Women in Film & Television Vancouver (WIFTV) has announced the finalists for the 2022 Genre Film Lab program. The Genre Film Lab (formerly known as From Our Dark Side) is an accelerator program designed to support the development of genre film creators whose projects are at an advanced stage of development. The teams include writers, directors and producers selected based on the submission of their original narrative feature film concepts. The five films include Riding Shotgun, $aint Mark’s Eve, White Noise, Human Nature and MonkeyDog. This year’s projects were evaluated and selected by a jury of genre industry experts including Austin-based acquisitions manager, programmer, professor, and producer Logan Taylor, and writer/producer Ashlee Blackwell (Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror). 

Leading this year’s Genre Film Lab is filmmaker, programmer, academic and former Programming Director for Frontières International co-pro market Vanessa Meyer. “I am thrilled to be a part of the newest iteration of WIFTV’s Genre Film Lab – a development lab for female and gender diverse filmmakers from across Canada. We have an exciting group of finalists this year who we think are a strong example of emerging talent – producers and writer/directors – who are all ready to put forth their stories into the continuously expanding  genre universe. At the Genre Film Lab, it is our intention to both support the development of underrepresented voices, and to foster a community through which these voices may continue to grow,” says Program Director Vanessa Meyer.   

The Genre Film Lab program will begin in early June with a masterclass on pitching with Jan Miller and will culminate with a dedicated pitch session at the Frontières International Co-Production Market (July, 21-24). The sessions will include an introductory group pitch masterclass, three strategy sessions with genre industry experts focusing on financing and packaging, one-on-one pitch development sessions, and individualized consultancies.

Full list of the project finalists, projects and teams:

Riding Shotgun
DIRECTOR(S): Dionne Copland
WRITER(S): Dionne Copland
PRODUCER(S): Louise Weard (CyberCraft Video)
PRODUCTION PROVINCE/TERRITORY: British Columbia/Alberta

$aint Mark’s Eve
DIRECTOR(S): Penny Eizenga
WRITER(S): Selaine Henriksen
PRODUCER(S): Sharon Buckingham, TSB Productions
PRODUCTION PROVINCE/TERRITORY: Ontario

White Noise
WRITER(S): Tamara Scherbak
PRODUCER(S): Christina Saliba (Misfit Films)
PRODUCTION PROVINCE/TERRITORY: Quebec

Human Nature
DIRECTOR(S): Luvia Petersen
WRITER(S): Huelah Lander
PRODUCER(S): Amanda Konkin, Download Joy Productions Inc.
PRODUCTION PROVINCE/TERRITORY: British Columbia

MonkeyDog
DIRECTOR(S): Vickie Ramirez
WRITER(S): Vickie Ramirez
PRODUCER(S): Tanis Parenteau, TDEP Productions
PRODUCTION PROVINCE/TERRITORY: Alberta/Ontario

“The Genre Film Lab is a portal for diverse, underrepresented voices to develop stories with unique approaches, nuances, and twists and turns that could only emerge when the creative forces behind these rich stories include the represented communities themselves,” says WIFTV Board Member, Gwen Haworth.

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About Women In Film and Television Vancouver (WIFTV) 
WIFTV is a member-based organization committed to creating an equitable screen-based industry for women and gender diverse people. By addressing systemic barriers we believe we are also working towards more inclusive, representative media. 

We approach our mission by: advocating and organizing for equity in funding, employment, and promotional opportunities for all women and gender diverse people in the film and TV industry; providing low-barrier, accessible programming, including mentorship and educational events to increase women and gender diverse participation in screen based media; and producing the annual Vancouver International Women in Film Festival that champions women and gender diverse creators. 

Women (trans and cisgender), Two Spirit, non-binary and gender diverse people are welcome to become members of WIFTV. Men are encouraged to join as allies. 

WIFTV incorporated in 1989 as a not-for-profit society registered in British Columbia. Our offices are located on the unceded traditional and ancestral homelands of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations.