SECOND ANNUAL BREAKTHROUGH DEVELOPMENTAWARD WINNERS ANNOUNCED

Congratulations to the winners of the 2020 Breakthrough Lab awards!

DOC Institute is pleased to announce the winners of the second annual Doc Institute BreakthroughDevelopment Award, sponsored by the Rogers Group of Funds and CBC.

The Breakthrough Development Award was presented to emerging filmmakers Aïcha Diop andShazia Javed. Selected by a jury of industry experts, Dïop and Javed each receive:

$20,000 cash prize from the Rogers Group of FundA development deal from the CBCMentorship and professional development support from the DOC Institute

“CBC recognizes the talent coming through the Breakthrough Lab and is pleased to award twoselected projects to continue through to the development phase,” says Jennifer Dettman, ExecutiveDirector of Unscripted Content for the CBC. “For a second year in a row, the program has curatedfresh talent, new ideas, and new voices.”

Robin Mirsky, Executive Director at Rogers Communications states, “I’m pleased to see such strongwork and confident filmmakers coming out of the Breakthrough Lab. Rogers Group of Funds is proudto support this program for a second year, which showcases some of the brightest talent in theprovince.”

Christine Kleckner, Director, DOC Institute: “On behalf of myself and the board of directors, we areimpressed by the calibre of the work presented by the filmmakers, and extend a huge congratulationsto Aïcha and Shazia on their successful pitches. Thank you to our funders at Rogers Group of Fundsand CBC for their ongoing support of documentary filmmakers, and for their recognition of theseexceptional projects.”

Virtual Breakthrough Award Ceremony

Aïcha Diop - GawloAïcha Diop is an emerging director. Her debut film, adocumentary short entitled NANCY’S WORKSHOP(Canesugar Filmworks, CBC Docs), launched online inSeptember 2019 and has since amassed over 2.2 millionviews. The film is an official selection of this year’s Hot DocsFilm Festival. She holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree fromMcGill University and a Master of Arts Degree from The NewSchool. She lives in Toronto with her dog Llama, a rotatingroster of foster dogs, and a growing collection of uselessthrift-store curiosities.

Statement

“I’m overjoyed and humbled that GAWLO was selected as one of the winning projects ofDoc Ontario’s Breakthrough Program. This year has been a rollercoaster, but our weeklypitch workshops offered the inspiration and motivation that I needed to stay focused, andto remind myself that there will be a world to return to after this, and that this story, whichhas captured my whole heart, still deserves to be told.

A debt of gratitude to our jury, Doc Ontario, and our weekly leaders Nadia Tavazzani andAndrew Moir for continuing to support and guide us as we all endured new personalchallenges in this truly bizarre time.”

Synopsis: GawloCiara and Mamadou are complete strangers living halfway around the world from eachother. Ciara, an advertising editor in New Jersey, frustratingly can’t find much informationwhile researching her ancestry. Like many African Americans, she has been severed fromher history. Mamadou, a Gawlo (also known as a Griot) living in Senegal, knows thethousand-year-old archive he and other Gawlos keep—entirely in their memory—is on theverge of extinction.

GAWLO is a sprawling journey that introduces Ciara to her previously unknownSenegalese family history, as it is revealed through DNA testing, that she is thefilmmaker’s distant cousin, and that Mamadou is the filmmaker’s Gawlo, who hasdedicated his life to preserving centuries of her family’s history. Revelations abound as webridge the gap between these two characters. Just how much can these two strangershelp one another find what the other is looking for?

Shazia Javed -Sister Don't Go That FarShazia Javed is an award-winning filmmakerwhose films have been shown internationally ontelevision and at prestigious film-festivals,including Hot Docs, DOXA, Durban International,and Mumbai International. Her docu-shortNamrata was Produced by the National FilmBoard of Canada and was a finalist for threeAMPIA (Alberta Media Industries Association)awards. She recently produced and directed 3Seconds Divorce, a TV hour documentary thatwon the Audience Choice Award at ReelworldFilm Festival and is now streaming worldwide onNetflix. Shazia’s work centres on

underrepresented perspectives from her variouscommunities and her films are being continually used by grassroots organisations to create dialoguesfor social change. She has an MFA in Film and enjoys teaching filmmaking workshops in community-centered spaces.

Statement“I am so thrilled! This is just the kind of boost that I needed in my career at this point. The entireprogram has been a great experience, and the pitch prize is an added incentive! I am now all setto continue work on my next film! Big thanks to the DOC institute, all the mentors, sponsors,fellow participants, and of course the jury members! “

Synopsis: Sister Don't Go That FarA woman pushes the boundaries of defined gender roles and challenges the status quo that ismaintained in the name of God. In this process of re-examining her faith, she must also findways to support other women.

Made possible by the generous support of our founding partner OntarioCreates, the Breakthrough Program has directly impacted the careertrajectory of its alumni. Participants have gone on to successfully launchtheir careers and have been associated with prestigious accolades,winning Canadian Screen Awards, landing on the Academy Award shortlist, and receiving theRogers Best Canadian Feature from the TFCA, the richest film prize in Canada. Theseexceptional filmmakers include Hugh Gibson (The Stairs), Shasha Nakhai (Take Light) andSherien Barsoum (Babe, I Hate to Go).

“Ontario Creates is proud to be the founding partner of the Breakthrough Program. Emergingproducers develop the skills and confidence to pitch their projects in a competitive marketplace.By building valuable connections that culminate at Hot Docs, this program creates opportunitiesthat strengthen the future for Canadian filmmakers” said Karen Thorne-Stone, president & CEO atOntario Creates, in a statement.

About the Jury

Jennifer DettmanExecutive Director, CBCUnscripted Content and President of theDocumentary Channel

Jennifer Dettman is an award-winning televisionexecutive with 15+ years of experience leadinginnovative television and digital content creation. Sheis one of the top female executives in the country andan internationally respected voice in the industry.Jennifer is dedicated to creating best-in-classCanadian content that competes global on allplatforms.

Robin MirskyExecutive Director at Rogers Communications

Robin Mirsky is a veteran film and televisionindustry executive who has been involved in thefinancing, strategy, and development of thousandsof award-winning productions that have had globaldistribution. Robin is co-chair of the Board of HotDocs and she sits on the Banff World MediaFestival and the Canadian Film Centre.

Kelly duane de la VegaHead of partnerships and Impact atChicken&Egg Pictures

At Chicken&Egg Pictures, Kelly has an integralrole in several programs to provide creative,professional, and financial support tofilmmakers at strategic junctures in theircareers. She is also an independent director,producer, writer, and impact campaignstrategist. Her feature documentaries havescreened at film festivals worldwide, openedtheatrically, and broadcast nationally onPOV/PBS and Netflix.

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A huge congratulations to our award winners.-The Doc Institute Team

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