The Pulse
Sept. 29, 2023

The Edmonton Screen Industries Office is now spreading the word on three new streams of funding as part of its $4-million Strategic Initiatives Fund for capacity-building.

"It's the spark that's starting the engine; it's not the fuel that's going to run the engine," ESIO CEO Tom Viinikka told Taproot the day after unveiling the new fund at CKUA on Sept. 27. "We're trying to buy fishing rods, not fish, and those fishing rods should be able to be used for decades after this."

The three new streams account for $1 million of the $4 million in the fund's portfolio. They are called the Elevation Program, for "a significant step forward in the career of the producer" of a film or TV project; the Early Stage Program, for short films and game concepts by fresh talent; and the Underrepresented Initiatives Program, for non-profits working to improve diversity and equity across screen industries.

The fund began as the Edmonton Screen Media Fund in 2018 and was previously focused on projects expected to result in a return on investment. Council approved the change in name and focus earlier this year. "Our goal is not to make money," Viinikka told Taproot ahead of the vote in February. "It's to make an industry that then makes money."

The ESIO, an arm's-length body established by the City of Edmonton in 2017, has a goal to grow the value of the Edmonton region's screen industries to $300 million in the long term and to $100 million in the medium term. Viinikka estimated their current value at $30 million to $40 million, depending on levels of activity in production.

"Money attracts money," Viinikka said. "That's what the SIF needs to be, it needs to be helping something happen that otherwise wouldn't happen."

That logic applies particularly to the Elevation stream. Applicants can receive up to 10% of a project's total budget, to a maximum of $100,000. The hope is that this spurs investment by additional parties.

• Boyle Street Community Services expects its move from its downtown location at 10116 105 Avenue to four separate locations will be complete by Oct. 3. The last day services are available at the downtown location is Sept. 29. Boyle Street clients told media that the change is causing them confusion and anxiety. Once the move is complete, the Bissell East building will provide general services, the Mercer building will provide community and cultural services, and CO*LAB will provide a 25-person community space. Trailers outside Boyle Street's upcoming King Thunderbird Centre will provide banking and employment services.
• The National Investigation Methodologies symposium, hosted by the Acimowin Opaspiw Society, happened this week at River Cree Resort & Casino in Enoch. The symposium brought together residential school investigators and researchers to share experiences and best practices.
• There are renewed calls to remove two statues in Edmonton with ties to the Nazis following Parliament's recognition of Yaroslav Hunka, a Ukrainian solider who fought for the Nazis against the Soviet Union during the Second World War. The University of Alberta returned a $30,000 donation it received from Hunka's family in 2019, which went to the Canadian Institute of Ukrainian Studies to create an endowment fund in Hunka's name, and said it is reviewing its naming policies.
• Mayor Amarjeet Sohi chose ᐄᓃᐤ (ÎNÎW), or River Lot 11, to feature in the city's "pick-a-park" series. The name ᐄᓃᐤ ("I am of the Earth") helps tell the story of historic River Lot 11, where Métis homesteaders Joseph McDonald and Margaret Fraser began farming in 1878 after making an agreement with the Papaschase Cree to use the land. Many Métis people who farmed in the Edmonton area at the time had their land rights extinguished through the Métis scrip system. The city eventually acquired the lot and surrounding parkland, which became part of Queen Elizabeth Park. ᐄᓃᐤ opened in 2018 and contains six permanent works by Indigenous artists that engage with themes of place and land.
• Edmonton Public Schools has purchased the building that houses Centre High Campus, located in the MacEwan University Alberta College Campus. The division began leasing the space in 2019. Previously, Centre High Campus ran out of the Boardwalk building on 102 Avenue. More than 2,200 students were enrolled to attend Centre High in the 2023-2024 school year.
• Edmonton Elks fans are more optimistic now that quarterback Tre Ford has led the team to four wins in their last seven games. Earlier this season, the team broke a North American major league sports record by losing 22 consecutive home games. The Elks will be eliminated from the running for the playoffs if Saskatchewan and Hamilton win upcoming games. The team's next game is in Toronto on Oct. 6.
• An online Leger poll commissioned by the Calgary Climate Hub found 65% of Albertans oppose the province's pause on renewable energy approvals. The number of people opposed to the pause was slightly higher in Edmonton and Calgary, although 57% of people outside the two major cities still opposed the policy. Earlier this month, two separate polls found a slight majority of Albertans support a national cap on oil and gas emissions.
• Alberta Premier Danielle Smith told reporters her government is prepared to use the Alberta Sovereignty within a United Canada Act to push back against federal emission reduction initiatives. The president of the Alberta Electric System Operator, which is responsible for the province's power grid, said the federal government's proposed clean electricity regulations pose a disproportionate risk to Alberta and could lead to a "worst-case scenario" of power outages across large parts of the province. The two governments recently formed an Alberta-Ottawa working group to "reconcile areas of shared jurisdiction" over emissions reduction and energy development.

Several organizations are hosting events in recognition of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day this weekend in the metro Edmonton region. Other activities include a rodeo, the reopening of a historic planetarium, new exhibitions at the art gallery, closing night at the EIFF, and a run to fund breast-cancer research.

• Sept. 29-30: Edmonton Pro Rodeo at the Edmonton Expo Centre
• Sept. 29-Oct 1: Queen Elizabeth Planetarium Reopening
• Sept. 29, 7pm: Otehiwin // Open House: Storytellers and Songwriters at the Stanley A. Milner Library
• Sept. 29, 7:30pm: Exhibition Opening 2023: Fall Exhibitions at the Art Gallery of Alberta
• Sept. 30, 12pm: Standing Together: Orange Shirt Day Community Walk, starting at Mary Burlie Park
• Sept. 30, 12pm: Nékem: Honouring National Day For Truth and Reconciliation at CO*LAB
• Sept. 30, 1pm: 3rd Annual Orange Shirt Day Run/Walk, starting at Kinsmen Park
• Sept. 30, 2pm: Orange Shirt Day Traditional Powwow with the Masters Alberta Indigenous Games at Rollie Miles Athletic Park
• Sept. 30, 6:30pm: Edmonton International Film Festival: Hey Viktor! at the Muttart Theatre in the Stanley A. Milner Library
• Oct. 1, 8:30am: CIBC Run for the Cure at the Edmonton Expo Centre

Find even more things to do in the Arts Roundup and the Food Roundup.

Photo: Light Bison and Water Bison by Cannupa Hanska Luger are part of Second Skin, an exhibit exploring body coverings that opens at the Art Gallery of Alberta this weekend. (Brandon Soder)