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Industry News

Uvagut TV Breaks Ground as Canada’s First Inuit-Language TV Channel

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From a media release:

At 12:01 a.m. Monday, January 18, Nunavut Independent Television (NITV) makes history when it launches Canada’s first all-Inuit Inuktut TV channel.

Uvagut TV (“Our” TV) will broadcast 168 hours a week of Inuit-produced culture, arts, movies and information programming available nationally to more than 610,000* Shaw Direct customers as well as Arctic Co-ops Cable subscribers in Nunavut and NWT. Other satellite and cable systems will be added over the months ahead. Viewers around the world can stream Uvagut TV online 24/7 at uvagut.tv
(* Subscriber count current as of November 30, 2020)

Breaking ground as the first Indigenous–language channel and, with APTN, only the second Indigenous television service among 762 broadcasting in Canada, Uvagut TV increases total Indigenous-language television programming available to Canadian audiences by 500%.

Uvagut TV builds on the hard work of countless people over the past four decades who dreamed it was possible to deliver Inuktut television to Inuit audiences to preserve, promote and revitalize Inuit culture and language. The team behind Uvagut TV represented Canada at the 2019 Venice Biennale of Art, presenting the Inuit-language film One Day in the Life of Noah Piugattuk to mark the 2019 United Nations Year of Indigenous Languages.

“For me, Uvagut TV is a dream come true – to see Inuit culture and to hear our language full time on TV,” says Lucy Tulugarjuk, NITV Chair and Executive Director, and director of the Inuit-language children’s film, Tia and Piujuq. “As our elders pass away, we are fighting against time to keep Inuit culture and language alive for our children and grandchildren. TV in Inuktut all day every day is a powerful way to keep a living language for future generations.”

Filmmaker Dr. Zacharias Kunuk O.C., NITV co-founder and Head of Isuma, welcomes the historic breakthrough. “We’ve been independent from day one and after 35 years we finally have our own channel,” he says. “Our ancestors survived by the strength of their wits and their community. These new ways of storytelling can help Inuit survive for another thousand years. People who turn on Uvagut TV any time of day or night will see our own stories in our own language.”

Uvugat TV broadcasts five hours every day of Inuktut children’s programs including Inuit Broadcasting Corporation’s award-winning Takuginai series and programs by Inuvialuit Communications Society; shows by Isuma, Arnait Video, Artcirq, Kingulliit and Taqqut Productions; award-winning Inuktut movies like Atanarjuat The Fast Runner; classic series, documentaries and new programs like Silakut Live From the Floe Edge and Tunnganarnik broadcasting live from Nunavut communities and the remote arctic wilderness. Uvagut TV also will include live coverage of the upcoming Nunavut Impact Review Board Public Hearings into the controversial Baffinland Iron Mine Phase 2 expansion, bringing vital transparent coverage of this issue live to Inuit, national and global audiences.

About Uvagut TV & NITV
Uvagut TV is Canada’s first 24/7 Inuktut television channel created by Nunavut Independent Television Network (NITV) and IsumaTV with programs from Inuit Broadcasting Corporation and other Inuit independent producers hosted on www.isuma.tv. NITV is an Inuit-owned and controlled non-profit Northern Online Distributor and Eligible Broadcaster. Founded in 1991 in Igloolik, Nunavut, as a training centre for Inuit community filmmaking, NITV is dedicated to the enhancement and preservation of Inuktut and Inuit culture through the creation and exhibition of Inuit video art linking Nunavut communities through Internet television channels and local access internet-TV, media training and digital literacy initiatives, and the production and distribution of Inuktut video, film, and now broadcast television.

Uvagut TV gratefully acknowledges launch support provided by the Indigenous Screen Office.

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Industry News

Pacific Screenwriting Program launches new Story Department Internship

From a media release:

The Pacific Screenwriting Program announced today that the new Story Department Internship, an initiative established to help writers in British Columbia committed to a career in scripted television, is now open for submissions.

Building on their commitment to provide support and career-advancement opportunities to BC-based television writers, the new Story Department Internship is designed for British Columbian writers already working in the film and television industry, and emerging writers who are seeking a focused professional development opportunity. The Story Department Internship is reimagined from the previous CMPA/Creative BC internship to include both production and development room roles, which gave rise to some amazing British Columbia writers including Sarah Dodd, Showrunner in Residence of the first Scripted Series Lab in 2019.

Writer/Interns may seek opportunities within productions or development rooms to be eligible to apply for the program. Applicants are responsible for contacting and arranging potential production companies and mentors ahead of the application process, and each internship will be evaluated on a first-come, first-served basis until the budget has been fully committed for the fiscal year. Potential interns may be requested to attend an interview. Full eligibility and submission details can be found here.

We will be hosting an Information Session on January 13, at 7 pm PST to answer any questions about the program and the submission process. To attend, please visit our RSVP page. You can also submit questions ahead of the session via email to info@pacificscreenwriting.com.

Learn more about the Pacific Screenwriting Story Department Internship and submit your application here: https://pacificscreenwriting.com/story-department-internship/

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Industry News

WarnerMedia and the Canadian Academy join forces to provide opportunity for experienced Canadian writers from underrepresented communities

From a media release:

The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television (the Canadian Academy) and WarnerMedia announced today that the WarnerMedia x Canadian Academy Global Access Writers Program, a talent activation initiative focused on experienced Canadian writers from underrepresented communities, is now open for submissions through Friday, December 18, 2020 on Academy.ca/WMAccess_Writers.

The WarnerMedia x Canadian Academy Global Access Writers Program is offered in English and French to storytellers of all genders, abilities and identities from underrepresented communities in Canada, including members of Indigenous, Black, racialized groups, people with disabilities, LGBTQ2+ and Francophone minority communities. These creators are experts in their craft but may not have had the opportunity to reach their full industry potential, and whose individual voices and perspectives need to be heard and amplified. Over a period of roughly nine months, the eight to 12 applicants selected will have the opportunity to hone their artistry; gain deeper industry knowledge; and experience invaluable exposure to WarnerMedia executives, creators and established industry professionals, as well as workshop an unfinished script into a viable draft.

Following the closure of submissions on Friday, December 18, 2020, WarnerMedia and the Canadian Academy will conduct internal, peer, and juried reviews to determine the eight to 12 participants of the program. The inaugural class of the WarnerMedia x Canadian Academy Global Access Writers Program will begin in June 2021.

WarnerMedia and the Canadian Academy are jointly committed to elevating the voices of underrepresented Canadian creators on their path to achieving global success and exposure. Following the announcement of a multi-year partnership earlier this year, the WarnerMedia x Canadian Academy Global Access Writers Program is the first in a pair of programs focused on increasing representation and building a more inclusive and innovative industry both in front of and behind the camera. WarnerMedia will be launching several initiatives over the next several months for above and below-the-line talent across the country. The initiatives aim to nurture a sustainable pipeline of Canadian talent as the global demand for unique voices and authentic content grows.

The WarnerMedia x Canadian Academy Global Access Writers Program is a multi-year initiative sponsored by WarnerMedia and administered by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television, in collaboration with Telefilm Canada.

Learn more about the WarnerMedia x Canadian Academy Global Access Writers Program and submit your application at Academy.ca/WMAccess_Writers.

For announcements and program details, subscribe to the Canadian Academy’s newsletter at Academy.ca.Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail

Industry News

Link: CFC and Netflix announce the creators and TV series concepts selected for Project Development Accelerator

From a media release:

The Canadian Film Centre (CFC) and Netflix are proud to announce the creators and TV series projects selected for the inaugural TV series portion of the CFC/Netflix Project Development Accelerator, an individually tailored development initiative, which runs from September to November 2020.

The CFC/Netflix Project Development Accelerator is a three-month accelerator designed to offer advanced project development and workshopping support for the four selected TV series projects. Tailored to their specific creative and business needs, the Accelerator will see these creators and projects benefit from international creative and marketplace expertise and feedback from Netflix executives, as well as a range of additional industry professionals, to help them elevate and amplify their original series on an international level.

MEET THE PARTICIPANTS AND THEIR TV SERIES PROJECTS:

 Alter Boys
Creator/Writer: Jonathan Lawrence; Producer: Ryan Wilson Cooper
Format/Genre: Half-hour drama

Alter Boys follows a group of young men who are thrust into furtive practices of conversion therapy in an isolated camp veiled by the woods. The new camp director’s aggressive program leaves the men struggling to navigate one summer’s haunting interplay of hope and ruin.

Jonathan Lawrence is a Winnipeg-based Indigiqueer filmmaker and actor who has produced several award-winning short and feature films and has appeared on both stage and screen. Most recently, Jonathan is working to expand his latest short film into a limited drama series. Jonathan aims to create evocative work that draws on a distillation of human vulnerability and brokenness amid visceral landscapes and the beauty therein.

#RELATIONSHIPGOALS
Creators/Writers: Jennifer Holness and Sudz Sutherland
Format/Genre: Half-hour comedy/drama

 #RELATIONSHIPGOALS follows Keisha Winters, a relationship blogger, podcast host and artsy divorced mom, who lives with her supremely capable daughter, Kelly, and her very Jamaican mother, Althea. Together, these women represent three generations of Black girl magic – all under the same roof, and all with strong opinions. About everything. Through the crazy stories that land in Keisha’s inbox, to the guests on her podcast and her own complicated personal life, #RelationshipGoals explores the funny side of friendship, family, life and love.

Jennifer Holness is an award-winning writer, producer and director. She created the TV series Shoot the Messenger and the award-winning mini-series Guns for CBC. She has produced numerous docs, including Stateless (PBS), which won the Hot Docs 2020 Special Jury Prize for Canadian Feature Documentary. Her dramatic feature, Home Again, was nominated for two CSAs and earned her a DGC nomination for Best Directing. Additionally, Jennifer produced Love, Sex and Eating the Bones, which won nine festival awards, including Best Canadian First Feature Film at TIFF 2003. Currently, she is directing the feature documentary Subjects of Desire and is developing the drama series Talk to Me with BellMedia.

Sudz Sutherland is an award-winning writer and director who has directed two award-winning features, Home Again and Love, Sex and Eating the Bones (Best Canadian First Feature Film, TIFF 2003), as well as more than 75 hours of television on shows including Batwoman, The Flash, Blindspot, Designated Survivor, Reign, Murdoch Mysteries, and many others. Additionally, Sudz co-created the series She’s the Mayor (VisionTV), Shoot the Messenger (CBC) and Guns (CBC). He has won an International Emmy for his work on The Phantoms, three CSAs for Best Direction and one CSA for Best Writing. Sudz is currently developing a drama series entitled Talk to Me with Bell Media, as well as a feature, Everything is Everything.

The Ageless
Creator/Writer: Faisal Lutchmedial
Format/Genre: One-hour sci-fi action/drama

The Ageless is a serialized one hour sci-fi action drama that follows an elderly WWII vet, who, once transformed by an age reversal experiment back into his young Nazi fighting prime, sets out to dismantle a fascist cult of the eternally young.

Faisal Lutchmedial is a screenwriter who most recently wrote on Endlings (CBC / Hulu) and Ransom (CBS / Global). He was invited to develop his latest feature screenplay The Voices Inside at TIFF Writers Studio in 2019. Faisal’s director credits include the short Useless Things, which won the Writers Guild of Canada English Script Prize at the Festival Nouveau Cinema Montreal, and the labour rights feature documentary My Cultural Divide.

girl
Creator/Writer: Pat Mills
Format/Genre: One-hour comedy/drama

Taylor gets ‘mistaken’ for a girl on the first day of high school. Instead of correcting everyone, Taylor runs with it and learns first-hand what it’s like to be a teenage girl – but is the perception of their gender more accurate than what Taylor is prepared for?

Pat Mills is a Toronto-based writer/director. His first feature, Guidance, was hailed as a “Grade A” comedy by the Los Angeles Times and was a New York Times Critics’ Pick. His sophomore feature, Don’t Talk to Irene, won Best Comedy Screenplay at the Austin Screenplay Competition, and two Canadian Comedy Awards (Best Feature; Best Writing in a Feature), among other festival awards. Pat was named one of MovieMaker Magazine’s 25 Screenwriters to Watch and was University of Toronto’s Universal Studios Screenwriter-in-Residence in 2018/19. He is currently in post on the queer thriller The Retreat (Alyson Richards Productions/Clique Pictures), and recently directed Queens, a drag queen comedy series for CBC Gem.

 

The CFC/Netflix Project Development Accelerator is one component of the larger Netflix/CFC Global Project, which supports Canada’s traditionally underserved creatives, including Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPOC), women, LGBTQ2S+, Francophone creators (French as a first language), and creators living with disabilities.

The two additional accelerators, the Calling Card and Marketplace Accelerators, are yearlong accelerators, which, to date, have supported more than a dozen projects, ranging from shorts to features and TV series. For more information on specific projects and participants, please visit https://bit.ly/2SwOLkA.

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Industry News

First UK-Canadian co-production programme for immersive storytelling launches

From a media release:

A new immersive talent development and co-production fund for UK and Canadian artists, filmmakers and creators is set to launch with its first cohort in November 2020. It is the first exchange programme dedicated to immersive storytelling between the UK and Canada, and it will have a total co-production fund of CAD 510,000 (GBP 300,000) on offer. The programme, which is now open for applications until September 17, will establish international collaborations to pioneer new forms of immersive storytelling by bringing together a wealth of backgrounds and experiences from theatre, performing and visual arts, games, TV, film, and other forms of digital and interactive media.

The year-long programme is supported by a newly formed international collaboration between StoryFutures Academy (run by the National Film and Television School and Royal Holloway, University of London), Arts Council England, the Canada Media Fund, The Canadian Film Centre’s Media Lab (CFC Media Lab) and the Canada Council for the Arts.

The UK-Canada Immersive Exchange, which begins in November, will support and champion an international cohort of artists, filmmakers and creators from Canada and the UK aiming to be future leaders of immersive storytelling. They will work with emerging technologies, including virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR). Mentors and experts from across the UK and Canadian creative landscape will support the programme, including those highly skilled in brokering international co-productions.

A total of 24 creatives will be selected to participate, comprising six ‘creative leads’ and six ‘creative producers’ from each country. Creative leads will be a mixture of artists, filmmakers, theatre directors and visionaries who can drive the creative direction of a project, while creative producers will bring the business skills and immersive production experience needed to make these projects a reality. The programme will then provide the cohort with creative development opportunities, business and sector-specific knowledge, understanding of a new international market, key industry contacts, and an opportunity to apply for a dedicated fund to support collaborative international co-productions. All participants will receive a fixed development grant of CAD 3,400 (GBP 2,000) to contribute towards their time spent on the initial talent development stage of the programme. In a later stage, the participants can pitch for co-production financing, with a total fund of CAD 510,000 (GBP 300,000) available between the countries. This will fund a mixture of projects between CAD 42,500 (GBP 25,000) and CAD 170,000 (GBP 100,000). The programme will conclude with final projects delivered by November 1, 2021.

Applicants are encouraged to apply now for the UK-Canadian Immersive Exchange at immersive-exchange.com. The deadline for applications is 12 p.m. EDT / 5 p.m. BST on Thursday, September 17, 2020. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the programme will run sessions remotely. Pending the lifting of travel and working restrictions in 2021, opportunities for in-person workshops and exchanges between Canada and the UK will be explored.

The programme was founded following an international immersive research and innovation symposium and cultural exchange organized by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and the Canada Media Fund’s CFC Media Lab (CMF).

The programme marks the first international co-production for StoryFutures Academy, a UKRI Audience of the Future-funded initiative. Arts Council England previously developed the accelerator programme CreativeXR, for the creation of immersive experiences, in partnership with Digital Catapult, which is currently in its third consecutive year with 20 new projects recently announced. CFC Media Lab is a leader in the development of transformational technologies, entertainment and businesses. Since its founding in 1997, CFC Media Lab has produced or collaborated on dozens of groundbreaking interactive digital media properties, and accelerated dozens of digital media and entertainment companies.

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