Quebec pumps $609.6M into audiovisual industry, eyes youth
Premier Christine Fréchette and Culture Minister Mathieu Lacombe unveiled a five-year strategy Monday to modernize production and reach younger audiences.
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Quebec is investing $609.6 million over five years to strengthen its audiovisual sector and ensure younger Quebecers stay connected to homegrown stories.
Premier Christine Fréchette and Culture Minister Mathieu Lacombe announced the Stratégie québécoise de l'audiovisuel 2026-2031 at a gathering of artists, producers, and industry figures in Montreal Monday. "There is urgency to act," Fréchette said, citing pressure from artificial intelligence and digital platforms reshaping how people consume content.
The strategy prioritizes a transformed Télé-Québec, which will refocus on audiences aged 9 to 17, building what the province calls a "continuum générationnel" — a generational throughline connecting childhood engagement with Quebec culture to deeper adolescent connection. Linear television will be only one part of the new Télé-Québec's digital-first offering.
The investment breaks into two phases: $240.6 million for 2026–2028 and $369.0 million for 2028–2031. Four axes guide the plan: solidifying Quebecers' connection to local works by increasing Télé-Québec's production budget and reorganizing SODEC and Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec funding; making Quebec content accessible across platforms and in schools; raising the international profile of francophone Quebec content; and stabilizing the audiovisual sector financially, including a $100 million allocation to SODEC to reduce production financing costs through a new interim tax-credit program.