Participants announced for new regional training initiative, NSI Business For Producers – Atlantic Women’s Edition

NSI Business for Producers - Atlantic Women's Edition
Rachel-Young

Rachel Young

Outreach and Engagement Lead

Top row from left: Maja Jacob, Erica Meus-Saunders, Gia Milani; middle: Lynn Matheson, Renée Hackett, Jessica Brown; bottom row: Arianna Martinez, Jeana MacIsaac, Ruth Lawrence.

Today, through NSI Business for Producers – Atlantic Women’s Edition, nine Atlantic women set off on a new producing path as the first cohort of this regional training initiative.

The program, run by the National Screen Institute – Canada and program partner Canada Media Fund (CMF), is designed to foster the growth of women producing professionals in New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island. The program aims to enrich the region’s production community, and its position across Canada and globally.

This part-time, six week program will build on participants’ essential producing skills, including preparing a pitch package for a current project in development. The program is customized to the needs of each participant, and includes expert training from women in the industry including Joan Jenkinson (Black Screen Office), Gloria Ui Young Kim (writer/director, Queen of the Morning Calm) and Anne-Marie Gélinas (producer, Beans).

The National Screen Institute is proud to introduce the nine participants and their projects:

Learn more about the participants.

“Creating training and mentorship opportunities for women in the screen-based industry is part of CMF’s commitment to gender balance,” said Valerie Creighton, President and CEO, CMF. “We’re thrilled to partner with the National Screen Institute to support nine talented women producers from Atlantic Canada. This program will help broaden their skillset, as they take their stories to the next level and reach new audiences.”

Over the next six weeks, participants will take part in masterclasses and one-on-one consultations on topics including pitching and packaging a project; incorporation strategy and business affairs; budgets and financing; legal contracts / agreements; distribution / festival strategy; working with union / non-union and guilds; managing productions; case studies and more.

Participants will work with a content development consultant to prepare their pitch. The program will culminate in an online forum where participants will pitch their projects to a panel of industry experts for their feedback.

Program faculty includes National Screen Institute co-founder Jan Miller as program advisor and Amy Reitsma as program manager, both of whom are based in the Atlantic region.

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NSI Business for Producers – Atlantic Women’s Edition is funded by Program Partner Canada Media Fund (CMF); Strategic Sponsor Telefilm Canada; Provincial Sponsors Newfoundland & Labrador Film Development Corporation, FilmPEI, Province of New Brunswick; Industry Sponsor Nova Scotia Business Inc (NSBI) / Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA). NSI Core Funders are Manitoba Sport, Culture & Heritage and the City of Winnipeg through the Winnipeg Arts Council. More sponsors will be added as confirmed.

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About the National Screen Institute – Canada (NSI)

We partner with a visionary network of donors, businesses, and private and public organizations to provide industry-informed training in screen-based media, equipping creators across Canada with the skills to tell unforgettable stories.

By prioritizing storytellers from equity-deserving communities – including Black, Indigenous, People of Colour (BIPOC), women, LGBTQ2S+, people with disabilities, and those in regional and remote areas – we help build a more sustainable industry and a workforce ready to meet evolving market demands.

Our students and alumni find their voices and places on the global stage, strengthening the creative economy and shaping a better world.

Media enquiries

abiola.agbayewa@nsi-canada.ca


The National Screen Institute is supported by: Core Funders: Manitoba Sport, Culture and Heritage, the City of Winnipeg through the Winnipeg Arts Council; Benefactors: TELUS, Telefilm Canada, Canada Media Fund (CMF), Department for Women and Gender Equality (WAGE); Patrons: CBC, Paramount+, Creative Saskatchewan; Builders: APTN, TikTok Canada, Indigenous Screen Office (ISO), The Winnipeg Foundation; Strategic Sponsors: Manitoba Film & Music, Bell Media, RBC Emerging Artists, documentary Channel, CBC Gem, Centre for Aboriginal Human Resource Development (CAHRD), Alberta Film Commission, Creative BC, Manitoba Arts Council; Industry Partner: National Film Board of Canada; Friends: Ontario Creates, Société de développement des entreprises culturelles (SODEC), Bell FundWilliam F. White International, Company 3.