News

Candidates for the 2024-2025 Board of Directors

April 17, 2024

The nomination meeting for the 2024-2027 Board of Directors elections was held at the GMMQ offices on April 16 at 3:30 pm.

This year, all positions are up for election, with the exception of the Secretary-Treasurer position, for which one nomination was received, that of Eric Lefebvre, who was therefore re-elected by acclamation.

GMMQ members are asked to vote for one president, one vice-president for Montreal, one vice-president for Quebec, and nine "untitled" members of the Board of Directors (including two from the Quebec City region).

Here are the members up for election: (vote electronically from May 7 to June 2!)

• Presidency (one person) (officer). * :
  1. Muhammad Abdul Al Khabyyr
  2. Vincent Séguin
• Vice-presidency Quebec (one person) (officer). The person must reside in the Quebec City region:
  1. Annie Vanasse
  2. Jacques Bourget
• Vice-présidence Montréal (one person) (officer). The person must reside in the Montreal region:
  1. Frédéric Darveau
  2. Maxime Lalanne
• Administration (9 people) (no designated title). A minimum of two people must reside in the Quebec City region:
  1. Jean-Fernand Girard
  2. Sylvain Lamothe
  3. Jean-François Langevin
  4. Marie-Josée Simard
  5. Line Deneault
  6. Daphnée Sincennes Richard
  7. Marie-Josée Arpin
  8. My-Lan Vu
  9. Gabrielle Gélinas
  10. Emmanuelle Caplette
      Québec :
  11. Marie-France-Mathieu
  12. Claude Soucy
  13. Daniel Tardif

A photo sheet for each candidate will soon be published on the GMMQ website.

Happy campaigning to all candidates!

Board elections 2024-2027

March 22, 2024

Dear members,

Between now and June 2, you'll be invited to elect your organization's new Board of Directors. You'll also have the opportunity to put your knowledge at the service of the Quebec music community, by joining the Board of Directors. Here's a reminder of everything you need to know for this election, and the election calendar below.

BOARD ELECTIONS - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

Board members are elected for a three-year term (June 2024-June 2027).

Positions to be elected :

-Presidency (one person) (officer) *
-Vice-présidence Québec (one person) (officer). The person must reside in the Quebec City area (as defined by the former jurisdiction of local 119, east of Trois-Rivières).
-Vice-présidence Montréal (une personne) (officièr.e). Must reside in the Montreal region.
-Secretariat-Treasury (one person) (officer) *
-Administration (9 persons) (no designated title). A minimum of two people must reside in the Quebec City area (as defined by the former jurisdiction of local 119, east of Trois-Rivières).

Conditions:

-Candidates must be members in good standing of the Guild for a continuous period of 12 months prior to the election date (June 2, 2024);

- Anyone wishing to stand for election as secretary-treasurer or president must have completed a three-year term as a member of the Guild's Board of Directors.

Procedure:

Submission of applications :

Any person wishing to stand for election or nominate a candidate must complete a written nomination statement identifying the candidate and the position sought. This declaration must be supported by ten Guild members. Their signatures are required to validate the statement. Nomination papers must be delivered to the election chair in person at the nomination meeting.

At the end of the nomination period, each candidate must inform the electoral officer whether or not he or she accepts the nomination.

NB: No electronic applications will be accepted, in accordance with our rules and regulations (available in your member's area).

Documents: nomination papers

To support a candidate

You must be a member in good standing and attest to your support by hand-signing the candidate's written nomination paper, which will be submitted in person on the day of the nomination meeting.

Documents:
-Declaration of nomination AND supporting signature sheet (it is not necessary to add the declaration alone above)
-OR individual signature sheet

You would like to stand for election but are unable to attend this meeting.

In this case, you can be represented by another member, who will file the nomination paper on your behalf. The person representing you must also submit a written declaration signed by you, stating that you agree to be a candidate in the election.

Document: Declaration and power of attorney (no need to add the declaration alone above)

Election campaign

It begins after the nomination meeting and ends the day before the election. During the election campaign, the candidate may solicit the support of other Guild members either orally or by mailing or otherwise distributing election literature. In this regard, the Guild will send to members in good standing, no later than thirty days before the date of the election, an electronic communication designed to introduce the candidates.

Ballot

Voting takes place electronically, supervised by a recognized electronic voting firm. A letter will be sent to members in good standing by the recognized firm, at least 25 days before the election date, explaining the procedure for voting electronically. For members who do not have access to a computer, it will be possible to come to the GMMQ office in Montreal or Quebec City to vote electronically (by appointment).

Votes will be counted on election day, June 2, 2024, by the electronic voting firm.

The regulations governing the election of members of the Board of Directors are available in your member's area, on the GMMQ website, under Regulations, sections 55 to 57, then 73 to 106.

For further details, please contact Member Services, 514 842-2866, ext. 245 or membres@gmmq.com.

2024 ELECTION CALENDAR

-April 16: Nomination meeting and start of election campaign

-May 7: Online voting begins.

-June 2 noon: Voting closes.

-June 17: The new GMMQ Board of Directors takes office.

Provincial budget: major investments in the audiovisual sector

March 13, 2024

PRESS RELEASE
For immediate release

Montreal, March 13, 2024 - In reaction to the provincial budget tabled yesterday by Finance Minister Éric Girard, the artists' unions are delighted, despite the context of budgetary restraint, with the various initiatives and investments aimed at the audiovisual sector. We applaud the government's willingness to review the industry's funding models and mechanisms, and are pleased that our demands have been heard. We would like to thank the Minister of Culture and Communications, Mathieu Lacombe, for his ongoing commitment to artists and artisans, and his genuine desire to promote local culture. We reiterate our full cooperation and will continue our representations to ensure the defense of our members' rights and interests.

"Quebec culture is the jewel of our collective identity. We need to ensure its continuity, which requires, among other things, a healthy distribution of public funds that trickle down to artists. We are delighted that funds have been earmarked for a review of the funding model, and eagerly await the announcement by the Minister of Culture and Communications. It is essential to guarantee fair working conditions that respect collective agreements and fair remuneration for all artists, particularly in the context of public funding," emphasizes Tania Kontoyanni, President of the UDA.

"The Quebec government has taken important steps to promote the development of audiovisual production. Not only will the recent budget improve financing for Quebec production, it will also ensure that our industry is better positioned on the world stage. We believe that these measures will contribute to improving the socio-economic conditions of our members, as well as fostering the creation of new jobs in our industry," concludes Christian Lemay, President of AQTIS 514 IATSE.

"We welcome the planned investments to support music companies and artists, especially in the digital age where international competition is fierce. However, we call for continued attention to the protection of musicians' rights and the promotion of a dynamic musical ecosystem in Quebec. The resulting policies must encourage musical creation and performance, and protect musicians' rights. We need to give ourselves the means to promote living music and French-language song, and to ensure the discoverability of our artists," explains GMMQ President Luc Fortin.

"Quebec's cultural vitality is shaped by our writers, real creators who bring our programs to life and write stories for our screens or radio. This budget recognizes the importance of Quebec's audiovisual industry, but it's also essential to maintain a focus on promoting the work of our artists in a constantly evolving digital environment," adds Chantale Cadieux, President of SARTEC.

"We welcome the initiatives in Budget 2024 aimed at strengthening our audiovisual industry, particularly with the support for Télé-Québec. We stress the importance of supporting the diversity of creative voices and adapting our funding models to ensure the sustainability of filmmaking in Quebec," says Gabriel Pelletier, President of ARRQ.

"Improving the various tax credits will have a positive impact on television and film production, and by the same token, on jobs for our members. It will breathe new life into the creation and production of home-grown content, making Quebec once again a preferred destination for foreign productions, and enabling us to shine on the international stage," explains Michèle Laliberté, interim president of the Directors' Guild.

-30-

For further information

AQTIS 514 IATSE
Marie-Josée Rivard
514 844-2113 ext. 223
mjrivard@aqtis514iatse.com

Association des réalisateurs et des réalisatrices du Québec (ARRQ)
Géraldine Piguet
514 842-7373 ext. 226
geraldine@arrq.quebec

Quebec Musicians' Guild (GMMQ)
Floriane Barny
514 842-2866 ext. 229
communications@gmmq.com

Directors Guild of Canada - Quebec Council
Michelle d'Arvisais
514 844-4084 ext. 106
marvisais@dgc.ca

Society of Authors of Radio, Television and Cinema (SARTEC)
Isabelle Desmarais
514 602-0977
ldesmarais@sartec.qc.ca

Union des artistes (UDA)
Mélodie Roy
514 887-9356
mroy@uda.ca

Funding issues in culture: a question of good governance

February 26, 2024

Mr. François Legault
Premier of Quebec                                

Mr. Mathieu Lacombe
Minister of Culture and Communications

Gentlemen,

The ways in which television, film and music are produced, broadcast and consumed have changed radically over the last few decades. The business model of the streaming giants has completely overturned the ecosystem of our cultural industry. Despite major investments in culture in recent years[1] , Quebec artists and artisans continue to be impoverished, generating a crisis of confidence in the various public institutions of our cultural industry ecosystem. For some, it has become impossible to practice their craft with dignity. We are calling on you today to bring together all stakeholders in the industry - producers, distributors, broadcasters and creators - to redefine the mechanisms for allocating, distributing and circulating public funds.

The importance of digital platforms has an impact not only on the discoverability of our productions, but also on their financing, whether private (advertising) or public (subsidies). Yet public funds earmarked for culture do not percolate adequately down to the end of the chain, i.e. artists and creators. We are concerned to see that there are grey areas in the distribution of public money allocated to the cultural industry. Cultural funding seems to be a lucrative manna for some, to the detriment of artists and craftspeople, who are at the heart of creation, its diversity, quality and renown, here and elsewhere. Above all, projects or companies that do not respect current collective agreements (agreements signed by associations and unions that establish minimum working conditions and remuneration for artists) should not be subsidized.

An analysis of the funding mechanisms currently in place raises a number of questions. How can production companies, which receive subsidies, sit on the boards of companies that award these subsidies themselves, when artists are absent? Why do certain large companies in both the audiovisual and music sectors receive large amounts of recurrent funding, thereby slimming down the share allocated to small companies that could be carrying out innovative projects, but are struggling to obtain funding? How can production companies that live solely on public money become so lucrative that publicly-traded consortia buy them out?

These are questions that remain unanswered, and which would benefit from being studied for the benefit of the industry as a whole, and of Quebec's public finances.

For the past fifty years, there has been no major collective reflection on these important issues. We believe it's high time we took action to redefine the best way to promote and protect Quebec culture, its artists and artisans. Our culture is at the heart of Quebecers' identity. We have a duty to safeguard it, and to ensure that younger generations have access to the wealth of our content.

Please be assured of our full cooperation in this matter. We thank you for the attention you will give to this request, and ask you to accept our most distinguished greetings.

GMMQ ANNOUNCES NEW CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER (CEO)

February 14, 2024

Montreal, February 14, 2024 - The Board of Directors of Local 406 of the American Federation of musicians (AFM), La Guilde des musiciens et musiciennes du Québec (GMMQ), is pleased to announce the appointment of Guy Bernard as CEO of the organization, effective February 27.

With a position posted on December 15, and several interviews conducted by the selection committee, Guy Bernard has been chosen to fill the position of CEO at GMMQ. Guy Bernard has been with the organization since September 11 as Senior Labour Relations Advisor.

Holder of a Premier Prix from the Conservatoire de musique de Montréal, an Artist Diploma from McGill University and a doctorate from the Université de Montréal, Guy Bernard spent twenty years as a trombonist with several Québec ensembles.

His background in communications led him to serve in the Public Affairs Branch of the Royal Canadian Air Force, and to help create and produce the CBC Radio 2 program Tempo.

A member of the Bar of Montreal since 2017, he has worked at Legal Aid of Montreal as a litigator in civil, family and administrative litigation.

"Guy brings undeniable expertise and energy to our team. An experienced musician and lawyer, he likes to think of himself as a 'field intellectual' who will invest himself with passion and enthusiasm in the negotiations and issues facing our members." Luc Fortin, president of the GMMQ and actual CEO.

"I'm very grateful to the Board of Directors for selecting me for this position, and for giving me the opportunity to contribute even more to representing our talented musical community in all its diversity and creativity. Together, we will pursue our mission and look after the collective interests of our more than 3,200 members." Guy Bernard, GMMQ new CEO.

The entire GMMQ administrative team is delighted with this appointment.

Luc Fortin and Guy Bernard begin a handover process that will last several weeks. Luc Fortin remains Chairman of the GMMQ Board of Directors.

-30-

Contact:
Floriane Barny, Communications Manager
communications@gmmq.com
514 842-2866 ext. 229.

Press release: Generative artificial intelligence and copyright

December 05, 2023

Warning from artists' associations

Montreal, December 5, 2023 - As part of the consultation organized by the federal government on generative artificial intelligence in the specific context of copyright, five professional associations representing nearly 20,000 Quebec artists are calling for caution, transparency and a protective legislative framework.

ARRQ, ARTISTI, GMMQ, SARTEC and UDA are actively participating in the consultation work being carried out by the Government of Canada, while recalling that since 2017 numerous consultations surrounding a revision of the Copyright Act have been conducted, and that they now expect the work to come to a successful conclusion.

Today, the associations are sounding the alarm about the major risks that the development of AI could represent without appropriate supervision, and are reminding us of the importance of improving the protection of artists' work.

They recognize from the outset that AI will become a must-have in many fields, and that it will be an extraordinary tool for research, data mining and content generation. However, they remind us that artificial intelligence is, and must remain, a tool trained by humans.

"We call on ministers François-Philippe Champagne and Pascale St-Onge to continue their work on revising the Copyright Act, while respecting one overriding principle: to effectively protect the rights and work of creators. In this sense, no new exceptions should be created to enable artificial intelligence operators to circumvent existing rights", says Chantal Cadieux, President of SARTEC.

"Feeding the beast"

"Artificial intelligence doesn't work without training. In the cultural world, to feed it and enable its final use, i.e. to carry out text and data mining activities, the machine needs to be "fed" with existing content. In other words, we need to use original works written, produced or performed by artists: works that are often protected by copyright. This protection must be maintained, artificial intelligence or not," explains Luc Fortin, President of the GMMQ.

"It is essential that each artist be able to give his or her consent to the use of his or her work as raw material for the training of artificial intelligence. In the event of use, fair and equitable compensation must be paid," adds Tania Kontoyanni, President of the UDA.

"The use of generative AI impacts performers in a particular way, going beyond copyright because when we reproduce their performances, we often reproduce their voice and image. Deep fakes are also of great concern to them, because they make it look like an artist has done or said something when they haven't. Measures are needed to ensure that performers' authorization is obtained before any use is made of their performance, voice, image or likeness," emphasizes France D'Amour, President of ARTISTI.

No human, no work

It seems inconceivable to us that new content, generated by a well-trained artificial intelligence, could benefit from the status of works protected by the Copyright Act. We'd like to see an amendment to the law to make it clear that, in this legislative framework, an author is necessarily a human being. There is no work without a human being.

 "For a democracy like ours, is it necessary to reiterate the fundamental importance of guaranteeing the vitality of the cultural sector? In the absence of a clearly established protective framework, it's easy to imagine the possible excesses of these technologies and their owners, and their impact on the work of our artists and on the creative industries", concludes Gabriel Pelletier, President of ARRQ.

-30 -

Exclusive registration or exclusivity contracts: What should I check before signing?

July 17, 2023

For several decades, the dominant model for album production has been the exclusive recording contract, also known as the album contract, record contract, exclusivity contract or phonogram production contract. Although this model has been considerably superseded by the self-production model, it is still very common and not a document to be signed lightly. Before you even enter the studio, it's vital to reach agreement with the production company* on the terms and conditions of your recording contract.

For the sake of clarity, an "exclusive recording contract" is a contract whereby the production retains the exclusive services of one or more artists to produce a sound recording for exploitation. It is the production that assumes the financing of this sound recording.

Exclusivity clauses and options

Duration of exclusivity

Exclusivity exists to encourage productions to invest in a project where the artists, and more often the star artists, won't leave to record elsewhere. When signing such a contract, you need to be aware of the duration and scope of the commitment.

Make sure you are not already bound by another exclusivity agreement that is still in force. If this is the case, the production to which you are initially bound could invalidate the new recording contract or claim sums from you for breach of its own contract. In the case of a group, check whether any of the group members are already bound by such an agreement or, conversely, whether the agreement you are about to sign will allow the group members to record solo albums in parallel, during the exclusivity period.

Long-term exclusivity is generally to the advantage of the production company, while the opposite is to the artist's advantage. In effect, the artist sacrifices his or her freedom to record elsewhere for a given period in exchange for the production's services. If the situation turns sour, you may not be able to record for a certain period of time.

Options

Clauses stipulating that the production may take advantage of one or more album options are also commonplace. They exist for the same reasons as exclusivity. By investing in a first album, it may be reasonable for the production company to want to be able to produce and exploit subsequent albums if the first proves successful. As an artist, you should try to limit as far as possible the number of options you agree to. Beyond one option (i.e. two albums), you are committing yourself for many years. For example, an exclusive recording contract with 4 options (i.e. a total of 5 albums) could bind you to a production for almost 12 years!

Under normal circumstances, producers have a certain number of months after the release of the first album to exercise their option. Make sure you are aware of these deadlines so that they are respected.

Artists' associations such as the Union des artistes (UDA) and the Guilde des musiciens et des musiciennes du Québec (GMMQ) have specific guidelines regarding the duration of exclusivity and album options. These are limited in time and number. Please refer to the applicable collective agreements. By requesting UDA or Guild contracts from productions, you benefit from these protections, but we encourage you to negotiate better terms than the maximums stipulated for the duration of exclusivity and the number of options.

If you have any questions about this type of contract, please do not hesitate to contact your respective artists' associations, who will be happy to answer them!

* By production we mean the producer

What is a collecting society?

June 07, 2023

Often misunderstood, collective management societies are organizations that artists and craftspeople in the music industry should know about. For artists, they can be a very important source of income.

The purpose of these societies is to manage rights that would be too complicated for an artist to manage alone, even impossible. For example, it would be very difficult for a copyright-holding artist to collect payment from every radio station that has made a copy of his or her music in order to play it. And let's not forget that there may be several songs' worth of rights to manage, and that these rights are often shared by several artists (performer, accompanying musician, etc.) on the same work. In such cases, collecting societies are a great help, and even a necessity since they collect royalties on your behalf.

How do collecting societies work?

Collective societies issue licenses, i.e. they authorize the use of your works under certain conditions, to users such as concert halls, bars, businesses, radio stations or online listening platforms, who must, in return, pay to use them. The collecting societies are responsible for collecting the royalties due for these uses and distributing them to those entitled to them. 

Strictly in music, there are a considerable number of societies for different rights, all over the world. In Canada, many people have heard of SOCAN1, which generally administers copyright for songwriters.

In Quebec, the Copyright Act also confers rights on performers and producers, also known as "neighbouring rights".

For producers of sound recordings and music videos, Soproq2 administers neighboring rights, while Artisti (created by the UDA) does the same for performers.

In Canada, there are also similar societies that are generally more present in the English-speaking world: CONNECT, which is an equivalent of Soproq, while MROC3 and RACS4 are equivalents of Artisti.

While it's easy to get lost among all these acronyms, a good understanding of these organizations will help you collect the money you're owed. Better still, thanks to strength in numbers, some societies like Artisti represent the interests of their members to the industry and government, with the aim of strengthening artists' rights.

1. SOCAN: Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada
2. Soproq: Société de gestion collective des droits des producteurs de phonogrammes et de vidéogrammes (founded by ADISQ)
3. MROC: Musicians' Rights Organization Canada  
4. RACS: Recording Artists' Collecting Society

Résonance is a new column for artists and artisans in the music industry, covering a wide range of topics related to professional practrice and career management. Created at the request of members of the Regroupement des artisans de la musique (RAM), the column will be published monthly.