Netflix has launched a new post-production program with the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television as part of a US$5 million global investment in training programs for women.

Titled Women in Post, the eight-month program will give mentorship and training opportunities to women entering the post-production industry. The program will be run as part of Canadian Academy Directors Program for Women in partnership with post-production studio Company 3.

A portion of the US$5 million will be provided to help finance production on two scripts developed as part of the imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts festival’s Screenwriting Lab.

The investment is part of the Netflix Fund for Creative Equity, a five-year US$100 million fund to help train and finance underrepresented talent, using third-party organizations to help run workshops and training initiatives.

Other initiatives supported through the investment include mentorship programs Collectif 50/50 in France, Into the Wild in Germany and an incubator program from Latinx women and women of colour.

“Experience has taught me that great stories are universal: they can come from anywhere, be created by anyone, and be loved by everyone – what matters is that they are told authentically,” said Bela Bajaria, head of global TV at Netflix, in a statement. “Now we need to ensure that traditionally disadvantaged voices – in this case women – get the same chances to be heard in our industry as men have been for generations.”

Last month, Netflix announced it would officially set up an office in Canada and hire a content executive to “work directly with the Canadian creative community,” according to co-CEO and chief content officer Ted Sarandos. The company previously signed long-term leases in Ontario and B.C.

Netflix has helped launch a number of training and mentorship initiatives in Canada in recent years, some as part of a $25 million market development fund, which sparked more than a dozen partnerships. Among them are Canadian Film Centre’s Project Development Accelerator, the imagineNATIVE Institute, and the Banff World Media Festival’s five-year Diversity of Voices initiative.

Image courtesy of Netflix