This April marks Film Training Manitoba’s 15th year of providing workshop training and work experience opportunities for Manitoba’s film and television industry.
Born out of the province’s need for additional film crews to sustain the increasing number of film productions in the late 1990s, Film Training Manitoba (FTM) was incorporated as a not-for-profit organization in 1999. Since then we have touched the careers of over 90% of our Manitoba crew — from new entrants to the industry to existing crewmembers looking to upgrade their skills.
FTM has brought in some of the film industry’s top instructors, both local and from outside the province. In addition, our training has continually featured the latest filmmaking technologies, including the most current industry software and cutting-edge camera equipment. In recent years, our in-class and hands-on training have also evolved to include online courses that are available 24/7.
A large part of FTM’s success, of course, has been due to the strength of its ongoing partnerships with Manitoba production companies, labour organizations, post-secondary institutions, and other local film industry organizations. The continual support of our government funders, in particular Industry Workforce Development (IWD) and Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC), has allowed our organization to provide a high level of consistent, responsive, and innovative training. We want to offer our gratitude to each of our partners and funders!
Over the coming months, we’re very excited to share some of our stories about the past 15 years and how we got to where we are today. We will be featuring interviews and profiles of some of the people who have shaped our organization, as well as people whose careers have been impacted by FTM.
We also look forward to engaging with you – be it at one of our training or outreach events, as a work experience candidate, or even on social media. We’d love to hear from you as we go forward to help further grow our industry!
