By Denée Seaton

Six Black Directors were nominated for a Canadian Screen Award in the "Best Direction, Documentary" for directing their episode in the series, "Being Black in Toronto." 

The Canadian Screen Awards recognizes excellence in Canadian film, English-language, Television, and digital media productions. 

The directors produced their films as part of the Fabienne Colas Foundation mentorship and creation program with the support from  OYA Media Group. Both organizations are entirely dedicated to mentoring emerging Black filmmakers from idea to the final cut of the film.

The films premiered at the Montreal, Toronto, and Halifax Black Film Festival and can currently be streamed on CBC Gem. 

The six nominees submitted an application and then pitched their films in an interview to be selected for the 2019-2020 program. 

According to the FCF website, being Black in Canada was "created to make up for the blatant lack of Black people in front and behind the camera in Canada.

The film industry has been condemned for being dominated by White folks. In fact, in 2015 the hashtag, #Oscarssowhite erupted on social media to call out the lack of diversity towards people of colour and the LGBTQ2+ community in nomination for the Academy Awards and Oscars. 

Being Black in Canada has helped to fight this racial inequality. It gives a voice and a platform to creators who would not otherwise be seen or heard.

The directors nominated are Adrian Wallace, Omolola Ajao, Sharine Taylor, Valerie Amponsah, Yasmin Evering-Kerr, and Yvano Wickham-Edwards. Street Voices had the opportunity to interview three nominees to get a deeper insight into their experience as Black filmmakers and discuss the films they were nominated for.

Nominee Yasmine Evering-Kerr, 24, Director of the film The Onyx Butterfly, regards the OYA media group as the backbone of the film's creation. 

"Fabienne Colas Foundation created the program, but the people I worked with closely were from OYA Media Group; they were instrumental in helping us make these films. They're important in fostering this new generation of Black filmmakers," said Evering-Kerr.

Her six-minute documentary follows Jordan, a young Black ballet dancer. He grapples with the societal pressure of being Black in a traditionally White, feminine sphere. Evering-Kerr met Jordan while working at a sneaker store with him. Their connection formed organically, so she immediately knew that she wanted to cover his story. 

The two share similar experiences of being Black in a sphere that doesn't necessarily welcome them. The Fabienne Colas Foundation program provided Evering-Kerr with the opportunity to work in an environment she felt welcomed in.  

"I was happy to be a part of this program where I was working with other Black filmmakers because, for me, that was something I was missing when I was in film school. I was in spaces that were White-dominated. It was nice creating films with people who looked like me and had a similar perspective on life," she said. 

Nominee Yvano Wickham-Edwards, 25, who directed the four-minute film #BLACK, shares the same sentiment regarding OYA media. 

After college, Wickham-Edwards joined the OYA Media Group while looking for a career in the industry. As one of his projects in the program, he created the pilot for #BLACK. 

"OYA Media opened my eyes in a way that I didn't think was possible; my goal was to be an Olympic photographer…but it didn't really work out that way," he said. The program provided a new outlet for Wickham-Edwards to express himself while still using his photojournalism skills.

His film #BLACK relays the implication social media has on the Black community. The idea was initially sparked after watching the controversial Pepsi commercial starring Kendall Jenner, which took the light of the Black Lives Matter protest that happened early in 2016. This reminded Wickham-Edwards that social media might be working against the Black community. These platforms are often run by corporations who skew social media algorithms. 

"#BLACK ties this all together; it shows that the movement is just an item. The hashtag symbolizes how the Black community has become an object," he mentioned. 

The film incorporated screenshots of social media discussion after the death of the late Toronto rapper "Smoke Dawg," which regards a more extensive discussion in Toronto's Black community — gun violence. 

Adrian Wallace, 30, was nominated for his direction of the film Black Sun. The seven-minute – tear-jerking film zooms into the issue of gun violence in Toronto.

Black Sun follows Sherri Bonelli, a White woman who raised and lost her Black son to gun violence. It also follows Kelly Fyffe-Marshall, a Black filmmaker, as she aims to shed emotional intelligence by creating her first feature, "Summer of the Gun." 

"My approach to Black Sun stemmed from an inspiration of real-life after seeing the headlines of people getting shot left, right and center. We've had crazy years where gun violence spiked, and I just got to the point where I wanted to address this in a way that hadn't been done before," said Wallace. 

His creativity sparked, and the film was born. The multi-talented, award-winning artist has spent years perfecting his skills. His journey began, however, with his love for acting. 

"Through a plethora of short-comings and ill representations from agents, I realized that It may not be enough for me to be a one-direction type of artist," said Wallace. That in itself inspired me to pick up a camera," he added. 

Writing and directing became something Wallace naturally gravitated towards, which ultimately led him to this outstanding nomination. 

Despite facing setbacks, the nominees are optimistic about seeing more diversity in the film industry.

 "I'm hopeful that it's changing, and that the new generation of filmmakers are more inclusive," said Evering-Kerr. 

Wallace holds a similar enthusiasm. “I feel like I’m starting to see a little bit of a shift because now gate-keepers are open to exploring the lens of a Black director like myself. It’s exciting in that sense…I’ve been ready for this opportunity,” Wallace added.

The Canadian Screen awards will be streamed live on May 20th, 2021, at Academy.ca and the Canadian Academy Twitter and YouTube channels.