Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• A Part of Me (Vancouver, BC)

Andrew Ahn is a queer Korean American filmmaker based in Los Angeles.

Andrew’s latest film The Wedding Banquet (Bleecker Street) starring Lily Gladstone, Bowen Yang and Kelly Marie Tran premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival.

Fire Island (Searchlight Pictures) was nominated for two Emmy Awards and won the Ensemble Tribute at the 2023 Gotham Awards and a GLAAD Award for Outstanding Film Streaming / TV.

Andrew’s sophomore feature Driveways premiered at Berlinale 2019 and was nominated for two Independent Spirit Awards.

Andrew’s first film Spa Night premiered at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival and won a special jury award for breakthrough performance. The film went on to win the 2017 John Cassavetes Film Independent Spirit Award.

Andrew has directed both fiction and documentary television, including shows Bridgerton and Generation. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• A Story of Resilience – The South Asian Community in Lethbridge (Lethbridge, AB)

Carlo Alcos is a Filipino-Canadian filmmaker, videographer and sound professional based in Nelson, BC.

Starting as a writer and editor in 2008, he moved into video production in 2016 and now works across documentary shorts, performance pieces and community-focused media.

From 2022 to 2025 he wrote, directed, produced and edited Outsiderness, a documentary on identity and belonging as a second-generation Filipino-Canadian. It blended archival material, interviews and footage from the Philippines. It premiered at the Capitol Theatre in June 2025, alongside Ahon, a short film that he edited.

His credits include sound work for CBC’s The Nature of Things, videography for the Toronto Blue Jays and collaborations with Kootenay nonprofits.

Based in Nelson since 2010, he has served on the Nelson Civic Theatre Society board, the Columbia Kootenay Cultural Alliance Steering Committee and is executive director of Intercultural Kootenays.

His work centres representation, equity and authentic community storytelling. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Keeping The Dream Alive (Penticton, BC)
• Kwong Hing Lung: Skating Through History (Vernon, BC)

Mentored in Anniversary Edition:

• Black Light Unveiled, Choose the Power Within You (Kamloops, BC)
• The Ebb and Flow of the Toxic Drug Supply (Chilliwack, BC)

Cheryl Binning is a showrunner, series producer, director and writer who has spent over 15 years working in factual and documentary television.

Her showrunning credits include the upcoming the CBC series Must Love Dogs starring Winnipeg Blue Bomber running back Brady Oliviera; two seasons of the HGTV Canada / Hulu series Pamela’s Garden of Eden, following Baywatch star Pamela Anderson as she renovates her family legacy property on Vancouver Island; and the Discovery Canada series Bush Wreck Rescue and Jade Fever.

Before moving into television production, Cheryl was a lifestyle and entertainment reporter with the Winnipeg Free Press. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Three Stories and a Bowl of Noodle Soup (Victoria, BC)

Jon Chiang is an award-winning Chinese-Peruvian filmmaker and founder of Chifa Studios.

Growing up straddling multiple identities, his upbringing has shaped the sensitivity to which he approaches his subjects.

He’s worked with broadcasters such as CBC, Knowledge Network and TELUS Originals and his films have screened at Whistler Film Festival, Vancouver Asian Film Festival (VAFF), Atlantic International Film Festival, Reel Asian, Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival and NOWNESS, among others. 
 
He co-wrote and directed Our Ocean Table (2026), a Jackson Wild nominated 3×22 minute series exploring Korean culture and ocean conservation for TELUS Originals. The series is set to release and stream nationwide in spring 2026. 
 
His first feature documentary, Spring After Spring (2025) follows three sisters as they reunite to lead Vancouver’s Chinatown Parade, forced to choose between honouring their past and letting it go. It won the award for best Canadian feature at VAFF and will air on Knowledge Network in 2026. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Mana (“Inheritance”) (Vancouver, BC)

Mentored in Anniversary Edition :

• Settler’s Questions (Penticton, BC)
• UNDUing Stigma (Prince George, BC)

Cari Green has been producing award-winning social issue documentary films for over 30 years. Films such as The Learning Path, The Corporation and Scared Sacred have screened at Sundance, International Documentary Filmfestival Amsterdam, Hot Docs Festival and Toronto International Film Festival.

Cari has produced the works of leading filmmakers, including Loretta Todd, Velcrow Ripper and Barb Cranmer.

She has a background in marketing with Moving Images Distribution, and she has also taught film production at University of British Columbia (UBC), Emily Carr University of Art and Design, Langara College and Vancouver Film School.

A long-time advocate for documentary film, Cari served on the board of the Hot Docs Festival and was co-chair of DOC BC and DOXA Documentary Festival.

She has an MFA in film production from UBC, is a recipient of the Mayor’s Arts Award and received an honourary lifetime membership from Women in Film and Television (GEMS) for her contribution to the film industry.

Cari is a producer of Not Quite That and continues to work as a mentor and advisor in the film industry.

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• China Lily: Where North Meets South (Vancouver, BC)

Mentoring in Scripted Edition:

• Senior Discount (Victoria, BC)

Mentored in Anniversary Documentary Edition:

• Beyond the Dungeon (Lethbridge, AB)
• FSJ Bayanihan Spirit (Fort St. John, BC)

Barbara Todd Hager (Métis/Cree) is a documentary producer, director and writer.

She is the creator of four television series including 1491: The Untold Story of the Americas Before Columbus (APTN, ZDFE), Down2Earth (APTN) and All Our Relations II (APTN).

1491 won Leo Awards in 2018 for best documentary series, best screenwriting and best music composition.

Barbara is the director of five documentaries including Leaving Beringia (TELUS Independent), Truth Dance and Reconciliation (CBC, APTN) and Forbidden Music (Knowledge).

She is currently directing and co-producing the feature documentary Tomson Highway: Permanent Astonishment (CBC, APTN) with White Pine Pictures.

Barbara mentors emerging filmmakers through TELUS STORYHIVE and Whistler Film Festival’s Indigenous Film Fellowship program.

She has served on the board of directors for Whistler Film Festival, Victoria Film Festival, DOC Canada and the Alliance of Aboriginal Media Professionals. 

Mentoring Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• KAJI かじ: Okinawan Canadian Diaspora in Southern Alberta (Lethbridge, AB)
• On The Edge of Home (Lloydminster, AB)

Yuqi Kang is a Mongol Chinese Canadian filmmaker whose work navigates the intimate and the epic, often inhabiting liminal spaces between cultures, identities and emotional truths.

Her debut feature, A Little Wisdom (2017), premiered at Busan International Film Festival, SXSW, Karlovy Vary International Film Festival and Shanghai International Film Festival. It won multiple awards including best Canadian feature at Hot Docs Festival and the grand jury award at DOC NYC.

Her second feature, 7 Beats Per Minute (2024), premiered at SXSW, won multiple festival awards and received a Canadian theatrical release in 2025. It is currently headlining the Ocean Film Tour with more than 180 screenings across 16 countries in Europe and Asia – where it won the audience award – and is also touring with Banff China across major cities through 2025 and 2026.

Yuqi’s first two features were both nominated for the Jean-Marc Vallée DGC Discovery Award.

Her third feature documentary, Fruit Is Ripe, commissioned by TELUS Originals, premiered at the 2025 Calgary International Film Festival. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Grandpa Kong Kong’s House of Kung Fu (Vancouver, BC)

Jason Karman holds a master of fine arts in film production and creative writing from the University of British Columbia.

His films, which explore Asian diaspora and LGBTQ+ stories, have been showcased internationally.

His short film, Lions in Waiting, was featured by Telefilm Canada’s Not Short on Talent at Clermont–Ferrand in 2018 and screened at BFI Flare 2018.

Jason’s debut feature, Golden Delicious, supported by Telefilm Canada’s Talent to Watch program, has screened at 62 film festivals worldwide, earning 14 awards.

A directing member of the Directors Guild of Canada, Jason also serves as an auxiliary instructor at Capilano University’s School of Motion Picture Arts in Canada.

He is presently developing his second feature film in collaboration with Canadian writer Tammy Tsang. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Salsa Saved Me (Kelowna, BC)

Mentoring in Scripted Edition:

• A Bundle of B*s (Edmonton, AB)
• Bismillah (Edmonton, AB)

Mentored in Anniversary Documentary Edition:

• Farm to Table (Edmonton, AB)
• Practise As Ceremony: The Making of Community (Edmonton, AB)

Ava Karvonen is a second-generation filmmaker who loves to travel.

Her work has been recognized with more than 70 international awards and nominations and 120 worldwide screenings.

She recently produced the critically acclaimed feature documentaries Finding Bobbi, Wochiigii-lo: End Of The Peace (screened at 20 festivals including a premiere at Toronto International Film Festival) and Lessons From The Sunflower (which she also directed).

She directed seasons one and two of Chaos and Courage; The Lie Detective (producer and creator); Homefront (producer) which took her to Afghanistan; and Seeds of Change (director) which took her to China.

She is currently in production on Going Fiercely, a deeply personal and intimate feature documentary that tells the story of an artist’s determination to experience the closing chapter of her life with dignity, meaning and purpose and the challenges her daughter faces in helping to make that possible.

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Casket Case (Vancouver, BC)
• Mah, Jon (Edmonton, AB)

Derek Kwan is a Chinese-Canadian filmmaker who strives to cook up unique narrative flavours for the screen. He is based in Vancouver.

He wrote and directed the short film, 100 Days. In 2023, the film was selected for the Telefilm Canada Not Short on Talent Cannes program and won outstanding short director at the 2023 Reelworld Film Festival. In 2024, the film competed on season 17 of the CBC Short Film Face Off and won the Telefilm Canada Short Film Face Off Award.

Having garnered experience across narrative and documentary storytelling, Derek was one of eight mid-level producers selected as part of the inaugural Bell Media / BIPOC TV & Film Unscripted Producers Lab 2023 with a focus on showrunning.

As a first assistant director (1st AD), Derek has worked on various projects screening at festivals worldwide including award winners at SXSW and Vancouver International Film Festival.

Derek is also an actor and can be seen on The Last Airbender (Netflix), Yellowjackets (Showtime), co-starring on Space Force (Netflix) and recurring on the upcoming series Trinity (Netflix). 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Hello, I am Deceased (Vancouver, BC)
• Turntable (Kamloops, BC)

Karen Lam has worked full-time in the film and television industry since 2000.

Starting her career as a producer and entertainment lawyer, Karen was one of the architects of the British Columbia tax credit program before being recruited by PwC accounting firm to assist with creating tax shelters for their US studio clients.

Since leaving the world of film finance, Karen has written and directed 10 short horror films and three music videos. She has directed two seasons of the true crime series Very Bad Men for Discovery+ and a web series Mythos (2015) for TELUS.

She has also directed five feature-length films, including Stained (2010), Evangeline (2013) and The Curse of Willow Song (2020), Bring It On: Cheer or Die (2023) and Armageddon Road (2025). 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Silk Moth Dream (Edmonton, AB)
• Maya (Edmonton, AB)

Mentoring in Scripted Edition:

• Across Two Worlds (Surrey, BC)
• The Last Flight (Burnaby, BC)

Arnold Lim is a writer, director and producer.

He recently directed his second Telefilm-funded feature film The Bryce Lee Story in summer 2025.

He won the Directors Guild of Canada (DGC) BC Greenlight award established category for Obscura / 옵스큐라, which also won a 2024 Leo Award for best screenwriting and best short film.

He is a video journalist of more than a decade, a photography manager for five Olympic Games, a past recipient of Telefilm’s Talent to Watch grant (twice) and a graduate of the National Screen Institute’s NSI Features First program.

He has been a recipient of awards and grants from the BC Arts Council, Canada Council for the Arts, BravoFACT and the Harold Greenberg Fund. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Brides Beyond Borders: A Filipino-Canadian Story (Kelowna, BC)

Thea Loo is a producer and director from Vancouver.

Her films have screened at Sundance, Palm Springs ShortFest and Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF), with distribution on Crave, CBC Gem and the digital TIFF Lightbox.

Her debut TV documentary Inay (Mama), commissioned by Knowledge Network, premiered in New York in 2024 and won the Arbutus Award for Best BC Film at VIFF.

Her latest short film project Tears Burn to Ash was shot on location in Japan and premiered at VIFF 2025. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Learning to be Chinese (Vernon, BC)
• Chinese School (Victoria, BC)

Mentoring in Scripted Edition:

• On Gordon Alley (Kelowna, BC)
• Green is the colour of evil (North Vancouver, BC)

Mentored in Anniversary Documentary Edition:

• Casting Shadows (Dawson Creek, BC)
• Small Town, Big Sound (Terrace, BC)

Ryan Mah is a filmmaker based in Vancouver.

He has been producing and directing documentary content for TELUS, AMI, CBC and Knowledge Network.

Alongside Black Rhino Creative partner Danny Berish, he released his feature film debut Arthur Erickson: Beauty Between the Lines theatrically and it is broadcasting on Knowledge Network.

He was also lauded for his work on the five-part series House Special (TELUS), a culinary journey through small town Asian food joints. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• You Dim Sum You Lose Some (Victoria, BC)

Gillian McKercher is a Canadian filmmaker and co-founder of Kino Sum Productions.

Her work has been programmed by Santa Barbara International Film Festival, Cinequest, Vancouver International Film Festival, TIFF Lightbox and the Dave Barber Cinematheque.

Her feature films Circle of Steel and Lucky Star, the latter developed through the CFC / Netflix Project Accelerator, have each won an audience award at the Calgary International Film Festival.

Her documentary projects include the CBC Television specials Borrowed from Nature and Orphaned.

Previously, Gillian worked in the oil and gas sector after achieving a degree in chemical engineering from the University of Calgary. During that time, she received a Young Artist Prize from the Alberta Foundation for the Arts.

She is an alumna of the Canadian Film Centre and was named to the 2024 10 to Watch by Playback Magazine. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Goals Beyond Borders: Farkhunda Muhtaj’s Journey from Athlete to Advocate (Calgary, AB)

Mentoring in Scripted Edition:

• The Eldest Daughter (Edmonton, AB)

Nimisha Mukerji is an award-winning director best known for Hulu’s Emmy–nominated limited series Under the Bridge, the hit CBS action series Tracker and David E. Kelley’s crime drama Big Sky for ABC.

Recently, she was nominated for a Canadian Screen Award for directing on season one of the CBC / NBCU police drama series Allegiance and was the directing producer on seasons two and three.

Additional directing credits include the Emmy Award-winning episode of Life By Ella for Apple TV+, the Netflix original drama series My Life with the Walter Boys and Virgin River.

A critically acclaimed filmmaker, Nimisha’s work has premiered at Tribeca Festival and Toronto International Film Festival.

Her breakout feature 65_RedRoses was selected by Oprah Winfrey for her documentary club on OWN and Jacinta won the Albert Maysles Award at Tribeca before being broadcast as a Hulu Original.

She is represented by the Kaplan Stahler Agency and Writ Large. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Curry Without Borders (Red Deer, AB)

With more than 25 years of production experience, Laura O’Grady brings a steady and creative hand to all projects.

From national broadcasters to films that have screened around the world, Laura has directed, produced and written hundreds of hours of content and still gets excited by each and every unique puzzle that comes with television and media production. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Migratory dreams: Hopes and struggles of young immigrants from India (Kamloops, BC)

Baljit Sangra is an award-winning Vancouver-based filmmaker whose work spotlights underrepresented and marginalized voices.

Her films have premiered at major festivals worldwide. She wrote and directed the acclaimed National Film Board feature, Because We Are Girls, which explores the impact of sexual abuse on a Punjabi family in BC. The film premiered at Hot Docs Festival in 2019, opened at DOXA Documentary Film Festival, continues to screen internationally and has garnered over 18 million minutes of views on Amazon Prime.

Baljit’s latest feature, Have You Heard Judi Singh (Knowledge Network), revives the story of a groundbreaking Black-Punjabi jazz singer of the 1960s.

In 2024, she produced the sports documentary Mareya Shot, Keetah Goal: Make the Shot (TELUS Originals / TVO), examining both the aspirations and the barriers faced by South Asian hockey hopefuls.

Her other broadcast documentaries include the award-winning Many Rivers Home and the historical portrait Have You Forgotten Me? 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Falling in Action (Edmonton, AB)

Mentored in Anniversary Documentary Edition:

• Kelty’s Kello (Edmonton, AB)
• Accessible? (Lloydminster, AB)

Adam Scorgie is an award-winning Canadian producer and founder of Score G Productions, dedicated to telling bold, human stories at the intersection of sports, culture and social impact.

His documentary work includes Inmate #1: The Rise of Danny Trejo (Universal Pictures), Bisping (Universal Pictures), Breaking Olympia: The Phil Heath Story, Thunder: The Life & Death of Arturo Gatti and Tootoo. These are alongside ongoing projects with partners including Maximum Effort, Seven Bucks, Super Channel and OEG Sports & Entertainment.

Adam’s productions have screened at top festivals worldwide and reached audiences across major global platforms.

Known for championing underrepresented voices and creating films that inspire resilience and connection, he continues to develop premium documentary series and features that celebrate perseverance, community and cultural impact. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Tender Nihari (Calgary, AB)

Lisa Rose Snow is a Canadian Screen Award and Directors Guild of Canada Award-winning director, writer and creator who is passionate about timeless stories with strong visual style that smash stereotypes, celebrate the underdog and raise the vibration.

She has directed and written for companies including Netflix, the CW, HBO Max, Prime Video, ABC, Lifetime and CBC, and her original short films have played on four continents.

Her latest film, a queer rom-com, is set to air on CW / CTV this winter. Lisa has created series that are currently in development with Sphere Media / Red Monk (Canada / Italy co-pro), Tom Lynch Company and Fifth Ground Entertainment.

She is a graduate of the Canadian Film Centre’s Screenwriting Lab and the Reykjavik Film Festival Talent Lab.

She was awarded the Telefilm New Voices Award and the WIFT-AT Women Making Waves Award.

Lisa gives back by serving on the executive board of the Directors Guild of Canada (DGC Ontario) as the Directors Caucus Representative.

She definitely believes in magic. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• The Village (Calgary, AB)

Mentoring in Scripted Edition:

• Crumbs (Calgary, AB)

Mentored in Anniversary Documentary Edition:

• Fringe Movements: Ethnic Dance in White Alberta (Calgary, AB)
• Sticks & Sikhs (Chestermere, AB)

Nina Sudra is a Canadian director, producer, writer and actor.

She is committed to creating dialogue about social issues revolving around the multicultural experience in Western countries.

She has embraced her passion for filmmaking as a powerful tool to build bridges between people of different ages and cultures.

Her films have traveled the globe and touched many lives. These works have encouraged conversations between a varied spectrum of people, from children in impoverished villages to graduate students in universities.

Nina’s films have received national and international accolades and have won several awards. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Shifting Seas (Nanaimo, BC)

Chelsea Turner is an Emmy Award-nominated director and producer based in Vancouver whose natural history films have earned international acclaim.

She has worked on 23 films and five landmark series with CBC’s The Nature of Things, including Wild Canada, Wild Canadian Year, Wild Canadian Weather, Shared Planet and Wild Canadian Waters.

Her direction on Netflix’s Island of the Sea Wolves earned a 2023 Daytime Emmy Award nomination for best factual director.

She was assistant producer on the IMAX feature Great Bear Rainforest, narrated by Ryan Reynolds and scored by Hans Zimmer.

She has spent over 450 days directing in the field, filming wildlife from pocket mice to polar bears to elephants across diverse ecosystems worldwide.

She hopes her work inspires audiences to see themselves as active participants in a shared living world. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Beyond the Market (Kelowna, BC)

For the past 40 years, Jeff Turner has directed, shot, written and produced more than 40 natural history documentaries for Netflix, BBC, CBC, PBS, Discovery Channel, National Geographic, Animal Planet and Terra Mater Factual Studios in settings throughout the world.

His films have been seen in more than 80 countries.

Jeff has worked as a producer, director and cinematographer on epic BBC programs such as Planet Earth and Frozen Planet (Emmy Award nomination and Royal Television Society winner for best photography for documentary).

For CBC, Jeff has worked on and won awards for Wild Canada (best director, Canadian Screen Awards) and The Wild Canadian Year (best science / nature documentary, Canadian Screen Awards.)

Jeff recently co-wrote, produced and directed the series Island of the Sea Wolves for Netflix. The series was nominated for seven Daytime Emmy Awards and won four. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Between The Trees (Kelowna, BC)

Jessica To is an award-winning producer based in Vancouver.

She is drawn to stories centred around personal journeys and self-discovery, with a focus on female and BIPOC stories.

In 2025, she produced Crazy8s Top 6 dark satirical comedic film Headcase, which screened at several Canadian Screen Award-qualifying festivals and won several awards including best script, best performance and best of BC.

Her 2023 short film Operation: Stuplloyd was a Directors Guild of Canada (DGC) BC Greenlight finalist and is currently available on CBC Gem.

Her other production credits include the critically acclaimed Final Destination: Bloodlines, The Watchful Eye, Mixtape, Are You Afraid of the Dark? and the popular To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before film franchise.

She is currently producing season 7 of the travel show Postcards From… with Black Rhino Creative for the AMI network. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Beki na Breadwinner, Pa! (Lethbridge, AB)

Vicki Van Chau (周倩瑜) is a filmmaker and cultural worker based in Calgary on Treaty 7 territory.

As a second generation Chinese-Vietnamese Canadian, her short films mainly focus on the Asian diaspora experience.

Her family and cultural identity has been a core inspiration in her artistic practice and helps her to promote the appreciation of both Chinese and Vietnamese culture through a uniquely Canadian perspective.

She has produced and directed several award-winning short films that have screened across Canada and internationally.

She is currently the executive director of the Alberta Media Arts Alliance Society (AMAAS) where she serves media artists and media art organizations across the province through advocacy work, development opportunities and bridging connections. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Something’s Rotten in the State of Alberta (Calgary, AB)

Alice Wang is a queer Chinese-Canadian filmmaker based in Toronto.

Their short films have played at festivals including Iris Prize, San Diego Asian Film Festival and image+nation Montreal.

Alice produced the 2024 ACTRA Queer Your Stories short film, which premiered at Inside Out Film Festival. They are currently producing a micro-budget feature film starring Jean Yoon.

As an organizer and arts worker, Alice has worked as the manager of programming at Regent Park Film Festival, industry series producer at Canadian Film Fest and co-founder of Videatur Collective as an ArtReach grantee.

As a writer / director, Alice has been selected for numerous programs including the Rogers-BSO Fund, BIPOC TV & Film Showrunner Bootcamp 2022 and Episodic Lab, Reelworld Emerging 20 Program, and the Netflix–BANFF Diversity of Voices Initiative.

Alice gravitates towards stories about loss, acceptance and belonging with nuanced perspectives on family dynamics and self-actualization. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• The Newcomer (Red Deer, AB)

Mentoring in Scripted Edition:

• The Lion, the White Flower, and Hope (Calgary, AB)
• The Rejects (Lethbridge, AB)

Mentored in Anniversary Documentary Edition:

• Arts Inc. (Fort McMurray, AB)

Matt Watterworth is an Alberta filmmaker who jumps between producing, directing, writing and building creative teams that actually complete work.

His credits include features In Plainview and Cold Road, the long running Alberta Filmmakers Podcast and a growing slate of projects through his company No Cap Content.

He has worked with SEVEN24 Films, co-founded the Stinger Awards and built partnerships with broadcasters, distributors and funders across Canada.

Matt teaches at the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) where he brings real world production and business experience into the classroom.

He is known for clear thinking, smart problem solving and pushing projects from idea to delivery with a mix of creativity and common sense. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• One Thing May Hide Another (Victoria, BC)

Joanna Wong is a Vancouver-born filmmaker with a passion for cross-cultural content.

Her award-winning work has aired on CBC, Knowledge Network, AMI TV and TELUS Optik.

From 2010 to 2020, Joanna co-founded and led FLOW, a creative studio in Beijing, China producing original content in English, French and Chinese for global audiences.

Now based in Canada, she is currently writing and producing a three-part documentary Seeking Saltwater City, an intimate look at Chinese families abroad.

She lives in Vancouver with her wife and two kids. 

Mentoring in Pan-Asian Storyteller Edition:

• Queens of Canada (Calgary, AB)

Dianne Wulf is a Filipino-Canadian writer and director whose work champions diverse voices and authentic representation in film and television.

She was recently selected as part of the inaugural cohort of The Hollywood Reporter’s Women in Entertainment 2025 initiative.  

Dianne’s career has been marked by significant milestones, including being named one of Reelworld Film Festival’s Emerging 20 (2019) and participating in the Netflix-BANFF Diversity of Voices Initiative (2019, 2021, 2025).

Her short film earned her an AMPIA Rosie nomination, and she was one of nine finalists in the 2019 CBC Short Film Face Off.

Her screenplays have received support from the Alberta Media Arts Alliance Society, Women in Film and Television – Alberta and Canada Council for the Arts.

She was honoured as one of eight alumni of the prestigious Women in the Director’s Chair (WIDC) program in 2021, a BIPOC TV & Film TIFF delegate in 2023 and a Racial Equity Screen Office delegate to Prime Time 2025.