Clarkson touted as shoo-in to head Telefilm

Wayne Clarkson, executive director of the Canadian Film Centre, is poised to take over as CEO of Telefilm Canada, a position that has been empty since Richard Stursberg quit four months ago to join the CBC.

Clarkson would not confirm or deny his imminent job change, which is widely expected to be announced by Liza Frulla, Minister of Canadian Heritage, in Parliament this afternoon. But at a press conference in Toronto yesterday, at which the CFC announced a $3-million gift from telecommunications giant Telus Corp., Clarkson alluded to the rumours, saying, "My name is Wayne Clarkson and I'm still the executive director of the Canadian Film Centre."

He then spent the next half-hour detailing Telus's donation -- the largest single gift the Toronto-based centre has ever received -- and agilely skirted questions from the media about the Telefilm posting, which will mean a move to Montreal.

Stursberg, who is now executive vice-president of English television at CBC, said yesterday that Clarkson will be a great successor. "He is deeply knowledgeable about the film business, and he's also a very practical guy.

"At Telefilm, things get very financial, very quickly, and those skills combined should serve him well," said Stursberg, who believes Clarkson's first major challenge will be to secure guaranteed, long-term government funding for television.

Director Atom Egoyan echoed that sentiment, saying Clarkson has devoted his 30-year career to Canadian culture, rhyming off Clarkson's various roles as director of Ottawa's National Film Theatre; director of the then-called Festival of Festivals (now the Toronto International Film Festival); CEO in the mid-1980s of the newly minted Ontario Media Development Corp.; and since 1991, head of the Canadian Film Centre, which trains Canadian talent in film and TV-making.

"I'm thrilled with this choice," said Egoyan, who just wrapped shooting a feature film, Where the Truth Lies, with Colin Firth and Kevin Bacon. "Wayne was very instrumental in my career. When he took over the OMDC, he came in with a very clear vision, and he was able to kick-start the whole Ontario new wave [in filmmaking]. He ushered in a tremendous era of excitement and possibility.

"I think what the film industry needs now is that same spirit. Wayne is a huge cinephile. You see him at every cultural event in this city. He has committed his entire life to the development of film culture in this country. This will be a crowning achievement of his career."

Asked by the media at the Telus press conference if he is expecting a call from Frulla soon, Clarkson quipped. "I'm hoping the minister will call and congratulate us on the partnership with Telus. And I'm hoping the PMO's office will call and congratulate us on the partnership with Telus. I have not yet spoken with either one of them."

The majority of the Telus gift will be used to invest in Canadian film, TV and new media projects and talent. However, it will also help establish a Telus Studio, part of the CFC's Habitat New Media Lab, and set up five scholarships (of $5,000 each). There are also ongoing discussions to set up a multimillion-dollar broadcast fund, that the CFC would help Telus administer. That fund would mean the establishment of a CFC office in Vancouver.

Under Clarkson, Egoyan said he'd like to see Telefilm go back to its original mandate, which means "not taking for granted the cultural responsibility of what film does. When I was starting out, it helped develop a whole generation of filmmakers who were able to export a sense of the Canadian identity to the rest of the world. In the past few years, we've been obsessed with the notion of box office, often to the detriment of what we so carefully built."

Joe Natale, president of business solutions at Telus, said yesterday that the private sector needs to boost funding for the arts in Canada. "There are lots of arts organizations in Canada that are struggling to make their financial commitments on a regular annual basis. Traditionally, they've gone to the government for help. But we, as corporations, have the ability to help overcome that problem. And we should do more."