Kozlowski

Katie Bell

Mark Moliterni

Michael Joyce

Samantha Driscoll

Scott Scaravelli

The IPF invests approximately $1.5M in the production of web series each year. These series represent all demographics and genres, including action, animation, thriller, comedy and science fiction. They use social media to share and promote to their audiences and also offer a variety of interactive activities for viewers. The web series previously funded can be accessed at www.ipf.ca/webseries.

The IPF has invested over $57 M in the production of television and web drama series in the past 23 years. It is incorporated as a charitable foundation with an endowment valued at $34 M. It uses the interest generated by endowment and return on its project investments for its annual operations and project funding. The Board of Directors is composed of representatives from the industry and undertakes all funding decisions.