From a media release:
Industry veterans and award-winning producers Michelle Mama and Bill Taylor today announced the launch of their boutique production company GAY AGENDA. With an aim to foster, mentor, and produce from a defiantly queer lens, and to discover and amplify the next generation of queer voices, the company is currently in various stages of development and production on a robust slate of feature films and scripted and factual TV and digital series. Production is currently underway throughout Canada and the U.S on the feature-length documentary AntiDiva: The Confessions of Carole Pope.
“Everything just clicked when I met Bill and I knew we could build something meaningful together. We share the same vision, work ethic, and commitment to giving back to the community,” said Michelle Mama. “We’re passionate about empowering talented queer creatives who have been misunderstood by the mainstream, and about depicting representations of queer people not in peril, grief, or living through tragedy – we’re in the business of creating and sharing queer joy.”
“Forming GAY AGENDA at a time when the world feels increasingly divisive, it’s important for us to tell our own stories that foster empathy, build bridges, and celebrate forgiveness and redemption,” said Bill Taylor.
Featuring interviews with music industry titans, making use of never-before-seen archival footage, and with exclusive access to Carole Pope today, AntiDiva: The Confessions of Carole Pope chronicles the fascinating career and current life of a queer maverick. Challenging mainstream notions about sex and sexuality with her band Rough Trade in a time when it was dangerous to be gay, the now 78-year-old icon is navigating a new chapter of her life – still gigging, working on a musical, and recording fresh new music with young artists in her thrall. Produced by Michelle Mama, Bill Taylor, and Allison Grace of Fall From Grace Productions, and written and directed by Michelle Mama, AntiDiva: The Confessions of Carole Pope is slated for release in 2025 on CBC Documentary Channel.
AntiDiva: The Confessions of Carole Pope was made possible with the support of the Canada Media Fund POV Program, the Ontario Creates Film Fund, the Hot Docs-Slaight Family Fund, and the Rogers Documentary Fund.
Additionally, GAY AGENDA is currently in various stages of development on the following projects:
- That’s Just Super (8×30) – queer superhero series created by Julianna Notten (Erin’s Guide to Kissing Girls) and co-showrun by veteran writer Anthony Q. Farrell (The Office, Shelved)
- Queer Elders (working title, 6×30) – documentary series directed by Maya Bastian (Farm Crime, Tigress)
- Daygamers (8×30) – adult animated series created by Lester Trips (Content Farm)
- My Fabulous Gay Orgasm (6×30) – comedic series created by Scott Jones
- Change Your Life Forever in 60 Days (6×16) – comedy web series created and produced by Ink Cap Productions
- 2 x formatted queer dating series – additional details to be released at a later date
MICHELLE MAMA is an award-winning, five-time Canadian Screen Award nominee who has been producing and directing in the factual and doc space for over two decades. Her most recent credits include executive producing doc feature Summer Qamp (TIFF ’23) Canada’s Drag Race Season 3 and “Canada vs. The World” (Crave), directing the trans makeover series Shine True (VICE), and show-running two seasons of the award-winning arts documentary series In The Making (CBC). Michelle most recently directed celebrated comic Mae Martin hosting of a special episode of The Nature of Things “Fluid: Beyond the Binary” (CBC) and had the pleasure of directing two 2024 Governor General Award films, produced by the National Film Board, honouring comedy icon Andrea Martin and puppeteering legend Ronnie Burkett.
BILL TAYLOR is an award-winning queer filmmaker who is committed to telling stories deeply rooted in the human condition. He began his career as a writer/director making several films that screened at festivals worldwide, including Silver Road (CBC, Iris Prize Nominee, MTV Logo), The Young Prime Minister (Bravo!), and Don’t Get Killed In Alaska. After directing, producing and writing his first feature, Bill turned his attention to television production, working on hundreds of hours of scripted and unscripted shows.
For more information, follow @we_are_gay_agenda and visit gay-agenda.ca.
Image courtesy of Lulu Wei.
