We're thrilled to invite you to a special event the Creative Mentorship Residency Meet & Greet! Join us on Monday, February 26, from 11:30 AM to 1 PM in AC227 for an opportunity to meet an incredible team of artist mentors kicking off our Rethinking Creative Mentorship in the Arts (RCMA) residency.
This unique eight-week initiative, running from February 26 through April 1, brings together four distinguished artist-practitioners to work closely with our students and co-hosts, Caroline Klimek and Cyrus Sundar Singh. Our aim is to foster dynamic collaborations between mentors and students from the Department of Arts, Culture, and Media, especially those enrolled in VPAB18 - Becoming a Producer and VPAC18 - Raising Funds for Arts and Media courses. However, this opportunity is open to all students with a keen interest in the arts.
Our mentors—jes sachse, Maya Annik Bedward, Philip Geller, and Gary Joseph—bring a wealth of experience and a commitment to inclusive practices. They will guide students through the intricacies of producing, grant writing, pitching, and managing projects in the arts. This hands-on mentorship will emphasize decolonization, anti-black racism, disability justice, and non-hierarchical learning, providing our students with an invaluable learning experience.
Light refreshments will be provided at this FREE event, learn more about their extensive backgrounds, and discover how this residency can benefit your creative and professional journey.
Mark your calendars and join us in celebrating the beginning of an exciting collaboration!
Register on clnx.utoronto.ca > Log in > Events & Workshops > UTSC - Arts, Culture and Media > Select the event
Mentors’ bio:
jes sachse is a queer interdisciplinary artist who brings a disability justice perspective to their work. sachse is interested in rethinking mentorship through a non-hierarchical relationship based on reciprocity. They are also writing a book about the institutional violence they have experienced in a variety of art spaces as a disabled person, bringing over a decade’s worth of experience as a curator, writer, studio and performing artist.
As a director and producer, and founding member of the Black Screen Office (BSO), Maya Annik Bedward has helped set more compassionate standards in this sometimes toxic sector by making her film sets a safe space for her crew. In all her work, Bedward focuses on supporting the next generation of Black creators. Bedward is currently finishing her first feature film and working part-time at the Canada Council for the Arts. Bedward’s experience as a grant coordinator and producer will be invaluable to helping students craft their final projects. website: https://www.mayaannik.com/
Philip Geller has worked as an actor, director, dramaturg, producer, and clown with companies and festivals including Stratford Festival, Buddies in Bad TImes Theatre, Theatre YES, Gwaandak Theatre, Centre for Indigenous Theatre, Made in Exile, Citadel Theatre, Nextfest, Play the Fool Festival, Edmonton Fringe Festival, and Paprika Theatre Festival. He will bring these experiences to the mentorships, grounded in what he describes as “all the incredible relations – human and more than human – I have the fortune of visiting with.” website: https://www.philipgeller.com/
Gary Joseph has made a career of nurturing and supporting Indigenous musicians, engineers, media makers, and producers. Joseph’s business provides a full-service production facility that maintains a sound stage and recording studio, with newly completed YouTube and podcast facilities for sharing, collaboration and broadcast. Joseph is a consummate storyteller and business person, who brings openness, thoroughness, and a wicked sense of humour to every project he enters into.