The Quebec government announced Monday a new program to accelerate permanent residency status for foreign-trained workers.

Immigration and Cultural Communities Minister Yolande James made the announcement at the Science Centre in Montreal’s Old Port accompanied by the executives from two of the city’s leading high-tech firms, Electronic Arts, and CGI.

James said the high-tech sector is but one example of an industry that suffers from a lack of skilled workers and must rely on recruiting from beyond Canadian borders.

Bernard de Jaham, the vice-president of mobility for Montreal International, said the new program, which began Monday, will help Montreal retain foreign workers who are recruited to work here. […]

The program also has a marketing aspect to it, selling Montreal as a good place for a career, and for a high quality of life.

Those eligible for the program must have worked for at least one year in Quebec, and must have a intermediate knowledge of French.

EA Montreal general manager Alain Tascan said about 20 per cent of his employees come from outside Canada, hailing from 25 different countries. He said it’s essential to attract the brightest minds to Montreal, and the government has shown it’s proactive in helping retain those workers. […]

Read the full article on Montreal Gazette…

"Pour le RPM, les NUMIX représente une occasion unique de mettre en valeur l’excellence de notre industrie qui regroupe plus de 150 producteurs, lesquels génèrent au-delà de 200 M $ de volume de production annuelle et maintiennent près de 3000 emplois", commente Marc Beaudet, président du RPM.

Pour Michel Jolicoeur, directeur des NUMIX et membre du conseil d’administration du RPM, "les NUMIX occupent un terrain jusque là délaissé par les autres concours existants des secteurs de l’audiovisuel, du marketing et des technologies. Pour nous, il est très important de reconnaître enfin le caractère spécifique de la production de contenu multimédia."

Les NUMIX, dont la soirée de remise de prix se déroulera à la fin avril 2010, récompenseront douze réalisations dans trois grandes catégories : Production d’affaires, Production de convergence et Production originale. Les producteurs qui le désirent peuvent dès maintenant déposer leurs pièces en passant par le site www.numix.ca. La période des inscriptions se termine le 19 mars. Par la suite, les membres du RPM pourront voter sur chacune des pièces déposées. Leur vote sera considéré par les deux jurys qui délibéreront sous la présidence du blogueur et animateur Dominic Arpin, également producteur du site WebTV Hebdo.

Les prix NUMIX, qui sont rendus possibles grâce à la participation financière de Téléfilm Canada, peuvent compter sur le travail assidu d’un comité organisateur composé de : Christiane Asselin (Turbulent), François Boulet (Inpix), Julien Roussin Coté (33Mag), Michel Jolicoeur (Tram média), Marie-Josée Lachance (La Presse télé) ainsi que Gilbert Ouellette (RPM et RADAR services médias).

Le Regroupement des producteurs multimédia (www.rpm-qc.com), créé en 2000, représente plus de soixante-dix producteurs actifs en production de contenu de commande, de convergence ou original sur les nouvelles plateformes. Le RPM vise notamment à créer un climat propice au développement et à la croissance de la production multimédia au Québec. En ce sens, le RPM fait des représentations actives auprès des gouvernements, gère des ententes collectives avec les syndicats d’artistes et participe à la réalisation d’études sur les réalités économiques et d’affaires du secteur.

Renseignements: Gilbert Ouellette, gestionnaire du RPM, (514) 813-3586, go@radarmedias.com

Mise à jour: Voici un vidéo parlant des NUMIX, présenté par quelques membres:

GALA NUMIX – Prix d’excellence en production multimédia du Québec from 33mag on Vimeo.

Premier Jean Charest says Quebec is keen to align provincial visa treatment procedures with those of the federal government to speed up the entry of foreign information technology workers.

Quebec’s premier raised the possibility during a Thursday visit to Infosys, a high-tech multinational company in Bangalore, India, the subcontinent’s IT mecca.

Charest met with an Infosys representative, who complained it took 12 weeks to get clearance for specialized employees migrating to Quebec, while those headed to other parts of Canada were able to arrive after a month.

The premier said he wants to resolve the problem quickly, noting Infosys has said it wants to invest in Quebec. […]

Have you personally moved from another country to Montreal, to work in the game industry? Let us know the in the comments.

PIEDMONT, QC, Jan. 28 /CNW Telbec/ – Hybride Technologies, a division of Ubisoft Montreal, has produced 114 stereoscopic shots for James Cameron’s AVATAR, released December 18, 2009. The creators at the Piedmont VFX studio, located in the Laurentians, also provided numerous graphic and technical elements used in a large number of shots produced by other vendors involved on the project.

In concrete terms, Hybride’s contribution include set extensions, animating on-screen computer data as well as designing and animating virtual characters mostly for the Link Room.

"We are very grateful to Director James Cameron and Producer John Landau for giving us the opportunity to be a part of the world of Pandora" said Daniel Leduc, VFX Producer at Hybride. "We feel extremely privileged to have played a part in the creation of one of the biggest movies of the decade, and by doing so, allowing us to put forward our creative team’s talent and production team’s efficiency. Once again, Quebec’s 2D and 3D artists’ expertise and knowhow are at the heart of a worldwide commercial success."

James Cameron’s 3D blockbuster has surpassed Titanic to become the highest grossing movie of all time, grossing a worldwide total of $1.86 billion.

Since its release on December 18th, James Cameron’s epic adventure, considered as the most lucrative film of all time, seems to sweep everything in its path, and continues to shatter records along the way.

Crowned Best Motion Picture at the Golden Globes while James Cameron collected the Best Director Award, Avatar, which also counts 8 nominations at the upcoming BAFTA (The British Academy of Film and Television Art) Awards, could also be the big winner at this year’s Oscars for which the nominations will be announced, Tuesday, February 2nd.

About Hybride

Hybride Technologies, division of Ubisoft, is a Quebec-based production company that specializes in digital visual effects for film and television visionaries from around the world.

Founded in 1991, the company is comprised of a team of professionals divided into five specialized creative units offering a complete range of services including digital editing, 3D animation, compositing and DI colour grading. It has contributed significant 2D and 3D work for several studio blockbusters, including 300 and Sin City, as well as for the popular Assassin’s Creed: Lineage film series. Now a specialized division of Ubisoft, Hybride continues to innovate with the same passion and commitment that have guided them from the very beginning.

All brand names, product names, or trademarks belong to their respective holders. (C)Copyright 2010 Hybride Technologies, Inc. All rights reserved.

For further information: Sylvie Talbot, Hybride, (450) 227-4245; Source: Brigitte Chabot, Brigitte Chabot Communications, (514) 861-7870

From CBC, Quebec sees growth in English-speaking population:

The number of English-speaking Quebecers is on the increase for the first time in 30 years due to immigration, along with a slowdown in the outflow of Quebec anglophones.

The number has grown by about 5.5 per cent between the censuses of 2001 and 2006, reversing a trend that began in the early 1970s when provincial language policies and a push for Quebec sovereignty prompted many English-speaking residents to move elsewhere.

The influx includes people moving from other provinces, as well as an increase in immigration by English-speaking people from south Asian countries.

[…]

Also from CBC, Ottawa accused of ignoring bilingual policy:

The city of Ottawa is neglecting its francophone community and ignoring its bilingualism policy, says a francophone advocacy group.

Claudette Boyer, head of the Ottawa chapter of L’Association canadienne-française de l’Ontario (ACFO), told CBC News the city isn’t following its 2001 policy that gives francophones the same rights and privileges as anglophones. […]

"We always have to fight for what we want. It makes me frustrated and disappointed that we always have to remind [people that] … oh, francophones are here," she told CBC News in a recent interview.

[…]

Nearly 13 years ago, a little-known French company called Ubisoft decided to open a video game development studio in Montreal, the result of a long charm offensive by the Quebec government who saw its legacy industries – textiles and forestry – slowly wither.

And from that seed sown on a tax credit gamble, a new industry flourished. Montreal is one of the top video game hubs in the world, mentioned alongside Los Angeles and London, and it still attracts new companies.

Today, the name Ubisoft is at once respected and a little hated, the sign of a mighty company that did a lot of things right.

It owes its success to what it found in Montreal: a creative, multi-cultural population, veteran expertise in digital animation, and an entrepreneurial class that made tools and educational programs to feed it.

This interesting history and the many pieces that compose its complex whole are nicely detailed in Guide de l’industrie jeux vidéo by Lien Multimédia (in French only).

Journalist Charles Prémont offers an almost complete look at the local industry, with interesting profiles of people and companies who keep it humming. I say almost complete because some key elements were left out, which I discuss later.

We also hear from industry observers who point out the challenges of the local scene. The always awesome Jason Della Rocca, for example, notes that Quebec’s firms are too optimized for console development, and may miss a major shift towards downloadable games.

Read the rest of the review here.

From CyberPresse:

Le ministre du Développement économique du Québec, Clément Gignac annoncera demain la venue à Montréal d’un «leader mondial en développement et édition de jeux vidéo». Tout porte à croire qu’il s’agit de THQ, un développeur californien qui, comme La Presse Affaires l’annonçait ce matin, était en pourparlers avec Investissement Québec au sujet de la possibilité de s’installer dans la métropole.

Des représentants de THQ étaient d’ailleurs présents au Sommet international du jeu de Montréal à la mi-novembre, à la grande surprise des organisateurs. C’était la première fois que l’entreprise participait au sommet, malgré plusieurs invitations dans les dernières années.

Le directeur du développement des affaires de THQ, Andrew Walker, avait toutefois nié que THQ venait s’installer à Montréal. «Je ne crois pas que nous ayons des plans pour venir nous établir sur la côte Est, mais nous gardons notre esprit ouvert, avait-il dit à la publication spécialisée Le Lien multimédia. Il y a beaucoup de talent dans la région: Montréal possède de gros studios et l’Ontario cherche à construire sa scène. Pour le moment, je crois que si on grandit au Canada, ce sera par l’entremise de Relic, notre studio de Colombie-Britannique.»

Source

Update: Also mentionned in The Gazette: THQ expected to open studio here

Develop: Québec Focus

Famous for its French-speaking populace, the large Canadian province of Québec is located in the east of the territory adjacent to the vast expanse that is the Hudson Bay.

In a country renowned for recognising and supporting the games industry it hosts, Québec stands out as perhaps the most forward thinking province, and as a result has become home to numerous studios, publishers and tech companies.

Combining the roles of a financial institution and economic development agency, Investissement Québec is one of the key organisations that assists those running or establishing a games company in the area. As well as promoting Québec as a prime location for investment, the body prospects foreign investment, and offers support services to international subsidiaries in the state.

Source

 

Develop: Ubisoft Montreal

Ubisoft Montreal is effectively the daddy of all games studios – not just in Canada, but globally, given its huge size and stature.

One of the largest production houses in the world, it is similarly famous for some of the publisher’s biggest hits – including the likes of Splinter Cell, Prince of Persia and Assassin’s Creed.

Develop spoke to CEO Yannis Mallat, who since 2006 has overseen the team’s huge expansion – plus Ubisoft’s growth into other Canadian territories, and its many collaborations with educators in the region – to find
out more…

Source