The Regroupement des producteurs multimédia refreshes its positioning and its branding

RPM becomes Xn Quebec > The Association of digital experience producers

Montreal, December 12, 2017 – In light of the changes the digital industry is going through, the Regroupement des producteurs multimédia (RPM) is repositioning itself, clarifying its area of activity, and refreshing its branding. The RPM will be renamed Xn Quebec, its new positioning allowing it to unify the voice of digital creators. This initiative will make it a more relevant and rallying organisation than ever via activities involving entrepreneurship support, business and talent development and the promotion and recognition of Quebec know-how.

New positioning: Xn Quebec > The Association of digital experience producers

Graphically, the new acronym conveys an algebraic expression in which “X” can represent various words (eXpression, eXperience, eXportation, eXpertise, eXcellence, etc.) raised to the power of “n,” (“numérique,” French for “digital”). X is a symbol that conveys a crossing, a collision, movement. And the “n” exponent refers to power, to infinite potential.

Our mission: the development of the ecosystem of digital industries

The mission of Xn Quebec will be to act as a catalyst to develop and raise the profile of the companies, institutions and talents making up the ecosystem of creative, media and cultural industries that are active in all forms of digital expression in Quebec. Xn Quebec brings together the key players of the digital industry by uniting all the orphans who are actively producing content for various technological platforms: commissioned video works, apps, linear and interactive website design, interactive scenography, digital entertainment, museum installations, 360˚immersive works, VR, multimedia stage productions, podcasts, video, digital art. The organisation’s new direction will allow the convergence of expertise and networks, in addition to fostering synergy between resources and know-how.

A new board of director to implement an ambitious action plan

The general meeting took place on December 7 at the Phi Centre. During this meeting, a new board of directors was elected, and it adopted a new action plan in order to remain a major player in the digital ecosystem. The executive committee shall be composed of Alexandre Gravel from Toast Studio as the chair, Raphaëlle Huysmans from Urbania as vice-chair, and Gilbert Ouellette from Groupe Évolumédia as secretary-treasurer. The other directors are Kim Berthiaume from Affordance Studio, Jérôme Hellio from TV5, Pascal Pelletier from Fig 55, Florence Roche from Tobo Studio, Geneviève Levasseur from Ingrid Ingrid, and Marie-Ève Berlinger, who works as an audience development consultant. Steering committees will also be formed with members of the industry in order to manage projects. External members will work on some major projects such as the Forum Culture + Numérique, which will be presided over by Guillaume Aniorté, and the NUMIX AWARDS Gala committee presided over by Marie-Josée Lachance. Finally, a committee will be created to offer relevant services to members and meet the associative needs of companies

A constantly evolving industry

The Regroupement des producteurs multimédia (RPM) was created in 2000 to represent Quebec-based multimedia producers who create interactive content in various medi, video that isn’t for television-market projects, and corporate or promotional events. Eighteen years later, it has become obvious that the environment is very different from the one in which the earliest members thrived. Several multimedia producers now work in business areas that didn’t even exist in 2000. Furthermore, nothing should be taken for granted as far as current issues they are faced with, such as the increasingly rapid advances in technology, the disappearance of traditional business models, and globalisation.

Today, RPM members are not only firmly embedded in the digital reality that dominates all sectors of society; they are also active players of this new economy. As board chairman Alexandre Gravel recently mentioned, “Digital content creators are rewriting the history of local cultural production every day. They are innovating both in terms of content production and distribution, and of their business models and increasingly interactive relationship with their consumers. They are technology entrepreneurs, but also cultural producers.”

It is worth noting that the important events created under the RPM umbrella will continue. Created in 2010, the NUMIX AWARDS Gala is the only contest and annual gala exclusively devoted to the excellence of Quebec digital content. The Forum Culture + Numérique held its first edition in March 2017, bringing together 200 stakeholders and influencers of the cultural community. Other activities will evolve in order to promote the consolidation of the industry and to initiate meetings between all forms of media expression in the digital world.