Manitoba Film and Music can assist you with any questions you may have regarding shooting in Manitoba.
Manitoba Film and Music
Phone: (204) 947-2040
Fax: (204) 956-5261
Email: explore@mbfilmmusic.ca
Website: www.mbfilmmusic.ca
If you require information on members of our Association or general information on the indigenous production industry please contact us at:
On Screen Manitoba
100-62 Albert Street
Winnipeg, MB R3B 1E9
Phone: (204) 949-8869
Fax: (204) 947-9290
Email: info@onscreenmanitoba.com
The best and easiest way to get your start in the Manitoba film industry is to utilize the resources of the following local organizations. Once you have some hands-on experience and you know what kind of work you want to do, you will be better prepared to develop your career in the industry.
Winnipeg Film Group (WFG): If you don't have experience working in the film industry, consider volunteering with the Winnipeg Film Group or other independent filmmakers. The WFG is non-profit arts organization "committed to enhancing the art of film by providing equal opportunities to make, view and discuss film within a greater artistic and social community."
Independent productions, like those made by WFG members, offer great opportunities for you to network and to experience the world of filmmaking. They also offer very affordable workshops for entry level filmmakers.
Contact the Winnipeg Film Group by calling (204) 925-3456 or visit their website: www.winnipegfilmgroup.com.
Video Pool: Another local arts group which offers opportunities to learn and gain volunteer experience is Video Pool. Video Pool has a mandate to "encourage the use of video, multimedia and electronic technologies as an artistic and educational practice for the advancement and enrichment of the community." They provide access to professional video and media equipment and training opportunities.
Like the WFG, Video Pool's workshops and services are offered to people of all skill levels from beginner to professional. Contact Video Pool by calling: (204) 949-9134 or visit their site: www.videopool.org.
Film Training Manitoba (FTM): is the crew training program for Manitoba's film industry. Designed for those with some prior exposure to film through volunteer or other training, it provides practical training programs for individuals seriously interested in pursuing a career in film as a crew member.
FTM also offers upgrading, mentoring and professional development for established industry members. Workshops are offered upon the basis of industry need and are not available at all times. Contact FTM by calling (204) 989-9669. They also maintain a tremendously helpful website at: www.filmtraining.mb.ca.
National Screen Institute - Canada: The NSI focuses on providing professional development for experienced writers, directors and producers and aspiring filmmakers. Contact the Winnipeg office by calling (204) 956-7800 or visit their site www.nsi-canada.ca
Web resources: to help with your career research try MediaCareers.com (Careers in Film, Television and New Media)
Please note that in Manitoba, most long-form film and television productions are under union contract and as such first employ their members.
Red River College - Red River focuses mainly on television and new media, although they do offer some film-related courses through continuing education. Website: www.rrc.mb.ca
University of Manitoba - Offers a full range of programming for their students with 15 courses and a full major and advanced major (4 year) program. Website: www.umanitoba.ca
University of Winnipeg - The University of Winnipeg's Theatre and Drama Department offers courses including Intro to Film, Acting for the Media and Scriptwriting. Website: www.uwinnipeg.ca
The Aboriginal Film and Television Training program at Capilano College provides courses in: aboriginal storytelling and scriptwriting, production, directing, camera, light and sound, and post production round out the program. All courses are taught by aboriginal professionals and provide students with opportunities to gain valuable information that can be applied to a variety of film and television production opportunities. For more information, please contact: Aboriginal Film and Television Training Program at Capilano College, 2055 Purcell Way, North Vancouver, B.C. V7J 3H5 Tel: 604.990.7904, Website: www.capcollege.bc.ca e-mail: pcrass@capcollege.bc.ca
* Please keep in mind - Advertisements in the classified section of the newspaper offering training or job opportunities in the film industry in exchange for a fee should be treated with suspicion.
Extras or background performers are usually the responsibility of the local casting companies. Contacts for most of these companies can be found in the Manitoba Film & Television Production Guide, under Extras Casting.
Anyone involved in casting will require a photo and resume before they can consider you for a role. If they have your photo/resume on file, casting agents will contact you when an appropriate opportunity presents itself. For Winnipeg Film Group productions you can leave a photo and resume with the Production Co-ordinator for their Available Actors file. Sending your photo and resume directly to a production company very rarely results in any response - they usually hire casting agents to find talent for them!
Please note that most film and television productions shot in Manitoba which reach a certain budget level employ professional performers who are members of ACTRA, a national organization of professional performers working in the recorded media in Canada.
A note on how payment for background performers works:
ACTRA adhered productions are obliged to cast 10 background performer positions a day from the ACTRA membership, paid according to ACTRA's Independent Production Agreement fee scale. If for some reason, these positions cannot be filled by ACTRA members or Apprentice members, the production may offer these "vouchered" background roles to non-members. All other background performers hired on that day will be paid at a previously agreed upon rate. The fact is that, except for ACTRA "vouchered" background performers, the fee to be paid extras is negotiated between the production company (through the casting director) and the person who wants to be an extra. When accepting work as an extra, always make sure to ask what you are getting paid and how long the expected call will be. Remember, once you are on set, you are there until they let you go.
* Please keep in mind - Reputable casting directors and casting companies never expect extras, background performers or actors to pay to work. There have been cases of companies charging sign-up fees before they will add an actor to their files, but you should feel free to contact the casting directors directly with your picture and resume for FREE.
Likewise, if you're not sure about a company's reputation you can contact our office or the ACTRA office in Winnipeg (204-943-1307) and we can tell you if they are a recognized casting director or company in the Manitoba industry.
If you haven't already, you will need to write at least a 'treatment' for your idea and ideally, you should write the whole screenplay. Treatments are simply a description of the film/story written in paragraph/prose form. For great advice on becoming a writer see the Writer's Guild of Canada page for New Writers.
You will need to get your work registered so that you can prove that you own it. If you are in Canada, you can register scripts, treatments, synopses, outlines, and other literary material written for theatrical motion pictures, television, radio, home video and interactive media, with the Writer's Guild of Canada.
A note on ownership: In Canada, copyright arises automatically upon creation of a work and the copyright may be registered in the Register of Copyrights maintained at the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (Copyright Office) in Hull, Quebec (for information call the Office at 819-997-1725). The purpose of the Registration Service of the Writer's Guild is to provide a dated record of the writer's claim to authorship of a particular literary material. Registration costs approximately $20 and the Guild takes a copy of your script for storage and gives you a registration number. This number should be displayed prominently on the cover page of your script.
If you don't intend to make the film or television show yourself, then you may want to get a literary agent to represent you in negotiating with producers. Currently there are no literary agents in Manitoba; a list of Canadian writer's agents is available on the Writer's Guild site. If you have direct contact with a producer you may want to 'pitch' the idea to them directly. A pitch is a verbal description of a script, or story idea. If they like it, they may buy or 'option' your script. Optioning is temporary ownership with the option to buy, it means that the producer (or production company) has taken a 'lease' on the script for an agreed upon amount of time.
Web Resources
The following pages will provide you with more info on writing and selling a screenplay:
If you intend to make the project yourself there are a number of local organizations that may be able to help you:
Winnipeg Film Group: The Film Group offers to their members, equipment for rent, small grants for first time filmmakers, workshops and opportunities to network with other filmmakers (potential mentors and crew). Contact The Winnipeg Film Group by calling (204) 925-3456 or visit their website: www.winnipegfilmgroup.com.
Video Pool: Like the Film Group, Video Pool provides members with access to professional video and media equipment, small grants to help them make their first video and training opportunities. Contact Video Pool by calling: (204) 949-9134 or visit their site: www.videopool.org.
National Screen Institute - Canada: The NSI Drama Prize is primarily a training program with limited production funding attached. The Drama Prize gives a few selected filmmaking teams from across Canada the chance to make a short film and mentor with some of the best industry professionals in Canada. Website: www.nsi-canada.ca
Manitoba Arts Council Funding for dramatic, experimental, animated, films and videos made by Manitobans is available from the Arts Council. Their visual arts page provides information on the following grants:
To learn more about making films and television shows in Canada please read The Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television series:
Another good source of information is the following book:
Breaking Into Film, by Kenna McHugh (Director, producer, writer, actress and public relations professional, Kenna McHugh, provides information straight from industry professionals that could get the film rolling on an exciting career.)
Web resources:
* Internet Filmmaker's FAQ
On Screen Manitoba
100-62 Albert Avenue
Winnipeg, Manitoba R3B 1E9
Phone: 204-927-5898
Fax: 204-943-4007
Email: info@onscreenmanitoba.com
Web: www.onscreenmanitoba.com