Leah Selected to the Academy Mentorship for Women

The Canadian Academy today announced six female content creators selected to take part in the inaugural Apprenticeship for Women Directors. This year’s participants reflect Canada’s diverse and rich talent from across the country: Anna Cooley (Calgary, AB), JJ Neepin (Winnipeg, MB), Reem Morsi (Toronto, ON), Aisling Theresa Chin-Yee (Montreal, PQ), Leah Johnston (Truro, NS), and Jen Walden (Yellowknife, NWT).

“When we launched this program we were overwhelmed by the positive response,” said Beth Janson, CEO of the Canadian Academy. “It was a difficult task for the advisory committee to select this year’s six women from such a wide range of deserving applicants but we could not be more excited about our inaugural cohort. “
The Academy Apprenticeship for Women Directors is a six-month program, starting
September 2017 through to March 2018. During this time, participants will be
paired with an established working director to provide intensive professional
development. As part of the program, the participants will engage in bi-weekly
virtual meetings with guest directors and other experienced creators, as well as
attend the Toronto International Film Festival and the Whistler Film Festival. All six
participants will also attend and be part of next year’s Canadian Screen Week, which
begins March 5, 2018, and culminates in the live broadcast of the Canadian Screen
Awards on CBC Sunday March 11, 2018.
Mentorship opportunities will consist of a Director Observer role on the Emmy
nominated television series The Handmaid’s Tale and a position shadowing director
David Wellington on Global’s Mary Kills People from Entertainment One (eOne) and
Cameron Pictures Inc. The full list of mentors for this year’s program will be
announced in the coming days.