Banff, AB -- The Banff Centre for the Arts, in partnership with ACTRA and Creative Women, announces the selection of the 2001 Women in the Director's Chair Workshop participants.

A national jury has selected eight extraordinary directors including Academy Award winning director Cynthia Scott (Flamenco at 5:30, The Company of Strangers), prolific aboriginal writer/director Carol Geddes, former Fifth Estate director/producer Michelle Metivier, Irene Angelico, Donna L. Brunsdale, Sharon Cavanagh, Marilyn Norry, and Alison Reid (bios attached) to attend the fifth annual Women In the Director’s Chair Workshop. Each woman has a recognized track record directing either low-budget features, documentaries, non-fiction, specialty television, or video works, or has a high degree of transferable skills in other areas of film, television, and video production with directing experience. These participants are attending the workshop to further enhance their skills.

The 17-day intensive WIDC Workshop seeks to support and promote Canadian women into leadership positions in the television, film and video community. Their common goal is to direct drama in Canada and abroad. Award winning American writer, director, and producer Lynn Hamrick (Family Ties, Splitsville, Finding Kelly) will mentor this stellar group of mid-career directors in the program, which runs January 26 to February 11, 2001 at The Banff Centre for the Arts.

"Our alumnae are proving without a doubt that this program works," says Carol Whiteman, workshop producer, president, and CEO of Creative Women Workshops. "1997 alumna Annie Frazier Henry was named Aboriginal Director, Producer and Writer of the Year at the Aboriginal Voices of the 21st Century event held in the Okanogan, BC and 1999 alumna Michele Boniface won Best Director honours at the 2000 AMPIA Awards, and the list goes on!"

The hands-on program focuses on developing the director’s voice and technique by working with ACTRA actors and DGC and IATSE crews. In addition to one-on-one mentorship, instruction from a senior acting instructor, director of photography and editor leads to development of the story, production and post-production of original pieces. Participants also meet with producers, discuss ownership and copyright, and develop short and long-term project and career plans.

IRENE ANGELICO, Montreal, Quebec
Irene Angelico's debut documentary Dark Lullabies won several international first prizes and represented the best of the NFB's Studio D in London and France. Recently she directed and wrote The Cola Conquest, which garnered several awards including Best Documentary Series by an independent at Hot Docs, a Silver Hugo in Chicago, and a Gemini for Best Writing. Ms Angelico is currently producing a series called She Got Game, and directing Inside the Great Magazines. She resides in Montreal.

DONNA BRUNSDALE, Calgary, Alberta
Donna Brunsdale has a BFA and an MFA in visual art. Her films include Moments of Despondency (1996) and the feature Cheerful Tearful (1998). She has exhibited her artwork and films in galleries and festivals across Canada and internationally, and has taught visual art and film. She lives in Calgary and is currently developing a new feature film entitled Shopping.

SHARON CAVANAGH, St. John’s, Newfoundland
Sharon Cavanagh is a writer, director and producer for both film and theatre. Her latest feature film, The Pasta King of the Caribbean, premiered at the Atlantic Film Festival September 1998. It had its broadcast premiere on Bravo! in December 1998. Sharon was a recent winner of a Linda Joy Busby Media Arts Award for her new Web-drama How Chet Baker Lost His Teeth, which will be going into production in March 2001.

CAROL GEDDES, Teslin, Yukon
Carol Geddes, of Tlingit and Southern Tutchone ancestry, was a producer at the NFB Studio One when her first major film, Doctor, Lawyer, Indian Chief (1988) won a silver award at the National Educational Film and Video Festival, San Francisco. Following a 15-part series Images of Indians for Knowledge Network and numerous other video works, Ms. Geddes' most recent documentary film Picturing A People: George Johnston, Tlingit Photographer (1997) won among others the Peoples Choice Award, American Indian Film Festival; Outstanding Achievement Award, Dreamspeaker's Festival; and a Gemini nomination.

MICHELLE METIVIER, Toronto, Ontario
Michelle Metivier's recent work includes a film on the fur trade for The Canadian History Project on CBC Television, and a film on intersex (hermaphrodites) for The Learning Channel and Discovery USA. Michelle produced and directed for the CBC’s The Fifth Estate and has won awards in Canada and the USA. She lives in Toronto.

MARILYN NORRY, North Vancouver, British Columbia
Marilyn Norry is an actor, writer, director, story editor, producer and teacher in Vancouver. On stage she played Hagar Shipley, and on screen, Nellie McClung. She wrote for and story edited the series Madison and has a feature in development with Paul Shapiro. She has directed a number of plays including one she co-wrote, One Morning I Realized I Was Licking the Kitchen Floor: a comic look at depression. She has plans to direct her own features.

ALISON REID, Toronto, Ontario
Alison Reid, during her eighteen years in the film industry has accumulated hundreds of credits as a stunt coordinator and stunt performer. She has also worked as a second unit director, most recently on the USA Network television series The War Next Door. Alison is currently stunt coordinating on Bruce McDonald's feature Claire's Hat, Rose Troche's feature, The Safety of Objects and the TMN/Hallmark movie of the week, Prince Charming.