While Canada’s film and television industry has made progress in creating more opportunities for underrepresented filmmakers, a better understanding of systemic issues is needed to achieve equity, according to industry experts.

“I’m not sure if the industry really gets the systemic barriers, things like access to capital and access to networks that are inherent in producing and being successful as a producer,” said Indigenous Screen Office (ISO) co-executive director Kerry Swanson in a moderated discussion during the Playback Film Summit.

Swanson pointed to issues around gap financing as an example, stating that property or homes on a reserve are not considered capital, and therefore unable to qualify an Indigenous producer for a bank loan.

“It’s a huge, overwhelming task, and it’s something that we [the ISO] think about all the time. I think that the industry is approaching it in kind of a piecemeal way, and needs to start thinking about that real big systemic structure that’s preventing real success of engagement for Indigenous producers,” continued Swanson.

Joining Swanson during the Nov. 16 discussion were Joan Jenkinson, co-founder and executive director of the Black Screen Office; Shant Joshi, president of Toronto-based prodco Fae Pictures; Something You Said Last Night filmmaker Luis De Filippis; and Canadian Film Centre executive director maxine bailey, who moderated.

Jenkinson said there has been an “amazing willingness” from organizations such as Telefilm Canada and the Canada Media Fund (CMF) to tackle racial equity. However, new solutions sometimes come with new problems – such as the fact that the CMF’s first-come, first-served Pilot Program for Racialized Communities is currently oversubscribed. The funder has stopped accepting applications due to “high demand,” according to the CMF website.

“I think that’s where we all as individuals and organizations come in, is that we can’t allow people to say it’s too hard and we’re just going to go back to the way things were,” she said. “That means that we just have to try that much harder.”

Jenkinson added that bringing more representation at the decision-making level is critical, to ensure a diversity of lived experiences and that the networks and connections built up over time between executives and producers are more equitable.

De Filippis said she has seen the largest shifts within the grassroots level, pointing to her experience with the Trans Film Mentorship program, where five trans and non-binary individuals were given hands-on training during production on her film Something You Said Last Night.

“Now I can say that the five mentees we had going into the production last September, who came on with basically no experience, are now working in the industry, either in the unions… or they’re just booked and busy, and I can’t even book them at this point,” she said.

Fae Pictures’ Joshi said the passage of Bill C-11 – which is expected to ensure foreign-owned streaming services such as Netflix, Disney+ and Prime Video will fall under CRTC regulation and contribute to the Canadian content system – is a key factor in moving the momentum forward as well.

“Opening that door to a marketplace that’s not just exclusive to Canada, giving racialized filmmakers the opportunity to reach audiences all over the world, through Canadian financing, I think is going to be a great boon to our industry and to underrepresented producers,” he said.

The panelists also discussed the importance of understanding the concept that the universality of stories is found in their specificity, and opens the potential for TV series and films such as CBC and BET’s The Porter, Anthony Shim’s feature Riceboy Sleeps, and Clement Virgo’s Brother to reach a wide range of audiences.

“Ultimately, it’s good business to be inclusive,” said bailey.

Pictured (L-R): Kerry Swanson, Joan Jenkinson, maxine bailey (top), Luis De Filippis and Shant Joshi (bottom).