What’s New at BSO?

 

Training programs and development labs have their place, but they are not a substitute for the commission. The case for why Canada's broadcasters need to stop deferring and start greenlighting Black-led projects.

CBC just committed $7 million to documentary and a new FAST channel. It's an opening, and one worth paying close attention to.

 

Telefilm Canada's 2026–2027 Career Development Initiatives Program Guidelines formally adopt BSO's talent levels framework as the basis for a standardized approach across the Canadian audiovisual industry, in partnership with the Canada Media Fund.

 

 

The Black Screen Office (BSO) and CMPA are excited to open applications for the Black Producer Accelerator, a paid mentorship initiative designed to support and accelerate the careers of Black Canadian producers in the screen industry.

 

The program offers hands-on experience across development, production, business affairs, marketing, and more, while helping participants build meaningful industry relationships and practical production experience across scripted, documentary, factual, and unscripted content.

 

Selected mentees will receive a minimum of $20,000 for a 20-week placement. Throughout the program, BSO will also host monthly group sessions and check-ins to support participants’ professional growth and industry navigation.

 

Applicants must apply alongside a mentor company. CMPA may also support candidates with limited access to mentor companies by facilitating introductions on a case-by-case basis.

 

To learn more about the program and application process, we will be hosting an information session via Zoom on Thursday, May 21 from 

1:00 PM – 2:00 PM EST. 

 

 

 

Canada’s screen industry is evolving fast. This program is for Black professionals who are ready to step into greater leadership — and for the organizations that want to invest in their success.

 

BSOs Executive Pathways Accelerator (formerly the Mid-Career Accelerator) was created to respond to this moment.

Designed for Black professionals already working in the screen industry, our leadership development program supports participants in strengthening their strategic, operational, and leadership capacity while positioning them for greater influence within their organizations and across the sector.

 

 

Over the past three years, participants have gone on to lead major initiatives, expand their organizational responsibilities, strengthen executive-level skills, and increase their visibility across the industry.

 

If you are a mid-career Black professional working in areas such as development, marketing, communications, operations, finance, HR, strategy, partnerships, or industry programming, we encourage you to express your interest now.

 

 

 

Contact Natassia Morris, Business Manager, Research and Action Centre:

rac@bso-ben.ca.

 

 

On April 29 in Montréal, Coalition M.É.D.I.A. and Black on Black Films, in collaboration with the Black Screen Office, launched the Being Seen Québec Report during a day of workshops, conversations, and connections for screen industry professionals.

 

The report shines a clear light on the systemic barriers Black and racialized creators continue to navigate in Québec: chronic underfunding, limited opportunities, and narratives that too often lean on stereotypes. In response, it offers 16 constructive directives to help the industry build more inclusive content — and more inclusive spaces for creatives to thrive.

 

"Québec recognizes itself as an ethnoculturally diverse province, yet this diversity struggles to be authentically reflected in its screen productions. Quebecers who do not see themselves on screen are less inclined to engage with productions that do not reflect their realities." — Marina Mathieu, Executive Director, Coalition M.É.D.I.A.

 

 

 

We are pleased to congratulate Shana McCalla, a participant in our Rogers-BSO Script Development Program, on her outstanding recognition at this year's DOC Institute Breakthrough 2.0 Pitch Competition.

 

Shana received the Rogers Group of Funds $20,000 Cash Award, $5,000 in Audio Library Licensing from BedTracks, and $2,500 in equipment rentals from Ontario Camera. She will also receive mentorship from filmmaker Min Sook Lee and CSA Award-winning Re-recording Mixer Michelle Irving, an exceptional package of support for the next phase of her work.

 

Her documentary project, Anyone’s Child, is a timely and urgent investigation into the disappearance of Black boys across Ontario and the systemic failures surrounding these cases. As families search for answers, the film traces patterns of exploitation, distant recoveries, and the gaps in the systems meant to protect vulnerable youth.

 

Congratulations again to Shana on this incredible achievement.
 

 

 

 

 

For more information: Black Screen Office | info@bso-ben.ca