Bell Media announced today the seven participants selected for the second annual Bell Media Executive Producer Accelerator Lab, a two-part program designed to assist the career advancement of mid-level Canadian producers. Created in 2024, the Bell Media Executive Producer Accelerator Lab is part of the $12.3 million Bell Media TV Skills and Film Development Initiative, a suite of national mentoring and promotional programs.
The 2024 Bell Media Executive Producer Accelerator Lab participants are:
*Joey Case (Originally from Quesnel, B.C., now residing in Toronto)
Producer, director, and writer whose television credits include FOOL’S GOLD (Discovery), CANADA’S WORST DRIVER (Discovery), and THIS HOUR HAS 22 MINUTES (CBC).
*Lauren Corber (Originally from Montréal, now residing in Toronto)
Founder of LoCo Motion Pictures; currently developing several feature films, including Sandra from Away, Homeless FC, and Sex with the Perfect Stranger, as well as the one-hour drama series NEW WAVE. (@elcorbs)
*Erica Landrock (Vancouver)
Founder of Landrock Entertainment, whose recent productions include the documentary Rise of the eSports Hero (Global) and the historical documentary series WORKING PEOPLE: A HISTORY OF LABOUR IN BRITISH COLUMBIA (Knowledge Network). (@ericalandrock)
*Jennifer Little (Toronto)
Writer and director with nearly 15 years of experience in the television industry; currently creative producing THE LIQUIDATOR (OLN) for Anaïd Productions.
*Chris Sheasgreen (Originally from Richmond, B.C., now residing in Toronto)
Writer and producer; co-creator of the multi-award-winning comedy series LESS THAN KIND (HBO Canada). (@thatgreendude)
*Simone Urdl (Toronto)
Founding partner of the production company The Film Farm, whose credits include Sarah Polley’s Away from Her, Brian DePalma’s Redacted, and Atom Egoyan’s The Captive and Adoration. (@TheFilmFarm_ca)
*Glen Wood (Originally from Victoria, now residing in Toronto)
Director and producer whose credits include the feature film The Dark Stranger, as well as the Stage to Screen anthology series, and the award-winning short Adam Avenger. (@viddywellfilms)
“We are pleased to once again offer the Bell Media Executive Producer Accelerator Lab program and provide these talented producers with the opportunity to experience the inner workings of a national broadcaster first-hand,” said Corrie Coe, Senior Vice-President, Independent Production.
The two-part Bell Media Executive Producer Accelerator Lab program begins Feb. 2 with a six-week broadcaster internship at Bell Media’s Toronto headquarters. The group-based curriculum provides participants with exposure to the internal operations of a Canadian broadcaster and the opportunity to learn about the complex business model and economics of Canadian television production and its relationship to broadcasting through hands-on sessions with internal departments, panel discussions with industry experts, exploration of case studies, and coaching sessions. Following the internship, up to three participants will be selected for a specialized eight to 10-month production apprenticeship with a top independent Canadian production company or Bell Media In-House Productions. This placement will span of the life of one program cycle and is intended to expose the participant to the Executive Producer’s role and responsibilities, and provide meaningful access to the day-to-day running of a large-scale series.
The 2024 program participants are currently completing their apprenticeship placements. Lauren Grant is at Temple Street Productions, working on the new series KILLJOYS for Space and Syfy, and contributing to the scripted programming team’s development slate; Shaun Johnson is a consulting producer for marblemedia, working across several divisions, including scripted and unscripted development, production, business development, and marbleLIVE; and Jennifer Pun recently began her apprenticeship at Shaftesbury’s Los Angeles office, where she is working on the company’s U.S. project slate.
The $12.3 million Bell Media TV Skills and Film Development Initiative is a suite of national mentoring and promotional programs, which ensure a comprehensive range of training for writers, producers, directors, and showrunners in the Canadian television and film industry at different stages of their careers. Currently, five of these multi-year initiatives are exclusively funded by Bell Media. The program supports the Banff World Media Festival, the Bell Media Diverse Screenwriters Program (Writers Guild of Canada) for emerging and mid-career writers from diverse backgrounds who intern in a writing room of a Bell Media TV series; the Bell Media Primetime TV Program (Canadian Film Centre), which provides series development for TV writers; the Bell Media Executive Producer Accelerator Lab, which provides immersive and experiential broadcast and production experience for mid-level producers; the Bell Media Showrunner Bootcamp (Canadian Film Centre), which develops showrunner knowledge and management for TV writers; the NSI Totally Television Program (National Screen Institute), a training course for writers, producers, and showrunners to hone concepts with the goal of landing a development deal with a broadcaster; and the Telefilm Talent Fund (Telefilm), which helps fund and promote films from emerging and established filmmakers.