Cinema Politica, the campus group that screens films and documentaries about social and environmental issues, is looking to increase the funding it receives from students.
The organization was started at Concordia in 2003. Though the non-profit network has since grown to 55 Canadian chapters, Concordia’s is still considered the flagship, drawing the biggest audiences and garnering more media attention than others.
Concordia undergraduate students currently pay a two-cent per-credit fee levy to the organization 8212; the smallest fee collected on campus; graduate students pay one dollar per year.
Following a presentation to Concordia Student Union councillors Feb. 10, Cinema Politica was granted permission to include a question on the next CSU referendum.
During the March vote, students will decide whether to increase the fee levy paid to Cinema Politica by five cents (for a total of seven cents) per credit. The fee increase would be effective as of the Fall 2010-2011 semester, and would be refundable according to university policy.
During the presentation, council was told the increased fees would help pay undergraduate students to digitize, log and catalogue most of the titles Cinema Politica has screened since 2003, which falls around 250 total titles. The extra income will also subsidize credited internships for undergraduates, an annual short documentary competition and a salary for the coordinator, who currently works as a volunteer.
Without the fee levy, members of Cinema Politica said they fear the organization will dissolve in a matter of years. “It’s not a sustainable association anymore,” said Ezra Winton, ex-officio member.
From 2004 to 2009, the audience at the organization’s screenings has increased from 1,200 to 12,000 per year.
