Introduction

The JobStart/Future Skills Sector Partnerships Program of Saskatchewan Learning enabled a sector study of the film, video and multimedia industry in Saskatchewan. This industry profile is based on that study, published in March, 1999.

The Saskatchewan Motion Picture Association (SMPIA) established a partnership of industry members and key stakeholders through funding and support from the Sector Partnerships Program. These partners worked together to carry out a study that identified current and future hiring needs and training requirements.

Strategic planning enables industry and training providers to work together to provide training opportunities that match the skills the industry requires.

For more information about the Sector Partnership Report and this industry visit the Executive Summary. You'll need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view this PDF file.

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Saskatchewan Overview

• Saskatchewan’s film, video and multimedia industry is the fastest-growing cultural industry in the province.
  
• In 1998, film and video production activity reached $54 million, a 1000% increase from $5 million in 1992.
  
• Motion picture production provided the equivalent of 700 full-time creative, technical and administrative positions in Saskatchewan in 1998.
  
• There are also many people in the industry who provide their services on a freelance basis.
  
• Saskatchewan has over 50 production and production service companies; several multimedia producers and audio post-production facilities; and two artist-run equipment access centres.
  
• Saskatchewan producers raise significant amounts of capital, largely from outside the province. Those funds are spent on labour, materials and services. Typically, 45% to 60% of production budgets go to wages and benefits.
  

Saskatchewan Trends

• The 1999 SMPIA survey indicated that 246 new jobs would be created in film, television and new media in the province within the following year. Of those, 207 were expected to be in film and television and 39 in new media.
  
• Saskatchewan has produced many highly-skilled production personnel in creative, technical and administrative areas. Many have had entry-level and workplace-based training supported by the province's Job Start/Future Skills program.
  
• There is a need for more advanced professional development opportunities for workers in the industry.
  
• In the Canadian industry as a whole, women are significantly underrepresented in leadership roles. A Statistical Profile of Women in the Canadian Film and Television Industry (Peat Marwick Stevenson & Kellogg,1990) reported that:
  
  • Women dominated in the roles of production secretary/bookkeeper, script supervisor/continuity, art department trainee, wardrobe, makeup artist and hairstylist/hairdresser.
    
  • In 1988 in the private sector, only 14% of influential creative positions such as producer, director, screenwriter, art director, director of photography and picture editor were held by women
    
  • Women in public sector television/radio companies make up 14% of upper managers. In the private sector, they represent only 1% of upper managers.
  
  
• Aboriginal people are also not well represented in some skill areas of the Saskatchewan film industry.
  
• SMPIA created Women in Leadership and Management Roles and Aboriginal Skills Training and Employment projects in 1999-2000. The purpose was to help ensure that the diversity of Saskatchewan people is reflected in the industry's labour force.
  

Related Jobs

The following list provides an idea of some of the jobs in the film, video and multimedia industry.

Where there is a relevant occupational description in Saskatchewan Job Futures, you can click on the job to go directly to that description. You’ll learn more about the occupation, including education and training requirements, work duties, wage information and employment trends.

National Occupational Classification (NOC) numbers follow the job title. You can use the NOC numbers to look up the occupations in the NOC.

Producer (513) Director (513) Screenwriter (5121) Production manager (513) Director, photography (513) Set designer (524) Art director (513) Props person (522) Script supervisor/continuity (522) Set builder (522) Video After Effects ® designer (5241)

Actor/actress (513) Wardrobe supervisor (522) Makeup artist (522) Camera operator (5222) Grip (522) Sound engineer (5225) Lighting technician (522) 3-D animator (5241) Multimedia programmer (2174)

Other related jobs include: office production assistant, production secretary, drivers and many specific technical jobs.

The 1999 SMPIA survey showed that wardrobe and art departments were the areas where the greatest need for trained people was expected. There was varying response on the need for training for workers in construction, general grips, producers, production managers, props, set decorators and wardrobe assistants.

The positions for which there was no immediate need for additional workers included office production assistant, production secretary, basic drivers, trainee assistant director and camera trainee.

In new media, the need for trained multimedia programmers was nearly twice that of any other job category. The next highest demands were for video After Effects ® creators and 3-D animators. Multimedia generalists such as basic HTML authors and desktop publishers were not needed

Skills and Training

New programs have been created at the community college level and at Saskatchewan Institute of Applied Science and Technology (SIAST). In addition, the provincial government’s JobStart/Future Skills programs are providing people with on-the-job training with resulting job opportunities for entry-level positions.

Want to find out what kind of film, video and multimedia education and training programs are offered in Saskatchewan? Check into What to Study? to find out what’s available and where.

A SMPIA committee studying the training needs of women in the film industry identified the following required skills and knowledge:

Project management Interpersonal skills Conflict resolution/teamwork Time/stress management Accounting and budgeting Understanding the overall process

Leadership styles Communication skills Entrepreneurial skills Writing/presentation skills Negotiation Working knowledge of various departments

The Future

The 1999 SMPIA report emphasized the importance of developing a skilled workforce for continued growth of the industry. The stated goal was to help support the increase of full-time equivalent jobs from 700 to more than 2,000 over the following four years.

This growth would be accomplished through hiring, training and professional development activities. A listing of qualified Saskatchewan production personnel and their skill areas would help employers find skilled people. That listing can be found on SMPIA’s Career Development Web site.

Related Information

Visit the following Web sites for more information on the film, video and multimedia industry:

Saskatchewan Motion Picture Association (SMPIA)
SaskFilm
SMPIA Career Development Program
Saskatchewan Filmpool Cooperative
Saskatchewan Interactive Media Association Inc.
Canadian Film and Television Production Association
Canadian Film Centre

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