Board, Staff, Advisors

Amy Stewart is a professional artist who has studied, practiced, taught, and run a creative business in New Brunswick, Canada for 20 years. She started her career as a professional photographer and pianist and performed with and captured many musicians, artists, and bands in her career. Through her experience of performance and visual art, she gained a love for producing and directing film.

Amy worked her way through different roles on film sets and became a member of the senior leadership team at Hemmings House Pictures. She was responsible for corporate and commercial film productions as an Executive Producer.

Amy currently collaborates with and leads amazing crews and creatives as a film Producer and Director and has a passion for supporting women in the film and music industry. Most recently, she has directed, produced and written 2 music videos with an all female identifying crew.

Ife Alaba, a dynamic professional in the entertainment and film industry, currently resides in St. Johns. With a multicultural background being born in Nigeria and growing up in South Africa, Ife has made significant contributions to productions,  both local and network shows. Her discerning eye for talent, evident both on and off-camera, has crafted authentic and inclusive portrayals in storytelling.

In addition to her independent film work, Ife serves as a journalist for CBC NL, hosting shows such as “Being Black in NL” and “Stuffed.” Her role involves not only providing insightful coverage but also contributing to the rich narrative of CBC NL.  As the Founder and Director of the Not-For-Profit, Occupy All Spaces, Ife passionately advocates for equal opportunities for black creatives in Newfoundland & Labrador.

She is an 8-time Music NL nominee, Ife’s versatile talents extend to the music scene, showcasing her diverse artistic contributions.

Jahan Bloch moved to PEI in 2019, from Mumbai, India. Hailing from a family whose primary occupation is film-making, she experienced life on the sets and the workings of the creative industry from an early age. She has worked in multiple feature films as a child actor, assistant director and a lead actor in one of them. Since moving to Canada she has worked in various films and TV projects as a showrunner’s assistant (CBC Diggstown), assistant director, script supervisor (‘Who’s Yer Father?’ and more) and assembly editor. Her short film, ‘Paradox of Life‘, was her debut as a writer and director. It was screened at the Atlantic Film Festival, Charlottetown Film Festival and is a part of the Reel East Coast Season 7 on CBC Gem.

Jan Miller is an international consultant and trainer specializing in film and television coproduction and co-venturing. She also continues to present one of the world’s top Pitching and Content Development workshops globally, which has also crossed sectors into the music industry and animation, working with Women in Animation’s Animation Career EXCELerator program and the East Coast Music Association. A talent that makes things happen, Jan collaborated with Berlin’s Erich Pommer Institut to design the Trans Atlantic Partners (TAP), a unique 2 module international training program for establish film and TV producers. She also launched and served as Director of Halifax’s Strategic Partners, one of the world’s pre-eminent international coproduction markets. 

Jan was co-founder of Canada’s first film school, the National Screen Institute, and continues to work with the NSI offering her expertise and workshops. Committed to supporting women working in the industry, Jan was the first Chair of  Women in Film and Television-Atlantic introducing its annual Making Waves Conference and the WAVE Awards. Jan also co-designed and presented four iterations of the Women in View’s Five in Focus training opportunities including one specifically for animators, as well as the 2021 iteration Five in Focus Indigenous. Most recently Jan co designed and continues to present the CMPA’s International Co-production Accelerator Program. 

Jan has received a Women in Film and Television (WIFT-T) Crystal Award as well as ITV Women of Vision Award and BMO’s Progress Women of Excellence Award. She presently serves on the Women in View Executive, on the Board of WIFT-Atlantic and the on the Board of the Canadian Artists Network. 

Jenna MacMillan is an award-winning filmmaker and owner of Club Red Productions, the leading independent film and television company on Prince Edward Island. Previously, she was the Director of Production and Development for Northwood Entertainment (ANNE WITH AN E, THE GRIZZLIES). Jenna produced the PEI feature thriller, A SMALL FORTUNE (levelFILM) which has been sold around the world and her latest feature film, WHO’S YER FATHER? released theatrically in Canada in 2023, continues to screen across the country and will release on Paramount + in 2024.  Jenna received Telefilm’s 2023 Talent To Watch Funding for her feature directorial debut, THE SNAKE – the only narrative project to be selected in Atlantic Canada. Jenna is a graduate of Toronto Metropolitan University’s Film Production program and was the recipient of the DGC-Ontario & WIFT-T Directing mentorship award, DGC Atlantic’s Making Waves award for trailblazing community efforts and WIFT-AT’s Filmmaker of the Year.

Kelsey Power trained to work in television and studied cinema during her Bachelor of Journalism (Honours) education at the University of King’s College. She has utilized her skill set as a multimedia reporter, with non-profits, and in Nova Scotia’s screen industry. Passionate about filmmaking – particularly within the documentary genre – she has gained further film education and experiences thanks to AFCOOP, WIFT-AT and all of her mentors, collaborators, and employers to date. This has included John Walker Productions Ltd., where Kelsey works as a production/post-production coordinator; Firefly Digital Media where Kelsey coordinates, researches, writes and field produces; and Screen Nova Scotia where she is the Communications and Events Officer – a temporary maternity leave position. She coordinated/managed an episode of The Nature of Things and served as the coordinator of Ocean School – a project of the NFB and Dalhousie University’s Ocean Frontier Institute. Kelsey also produced the award-winning short film, Baduk.  

Kimberlee McTaggart has been working in the Canadian film industry for over 30 years. She has produced and directed, but editing is her first love. She began her career editing documentaries, but is now mainly in the world of drama. Her most recent work includes Call Me Fitz, Studio Black, Seed, Pure, Diggstown and Moonshine. Kim won a Gemini for the Call Me Fitz pilot and was nominated for a Canadian Screen Award for her work on Call Me Fitz, Seed and Moonshine, as well as the feature film Blackbird.

Kim is currently the Editors’ Caucus rep for DGC-Maritimes, the vice-president of the Canadian Cinema Editors, and former Chair of WIFT-AT.

Lauren moved to Lunenburg in April 2020 where she worked as the Lead Coordinator at Lunenburg Doc Fest for 3 years. There she realized her love for the film and documentary industry. Lauren was involved in a wide range of tasks from programming to organizing events and communications. Experiencing the positive influence of nonprofits and networking inspired Lauren to join WIFT-AT and be a part of advancing the careers of women and gender-diverse people working in film, television and screen-based media.  Prior to Lunenburg, Lauren studied Anthropology at Concordia University in Montreal, which inspired an itch to travel—leading Lauren to work on tall ships around the world as a deckhand for several years. In her free time, Lauren is thrifting around the province for treasures to include in her online vintage business.

Mel Hennigar is a copywriter, aspiring screenwriter, and emerging producer who believes a good story has the power to change the world. She has spent her career working in advertising and marketing as an award-winning copywriter and creative director bringing stories to life for some of the region’s biggest brands. After realizing shoot days were the best days, Mel turned her attention to her own creative projects and pursuits. She has produced a short documentary and is currently in development for her first short film, among other ongoing projects. Mel is based in Halifax, Canada and in her spare time you can find her playing bass with her band and putting big ideas on little pieces of paper.

Melānie Mendez Munden immigrated to Canada, Nova Scotia 38 years ago from the Philippines. She has extensive experience as an entrepreneur and designer. In 2020 she participated in AFCOOP’s FILM 5 Program and made the short film called Maid about a Filipino Migrant worker. This film showed at FIN Atlantic international Film Festival and has now been in 16 festivals around the world and won six awards. Melãnie was also the Art Director for the 2023 WAVE Awards. 

Ruth Lawrence is an actor/writer/director/producer of film and theatre, based in St. John’s, NL.  As a filmmaker, Ruth’s feature films include Little Orphans (Best Canadian Feature, Whistler Film Festival 2020), Hopeless Romantic (2018), and the comedy feature, Party Pirate, releasing in Spring 2024. Her documentaries A Lot of Love in the Room (2021) and Circus by Komatik (2019) have been featured on CBC Gem. She has directed, written, and/or produced on over 70 short films and webisodes. She’s delighted that two digital comedy series she has directed and produced on- What Odds and The Missus Downstairs – were both recognized with 2024 CSA nominations. She’s currently writing two features, one with Sherry White (Maudie) and one with Emily Bridger (Little Orphans).

Ruth’s honours include the Joan Orenstein Best Actress Award, the RBC Michelle Jackson Award for Emerging Filmmaker, the Newfoundland and Labrador Arts Council’s Artist of the Year, the Queen’s Jubilee Medal, the YWCA Woman of Distinction, a WIFT-AT WAVE Award, the national Leslie Yeo Award for Volunteerism, and the inaugural Ross Leslie Award for her contributions to film and theatre.

One of the first female independent producers in Atlantic Canada, Terry has been a partner in Nova Scotia based production company Picture Plant since 1988.

Notable producer credits include the 13-episode drama series GULLAGE’S (CBC); multi-Gemini nominated movie of the week ONE HEART BROKEN INTO SONG (CBC); feature documentary THE MAN OF A THOUSAND SONGS (Super Channel/CBC) which premiered to standing ovations at TIFF in 2010, received awards for Audience Choice, Outstanding Direction and Best Documentary at the Atlantic Intn’l Film Festival and went on to enjoy a successful theatrical release; 2014 indie feature film HARD DRIVE (Super Channel/Netflix USA); two seasons of STUDIO BLACK! (CBC), nominated for the Canadian Screen Award – Best Limited Series and won the NS Screen Award for Best TV Series; DAWN, HER DAD & THE TRACTOR (CRAVE/Incendo), winner of the 2022 NS Masterworks Arts Award; BYSTANDERS (Super Channel/Vortex Media), winner of the Atlantic Intn’l Film Festival Award for Best Screenplay; CHRISTMAS ISLAND (co-pro with Vortex Media), scored top 2023 ratings on the Hallmark Channel.

Terry is developing several film and television projects through Picture Plant, including feature film co-productions with partners in the UK and Munich, along with a slate of debut features by Atlantic women filmmakers. Her current film MONICA’S NEWS is in post-production.

Terry is the recipient of a WIFT Atlantic Wave Award, was nominated for the CMPA Experienced Producer Award in 2021 and 2022 and presented with the Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee Medal in 2022, in recognition of her cultural contribution to Nova Scotia.

Terry is a member of the Canadian Media Producers Association and Screen Nova Scotia.

Tracey Lavigne (she/they) is a queer writer/director/producer from rural New Brunswick. She is an alumnus of the Reykjavik International Film Festival Talent Lab, the FIN Atlantic Film Festival Script Development Program, and a past winner of the CBC WIFT-Atlantic Pitch Competition. Tracey is the producer of the fantasy drama feature film Further Than The Eye Can See. Tracey’s short films exploring themes of identity, isolation, and connection have screened at festivals across Canada and beyond.