Banff World Media Festival Scholarship

Now in its 42nd year, BANFF is an international conference and marketplace where new business partnerships are forged and new TV, film and digital media projects are ignited. With delegates from 50+ countries, the Festival attracts the world’s top creators, producers, showrunners, talent, networks, studios, streamers, press and media companies.

Attracting over 250 international buyers and a wide-ranging cross-section of television and digital media professionals from around the world, BANFF delivers a comprehensive examination of the most critical issues facing the television and digital media industries through keynotes from industry leaders, contentious panel discussions, pre-booked meetings with industry decision-makers, expert forecasts, celebrity Master Classes, networking opportunities, critical case studies, key strategy sessions and more.

Learn more about this year's speakers, featured delegations and conference agenda at banffmediafestival.playbackonline.ca.

Applicants must meet the following criteria to be eligible for consideration:

• Canadian Citizen, Permanent Resident, or Landed Immigrant
• WIFT Toronto Full member in-good-standing. May join at time of application.
• Minimum 5 years’ professional experience in the screen-based industry. The ideal candidate will have 5 - 12 years’ experience
• WIFT Toronto Staff and Board are not eligible to apply
• Must complete a final report within two weeks of the end of the conference, including a testimonial

If selected, and for any reason you are not able to attend, you must notify WIFT Toronto immediately, and forfeit your claim to the scholarship. The scholarship may be offered to a runner-up in the event that the selected applicant is unable to attend the conference.

** EXTENDED! Deadline for submissions is MONDAY JUNE 7, 2021 (5pm EDT).

The call for applications is now open.

** EXTENDED! Deadline for submissions is MONDAY JUNE 7, 2021 (5pm EDT).

Supporting documents:

• Professional bio (150 words)
• Cover letter outlining your response to the following questions (max 2 pages): Have you attended the Banff World Media Festival within the past 3 years? Which other industry conferences, if any, have you attended in the past 3 years? What are your current professional development goals and how will your attendance at BANFF impact your achievement of these goals and the advancement of your career? (ex. Are there specific people with which you wish to meet, and why?) How do you intend to maximize your time at BANFF? What is your conference strategy?  
• Letter of Recommendation (supervisor or colleague, supporting your suitability for the scholarship)

Please submit your files in PDF format, and name them according to the order listed above, using this template: BANFF2021 – Full Name – Description of File.PDF (e.g. BANFF2021– Alex Talent –Bio.PDF)