Who are the future leaders in Canada’s entertainment industry?

Networking and career advancement organization Women in Film & Television – Toronto (WIFT-T) has selected 17 people it thinks are primed for the senior ranks or to develop their skills within them, and is giving them a boost through its Media Leadership Program.

Run in conjunction with the Schulich School of Business, the program runs from now through the spring and covers everything from strategic planning to financial literacy. Successful participants earn a Schulich-approved certificate.

Despite being run through WIFT-T, the program is open to men and women. This year’s sole male participant is Mark Montefiore, co-president & executive producer, New Metric Media.

This is the fourth time the program has run since 2009, and is sponsored by Bell Media.

The 2014 WIFT-T Media Leadership Program participants are:

• Tashi Bieler, VP production, Entertainment One Television
• Angela Chan, research manager, programming & communications, Bell Media
• Marcia Douglas, program manager, Bell Fund
• Noora Abu Eitah, supervising producer, Secret Location
• Courtney Graham, producer
• Kerry Kupecz, executive director, sales & marketing, Video Services Corp.
• Sarah MacKinnon, manager, production affairs, Shaftesbury
• Mark Montefiore, co-president & executive producer, New Metric Media
• Natalie Osborne, managing director, 9 Story Entertainment
• Jackie Pardy, television executive
• Tammy Semen, producer, Industrial Brother
• Virginia Thompson, president/partner, Vérité Films
• Tania Thompson, executive producer, special media projects, Presenting Our  Vision
• Rentia van der Bijl, producer/director
• Lindsey Vodarek, manager, public relations, CMPA
• Candida Zeleya, manager of programming, women & family, TV division, Corus  Entertainment
• Janice Zolf, producer