UPCOMING PANEL

The ACE Program will be presenting a panel as part of the Women in Animation Virutal Summit.

Hear from the participants of the WIA Vancouver and Women in View’s “Five in Focus” program, as they share highlights and learning from their experience, and how creating a short film as part of this program has helped boost their careers. This panel will also discuss exciting changes to the ACE program, how you can apply, and how ACE could be adapted for use in other regions and for in-house studio training programs.

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WHEN:  7:30pm PT,  Thursday, May 28th,  2020  

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REGISTER FOR FREE:  HERE

WOMEN IN ANIMATION VANCOUVER -

ACE PROGRAM AT A GLANCE

Women in Animation Vancouver’s ACE (Animation Career EXCELerator) Program is designed to advance the careers of women in the animation industry by giving them a key credit in the creation of their very own short film, TV proof of concept or web series pilot, and providing mentorship and training along the way, to ensure they are set-up for success.  

The program includes:

• Individual mentoring for each participant

• Group-wide mentorship and training

• Individual pitch training, focusing on how to present and sell yourself and network

• Marketing and pitch training for the development and pitching of their own IP

• Attendance at a festival and/or market

• Promotion of each participant through social media initiatives and industry networking opportunities

Why does this work? 

• “Women don’t have the experience.” = This program provides the experience and training to prepare women to succeed

• “We can’t find women for these roles.” = The program shines a spotlight on these women, so that studios and production companies can ‘find’ women for these roles

• It reduces the risk level for studios, in promoting these women to senior roles, by giving women the opportunity to show they are capable of managing the responsibilities required.

• This program ‘pays it forward’.  Studies show that women tend to hire more women, so having women in these key creative roles, increasing the opportunities for diversity into the future, beyond the initial participants.

SPONSORS

PROGRAM DETAILS

The program is a two year commitment.   Six participants will be selected, one in each of the following key creative roles: Writer, Producer, Director, Art Director / Production Designer, Animation Director and Composer.   Over the course of the two years, the team will complete their short film / demo / pilot for September 2021, which will receive a premiere screening at Spark Animation Festival in October 2021.  During the course of production, they will receive mentorship and training workshops, including courses in pitching and presenting themselves and/or their projects, and mentorship in social media and marketing.  The six participants selected will jointly own their film/demo/pilot.

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Who is Eligible to Apply?

- Must be individuals identifying as women or non-binary

- Must be either Canadian citizens or permanent residents

- Must be residents of British Columbia

- Women of diverse backgrounds, including Indigenous women, women of colour, women with disabilities, LGBTQ+2 women, and non-binary individuals are encouraged to apply.

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How to Apply?

Writers

Writers should submit a one-page letter of intent outlining why they want to participate in the program, a CV including a cover letter outlining why they should be selected for the program, writing portfolio, and a script for the project they would like to submit to the program, and two letters of reference.

Producers

Producers should submit a one-page letter of intent outlining why they want to participate in the program, a resume including a cover letter outlining why they should be selected for the program, and two letters of reference.

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Directors

Directors should submit a one-page letter of intent outlining why they want to participate in the program, a resume including a cover letter outlining why they should be selected for the program, demo reel and/or portfolio, and two letters of reference.

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Art Directors / Production Designers

Art Directors / Production Designers should submit a one-page letter of intent outlining why they want to participate in the program, a resume including a cover letter outlining why they should be selected for the program, a portfolio of their work, and two letters of reference.

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Animation Directors

Animation Directors should submit a one-page letter of intent outlining why they want to participate in the program, a resume including a cover letter outlining why they should be selected for the program, a demo reel, and two letters of reference.

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Composers

Composers should submit a one-page letter of intent outlining why they want to participate in the program, a resume including a cover letter outlining why they should be selected for the program, a demo reel, and two letters of reference.

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All applications should be submitted in a single email to: with their desired position in the subject line, along with their name (Example:  Director - Jane Wong) by midnight, April 6th, 2020.   Links are accepted for portfolios and/or demo reels.

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Program Requirements

Program participants need to commit to participating for the duration of the program.  Please note, the program is designed to be done on a part-time basis, and it is understood that participants in the program will likely be balancing full-time jobs and families, alongside the program.  Participants also need to commit to participating in social media efforts for the project and program, and speaking on several panels and/or participating in conferences and workshops set-up by the program.  

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The Selection Process

Participants will be short-listed by a jury of industry professionals.   Short-listed candidates will then have an opportunity to attend a workshop, prior to an in-person pitching session to the jury, who will select the final participant for each category.   While we would like to thank everyone for their applications, only short-listed candidates will be contacted.

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Any questions about the program can be submitted to: with the subject heading: Questions

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WHAT DID LAST YEAR'S PARTICIPANTS HAVE TO SAY?

NOTE: Last year's program was called Five In Focus.  It has been renamed to the ACE Program.  (Animation Career Excel-erator)

WIA'S ACE PROGRAM IS SEEKING VOLUNTEERS

INTERESTED IN VOLUNTEERING?   

A VARIETY OF OPPORTUNITIES ARE AVAILABLE!

Please email with the subject header "VOLUNTEER",

and include your name and phone number.  Someone will be in touch with more details.