Government of Canada publishes findings from the Canadian Artists and Content Creators Economic Survey (CACCES)

The following is excerpted from the Government of Canada.

The Government of Canada has published the findings from the Canadian Artists and Content Creators Economic Survey (CACCES).

The survey was launched in 2021 by Canadian Heritage to “help create an updated portrait of the artistic and creative community in Canada.” Canadian Heritage stated that the findings of this survey will “inform current and future Canadian Heritage policies and programs, ensuring the department continues to be responsive to the realities of the creative sector.”

Here are the key findings of the survey:

Respondents’ creative incomes are volatile and low

One quarter (25%) of respondents reported that their income from creative work could fluctuate by at least 100% from year to year (without taking the pandemic into consideration), and 60% of respondents reported that their income could fluctuate by at least 50% year to year.

Overall, 57% of survey respondents reported a total gross (pre-tax) income of under $40,000 in 2019 (this includes all income sources, including income from creative work and other sources).

Many respondents still rely on traditional income sources

Over one third (36%) of respondents reported generating income from some form of public showing or performance. This figure was higher for musical artists (56%) and performing artists like actors, dancers, and comedians (49%)—a pattern that laid the foundation for these fields to be particularly hard-hit by pandemic-related public health restrictions. The most common income sources included “analog” sources like public exhibits and physical sales. The least common sources were digital or passive forms of income generation, such as royalties and online paid downloads.

A majority of respondents are self-employed

Overall, self-employment plays a large role in how artists generate income, with a majority (64%) of survey respondents reporting some form of self-employment, whether that was in their creative field, in a related field, or in a completely different field. Most artists and content creators reported being de facto entrepreneurs and working many hours doing all the planning, marketing, networking, and administrative work that that entails. Respondents to the survey spent an average of 15.5 hours per week doing this type of non-creative work.

About 41% of respondents reported working full-time in their creative occupation. This includes people who are both employed and self-employed. This means that the majority—almost 60%—of respondents are not working full-time in their creative field. They may be working part-time in their creative field and holding down full- or part-time jobs in other fields.

The pandemic hit some fields particularly hard

Overall, 62% of respondents reported some loss of creative income during the pandemic.

This figure varied widely across artistic fields. On the upper end, 83% of musical artists and 79% of performing artists reported a loss in creative income since the outbreak of the pandemic. On the lower end, 52% of visual artists, 45% of writers, and 42% of audiovisual (AV) directors/content creators reported a loss in creative income since the outbreak of the pandemic.

Government support has been crucial during the pandemic: 56% of respondents applied for federal emergency support (including Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), Canada Emergency Student Benefit (CESB), Canada Recovery Benefit (CRB), Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit (CRSB), and temporary COVID-19 relief through EI).

To access the full report, click here.