The Directors Guild of Canada’s (DGC) National Directors Division (NDD) has launched a shadowing program.

The National Director Observer Initiative program helps connected a producer or shooting director with an observer director through the DGC. DGC members can sign up for the initiative and the DGC will provide a list of eligible observers to any producers or directors who put in a request.

“We’re proud to launch this Initiative to producers, and to both directors seeking to gain experience and to veteran directors eager to share their valuable knowledge,” said NDD Chair Zach Lipovsky in a statement.

The Observer program is the second of three new NDD initiatives, following the launch of a mentorship program. The Director Market Accelerator will launch in 2025 and aims to connect DGC directors with national and international industry markets.

Animator Torill Kove receives Lifetime Achievement Award

Oscar-winning animator Torill Kove received the Lifetime Achievement Award and the Canadian Film Prize for her short film Maybe Elephants (pictured) at this year’s Spark Animation festival in Vancouver.

The film is the fourth collaboration with the Montreal based animator (The Danish Poet) and coproducers, Norway’s Mikrofilm and National Film Board of Canada (NFB).

Maybe Elephants, narrated by Kove, focuses on a family in 1970s Nairobi. It is produced by Mikrofilm’s Lise Fearnley and Tonje Skar Reiersen, and Maral Mohammadian for NFB.

“This is an occasion for me to reflect on how fortunate I’ve been to have a career as an animation director with the National Film Board of Canada and the Norwegian animation studio Mikrofilm,” said Kove in a statement. “I owe these two animation studios and everybody who has collaborated with me on my films a great debt of gratitude.”

Manitoba Arts Council receives funding

The Manitoba Arts Council (MAC) has received $13.7 million in additional funding from the provincial government.

MAC provides grants for creative work, including audiovisual projects. Each year, MAC provides approximately $8.4 million in operating support to 108 organizations and $3.5 million in project grants. According to a release, over 25 new organizations will receive support along with over 40 new projects by individual artists this year.

Youth Media Alliance adds three board members

The Youth Media Alliance (YMA) has added three board members and a co-chair, Little Engine Moving Pictures’ Maria Kennedy.

Kennedy, Little Engine’s owner, executive producer and co-founder, joins independent producer Athenas Georgaklis, who has been co-chair since 2023. Kennedy’s first series, a coproduction with Sinking Ship Entertainment called Now You Know, has been licensed in more than 100 countries.

The members joining for three-year terms are Dan Mokriy, Spin Master’s VP of production; Daniel Coutu, Prestigo CEO; and Epic Storyworlds’ co-CEO Steve Couture.

YMA is focused on promoting French- and English-speaking Canadian youth productions.

Canadian graduate in WGA East Showrunner Academy

Celeste Parr, the co-showrunner of season three of CBC’s Plan B, is one of the graduates of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) East’s 2024 Showrunners Academy.

The Academy was hosted by Frank Pugliese (House of Cards) and Diana Son (13 Reasons Why), with sessions taught by John Wells (Shameless), Glen Mazzara (The Walking Dead), Jesse Armstrong (Succession), Lisa Zwerling (ER) and Courtney Kemp (Power).

Parr, a dual WGA and Writers Guild of Canada member, is also the creator and writer of the legal drama series Prejudice starring Emily VanCamp, in development with Keshet International, Pixcom and Thruline Entertainment.

She is also working on her second feature film Ethel (Sphere Media, Port Pictures), a biopic which she wrote and directed, Bankside Films acquired international rights to the film, which stars Shira Haas, Sarah Paulson and Whitney Peak.

Image courtesy of NFB