Groupe Média TFO Charts New Territory in Europe with Champlain Series

TORONTO, February 9, 2017 /PRNewswire/ --

Ontario's Le Rêve de Champlain now airing in France, Italy and Spain  

Groupe Média TFO, a North American leader in French educational content, is pleased to announce that the English version of its series Le Rêve de Champlain (Champlain's Dream) will now be available to households across Western Europe. The distribution of the Gemini-award-winning series, which is based on explorer Samuel Champlain, marks the first expansion beyond North American frontiers for the Ontario-based public broadcaster.

The three-year content deal will introduce Champlain and his story to a new audience and will be available on RAI 3 in Italy, TV Catalunya in Spain and Groupe AB's Toute l'histoire channel in France, a channel that focuses on historical documentaries.

"Canada's great stories, like that of Samuel de Champlain, deserve to be celebrated and shared with the rest of the world," said the Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Canadian Heritage. "Our government is very pleased that this top-quality production will be presented to audiences in Italy, France and Spain, helping promote our culture abroad."

This new international distribution agreement is hot on the heels of two significant content partnerships in the United States; one with PBS Learning Media and the other with Louisiana Public Broadcasting. Educational, digital and Francophone, Groupe Média TFO is one of the largest producers, aggregators and distributers of multiplatform content for a new generation in Canada. Today's announcement is part of a global strategy to increase exports of its content, expanding the reach and contributing to the sustainability of French across the world.

"Exporting our content allows us to share the cultural and linguistic heritage of Ontario and our expertise in technology and innovation beyond our borders," said Glenn O' Farrell, President and CEO of TFO Media Groupe. "The fact that this great historical work has now found audiences throughout Western Europe is a source of great pride for our team. We are pleased to see that our marketing efforts are carving out a space for Canada's Francophones on the global stage."

About the Series:
Initially produced in celebration of 400 years of Francophone presence in Canada, Le Rêve de Champlain is a multi-property project inspired by the hit biography of the same name from Pulitzer Prize winning author David Hackett Fischer.

Directed by Martin Cadotte and produced by Slalom Productions and Fair Play group, the dramatic series showcases the arrival of Samuel de Champlain in Canada in 1603 and documents his passage into Ontario in 1615. Interviews and reports are shared by renowned journalist and host Marie-Louise Arsenault with Champlain played by popular Quebecois actor, Maxime le Flaguais. Founding Father to Franco-Ontarians, Champlain left behind the roots of a French population in Ontario that is now 600,000 strong. The series will be distributed in English but dubbed in Italian and subtitled in Catalan for new viewers.

About Groupe Média TFO
Groupe Média TFO is a premium destination for audiences seeking educational and cultural content in French. It offers stimulating experiences and award-winning content, always at the forefront of digital learning. TFO serves 2 million students and 30,000 teachers across Ontario and Canada. It operates the number one French-language YouTube Channel in Canada. TFO has received awards and accolades from Austin and Amsterdam (Kidscreen Awards, Gémeaux, Cassies, IBC Awards, SXSW Film Design Awards and more). Proud of its legacy as a public broadcaster, Groupe Média TFO takes the opportunity to celebrate and nurture French language and culture in Ontario and across the world.To learn more about Groupe Media TFO and its mandate please visit its strategic positioning statement or http://www.groupemediatfo.org/ .

Media Contact: Carla Maggiotto, Account Director, Media Profile, carla.maggiotto@mediaprofile.com, o: +1-416-342-1829, c: +1-416-710-8464; Carole Nkoa, Director of Communications and Manager of Francophone Community Relations, Groupe Média TFO, cnkoa@tfo.org , T: +1-416-968-8313, C: +1-416-606-5113