News

Film Training Manitoba’s Executive Director Nominated as Woman of Distinction

Winnipeg – Film Training Manitoba is thrilled to announce the nomination of our Executive Director, Neila Benson, for the YMCA-YWCA Women of Distinction Awards.

Neila has a distinguished background as a picture editor for the NFB (among others), animator and film professional.  She served as Film Training Manitoba’s Work Experience Coordinator until 2007, when she was appointed Executive Director. As the ED of Film Training Manitoba, she has brought her wealth of experience and her inside knowledge of Manitoba’s vibrant film industry to all of FTM’s training and outreach programs. Through her leadership and outstanding community involvement, FTM has become a nationally recognized training organization for the screen-based industry.

Throughout her career, Neila has assisted hundreds of members of Manitoba’s film and television industry further their careers behind, and in front of, the camera. She is a dedicated community leader whose vision of a relevant training organization has helped create one of the strongest training sectors in Manitoba. You would be hard pressed to find someone in the Manitoba film industry that has not been directly affected by her contributions.

“Her dedication and vision have contributed hugely to the success of Manitoba’s filmmaking art and achievements. For her bravery in taking on such a huge task, and her contributions to training Manitoba’s future generation of film artists and craftspeople, she deserves this recognition of her importance to the province,” Vonnie Von Helmolt, Producer and Chair, FTM Board of Directors.

Neila has been nominated in the Education, Training & Mentorship category. The Women of Distinction awards are being held on May 4, 2011. The award honours, encourages and recognizes women whose outstanding activities and achievements contribute to the health and future of the community.

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For more information please contact:

Dawn Bourbonnais, Communications Coordinator

Film Training Manitoba

Ph: (204) 989.9668 or E: dawn@filmtraining.mb.ca

FTM Congratulates the Transmedia Production Lab Participants!

Film Training Manitoba gathered together a group of talented trainees and mentors for a weeklong production experiment designed to help participants explore the creative challenges of developing a multi-platform project from start to finish.

The FTM Transmedia Production Lab saw participants split into two groups, and guided by two new media experts, Tony Walsh and Ryan FitzGerald. Each group consisted of both mentors and trainees working in tandem to produce several short form transmedia project prototypes.

“One of the main goals of the lab is to help producers and crewmembers to better understand digital media platforms. I think this training model opens up a world of digital possibilities”, says Neila Benson, Executive Director of Film Training Manitoba.

This lab was specifically designed for the trainee participants to pair up with mentors in their chosen discipline. Teams worked collaboratively during pre and post-production, providing mentors the opportunity for one-on-one consultations with their trainees.  The following people were chosen after an extensive application process:

The Mentor Team
Derek Luis – Producer
John Barnard  – Director / Editor
Sarah Constible  – Writer
Andrew Forbes  – DP/Cinematographer
Gord Tanner, Ross McMillan – Actors
Scott Gillam – Graphic Designer / Artist
Darren Mak – Programmer

The Trainee Team

Jim Agapito – Producer
Quinn Merkeley – Director / Editor
Conrad Sweatman – Writer
Devon Unrau – DP/Cinematographer
Ali Tataryn, Dean Harder – Actors
Adrian Shum - Graphic Designer / Artist
Dylan Fries – Programmer

The final projects will be screened at the end of the week for members of the local film and television industry.

FTM would like to thank the following organizations for their generous support of this training event;

New Media Manitoba

William F. Whites

MidCan Production Services

Farpoint Films

City of Winnipeg’s Film and Special Events Office

March 14th |1 pm – 3 pm | FREE for ACTRA members, $5 for non-members
Colin Jackson Studio | Prairie Theatre Exchange | 3rd Floor Portage Place
There will be a Q&A following the panel discussion.

Auditions can be nerve-wracking for even the most experienced actors. They are essentially a job interview, used in the casting process to demonstrate the level and range of a performer’s talent. Regardless of the role you are auditioning to fill, you need to be prepared when you arrive to perform.  Many new actors have misconceptions about how the casting process works. More often than not, beginning actors are not sure who’s involved, who finds the actor to audition, who makes the decisions, and what the steps are throughout this process.

All auditions have requirements, making the casting process complex and selective. Casting directors meet with thousands of actors over the course of a given year. They must determine whether an actor fits the look of a character as well as whether or not that particular actor would be believable in the role they are casting. This seminar will unlock the mysteries of the casting process in order to discover what the key players involved are looking for, and how you can improve your own audition process as a professional actor.

Moderator:
Ross McMillan – Actor, Less Than Kind, The Stone Angel, and Walk All Over Me

Panelists:
Kim Todd – President and Founder of Original Pictures, Producer Locked Down and Falcon Beach
Shawn Watson – Vice President, Scripted Programming Frantic Films, Producer Todd and the Book of Pure Evil and Keep Your Head Up Kid: The Don Cherry Story
Gary Yates – Director, Writer, and Producer High Life and Seven Times Lucky, Director Shadow Island Mysteries
Jim Heber – Casting Director, The Haunting in Connecticut and Todd and the Book of Pure Evil
Sarah Constible – Actor Highlife and Writer of and Actor in House Party

For more information, or to book your spot in this seminar, please contact:

Film Training Manitoba
Ph: 989.9669
E: info@filmtraining.mb.ca

Film Training Manitoba’s Upcoming Workshops

Our workshops are held in various venues in the downtown area so please visit our course calendar for more information on how to find us, and how to register for these workshops. You can also call us at 989-9669!

**Film Training Manitoba is pleased to offer training at a significantly reduced cost to the Manitoba Film industry.

Scene Study with Ben Davis

January 22^nd to the 24^th | 10 am – 6 pm | $125

Location | Actor’s Training Centre

Straight from Los Angeles, acting coach Ben Davis will be using the Ivana Chubbuck Technique to take participants through a scene study workshop.

“After years of going to various acting workshops to hone my directing skills, last year I had the amazing experience of attending a workshop with Ben Davis. I think I learned more in one day than all of the other workshops combined. For my purposes Ben is the perfect coach: he’s enthusiastic, funny, extremely focused and very critical. But his criticism is always constructive and comes from a place of passion and belief in his student’s capabilities. I watched in wonder as over and over again he took competent performances and transformed them into riveting, compelling scenes. I’ll go to his classes whenever I can.”

– Norma Bailey, Director

IATSE 669 Assistant Camera Trainee Course

February 4^th to the 7^th | 8:30 am – 5 pm | $350

Location | *See full posting on the FTM calendar for more details

The purpose of the camera trainee course is to provide the basic set of skills needed to work on a Western-based union set (BC, AB, SK, & MB). This course is structured to give participants an introduction to cinematography within a union environment. The emphasis will be on the camera department, specifically the duties of a camera trainee who is working towards becoming a 2^nd camera assistant. This course will be taught in a combination of lecture and hands on teaching techniques.

Upon successful completion of the assistant trainee course, participants will be accepted into the camera trainee program. The ultimate aim of the trainee program is to produce working 2^nd camera assistants in the IATSE 669 union, whose skills and professional workmanship help to create a desirable environment for productions contemplating shooting in Western Canada.

*Please visit our course calendar for more information on the assistant camera trainee course, including eligibility requirements for the course.

FTM workshops taking place in early 2010;

Dr. Linda Seger Screenwriting Workshop

February 10^th – 14^th | 9:30 am – 5 pm | $300

Location | Burn’s Family Classroom, 218 – 100 Arthur Street

Lift Certification

February 13^th | 9 am – 5 pm | $100

Winter Driving

February 21^st | 8 am – 3 pm | $150

3D Technologies and Techniques

In partnership with the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television

Friday Oct. 2 | 12pm – 3pm | $25

Special guests from creativePOST, one of Canada’s largest, full service, post companies, will be on hand for this seminar on the latest technologies available for those working with stereoscopic 3-D images. Explore the 3-D process from camera through to post-production and distribution.

Venue Empire Theatres at Grant Park

Ivana Chubbuck Technique

Oct. 2, 3 and 4 (Fri., Sat. and Sun.) | 10 am – 6 pm | $125 (plus cost of the book)

Straight from Los Angeles, acting coach Ben Davis will be bringing the Ivana ChubbuckTechnique back to Winnipeg for a second time. This is a 12-step acting technique, which will take you from the script to a living, breathing, and dynamic character.

Venue Winnipeg Film Group Studio

Music Supervision for Producers: The Business of Licensing and Commissioning Music

In partnership with Manitoba Music

Saturday, Oct. 3 | 10 am – 1 pm | $25

This seminar will address the legal and financial aspect of licensing music for film and television productions. The panel will discuss how they determine the value of a placement, or commission, for original music, and what clauses will appear in a synchronization and master use contract. The panel will also address how songwriters and publishers are further compensated through broadcast royalties.

Panelists: Natasha Duprey, Director of Music Supervision, S.L. Feldman & Associates; Amy Fritz, President, Belmont Music Supervision; and Shawn Pierce, Composer and Editor.

Venue: 1000 Waverley      

Music Supervision for Filmmakers: The Art and Craft of Matching Sound to Images

In partnership with Manitoba Music

Saturday, October 3 | 2 pm – 5 pm | $25

This seminar will focus on the creative decisions that go into music placements and commissions for film and television productions. The panel will discuss how they work with directors and filmmakers to create an artistic concept for the music in a production, how and where they find music for the project, and how they know when a piece of music is truly right. Examples of work will be shown and discussed.

Panelists: Natasha Duprey, Director of Music Supervision, S.L. Feldman & Associates; Amy Fritz, President, Belmont Music Supervision; and Shawn Pierce, Composer and Editor.

Venue: 1000 Waverley

Locations, Locations, Locations

Sponsored by the DGC, Manitoba

Oct. 2, 3 and 4 (Fri., Sat. and Sun.) | 9 am – 5 pm | $125

This course will provide participants with a detailed introduction to the duties and responsibilities of an Assistant Location Manager.  Participants will learn about city regulations, location permits, scouting and prepping location, and much more. This course will be a combination of in class and hands on components, which will include visiting various locations throughout Winnipeg.

Participants will be required to provide their SINs (social insurance numbers).

Instructor: Michael Cowles, Location Manager and Neal Baksh, Assistant Location Manager

Venue: Various locations, visit our website for more details.