TORONTO — The Banff World Media Festival (BANFF) will happen in-person this year, organizers announced today.
The 43rd edition of the Banff Festival will take place June 12-15 at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel in Banff, Alberta. The event has not been held in-person since June 2019 due to the global pandemic.
This year, the festival will feature “an exciting lineup of Summit Series keynote speakers, topical panel discussions and celebrity master classes as well as networking opportunities to connect the global media industry to ignite new projects and support business development,” reads a press release.
BANFF organizers announced details of two keynote conversations that will help kick off the event.
Pearlena Igbokwe (above), chair of Universal Studio Group (USG), a division of NBCUniversal, is the first confirmed Summit Series speaker. She will participate in a keynote conversation at the Festival on Tuesday, June 14.
In her role at USG, Igbokwe leads four studios: Universal Television, Universal Content Productions (UCP), Universal Television Alternative Studios and Universal International Studios, which collectively produce more than 3,000 hours of programming currently airing or streaming around the globe, according to the press release.
Organizers also confirmed an exclusive “In Conversation With” session with leading global health and pandemic expert Dr. Ashish K. Jha and renowned philanthropist and entrepreneur Frank Giustra “to discuss the impact of mis/disinformation on public awareness and the responsibility of the media and entertainment industry to combat it,” the release says.
“BANFF is back, bigger and better than ever,” said BANFF board chair and Lionsgate Television Group chair Kevin Beggs, in the release. “We couldn’t think of more fitting speakers to kick off the festivities than the head of Brown University’s School of Public Health, Dr. Ashish Jha, a visionary leader who has given useful and politics-free advice to millions during the pandemic; Frank Giustra, founder of Lionsgate which has grown from a start-up in 1999 to a leading content, distribution, and platform studio today, and who was recently named Co-Chair of the Crisis Group; and Pearlena Igbokwe, Chair of Universal Television Group, one of the most prolific television studios operating in Hollywood today.”
Also confirmed to take place during the festival is the Rockie Awards International Program Competition, “one of the world’s largest program competitions of its kind, with participation from more than 55 countries annually including an international jury of 150 industry professionals,” the release reads.
Rockie Awards category winners, including the Grand Jury Prize, the Francophone Prize and other special prizes, will be announced on June 13.
In a separate press release, BANFF announced the 100 women who have been selected to take part in the 2022 BANFF Spark Accelerator for Women in the Business of Media, which offers training, mentorship and access to potential strategic partners to women entrepreneurs in the screen-based media industry.
“Selected from hundreds of applications, candidates from Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia will participate in a tailored stream of business development programming, receive one-on-one mentorship, and gain exclusive access to top international media industry players at the 2022 Banff World Media Festival,” the press release reads.
This year, 66% of the selected candidates self-identify as Black, Indigenous, people of colour, LGBTQ2S+, or professionals with disabilities, according to the release.
“Since its inception, the overarching goal of BANFF Spark has been to support the launch and growth of significantly more Canadian women-owned media companies that excel both here at home and on the global stage,” said Jenn Kuzmyk, executive director of Banff World Media Festival and vice-president and publisher of Playback.
“We could not be more proud of what the program has achieved so far. Over the past two years, the women-owned companies which have taken part in BANFF Spark have formed key partnerships, moved projects and business forward in the market, and contributed to the creation of a more fair and equitable media industry. We look forward to building on this success as we welcome 100 new and talented entrepreneurs to the 2022 edition of the program,” Kuzmyk said.
“Super Channel continues to be a very proud supporter of this important program that is having a meaningful impact on the careers of so many talented women entrepreneurs in our industry,” said Don McDonald, president and CEO of Super Channel. “We congratulate and welcome this next group of deserving participants and look forward to seeing how each benefits from the program’s many exciting opportunities.”
Photo provided by Banff World Media Festival.
