ManitobaA new — and free — film training program in Manitoba is being called revolutionary and the first of its kind in Canada.Northern and Diverse Creators program will offer free 1-day master class sessions in locations around provinceCBC News · Posted: Sep 19, 2025 2:49 PM EDT | Last Updated: 41 minutes agoThe Northern and Diverse Creators Program is intended to help more rural, Indigenous, Black, Ukrainian and 2SLGBTQ+ people get into the industry. (Getty Images)A new — and free — film training program in Manitoba is being called revolutionary and the first of its kind in Canada.The Northern and Diverse Creators Program, a collaboration between Film Training Manitoba and DOC Manitoba, is intended to help more rural, Indigenous, Black, Ukrainian and 2SLGBTQ+ people start or advance careers in the industry.”The new initiative provides accessible training for 220 underrepresented Manitoba based participants to break down barriers and and provide skills-focused training with direct application to our growing film production sector,” said Kevin Nikkel, who will be one of the instructors and is co-chair of DOC Manitoba — the provincial chapter of the Documentary Organization of Canada, an industry association for independent documentary-makers.The program will offer one-day master class sessions in Brandon (Oct. 2), Cranberry Portage (Oct. 28 and 29), Flin Flon (Oct. 29), The Pas (Oct. 30), Churchill (Oct. 25) and Winnipeg (Oct. 26 and 27).The classes are covered by the non-profit Canadian Media Fund so they can be offered free of charge to participants.”We’re thrilled that we have a federal partner that has made these arrangements and we have over 20 partners that have contributed either space or resources or funds to this program,” said Adam Smoluk, executive director of Film Training Manitoba, a non-profit that works to help build skills in the province’s film industry.”The vastness of our provinces and our territories” means there are “significant” costs to travel to many communities, he said. “So having support that we have, we’re very grateful.”Adam Smoluk, executive director of Film Training Manitoba, says if more people attend the sessions than the 220 that has been projected, every effort will be made to accommodate them. (Radio-Canada)The sessions in Winnipeg and Churchill will be led by Emmy-winning and Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Rory Kennedy.Other instructors include Charles Konowal, Mark Bailey and Libby Lea.If more people attend the sessions than the projected 220, every effort will be made to accommodate them, said Smoluk.There is a need to support under-represented groups in the film industry, as two recent studies suggest the number of Canadians from diverse backgrounds in the industry is on the decline, Film Training Manitoba stated in a news release.The share of key creative roles for those groups in film and TV was 30 per cent in 2020 and 33 per cent in 2021, according to the release, citing studies by the Women in View 2023 report and the Writer’s Guild of Canada’s 2023 Equity, Diversity and Inclusion report.That’s a decrease from 43 per cent in 2019.”So what we want to do is help these potential filmmakers,” said Smoluk.Sessions will be presented in a lecture-style, “where the instructor is going to provide learning on how you can create a project, how you can build your story,” he said.They’ll also look at “engaging with the funding agencies and how you can get a project potentially funded, and then what distribution looks like,” said Smoluk.”So another factor, too, is discussing how an individual could apply to festivals, how to engage with those festivals.”There will also be opportunities for question-and-answer periods, “so that we can tailor directly to that individual learner,” he said.Those interested in registering for sessions can do so online through Film Training Manitoba.The hope is to make the program an annual offering, but right now it is only planned for 2025.With files from Josh Crabb
New training program reaches out to under-represented, diverse filmmakers across Manitoba
