Proclamation by the Province of British Columbia | Black History Month is a time to learn, honour and reflect upon the experience and future of Black communities in British Columbia.
Here are some of the ways the creative industries are amplifying their stories, taking action, and providing resources to unite and champion a diverse, equitable future for established and emerging creatives.
Initiatives, announcements, resources and events from B.C.‘s creative industries for Black History Month 2022:
Creator Chat: Black Excellence on Screen
February 24, 2022
Save the date for Thursday, Feb 24 at 12 PM PT for an online discussion about Black Excellence on Screen. Join newly funded creators Janessa St.Pierre, Arlo Maverick and Steeven K., in conversation with Joan Jenkinson, Executive Director and founder of the Black Screen Office.
Learn more and register here
TELUS STORYHIVE + Black Screen Office to fund 30 emerging Black Creators in B.C. and Alberta through the first Black Creators Edition
February 1, 2022
STORYHIVE and Black Screen Office (BSO) will be funding 30 emerging Black creators through the inaugural Black Creators Edition. These selected recipients will each receive $20,000 in production funding, customized training, mentorship, distribution on TELUS Optik TV, and additional top-up funding from Creative BC.
Learn more about the first Black Creators Edition
Music BC presents Let’s Hear It! Live – Black History Month Concert in partnership with Afro Van Connect
February 25, 2022
Featuring three emerging Black artists from B.C.: Adewolf, Sade Awele, $-Breezy and special guest host Prado Monroe and Floetic
Buy tickets
Black History Month 2022 at VIFF
All month long
Black History Month at VIFF offers audiences an opportunity to engage with Black stories from a range of Black voices from around the world, as well as the richness of nuanced and empowered Black filmmaking.
View the programming and buy tickets here
Black Screen Offices releases ‘Being Seen’ on creating authentic and inclusive content in Canada’s screen industries
Released February 7, 2022
The Black Screen Office (BSO) has released its much-anticipated report “Being Seen: Directives for Creating Authentic and Inclusive Content”, which reveals how Canada’s screen industries are falling short in representing people from Black, People of Colour, 2SLGBTQIA+, and People with Disabilities communities, and also provides clear guidelines for industry leaders to meaningfully engage these underrepresented groups.
The report, its directives, and other support tools for industry professionals are available at www.beingseen.ca
Spotlight on The Porter
February 28, 2022
Not only Canada’s biggest Black-led series, The Porter also boasts the first Canadian all-Black writers’ room. Set in the 1920s, the CBC and BET+ series depicts the Black community in St. Antoine, Montreal – known as “the Harlem of the North”. Telling a story of empowerment and idealism, it spotlights the turning point when Canadian and American railway workers united to give rise to the world’s first Black union. VIFF is thrilled to program this Spotlight on The Porter and host some of the series’ key creatives. The event will be broken down into two panels: Authentic Storytelling with Marsha Greene and Annmarie Morais, Creators/Executive Producers/Showrunners/Writers, and Adapting History to Screen featuring Charles Officer and R.T. Thorne, Executive Producers/Directors. The Porter premieres on CBC and CBC Gem on February 21.
Register for free
Spark Cast by Spark CG Society | Ere Santos — Autodidactic Animation Savant
Like many animators, Ere Santos discovered his love for animation at a young age but rather than wait until he was “grown-up” to pursue his dream, he started on it immediately. With a copy of Blender, an animation school syllabus, and a dream to work at Pixar, eight-year-old Ere was on his way. A decade later, Ere found himself standing at the gates of Pixar for his first day of work. The journey to working in animation has been long and challenging but through it all, Ere has persevered, working through the challenges and rejection to make a career for himself and now he’s looking ahead to the next stage of his creative life. Hear from Ere about his self-guided journey to working in animation, inspiration, and his self-dubbed lofty goals for the future.
Listen now
Resources + Events across Canada
Reelworld Black Entrepreneurs Program
The Reelworld Black Entrepreneurs Program is a training initiative for Black casting directors, agents, managers, and producers in Canada. This first of its kind program provides transformational business advisory services, training, paid apprenticeship, capital investment, and networking opportunities.
Apply by February 24, 2022
Reelworld x Warner Media Access Canada Present: Shaping Black Characters on Screen
Wednesday, February 16th, 9:30am PST/12:30 pm EST
Black Hairstylists and Makeup Artists discuss the process of bringing dynamic Black characters to life on screen. Come listen in as they talk ins-and-outs of working on set, developing the look of the characters for diverse actors, and their careers working in Canada.
Register here
Black-owned Bookstores in Canada + the United States by B.C.’s Rocky Mountain Books
View the map
Organizations
BC Black History Awareness Society
Watch this space for all upcoming events, resources and initiatives that will be rolling out for the month of February.
