Citing the withdrawal of core funding for its short film distribution mission, Quebec distribution company h264 announced that it would cease “its short film distribution activities as of September 30” in a post on its Facebook page.
“These are decisions that are never easy,” says Jean-Christophe J. Lamontagne, president of h264, in an interview with The duty“This is not a business decision related to profitability. On the contrary, it is really a decision that we were forced to take reluctantly,” he says.
Feature film distribution, international sales and aggregation continue, however. “It’s the end of a chapter, but we’re still happy to continue h264’s activities,” says its director. The end of short films also forces Justine Baillargeon, the general director, to leave her position. She is the only employee to lose her job due to the change.
Since its founding in 2015, h264 has distributed films such as Hôtel silence and the Oscar-nominated short film Invincible.
The Facebook post explains that h264 “experienced a significant refusal in July from the one and only recurring Mission Support program, which is vital for so many cultural organizations in Quebec. As a result of this refusal, our organization finds itself deprived of the predictability and financial stability needed for years to come, which forces us to make this difficult decision.” The Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (CALQ) funded the group’s short film offering.
According to Jean-Christophe J. Lamontagne, provincial funding is not the only culprit. “It’s certainly a major factor, but short film funding is a very complex thing,” he notes. “It’s really a multitude of factors.” One of them? The fact that short films are “like funny creatures” and can’t fit into the cultural funding system. It’s precisely Lamontagne’s wish that the various institutions—both provincial and federal—adapt funding programs to the reality of short films.
But, for him, the time is not to denounce the system, but rather to celebrate the short format. “We hope that broadcasters and institutions will really continue to support short films more, because we think that supporting the next generation is what’s best for the industry,” he says. “We’re really in long-live-short-film mode, and we send nothing but love to our colleagues.”
On whether h264 could return to short film distribution if funding returns, Jean-Christophe J. Lamontagne states that he “can’t predict the future.” “I don’t know what I’m doing tomorrow, but I’m proud of the last ten years.”