Indigenous filmmakers, Cultural Industries Ontario North (CION) is launching a mentorship program you might be interested in applying for, but do so before Friday, December 6th.
Patrick O’Hearn, the Associate Executive Director of CION, said, “With this new program, we hope to promote knowledge-sharing avenues, business potential, and investment readiness for participants and the broader, regional production industry.”
CION, which is based in Sudbury, is a non-profit organization that fosters and supports the film, television and music industries in Northern Ontario. The group used to be called Music and Film in Motion.
In partnership with the Canada Media Fund, CION has recently launched Cinema Ascent, a national mentorship program designed to help up and coming First Nation, Inuit and Métis filmmakers.
Eight people will be chosen for the program, five of whom will be from Northern Ontario. The program consists of seven online sessions over a 12-month period. Those sessions begin this winter, and each session will be led by established industry professionals. CION has announced that Paula Devonshire will lead the first session, best known for producing such films as Remember (2015), Indian Horse (2017), Stellar (2022) and most recently the upcoming Blood Lines, directed by Gail Maurice.
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The online sessions constitute Phase One of the Cinema Ascent program. Phase Two will bring the emerging filmmakers out and about to professional development events. The first of those will be the Canadian Media Producer’s Association Prime Time event in Ottawa, scheduled for the weekend of January 29th to 31st.
The second event is the Toronto International Film Festival, occurring in September 2025, and CION will cover the conference passes, and help with travel and accommodation expenses.
O’Hearn said, “This is an opportunity to enhance Northern Ontario’s capacity to foster creativity and invest in a future where more consistent screen-based employment and business development opportunities are available to Indigenous filmmakers.”
For all the details about the program, and to apply, visit the Cinema Ascent page on CION’s website.
David Briggs is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of BayToday, a publication of Village Media. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.
