Racial Equity Media Collective Driving Canadian Policy
by Heather Neale Furneaux
Women in View is highlighting equity-focused organizations taking innovative steps to improve gender equity and inclusion in Canada’s screen industry. These groups have adopted the kinds of structural-level change needed for real progress—changes we put forth in our Calls to Action (CTA) earlier this year. (You can review them here.)
Making Sense of Where We’re At:
The Racial Equity Media Collective (REMC) is another outstanding example of an advocacy organization driving key structural change in Canada. Right from their 2021 beginnings, they’ve shown fierce dedication to establishing “clear, research-informed guidelines and targets” that help make sense of where the industry is at and where and how efforts should be focused.
When they published their first report in 2021, following the overwhelming tensions of 2020 (informally dubbed “the year of racial reckoning”), the goal was clear. To effect meaningful change, the industry needed more comprehensive data, and to carefully audit measuring practices. (CTA #6).
“The only way to move forward [is] to be clear about where we [are] in the present,” the report read. And that’s exactly what REMC has facilitated.
Early on, they discovered that what they were setting out to do wasn’t even possible with the data—or in some cases lack of data—available. Stats proved inconsistent and problematic in terms of equitable representation. And transparency and intersectionality were needed to accurately compare and analyze findings.
REMC’s Managing Director Julian Carrington cited Women in View (WIV) and the Indigenous Screen Office (ISO) as being very inspirational in that respect.
“Both entities were early advocates for the importance of obtaining data in order to drive evidence-based change. And there’s no question the gender parity push was one of the first initiatives that saw data collection be [aggregated] like that,” he said. “Racial equity, unlike gender, has really been a more recent conversation. So, an early pillar of our advocacy work involved the meta-advocacy of having to advocate for data collection to be introduced to allow for accurate measurement of where we stand in terms of representation and participation.”
The national not-for-profit organization’s mission, as outlined on their website, is “to remove barriers to access and increase the production, export, and sustainability of BIPOC content and BIPOC-led production companies.” They’ve been vocal and effective on policy and legislation around a wide range of issues, one of the most recent of which involved confronting Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian racism within the CBC.
Collaboration and Community Consultation:
Carrington explained the organization’s approach to policy change has always been informed by community consultation and collaboration.
“I’m a staff of one, so ensuring we stay engaged with our peers in the advocacy space, and finding avenues as part of that process to advance equity—racial equity in particular—has been really important.”
Under the prior Executive Director, Lisa Valencia Svensson, REMC succeeded in having specific language incorporated into the online streaming act that ensured equitable participation of black and racialized communities.
“Having that language in legislation has been very impactful,” he said. “[It’s] allowed us to really underscore that this is not just something we’re urging you to do because we think it’s the right thing. It’s a legislative obligation.”
Now, the REMC can take that one step further, collaborating with individual organizations to navigate applying the mandates in meaningful, context-specific ways. (CTA #8) They held over 40 conversations just in the last year alone with funders, policymakers and producers, BIPOC sector organizations, and key players in the festival and industry event circuit, to help guide their work.
Up to the Challenge:
Carrington states, the CRTC, for example, issued a decision declaring online streamers must reinvest a portion of their annual Canadian revenue back into the Canadian funding system, a specific portion of which must go to one of three groups: the Black Screen Office, the Canadian Independent Fund for BIPOC Creators, and the Broadcasting Accessibility Fund. This was fantastic news except for the fact that they didn’t specify how contributions needed to be distributed.
“It’s entirely left to the discretion of the streamers at this point,” Carrington said. So, in any given year, one group could receive nothing at all, and no one can anticipate their annual budget. “Had the CRTC heeded its directive to engage with our communities in a meaningful, dedicated way, that’s the sort of thing that could have been raised,” he said. “Even with mandates in place, the actual follow-through from institutions isn’t always as robust… and giving substance to that language is a whole other step requiring consistent, dedicated action and resources.”
Looking Forward:
So, where do we go from here? Carrington said most recently, there’s been a push towards consolidating efforts in the racial equity advocacy space.
“We’re seeing a moment now where institutional actors would much prefer to be able to turn to, you know, one voice that represents a community. And even though that may not be how this all works, and there are many different perspectives and realities based on region, language, whatever it may be, having that one-stop-shop is very convenient.” He pointed to the Indigenous Screen Office as an example of an organization that’s built itself into an incredible community resource and funder with a unified voice. “The ISO and Indigenous advocates more broadly in the screen industry have been leaders here,” he said. “They’ve introduced the concept of authorial positionality, who you are in relation to that story you’re telling, the community you’re representing… and your ethical approach to the story.”
One of the most important factors in building a unified voice and a comprehensive data collection system, of course, is trust. And REMC is committed to ensuring groups who have been systematically excluded can feel safe building trust in this process. This happens through “effective communication and transparency,” as they explain in their most recent report outlining recommendations for implementing a much more comprehensive data collection system that acknowledges intersectionality and concerns about individuals feeling safe participating.
“Implementing this [harmonized] system and these targets will be the lion’s share of the work in creating systemic change in Canada’s screen sector, but we are optimistic that our industry is up to the challenge,” the report states.
Carrington and the REMC are very much committed to building that stronger, safer climate for all.
“The way forward here is to practice solidarity, intersectionality, and inevitably, in any advocacy cause, the broader a coalition you can build, the stronger it will be.”
To learn more about the Racial Equity Media Collective and its incredible advocacy work, please visit re-mc.org
Indigenous Screen Office Changing the Landscape
by Heather Neale Furneaux
Women in View is highlighting equity-focused organizations taking innovative steps to improve racial diversity and gender representation in Canada’s screen industry. These groups have adopted the kinds of structural-level change needed for real progress—changes we put forth in our Calls to Action (CTA) earlier this year. (You can review them here.)
Canada’s Indigenous Screen Office is the consummate example of an advocacy and funding body whose very mandate makes meaningful change not only possible, but unavoidable. (CTA #8). They’re all about assessing where ownership lies, who has power over storytelling, and how to ensure Indigenous creators maintain creative control of their own projects.
In the following case study, ISO CEO Kerry Swanson explains their approach and philosophy, and some of the ways they’ve triggered impactful, positive strides for the Indigenous screen-based storytelling community across Canada.
The ISO was formed in 2017 in response to a massive national need for championing Indigenous screen-based storytellers and their narrative sovereignty. For starters, they partnered with imagiNATIVE Film Festival to develop the On-screen Protocols and Pathways toolkit, a living resource outlining and insisting on the kinds of changes the industry needed: respect for everyone’s storytelling process, acknowledgement of creators’ personal histories and relationships to stories, and accountability to honouring these elements.
Determining consent and ownership of oral traditions and stories that are gifted to you is often challenging. For example, sometimes you are given permission to share the story, but the intellectual property rights still vest with the original keeper of the story, whether that is a family, a community or a nation. Do people have the right to tell you that story? Where are all the places that consent lies? Who controls or has the rights to the story and who has the authority to give you permission? Determining consent is both a process of acknowledging and respecting.
The document enforces the idea that equity is an ongoing practice one must consistently refer back to. (CTA #1).
One of the most exciting outcomes of this toolkit is how it has empowered Indigenous storytellers, filmmakers, and producers.
They were able to give it to industry professionals and potential collaborators, and have that education done on their behalf,” said Swanson. “It took a huge burden off their shoulders.” (CTA #2) Swanson added, “many of the major funding bodies have adapted it as a guide for how they assess Indigenous projects and how they look at the relationship if there’s a collaboration at play.” (CTA #6).
The Protocols encourage collaboration with close consideration paid to issues like ownership, control, and storytelling rights. They have become an industry standard to be upheld across the board.
In presenting the document to the industry at conferences and events, the ISO found the impact and response from industry professionals to be positive and inspiring; many had never seen a document like this before and found it transformative.
As Indigenous people, these are really sort of basic foundational principles of how to work with other humans and create environments that are respectful and productive and collaborative,” Swanson said. “So, it was really a sign of the need in the industry to actually look at the basic principles of good, respectful behaviour.”
Funding Advantages
Another area where the ISO has affected great change is in funding, where they’ve advocated for more flexibility in the nature of their funding structures. They support development of projects at higher levels of up to $20,000 and can fund individuals where other organizations are only able to help registered companies.
We support the development of [an individual’s] idea, so they don’t get pushed into giving away their rights or entering into a partnership because it’s the only way,” said Swanson.
They negotiated an agreement with Canadian Heritage enabling them to move money between programs and administration and maintain some flexibility in how they’d respond to needs as they arose. They have post-production funding, for example, which many funders do not have formal programs to support. They also have sector development funding available to support training and sector capacity building.
We have a lot of ways that we’ve designed our programs that are very specific to meeting the needs of the Indigenous production sector… We’re able to be innovative because we can respond to what people are telling us they need. And that is a key priority for us.”
The ISO now funds immersive, interactive, and digital content too, for example. It also launched a podcast program last year in response to the need.
The People
Of the team’s eleven staff, ten are women. They boast an all-Indigenous staff and board who have worked hard to implement strong hiring and retention strategies. And they focus on capacity building in the administrative sector as well, which is both instrumental for smooth production, and often forgotten in funding and support. The ISO’s pan-national team based in BC, Manitoba, Quebec, and Ontario, includes both French and English-speaking members, which has helped establish trust within the community because creators often get the chance to meet team members in the places and contexts where they live. It has also helped the ISO strengthen and maintain ties to nationwide partners who offer significant financial support, supplementing the federal government’s annual contribution of $13 million per year—an amount that just recently jumped to $26 million, thanks to an allocation from the CRTC through the Online Streaming Act, as part of its base contributions. Those partnerships are crucial to continued capacity building for a sector that has been sorely neglected and shut out from the industry for far too long.
The ISO contributed significant funds and creative labour to building a production studio in Nunavut, for example, that would never have come to fruition without the partnerships the ISO had forged. Their financial support of that project triggered investment from the federal and Nunavut governments, helping the studio become an important cornerstone space for community projects and training in the sector. It is the first of its kind in that region, serving as a symbol of the growing recognition of Indigenous screen-based storytellers in Canada.
The ISO recently announced another exciting outcome of their strong community ties this spring at the Banff World Media Festival. They’ve acquired administration of the Canada Media Fund’s Indigenous program, making their organization a major Canadian funding body and one of the largest Indigenous non-profits in the country with an expected annual budget of $37 million.
A reflection of the people they serve
What advice can the ISO offer other organizations wanting to make structural changes that impact equity and diversity for the better?
“What we’ve learned is that we are truly a reflection of the community we serve,” said Swanson, “and first and foremost, everything we do is in collaboration.It’s really empowering to represent the voices of such a culturally and creatively rich community, but it requires constant dialogue and checking in, being responsive and flexible. The other piece is remembering we cannot do this work alone,” said Swanson. “We approach partnerships with an open heart and a lot of enthusiasm, but also with a clear understanding that there are terms for how we engage and that our autonomy, self determination and sovereignty—our ability to control the core storytelling—are non-negotiable.”
“The ISO has proven itself to be a fantastic example of the emergence of new systems and institutions in Canada that recognize the distinct place of Indigenous peoples and our rights to self-governance and self-determination.”
Learn more about the Indigenous Screen Office here.