Founded by Beaumarchais in 1777, today the SACD has more than 44,000 member authors, of whom 1 000 are Canadian. The Society is devoted to the defense of its members' interests, both material and moral. While it is neither a union, nor a business, nor a state-subsidized organization, the SACD is a French-language based, international corporation charged by its members with the negotiation, collection and distribution of their royalties. Members include playwrights, screenwriters, composers, choreographers and directors. The SACD repertoire includes works for the stage (plays, ballets, operas, operettas, musicals, mimes, sketches), works for television (series, soap operas, cartoons), works for cinema (short and long films) and works for radio.

The SACD authorizes broadcasters to broadcast works from its repertoire against payments which are then distributed according to established norms. This is what we call collective management and it ensures that authors and their heirs are linked to the economic life of their work, for as long as it lasts. The SACD is first and foremost a corporation involved in collective management whose mission is to collect and distribute the royalties derived from all users of its repertoire. In Canada, screenwriters and producers are able to benefit from a composite system: their hiring and working conditions are regulated by collective agreements negotiated by the unions to which they belong. Commercial use of their work is regulated by licenses negotiated by the SACD with conventional and specialized broadcasters. By becoming a member, the author transfers to the SACD his or her right to authorize/prohibit communication to the public by means of telecommunications, as well as the reproduction by any means whatever, of his or her work.

It is on the basis of this transfer that the SACD can then negotiate licenses with broadcasters and agreements for retransmission, such as by cable, of works from its repertoire. In order for the SACD to be able to register a work in its repertoire, the author (screenwriter, director) must have signed a contract allowing the Society to exercise its rights with broadcasters, and which includes the SACD clause. To date, the SACD has negotiated licenses with Radio-Canada, Télé-Québec, TQS, Groupe TVA (TVA, Mystère, Prise 2, LCN, Argent, Illico), Astral Television Networks (Vrak.TV, Canal D, Super Écran, Canal Vie, Séries +, Historia, Canal Z, Ciné Pop, Indigo), ARTV, Musimax and Teletoon. The Society also collects royalties for works from its repertoire retransmitted by cable, following an agreement signed with the Canadian Retransmission Collective (CRC). In Europe, the SACD has signed agreements with more than 25 European networks (conventional, specialized, targeted and satellite).

With respect to countries and stage productions not covered by the SACD, it is the producer who is responsible for the remuneration of the author under the terms of the contract signed. The SACD also distributes to its members, royalties collected for private copying from manufacturers and importers of cassettes in a number of European countries.

The audiovisual sector is managed collectively and ensures that authors and their heirs are linked to the economic life of their work, for as long as it lasts.

In the stage production sector, the SACD does not act for its members; it has no power to authorize or prohibit representations of their works and, in all cases, can only act in function of their decision. The author thus retains the right to authorize or prohibit each representation of their work.

For authors of documentaries, the same services are offered by the SOCIÉTÉ CIVILE DES AUTEURS MULTIMÉDIA.

The SACD clause must systematically be included in the contract to be signed between an author writer or director and a producer.

However, including the clause in the contract is not sufficient to assure that the author writer or director will be paid through the SACD for the communications of his work.

In addition, all the other articles of the contract have to permit the SACD to exercise its rights in particular with the broadcasters. For example, if the contract holds that the author writer or director has given up all his rights, the SACD can not register the work in its repertory. Consequently, the author writer or director will not be paid through the SACD for the communications of his work in the SACD's territories.

The SACD clause which has to be included in the author writer or director's contract is the following :

“Notwithstanding the granting to the Producer of this license for the exploitation rights of the motion picture/audiovisual work, the AUTHOR will collect, through the SACD , the copyright royalties due to the AUTHOR for the communication to the public by telecommunication, Hertzian waves, digital and analog modes, including the TNT, satellite, cable or by online systems such as the Internet, for the communication free of charge or against a lump sum payment for a subscription or an individual payment of the work in Canada, France, Belgium, Switzerland, Principality of Monaco, Luxembourg, Bulgaria, Spain, Italy, Poland, Argentina, Latvia, Morocco or any territory in which the SACD or any authors' society representing the SACD may intervene later. Consequently, it will be noted that in these territories, the Producer has the duty to remind the broadcasters that the obligations contracted by them with the Producer will not release the broadcasters from the obligations it contracted or will have to contract with the SACD or any collective society representing the SACD.”

Documents to complete and to join to the «bulletin de déclaration» (form to declare the work in the repertoire):

- Membership agreement
- Royalties payment method
- Authorization - Address
- Photocopy of the passport (ID page)
- Mandate (if agency)
- Cheque amounting to 80.00 $ for the membership

All the documents completed must be sent before the broadcast of the work.

Statutes and general regulations of SACD (.pdf)
Membership agreement (.pdf)
Royalties payment method (.pdf)
Authorization (.pdf)
Mandate (.pdf)

FILM
The form «bulletin de déclaration» must be completed and signed by all the co-authors, including the author of the book if need be.
- Copy of the contract

PERFORMING ART
The form «bulletin de déclaration» must be completed and signed by all the authors and composers if need be.

TELEVISION / DIRECTOR
The form «bulletin de déclaration» must be completed and signed by all the co-directors if need be.
- Copy of the contract
- Copy of the credits

TELEVISION / SCRIPTWRITER
The form «bulletin de déclaration» must be completed and signed by all the co-authors, including the author of the book if need be.
- Copy of the contract

Bulletin writer (.pdf) + Model how to complete the form (.pdf)
Bulletin director (.pdf)

© SACD 2004