Leah selected for the 2023 Norman Jewison Film Program Directing Lab

The annual program offers roughly five months of training for writers, directors, producers and editors.

The Canadian Film Centre (CFC) has selected 18 filmmakers for its 2023 Norman Jewison Film Program. The program runs about five months and supports emerging to mid-level film and TV sector professionals with workshops, sessions, case studies, mentorships and cross-program collaborations. It is divided into four labs for producers, writers, directors and editors.

The program takes place at the CFC’s Toronto-based campus and runs from July 10 to Dec. 14.

The five participants in this year’s Producers’ Lab are Ontario’s Isoken Ogiemwonyi and Malachi Ellis, Alberta’s Kevin Dong, Quebec’s Lee Marshall, and B.C’s Nic Altobelli.

The Directors’ Lab five participants are Ontario’s Fateema Al-Hamaydeh Miller and Raghed Charabaty, Manitoba’s Ian Bawa, Nova Scotia’s Leah Johnston, and Alberta’s Yuqi Kang.

The Writers’ Lab has four participants, including Ontario’s Margarita Valderrama, Minh-Anh Vo Dinh and Mitchell LeBlanc, and B.C.’s Kimberly Manky.

The four participants in the Editors’ Lab are Ontario’s Arielle Skolnik, Maria Bykina, Mariana Urrutia and Ted Husband.

This year marks the first cohort to take part in the long-running CFC program since Netflix became the lead supporter in March. Other supporters include RBC Emerging Artists and Telefilm Canada. The program partners are The Norman & Margaret Jewison Charitable Foundation and the Government of Ontario.