Directors Guild of Canada- Atlantic Regional Council Summer Workshops - Halifax

Assistant Location Manager Workshop - 2 day module
June 15 & 16  from 9am to 5pm each day

Assistant Directing Workshop - 1 1/2 day module
June 15 from 9am to 5pm & June 16 9am to 12:30pm

Building a Respectful Workplace - 1/2 day module
June 16 from 1:30pm to 5pm

Assistant Location Manager Training
This 2 day intensive course is designed for anyone looking to broaden their knowledge of the locations Department.

Candidates for this course could be either Assistant Location Managers, Location Production Assistants or anyone looking to gain confidence in this critical production department.

This course will cover the role of Locations personnel during pre-production, production and wrap and will include the following: handling preliminary permits, the tech survey, production meetings, important paperwork that Locations is responsible for, the accounting aspect of working on locations, map making, management of film locations, parking, security, working with Transport Department and establishing relationships with locations stakeholders and neighborhoods.

Have more questions?  Please contact Andrea Dymond at info@dgcatlantic.ca.

Luis Mendoza Bio - Teaching the Assistant Location Manager Training
Luis has worked in the Film Business since 1993, and specifically as a Location Manager since 2003. He has worked on over 70 projects including television series, movies of the week and feature films. Titles include Beauty and the Beast, Designated Survivor, Amelia, The Incredible Hulk, Devil, amongst many others. He has also produced short films and videos.  Currently Luis is working on the new TV Series "Jupiter’s Legacy", for Netflix.

Luis has taught Location Management courses for the past 8 years at DGC Ontario, including how to Scout Locations, Contracts and Insurance, ALM courses, Logistics, Architecture and how to work with the Art Department, etc.

Luis, as one of our pre-eminent Location Mangers, is both accustomed and comfortable in presenting the needs of the film makers to local and provincial governments and, most importantly, to the public.  In turn he is well-known for expertly and adroitly representing the interests of government policies and expectations as well as public desires to the film industry.  As is the case with all good Location Managers, he is an excellent ambassador for the industry, has superb diplomatic and communication skills, is personable and highly trusted by provincial and municipal officials. He is considered an expert with respect to his knowledge of studio space and location potential.

Luis is also actively involved as an elected representative in the DGC.  He is currently the National representative for Location Management.  In this capacity (he sits on the executive board) he offers the viewpoint of location management when the board develops policy and objectives nationally. 

Assistant Directing Training
Assistant Directing is a demanding career, one that requires excellent communication, listening, and organizational skills, as well as the ability to be a team player.

In this course, AD fundamentals are covered, which may be a refresher for some, but is a crucial element of building a solid foundation for a department that is dependent on teamwork. Topics covered include breaking down the duties and responsibilities of the various roles in the AD department, understanding the most valuable skills an AD can develop, looking at set etiquette and best practices, and getting into the daily details of how to survive and thrive as an AD.  We will also look at work flow, how to divide up tasks, and the challenges of working with a small vs. a large team.  We will also discuss the challenges of how to adapt quickly on a working film set, and how to support one another in order to create a less stressful work environment, and an efficient and effective team.

Have more questions?  Please contact Andrea Dymond at info@dgcatlantic.ca.

Building a Respectful Workplace Training
The industry is changing, and this course is designed to help you navigate the shifting landscape.

We'll look at industry etiquette, best workplace behaviours, workplace harassment and discrimination, along with some bigger cultural elements that factor into building respectful workplaces in the #metoo era. Topics covered include understanding why harassment happens, what we can do about it, and the resources available to deal with it. Basic conflict resolution strategies are discussed, and real-life case studies are used to examine prevention, protocols, and procedures.

The goal of this course is to develop a greater understanding of ourselves and how we interact with others, aiming to create and sustain positive, productive work environments. 

Have more questions?  Please contact Andrea Dymond at info@dgcatlantic.ca.

Chris Ross Bio - Teaching both the Assistant Directing & the Building A Respectful Workplace Workshops
Chris Ross is a Toronto-based Assistant Director, Filmmaker, and Instructor, and has been working in the film and TV industry since 2007. In that time she has worked on many different films and TV shows, most recently as a 2nd AD on Star Trek’s Short Treks, and The Baroness Von Sketch Show. Chris also works as a 1st AD in the commercial world, and directs her own film projects. Her short film Swimmers was the inaugural winner of DGC Ontario's Short Film Fund last year and is currently being submitted to festivals. Chris has been teaching and developing DGC Ontario’s Building a Respectful Workplace Course for the last five years, and has taught this workshop in many different production centres.