The National Screen Institute – Canada (NSI) warmly welcomes eight talented Indigenous filmmakers as they begin their NSI training journey as students of NSI IndigiDocs – a distance learning program providing training, mentorship and documentary film production.

Students are developing their documentary ideas with training sessions and mentorship from Canada’s most respected documentarians including director advisor Shane Belcourt (Red Rover, Indictment: The Crimes of Shelly Chartier), producer advisor and program alumna Michelle St. John (Merchants of the Wild, Colonization Road) program manager Elise Swerhone and associate program manager Kaya Wheeler. Lisa Meeches is NSI’s Indigenous training programs advisor.

• Miranda Currie with Tails on Ice (Yellowknife, NWT)

• Olivia Golosky with The Death of the Blueberry (Calgary, AB)

• Peter Brass with Indigenous Dad (Regina, SK)

• Rachel Beaulieu with Bad Reputation (Winnipeg, MB)

• Steven Davies with Joe Martin and the Dugout Canoe (Victoria, BC)

• Erica Daniels with Manito-Api (Winnipeg, MB)

• Heather Condo with The Mi’gmaq Fighter (Gesgapegiag, QC)

• Jarret Twoyoungmen with Tibi (Calgary, AB)

Right now, students are honing their writing, producing and directing skills, and will develop a script for their documentary idea. At the end of phase 1 all students will have a market-ready film proposal.

A jury will choose up to four students to go into production (phase 2). Each will receive a cash award of up to $16K and approximately $10K of in-kind services. Students are paired with an industry mentor to help with development and production. However, students will work in their own community for the majority of the time.

Phase 2 students also attend Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Film Festival in Toronto and work with the National Film Board of Canada for their final post. Completed films will be packaged as a one-hour special for APTN and individual films will be available on documentary channel, nfb.ca and nsifilms.ca.

Films made through the course have screened at festivals throughout Canada and internationally. ahkâmêyimo nitânis | Keep Going My Daughter had its world premiere at the 2019 Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival. Leave It On the Water screened at Māoriland Film Festival (2019), Seattle International Film Festival (2019) and won outstanding documentary film at CineVic’s Short Circuit Pacific Rim Film Festival in Victoria, BC (2019). A number of films made through the course have also screened at imagineNATIVE Film & Media Arts Festival, including ahkâmêyimo nitânis | Keep Going My Daughter, When the Children Left, Leave It On The Water, Nosisim (My Grandchild), Lost Moccasin, Cedar: Tree of Life and many more.

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NSI IndigiDocs 2019-21 is funded by Program Partners APTN, Manitoba Sport, Culture & Heritage and RBC Emerging Artists Project; Indigenous Training Programs Partner Directors Guild of Canada; Boot Camp Presenting Sponsor Manitoba Film & Music; Strategic Sponsor documentary Channel; Supporting Sponsors Telefilm Canada, Super Channel, CBC Gem, Corus Entertainment, A&E Television Networks; Provincial / Territorial Sponsors Manitoba Film & Music, Creative BC through the Daryl Duke and William Vince Scholarship Fund, Creative Saskatchewan, Saskatchewan Media Production Industry Association (SMPIA), Northwest Territories Film Commission; Industry Partner National Film Board; Industry Supporters imagineNATIVE Film & Media Arts Festival, Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival; Service Sponsor Line 21 Media; NSI Core Funders are Manitoba Sport, Culture & Heritage and the City of Winnipeg through the Winnipeg Arts Council. More partners to be added as confirmed.