Upcoming Workshops
Digital Marketing Mastery Workshop
June 5, 2023, 6:00 - 9:00 PM EDT
Goethe Institute
100 University Ave, Toronto, ON M5J 1V6
This workshop will demystify the process of marketing films in the digital age. Dive deep into the principles of positioning, social media marketing, and branding, and learn how to apply these principles to your film promotion strategy. With expert guidance, you'll learn to position your film, leverage social media to engage and attract audiences, and build a compelling brand that reflects your film's essence. Whether you're in pre-production, production, or post-production, this workshop will provide the marketing tools you need to bring your film to market.
Find more information and registration details here.
Goethe Institute
100 University Ave, Toronto, ON M5J 1V6
This workshop will demystify the process of marketing films in the digital age. Dive deep into the principles of positioning, social media marketing, and branding, and learn how to apply these principles to your film promotion strategy. With expert guidance, you'll learn to position your film, leverage social media to engage and attract audiences, and build a compelling brand that reflects your film's essence. Whether you're in pre-production, production, or post-production, this workshop will provide the marketing tools you need to bring your film to market.
Find more information and registration details here.
About the facilitator:
Carolina Oliveira is Marketing Director at Entertainment One, where she oversees global marketing strategy for digital, physical, AVOD, and FAST. Originally from Brazil, she has been working in the film industry in Canada for the past 15 years. Carolina is passionate about developing innovative campaigns for independent films, mentoring future marketing superstars, and learning about plants.
Carolina Oliveira is Marketing Director at Entertainment One, where she oversees global marketing strategy for digital, physical, AVOD, and FAST. Originally from Brazil, she has been working in the film industry in Canada for the past 15 years. Carolina is passionate about developing innovative campaigns for independent films, mentoring future marketing superstars, and learning about plants.
Crafting Compelling Narratives Workshop
June 7, 2023, 6:00 - 8:00 PM EDT
Virtual (Zoom)
Rewriting is an essential element in a screenwriter’s toolkit. Understanding why screen stories work and don't work helps a writer develop their ability to improve their own work. In this workshop, participants will delve into the intricacies of story editing and explore the fundamental principles that make screen stories truly resonate. We will touch on how to work with a story editor and when along the process of writing should you start story editing.
Find more information and registration details here.
Virtual (Zoom)
Rewriting is an essential element in a screenwriter’s toolkit. Understanding why screen stories work and don't work helps a writer develop their ability to improve their own work. In this workshop, participants will delve into the intricacies of story editing and explore the fundamental principles that make screen stories truly resonate. We will touch on how to work with a story editor and when along the process of writing should you start story editing.
Find more information and registration details here.
About the facilitator:
Abdul Malik is a Canadian-Pakistani screenwriter based out of Toronto and Edmonton. He dropped out of film school to pursue the political, spending his twenties working in the labor movement, participating in worker struggles across Canada as an organizer and photojournalist. Abdul returned to the film industry, starting as the co-writer of the Telefilm-funded PEACE BY CHOCOLATE, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. Recently, Abdul’s written on Season Three of CTV’s TRANSPLANT, the upcoming Telefilm-funded feature QUEEN TUT, and was Executive Story Editor and a Producer on the Super Channel digital series STREAMS FLOW FROM A RIVER. He is currently a Supervising Producer on a to-be-announced CBC drama, and has a bevy of projects in development with companies such as Shaftesbury, Husk Media, Lark Productions, and Sphere, alongside a first-look deal with Neshama Entertainment. Abdul is a member of the Writers Guild of Canada.
Abdul Malik is a Canadian-Pakistani screenwriter based out of Toronto and Edmonton. He dropped out of film school to pursue the political, spending his twenties working in the labor movement, participating in worker struggles across Canada as an organizer and photojournalist. Abdul returned to the film industry, starting as the co-writer of the Telefilm-funded PEACE BY CHOCOLATE, which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. Recently, Abdul’s written on Season Three of CTV’s TRANSPLANT, the upcoming Telefilm-funded feature QUEEN TUT, and was Executive Story Editor and a Producer on the Super Channel digital series STREAMS FLOW FROM A RIVER. He is currently a Supervising Producer on a to-be-announced CBC drama, and has a bevy of projects in development with companies such as Shaftesbury, Husk Media, Lark Productions, and Sphere, alongside a first-look deal with Neshama Entertainment. Abdul is a member of the Writers Guild of Canada.
Entryways into Canadian Film Workshop
June 8, 2023, 6:00 - 7:30 PM EDT
Goethe Institute
100 University Ave, Toronto, ON M5J 1V6
There are many entry ways into the film industry as an emerging filmmaker, whether you want to direct, write, produce or work below the line. This panel focuses on three particular Canadian institutions: Reelworld Institute, Toronto Arts Council and Director's Guild of Canada. Representatives from each organization will outline the opportunities available to those who want to work in the industry and answer your questions about any of the programs they run.
Find more information and registration details here.
Goethe Institute
100 University Ave, Toronto, ON M5J 1V6
There are many entry ways into the film industry as an emerging filmmaker, whether you want to direct, write, produce or work below the line. This panel focuses on three particular Canadian institutions: Reelworld Institute, Toronto Arts Council and Director's Guild of Canada. Representatives from each organization will outline the opportunities available to those who want to work in the industry and answer your questions about any of the programs they run.
Find more information and registration details here.
About the speakers:
Safia Abdigir is a Toronto-based arts culture worker specifically interested in the facilitation of diverse perspectives in the Canadian film/visual arts industry. Currently, she’s the Industry Programming Manager at the Reelworld Screen Institute, where she manages the programming of the film festival and runs the year long Producer Programs.
Safia Abdigir is a Toronto-based arts culture worker specifically interested in the facilitation of diverse perspectives in the Canadian film/visual arts industry. Currently, she’s the Industry Programming Manager at the Reelworld Screen Institute, where she manages the programming of the film festival and runs the year long Producer Programs.
Marwa Siam Abdou is a film director, a writer and freelance journalist. She is currently the National Outreach manager at the Directors Guild of Canada, a union representing members in the areas of direction, design, production and editing in the country. At the Guild, she oversees and manages equity-focused initiatives and campaigns that amplify the voices of racialized members. Her professional and creative work align, as she is also focused on portraying and telling the stories of people of colour, and particularly women, in her films.
Timaj Garad is an Ethiopian-Harari Toronto-based multidisciplinary storyteller (poet, actress, singer-songwriter), arts educator, and community organizer. She works at Toronto Arts Council, where I develop and manage the Black Arts program for Black artists and Black-led organizations. She creates music with genre-bending mix of spoken word poetry, hip-hop, and R&B, soul, afro-jazz, and dance. In 2017, she founded LUMINOUS Fest, Canada’s first Black Muslim arts festival, and later co-founded The Sisters’ Retreat, a retreat series hosting arts-based wellness retreats for Muslim Women.
Annual Workshops
Producer Accelerator
The annual TAF Producer Accelerator pairs emerging Arab-Canadian filmmakers with producers to take part in an intensive day of workshops. Participants have the opportunity to connect and share experience with one another, while learning about film development, pitching, and distribution from industry professionals.
Participants can apply as a team, or they can apply individually and will be partnered with someone during the program. TAF pairs participants based on their learning experience, goals, and content interests. Learn more about the 2022 TAF Producer Accelerator.
The 2023 Producer Accelerator will be announced soon. Check back here and sign up for our newsletter to receive updates.
Participants can apply as a team, or they can apply individually and will be partnered with someone during the program. TAF pairs participants based on their learning experience, goals, and content interests. Learn more about the 2022 TAF Producer Accelerator.
The 2023 Producer Accelerator will be announced soon. Check back here and sign up for our newsletter to receive updates.
Diary Films
Diary films, also known as self-documentary, essay or personal films, have a rich history within experimental cinema and specifically within diasporas.
This annual workshop discusses the art of creating diary films, including how to write about the self, as well as looking at and discussing visual examples of diary films. Participants then have the opportunity to create a three-minute diary film on Super8.
This is an introductory workshop and is meant primarily for emerging Arab filmmakers, but is open to all. No prior knowledge of Super8 is required. Learn more about the 2022 Diary Films Workshop.
The 2023 Diary Films Workshop will be announced soon. Check back here and sign up for our newsletter to receive updates.
This annual workshop discusses the art of creating diary films, including how to write about the self, as well as looking at and discussing visual examples of diary films. Participants then have the opportunity to create a three-minute diary film on Super8.
This is an introductory workshop and is meant primarily for emerging Arab filmmakers, but is open to all. No prior knowledge of Super8 is required. Learn more about the 2022 Diary Films Workshop.
The 2023 Diary Films Workshop will be announced soon. Check back here and sign up for our newsletter to receive updates.