Veteran documentarian Chanda Chevannes is boarding the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) as executive producer of its Ontario Studio division.

Chevannes (pictured) has more than two decades of experience in the documentary world as a filmmaker, facilitator and educator. She has produced and directed 14 films herself — including the award-winning features Living Downstream and Unfractured, which profile ecologist, environmental activist and anti-fracking crusader Sandra Steingraber — and served as producer or production manager on 25 documentary projects for other filmmakers.

She has also developed and facilitated creative filmmaking labs for such organizations as the DOC Institute, the Toronto Public Library and the Toronto Queer Film Festival; led numerous professional development workshops for documentary filmmakers both in Canada and internationally; authored 15 publications on the documentary field; and served as a board member for the Documentary Organization of Canada and POV Magazine.

“[Chevannes] has a wealth of experience not just as a producer, but also as a leader and educator, and will be integral in guiding the team at the Ontario Studio,” said Julie Roy, the NFB’s director general of creation and innovation, in a statement. “Her two-decade-long documentary career has been dedicated to justice, diversity, community and empowering the next generation of creators with film training — all values and goals shared with the NFB.”

Chevannes said she learned about the power of documentary “to create more joy and justice in our world” by watching NFB productions in film school. “I’ve continued to be inspired by the NFB throughout my career, and I’m delighted that I will now have the privilege of contributing to its impactful work.”

Earlier this week the NFB announced it has greenlit three new documentary projects from its Quebec and Eastern Canada divisions, including the latest short film from lauded Abenaki filmmaker Alanis Obomsawin.

This story originally appeared in Realscreen

Photo taken by Pasquale Marco Veltri for the NFB