The Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada (or the AV Trust). originally the Alliance for the Preservation of Canada's Audio-Visual Heritage,Farewell to the AV Trust
" ''PreserVision'' 16(Winter 2010). Preservation Trust of Canada. 2010. was a charitable

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

dedicated to promoting the preservation of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

audiovisual Audiovisual (AV) is electronic media possessing both a sound and a visual component, such as slide-tape presentations, films, television programs, corporate conferencing, church services, and live theater productions. Audiovisual service provide ...

heritage, and to facilitating access to regional and national collections through partnerships with members of Canada's audiovisual community. In 2008, the

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

government eliminated CA$300,000 in funding for the Trust, leading to its merger with the

Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television is a Canadian non-profit organization created in 1979 to recognize the achievements of the over 4,000 Canadian cinema of Canada, film industry and television in Canada, television industry professionals ...

in 2009–10.

History

In 1994, a task force for the "Preservation and Enhanced Use of Canada’s Audiovisual Heritage," made up of archival expert across the country—including those from the then-

National Archives of Canada Library and Archives Canada (LAC; ) is the federal institution tasked with acquiring, preserving, and providing accessibility to the documentary heritage of Canada. The national archive and library is the 16th largest library in the world. Th ...

—published a report in which they recommended, among other things, the founding of a "Consortium of stakeholders, as a

charitable Charity is the voluntary provision of assistance to those in need. It serves as a humanitarian act, and is unmotivated by self-interest. Various philosophies about charity exist, with frequent associations with religion. Etymology The word ...

and

non-profit corporation A nonprofit corporation is any legal entity which has been incorporated under the law of its jurisdiction for purposes other than making profits for its owners or shareholders. Depending on the laws of the jurisdiction, a nonprofit corporation ma ...

, should be established to co-ordinate the implementation of the national strategy, and to undertake projects and programs with respect to the preservation and enhanced use of the

audio-visual Audiovisual (AV) is electronic media possessing both a sound and a visual component, such as slide-tape presentations, films, television programs, corporate conferencing, church services, and live theater productions. Audiovisual service pro ...

heritage." Following the report, the Alliance for the Preservation of Canada's Audio-Visual Heritage was created in 1996 to create action plans, advocate, manage projects, administer funding, and develop standards for archivists and audiovisual producers. In 2000, the Alliance, now renamed to the Audio-Visual Preservation Trust of Canada, introduced three of its key programs: MasterWorks, the Astral Restoration Program, and the Feature Film Education and Access Program (FFEAP). Two years after the first FFEAP projects were developed, the Trust introduced the Music Memories program through a new Sound Recording Policy initiative of the federal

Department of Canadian Heritage The Department of Canadian Heritage, or simply Canadian Heritage (), is the department of the Government of Canada that has roles and responsibilities related to initiatives that promote and support "Canadian identity and values, cultural develo ...

. In 2001, Universal Studios Canada and

Universal Music Canada Universal Music Group (UMG) owns, or has a joint share in, many of the record labels listed here. According to the UMG official website, the main labels are Abbey Road Studios, Capitol Music Group, Decca Records, Def Jam Recordings, Deutsche Gra ...

made 5-year funding commitments to programs to support heritage feature films and the preservation of heritage sound recordings, including screenings of MasterWorks films and supporting archival institutions in their projects to restore and make available endangered sound recordings. In 2008, Canadian Heritage ceased the AV Trust's two Education and Access Programs, the FFEAP, and Music Memories, removing CA$300,000 in funding for the Trust. In 2009–10, the AV Trust agreed to a merger with the

Programs

In the past, the Astral Restoration Program, introduced in 2000, has worked with the

Cinémathèque québécoise The Cinémathèque québécoise () is a film conservatory in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Its purpose is to preserve, document, film, and television footage and related documents and artifacts for future use by the public. The Cinémathèque's coll ...

and the Toronto International Film Festival Group to restore and re-release films. In 2008, the Program announced plans to create High-Definition digital versions of 12 classic films, including MasterWorks honorees ''

Les Bons Débarras ''Good Riddance'' () is a 1980 French-language Canadian drama film. Directed by Francis Mankiewicz and written by Réjean Ducharme, the film concerns Manon ( Charlotte Laurier), an unstable young girl who lives with her mother Michelle (Marie Tifo) ...

'' (1980) and ''

Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould ''Thirty Two Short Films About Glenn Gould'' is a 1993 Canadian biographical anthology film about the pianist Glenn Gould, played by Colm Feore. It was directed by François Girard, with a screenplay by Girard and Don McKellar. The film is present ...

'' (1993).

Feature Film Education and Access Program

The Feature Film Education and Access Program (FFEAP) was central to the preservation and restoration work of the AV Trust. Created and funded by the Feature Film Policy of the

in 2000, FFEAP provided funding to non-profit organizations across the country to support the protection of Canada's cinematical heritage, as well as to educate students, academics, and the general public about such films. The program enabled the re-release of several movies, both on film and DVD, often with accompanying educational content for use in schools—such as the works of Larry Kent by the

Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema The Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema, a division of the Faculty of Fine Arts at Concordia University, is a film school located in Montreal, Quebec. Informally known as MHSoC, the school accepts around 250 students a year for programs in animation ...

at Concordia University and the re-release of ''

Life Classes ''Life Classes'' is a 1987 Canadian drama film directed by William D. MacGillivray. Plot Mary Cameron (Cormier) lives on the Canadian island of Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. There, she enjoys a warm relationship with an old woman she calls Nanny ( ...

'' (1987) by the

Nova Scotia School of Art and Design NSCAD University, also known as the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design (NSCAD), is a public art university in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The university is a co-educational institution that offers bachelor's and master's degrees. The unive ...

. FFEAP also supported local

film societies A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, since ...

to put together screenings of locally produced films; as well funding various film festival events, such as screenings of '' Entre la mer et l’eau douce'' (1967) and ''

The Grey Fox ''The Grey Fox'' is a 1982 Canadian biographical Western film directed by Phillip Borsos and written by John Hunter. It is based on the true story of Bill Miner, an American stagecoach robber who staged his first Canadian train robbery ...

'' (1982) at the

Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...

, and the multimedia celebration of ''

In the Land of the Head Hunters ''In the Land of the Head Hunters'' (also called ''In the Land of the War Canoes'') is a 1914 silent film fictionalizing the world of the Kwakwaka'wakw peoples of the Queen Charlotte Strait region of the Central Coast of British Columbia, ...

'' (1914) at

U'mista Cultural Centre Alert Bay is a village on Cormorant Island, near the town of Port McNeill on northeast Vancouver Island, in the Regional District of Mount Waddington, British Columbia, Canada. Demographics In the 2021 Canadian census conducted by Statistic ...

Masterworks

Education and access programs included the MasterWorks program, founded in 2000. The MasterWorks program provided funding to support preservation of selected works and enhanced access to works no longer in active distribution. The program recognized 12 culturally-significant audiovisual works each year, drawn from the archives of the Canadian

film A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are generally, sinc ...

radio Radio is the technology of communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 3 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmitter connec ...

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

, and

music Music is the arrangement of sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm, or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Music is generally agreed to be a cultural universal that is present in all hum ...

industries, and accordingly presented in four categories: Film, Television, Radio, and Sound Recording MasterWorks. These works were then judged by a panel of experts in the archive and media communities as being "worthy of preserving for all time." Works were chosen because of their critical and popular success, or because they were seminal in their genre. The very last MasterWorks ceremony was held on 27 April 2009 at

Library and Archives Canada Library and Archives Canada (LAC; ) is the federal institution tasked with acquiring, preserving, and providing accessibility to the documentary heritage of Canada. The national archive and library is the 16th largest library in the world. T ...

in Ottawa, and was organized by the

Canadian Film Institute The Canadian Film Institute (CFI) () involves Canada in the film production, study, appreciation process of film/moving images for cultural and educational purposes. The Canadian Film Institute organizes ongoing public film programming and artist ...

Music Memories

In 2002, the Trust introduced the Music Memories program through a Sound Recording Policy initiative of the

. The Program supported non-profit organizations in

digitizing Digitization is the process of converting information into a digital (i.e. computer-readable) format.Collins Dictionary. (n.d.). Definition of 'digitize'. Retrieved December 15, 2021, from https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english ...

recordings from outmoded media, creating educational content, and re-issuing

out-of-print An out-of-print (OOP) or out-of-commerce item or work is something that is no longer being published. The term applies to all types of printed matter, visual media, sound recordings, and video recordings. An out-of-print book is a book that is ...

music. In particular, the program: assisted universities, such as

Université Laval (; English: ''Laval University)'' is a public research university in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The university traces its roots to the Séminaire de Québec, founded by François de Montmorency-Laval in 1663, making it the oldest institutio ...

and

Memorial University Memorial University of Newfoundland, or MUN (), is a Public university, public research university in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, based in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, St. John's, with satellite campuses in Corner Brook ...

, and museums in digitizing

ethnological Ethnology (from the , meaning 'nation') is an academic field and discipline that compares and analyzes the characteristics of different peoples and the relationships between them (compare cultural anthropology, cultural, social anthropology, so ...

recordings of interviews, music, and stories to ease access for researchers; funded the acquisition of new equipment for digitization/accessibility programs for the Canada Music Fund and for the transfer of collections to new formats for public distribution; provided, through organisations like

Carleton University Carleton University is an English-language public university, public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1942 as Carleton College, the institution originally operated as a private, non-denominational evening college to se ...

(Gala Records) and ProgresSon, for the re-release of previously hard-to-find or completely-unavailable music, such as older recordings and the music of rock bands

Maneige Maneige was a Québécois progressive rock and fusion jazz band from Quebec. The instrumental ensemble was one of the Quebec progressive rock scene's longest-running bands, performing regularly for several decades. History Maneige was founded in ...

and

Beau Dommage Beau Dommage was a rock band from Montreal, Quebec, who achieved success in Quebec and France in the 1970s. The group's style included rich vocal harmonies and elements borrowed from folk and country music. History Beau Dommage started in 197 ...

Partners

AV Trust partners included: *

Aboriginal Peoples Television Network Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN) is a group of Television in Canada, Canadian Specialty channel, specialty television channels based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The channels broadcast programming produced by or highlighting Indigenous p ...

Astral Media Astral Media Inc. was a Canadian media conglomerate. It was Canada's largest radio broadcaster, with 84 radio stations in eight provinces. Astral was also a major player in premium and specialty television in Canada, with 23 specialty channel ...

* Bureau of Canadian Archivists *

* Canadian Screen Training Centre *

, including: **

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is the Canadian Public broadcasting, public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a Crown corporation that serves as the national public broadcaster, with its E ...

National Film Board of Canada The National Film Board of Canada (NFB; ) is a Canadian public film and digital media producer and distributor. An agency of the Government of Canada, the NFB produces and distributes documentary films, animation, web documentaries, and altern ...

Telefilm Canada Telefilm Canada is a Canadian Crown corporation that supports Canada's audiovisual industry. Headquartered in Montreal, Telefilm Canada provides services to the Canadian audiovisual industry with four regional offices in Vancouver, British Colu ...

National Screen Institute The National Screen Institute – Canada (NSI; originally Canadian Screen Institute, CSI) is a non-profit organization headquartered in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The organization describes itself as "Serving content creators across Canada to ...

* Pacific Cinémathèque * Ontario Trillium Foundation *

Universal Studios Universal Studios may refer to: * Universal Studios, Inc., an American media and entertainment conglomerate ** Universal Pictures, an American film studio ** Universal Studios Lot, a film and television studio complex * Various theme parks operat ...

References

External links

Web site

{{Cinema of Canada Department of Canadian Heritage 2000 establishments in Canada 2008 disestablishments in Canada Organizations disestablished in 2008 Organizations established in 2000 Film preservation organizations Film organizations in Canada History of mass media in Canada Defunct organizations based in Canada Music organizations based in Canada Television organizations in Canada Radio organizations in Canada