2016 Corus Diverse TV Director Students Announced

WINNIPEG, April 25, 2016 /CNW/ - Corus Entertainment and the National Screen Institute – Canada (NSI) are pleased to announce the five students accepted to the 2016 Corus Diverse TV Director (formerly Shaw Media Diverse TV Director) training program.

The program is designed for participants with directing experience who are interested in making the leap to directing scripted television series.

The 2016 students are:

• Tricia Lee – Toronto, ON
• Tarique Qayumi – Whistler, BC
• Adam Garnet Jones – Toronto, ON
• Tanya Lemke – Toronto, ON
• Amy Jo Johnson – Toronto, ON

"We are excited to partner with NSI to offer vital training to emerging diverse Canadian filmmakers and welcome these talented participants to the program," said Barb Williams, EVP & Chief Operating Officer, Corus Entertainment. "The firsthand TV set experience will help them to gain valuable skills and advance their careers to the next level."

Elise Swerhone is the program manager, and DGC award-winning director Gail Harvey is the program advisor.

"These five directors were selected from a large pool of talented Canadian filmmakers," said Program Manager, Elise Swerhone. "We have received an overwhelmingly positive response to this program, reaffirming the need for it – and others like it across the industry."

Workshops and seminars in class and on-set will be led by industry experts.

About Corus Diverse TV Director in association with the National Screen Institute

This is an advanced two-phase diversity training course for diverse directors who are female and/or Aboriginal (male or female) and/or a visible minority (male or female) and/or a person with a disability (male or female). The program includes an intensive boot camp in Toronto in June and a four-week director job shadowing experience on the set of a series in production.

About the National Screen Institute

Renowned for having given many emerging filmmakers, television writers and producers their first breaks, the National Screen Institute provides training and production support through courses like NSI Totally Television, NSI Drama Prize, NSI New Voices, NSI Features First, Movie Central Script to Screen, Corus Diverse TV Director, NSI Aboriginal Documentary, TELUS STORYHIVE Web Series and Digital Shorts, and TELUS Optik™ Local.

NSI also offers exposure through the NSI Online Short Film Festival and provides vast resources and support to those in the film, television and digital media industries at nsi-canada.ca.

Corus Diverse TV Director is supported by Presenting Sponsor Corus Entertainment; Industry Partner the Directors Guild of Canada Ontario; and Supporting Sponsors Entertainment One, Super Channel and the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television.

About Corus Entertainment

Corus Entertainment Inc. (TSX: CJR.B) is a leading media and content company that creates and delivers high quality brands and content across platforms for audiences around the world. The company's portfolio of multimedia offerings encompasses 45 specialty television services, 39 radio stations, 15 conventional television stations, a global content business, digital assets, live events, children's book publishing, animation software, technology and media services. Corus' roster of premium brands includes Global Television, W Network, OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network Canada, HGTV Canada, Food Network Canada, HISTORY®, Showcase, National Geographic Channel, Q107, CKNW, Fresh Radio, Disney Channel Canada, YTV and Nickelodeon Canada. Visit Corus at www.corusent.com.

SOURCE Corus Entertainment Inc.

Laura Friesen, Manager, Communications & Alumni Relations, Tel: [phone] or email: [email protected]