DIGI60 SUMMER ACCELERATOR
PRODUCING STREAM

OAG Conference Room
Ottawa Art Gallery, Floor 5

The Producing Stream is designed to help filmmakers develop the practical skills needed to bring projects to life. Through case studies, industry conversations, and hands-on workshops, participants will explore funding opportunities, production strategy, distribution, the festival circuit, and the role producers play at every stage of a film's journey.

Along the way, you'll connect with fellow filmmakers, mentors, and industry leaders while gaining practical insight into how independent films are developed, financed, and shared with audiences. Whether you're producing your first short film or expanding your experience, you'll leave with new knowledge, meaningful connections, and greater confidence in bringing your next project to the screen.

Workshop program and mentors are subject to change based on availability. Mentor bios and headshots coming soon.

Morning
(10:00-1:00 PM)

Afternoon
(2:00-5:00 PM)

Evening (5:00-8:00 PM)
Optional Programming

Monday
August 24, 2026

Orientation & Welcome,
ACTRA MIPs, Arts Court + DARC Tour

Case Study: Bell Fibe TV1
Aishani Chakravarty

Cohort Welcome Reception
Albion Rooms
Cohort & Mentors only

Tuesday
August 25, 2026

CBC Creator Network & Creator Catalyst Fund
Christine Maki, Nickie Shobeiry & Paul Barasa

Dream Eater: Producing a Feature Film
Blind Luck Pictures

Dream Eater - Ottawa Premiere with Director, Writer & Actor Q&A
Co-Presented by the Ottawa Film Office
OAG Alma Duncan Salon
PWYC Tickets | Open to the public

Wednesday
August 26, 2026

Case Study: Telefilm Talent to Watch Applications
Kenza Derkaoui

Writing Grants / Funding with Arts Councils
Pixie Cram

Film & TV Industry Mixer with Industry Leaders
Sponsored by ACTRA Ottawa 
Club SAW Courtyard
FREE RSVP | Open to the public

Thursday
August 27, 2026

Distribution: It Starts in Prep
Caitlin Delaney

Applying to Festivals
Pixie Cram

Closing Plenary: Building Community and Sharing Ourselves
Conversation with Digi60 Alumni
Artengine
Cohort & Mentors only

PIXIE CRAM

Pixie Cram is a filmmaker based in the Ottawa-Gatineau region. The format of her work includes stop-motion animation, live action fiction, and small-gauge film (super-8 & 16mm). Her films have screened at festivals across Canada and internationally. She teaches a course in screenwriting at Carleton University.

CAITLIN DELANEY

With over 17 years of dedicated experience in the film industry, Caitlin is a seasoned producer committed to nurturing talent and fostering innovation. As the driving force behind UP LIGHT ACADEMY, Caitlin brings a wealth of expertise, having produced an impressive portfolio of 15 films and movies each year. Her passion for storytelling and commitment to excellence have earned her recognition for delivering compelling narratives that resonate with audiences worldwide.

Caitlin's journey in film production began with a deep-seated passion for cinema and a vision to empower aspiring filmmakers. Over the years, she has championed numerous successful projects, each reflecting her distinctive blend of creativity and business acumen. Her extensive industry knowledge and hands-on approach ensure that UP LIGHT ACADEMY remains at the forefront of film education, offering students unparalleled opportunities to learn and grow in a dynamic and competitive field.

Aishani Chakravarty

Aishani Chakravarty is an Ottawa-based producer, writer, and filmmaker. With a background in both the dramatic arts and neuroscience, she brings a curious and interdisciplinary approach grounded in character-driven storytelling.

Aishani’s work is driven by a desire to challenge familiar narratives of underrepresented communities and champion stories that are diverse, nuanced and authentic. Her producing credits include several Bell Fibe TV1 docu-series, and she is currently developing an original scripted web series and feature film.

BLIND LUCK PICTURES

Alex Lee Williams and Jay Drakulic have won numerous awards throughout their ten-year creative partnership. They are the co-writers and co-directors of the feature film Hellmington, starring Michael Ironside and Nicola Correia-Damude. In 2018, Mallory Drumm joined the collective, bringing an exciting new voice to the team.

In 2025, the trio took the genre space by storm with their first feature collaboration, Dream Eater, which went viral following a regional festival screening. The film was quickly acquired by The Horror Section and received a North American theatrical release in more than 200 theatres.

KENZA DERKAOUI

Kenza Derkaoui is a Moroccan-Canadian filmmaker, facilitator and equity and inclusion consultant whose career has spanned federal politics, strategic planning, education and storytelling. She is currently directing her first feature documentary, Le silence de Mostafa (Mute On Set), supported by Telefilm Canada’s Talent to Watch program. The film follows her grandfather, pioneering Moroccan filmmaker Mostafa Derkaoui, as he returns to filmmaking after nearly two decades, while Kenza searches through lost films, archives and family memories to better understand the artist and grandfather she has always known from a distance. Drawing on her multidisciplinary experience, Kenza approaches filmmaking as both a creative practice and a space for reflection, dialogue and learning.

CHRISTINE MAKI

Christine Maki is an award-winning producer leading CBC Ottawa's creator network, first person and content diversification unit. What this means is she works with storytellers across the community to bring forward new voices and tell stories in different ways, from video storytelling through your own lens, to first person written pieces in your own words, to everything in between.

Before this, she spent 10 years putting together CBC radio's Ottawa Morning show, and before that she worked for a smattering of programs for CBC in Toronto and Quebec City and community radio stations in Canada and the UK.

NICKIE SHOBEIRY

Nickie Shobeiry is a national award-winning journalist, documentary filmmaker, public speaker and communications professional. 

As a journalist, she covers art, culture and business for Globe & Mail, CBC, Shondaland and more. As a documentary filmmaker, she has created and produced acclaimed documentaries for Bell Fibe TV1 and CBC, and is a fellow of the Netflix-Banff Diversity of Voices program. 

Her recent CBC Creator Network short doc, ‘Good Nose’—her directorial debut and winner of a national RTDNA award—features subjects including Samin Nosrat, NYT best-selling author and creator of Netflix’s ‘Salt Fat Acid Heat’.

Nickie’s upcoming Bell Fibe TV1 docu-series, ‘Persian Pitch’, is a music competition, featuring collaborators from Red Bull Canada, OVO Sound and Live Nation Middle East.

Her throughline? Using storytelling excellence for good.

Paul Barasa

Paul Barasa is an African-Canadian filmmaker based in Ottawa, ON, Canada. Since 2022, Paul has been making intimate, character-driven films highlighting social problems, both in narrative and documentary formats. His latest short documentary film "Heartline" follows hockey player Jacob LeGuerrier's battle with viral myocarditis and was produced in collaboration with CBC.