A Centretown school responsible for having trained more than 7,000 filmmakers over the past 29 years announced yesterday it will be closing in one month, due to the cancellation of government funding.
The Canadian Screen Training Centre was founded as a non-profit organization that received about 40 per cent of its funding from the federal government. The school offered workshops in media-related subjects like acting, filmmaking, screenwriting and documentary production. Many were hosted by industry professionals.
In August 2008, the government cut its financial support to the CSTC and three other national films schools. The CSTC’s federal funding subsequently ran out in March 2009, and its director at the time had predicted it would close in 2010.
The schools’ current director, Tom Shoebridge, said since the government cut this funding, they were unable to find another financial backer.
“It proved to be the death knell for a small organization like the CSTC,” said Shoebridge, who founded the school in 1981. “There is still lots of interest in and need for screen training, but without federal or Ontario provincial government support, it was impossible for the CSTC to carry on.”
The CSTC’s students and teachers have included Academy Award winner Denise Robert, who produced “The Barbarian Invasions,” and the late Anthony Minghella, who directed “The English Patient” and “Cold Mountain.”
“I compare it to saying goodbye to a dying friend,” Shoebridge said.