01 Mar Help Save BC Film!

Statistics suggest that BC loves its creative industries
and that they contribute strongly to the economy.

There’s been quite a bit of press lately on the state of BC’s film industry. As proud members of Vancouver’s post-production community, we care about this discussion a lot!

We love our industry for its creative jobs, interesting work, sustainability, diversity, and opportunity. At its best, it allows for a wonderful community of creative professionals making living wages. We think it is worth defending, along with all our creative industries in BC and the rest of Canada.

This quote from the Dreamcatcher report [PDF] by Rowland Lorimer of SFU articulates the issues well, so I thought we’d include it in full:

From an official perspective, as of 2012, British Columbia paid little attention to the creative economy. Very few statistical analyses have been undertaken at the provincial level, and support for creative undertakings has been funneled through the BC Arts Council augmented by Community Gaming Grants—these being the two main features of the government’s cultural policy.

From an economic or industrial perspective, the province has seen fit to invest in sectors that appear to be job- and wealth-creating winners rather than in the sector as a whole. Its emphasis on “screens” (inclusive of film and video, video games, and computer-based media) is a high-risk strategy that does not consider the ecology of creative production where cross-fertilization among creatives can result in a vibrant dynamic.

The relative lack of attention to and of facilitative policy for the economics of the creative sector is somewhat surprising given its estimated employment of 85,000 people (not including volunteers, making it the second largest of BC’s six major industrial sectors), its generation of $4 billion in economic activity (the fifth-largest sector in the BC economy), its current growth trajectory (increasing faster than the general economy), and its potential to strengthen BC’s tourism sector. Both BC and the federal government provide low levels of support in comparison to other provinces in Canada.

For more information on this initiative and for links to download the report, visit BCreative. The Canadian Media Production Association is also a great hub of information, including their own report in partnership with other creative industries on the importance of investing in the creative economy. And finally the Motion Picture Production Industry Association is another great resource for those in the production business.

Together we can save BC Film!

March Recipe: Soda Bread

Gluten-free Irish soda bread

Photo by Tony Hall

Quinoa 365 is an amazing cookbook, and a must-have for all cooks. Many of the recipes are also gluten free, for those who need to know.  As we recently celebrated St. Patrick’s Day, this month I’m offering soda bread. It’s great with soup or with butter and jam. And because it’s a quick bread, it’s incredibly versatile and easy. Try adding some herbs, cheese, jalapenos, whatever you can think of!

Adapted from Quinoa 365

Ingredients

1 c milk, soured with 1 T lemon juice (put the lemon juice in the milk and let stand 5 mins)

2 c assorted flours (Quinoa 365 recommends a cup of quinoa flour and another cup of your favourite. We’ve had good results with brown rice flour, millet and buckwheat.)

1 t baking soda

3 T butter

½ t salt

Preheat oven to 375, and coat a baking pan with oil or line with parchment.

Mix dry ingredients.

Cut butter into the dry ingredients using a pastry blender or two knives, until the butter is in small bits (pea-sized or less).

Make a well in the dry ingredients and gradually add the milk, blending gently.

When blended, turn the batter onto the baking sheet and shape into a ball with your hands, lightly dusted with flour.

Pat the ball down into a flattened cake about 2 inches thick, and brush the top with a small amount of milk, ½ to 1 tsp.

Bake 30-35 mins until brown.