2019 Festival Panels

We’re excited to bring you this year’s line-up of top-notch panels and workshops from industry leading people from across the the country at this year’s festival.

Access and Understanding – Indigenous Storytelling and Ways of Working

From the creation of Canada’s Indigenous Screen Office to national conversations around truth and reconciliation, audiences are accessing and understanding Indigenous film content in new ways.

Aimed at Indigenous and non-Indigenous filmmakers and producers alike, this candid panel will discuss the groundbreaking work being done to address the historically inequitable relationship between Canada’s film industry and Indigenous filmmakers and communities.

Panelists

Jesse Wente – Indigenous Screen Office
Marcia Nickerson – Indigenous Governance Consultant
Shane Belcourt – Filmmaker and Producer
Charlotte Engel (Moderator) – CBC
Jon Montes (Moderator) – NFB

How Documentary Filmmakers Can Get – and Keep – Access to Characters and Worlds

A key part of making a documentary is getting people, organizations, businesses and government agencies to allow you to film with them. Negotiating that access and keeping it can be difficult. The more delicate the story, characters and arena – and potentially the more fragile or vulnerable they are – the greater the challenge. So, what are the secrets to getting and keeping access? What are the ethical considerations? How do you balance what you need as a storyteller with what the subject’s needs and agendas are?

Panelists

Robert Hardy (Moderator) – Perfect Day Productions
Panelists TBA

Meet the Decision Makers

Looking for the right partner or buyer for your project? Sit down with broadcasters, development executives, distributors and executive producers to find out what they’re looking for, ask questions and talk about your projects.

Representatives

Pitch-O-Rama

Test your pitching skills and be judged by an esteemed panel of broadcasters, directors and distributors. This is not your regular pitch session so leave your pitches at home. Be brave and spin the Wheel of Spin and see what idea you and your team will be forced to pitch.

Lead by

Charlotte Engel – CBC

Pitching Masterclass with Daniel Cross

Let me show you the paved way to money, with cameos from the Muppets, Werner Hezog and Chairman George. Learn the tricks to pitch your way to success.

Presenter

Daniel Cross

Powerfully Short!

Never underestimate the power of a short film. Art in its own right, it can win Oscars, tell touching universal stories, and be a spring-board to feature films. In this lively panel discussion, we’ll hear from a variety of award-winning drama directors that have leveraged their short films to create even more opportunities for their directing careers.

Panelists

Panelists TBA
Erin Mussolum (Moderator)

Straight from the Top

A conversation with Claude Joli-Cœur, CEO of the National Film Board and Valerie Creighton, President and CEO of the Canada Media Fund (CMF). Their conversation will be moderated by Daniel Cross.

Presenter(s)

Daniel Cross, Moderator
Claude Joli-Cœur, CEO of the National Film Board
Valerie Creighton, President and CEO of the Canada Media Fund (CMF)

Super Hands On

This Film is Getting Made

The collaborative art of filmmaking can be a myth when no one else shares your vision. If you’re prepared to move heaven and earth to make your movie, come and hear from a trio of filmmakers who have done likewise, sparing no effort to achieve their unique vision(s).

Because it’s not that they want to make movies, it’s because they HAVE TO.

Panelists

Cam Bennett (Moderator) – Bell MTS
Lindsay McIntyre – Film Artist
Mike Maryniuk – Filmmaker
Mike Rollo – Filmmaker