CBC announced Wednesday the second round of AccessCBC, a national program that provides pre-development training, mentorship and financing support to Deaf and disabled creators.
For the second iteration of the initiative, CBC is collaborating with the Disability Screen Office, a national, disability-led, not-for-profit organization that works with the Canadian screen industry to eliminate accessibility barriers and foster authentic disability representation on and off screen.
Support for disabled creators is being provided through three programming streams — scripted comedy/drama, unscripted and kids. Submissions for the scripted and kids streams are open now through Friday, March 15. Detailed information about the program is available on the AccessCBC website.
“When we launched the AccessCBC pilot program two years ago, we were struck by the breadth and calibre of talent that we encountered from across Deaf and disability communities. Building on that initial success, the second round of AccessCBC allows us to further connect with and encourage new creative voices,” Sally Catto, CBC’s general manager of entertainment, factual and sports, said in a press release.
“Working with the Disability Screen Office, this groundbreaking program will continue to offer professional development and networking opportunities to help emerging creators overcome barriers and cultivate careers behind the camera,” she said.
The scripted comedy/drama stream will provide an opportunity for up to four selected teams — each consisting of at least one producer and one writer who are Deaf or have a disability — to participate in a pre-development training phase and mentorship. “CBC executives will work closely with the creative teams and provide coaching and feedback on their concepts, ensuring they leave with practical experience as well as a polished pitch document,” the press release says.
The kids stream is a new addition to the AccessCBC program. It will offer up to five selected individual participants or teams — consisting of at least one producer and one writer who are Deaf or have a disability — a similar pre-development training phase and mentorship. The primary focus will be on short-form series (11 minutes and under), either animated or live-action, for kids aged 4-6, with a secondary focus on content for kids aged 6-10 across all genres, including arts and crafts, science and sports, the release says.
The approach for the unscripted stream in the second round of AccessCBC “will focus on the CBC Creator Network and provide opportunities for Deaf and/or disabled creators who are currently working with CBC as part of it, to produce short digital content. They will work closely with a CBC producer who will mentor and guide them through the production process,” the release says.
Submissions are open to producers and writers who self-identify as having a disability and are not employed by CBC. For both the scripted and kids streams, eligible teams must include a producer with experience working in the field and with at least two credits as producer, director or writer of screen-based content. For the kids stream, individual applicants do not need to be a producer with past credits.
