ROOM UP FRONT
A Canadian Photojournalism Mentorship for
Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour
“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did,
but people will never forget
how you made them feel.”
This new pilot program is founded by Canadian photojournalists from the Black, Indigenous and People of Colour communities who see the need for diversity in our news gathering. Our allies include Canadian Journalists of Colour and The Globe and Mail. The goal of this program is to offer mentorship opportunities for Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) who are passionate about photojournalism and visual storytelling. BIPOC industry professionals along with allies will help guide those interested in pursuing their own goals and becoming established visual storytellers for their community and the Canadian media industry. People with diverse experiences and ways of seeing can only help strengthen our newsrooms and ensure the stories Canadians see are as diverse as the lives they lead.
Program Structure
Working as a freelance photojournalist can be an isolating, challenging road to follow, especially for marginalized communities. Informal industry networks can be difficult to break into without help.
This grassroots program is based on the idea of many supportive hands working together to break down those barriers and build connections. Three experienced working photographers will be matched with teams of five to seven mentees, working as a group to support one another.
The teams will meet online bi-weekly. The mentors will share their experiences and knowledge along with constructive critiques. Fellow members will also be expected to participate and share in group discussions. Mentees can also lead discussions and bring up topics important to them. Workshops and guest speakers will be invited to lead programming focused on key skills required for photojournalists. These may include topics such as ethics in photojournalism, business skills, copy-right, pitching stories or long form stories. Mentees will also be encouraged to work on photography projects or stories important to them.
There will be a year-end portfolio review with photo editors from multiple publications.
Quick Facts
One year long mentorship.
Applications will be reviewed on an on-going basis.
No costs to the Mentees.
Applicants may work on a long term project based on a consultation with their mentors. This could include a long form photo essay, refining and adding to a current portfolio, a portrait series, or other project.
Participants do not have to commit to the full mentorship program. If they just need advice for a project or some advice about the industry they are still welcome to reach out.
This is not an internship. There is no job or position after completion.
Mentors will be assigned not selected by mentees.
This program is not meant to replace formal education or self-learning.
Goals of Mentorship
This program aims to help advance BIPOC photojournalists in their careers. This may be to get them on the call lists of Canadian news outlets and magazines, or to develop the skills, experience and confidence to pitch and sell their own stories covering their local communities, to be a dependable contributor to NGO’s, start-up news groups, social justice groups, and other agencies needing trusted photojournalists. Mentees will also have new professional networks after completion of the program.
Guest Speakers, Workshops
Liz Sulivan, Director of Photography, Maclean's
Matt Frehner, Head of Visuals, The Globe and Mail
Michael Wichita, Director of Photography, AARP
Lucas Jackson, Photojournalist at Amazon
More to come.
How To Apply
Use this online form so we can see how best to help. The form is just to get to know you and find out where you are in your photography. This is not a formal application process. The following will be requested:
A short bio.
Some info about you so we can help.
Links to your work.
A short written statement stating how you think this program will benefit you.
Qualifications
Must have a good working knowledge of photography and camera techniques.
This program is for Black, Indigenous and people of colour.
You must reside in Canada.
Desire to learn visual storytelling, documentary photography and/or photojournalism.
The Mentors
SOLANA CAIN
After completing a Bachelor of Journalism from Ryerson University, Solana Cain earned a diploma in photojournalism from Loyalist College in Belleville, Ontario. Solana interned at Toronto Life magazine and the Sudbury Star newspaper before she began freelancing. Solana has worked as a photo editor for The Globe and Mail, Getty Images, HELLO! Canada and Maclean's. Recently, she was selected as one of the first artists in residence at Nia Centre for the Arts in Toronto. Solana is passionate about photographing authentic and empowering images of Black women and girls.
JIMMY JEONG
Born in Korea and transplanting to Canada at a young age, Jimmy's curiosity has always lead him to challenge how social networks interact. How people try to define themselves in relation to others. His portrait work deals with the second identity people sometimes take on and sometimes reveal.
Select clients include Maclean's, The Globe and Mail, Der Spiegel, The United Nations, The Boston Globe, Bloomberg and Getty. Select recognition includes American Photographic Artists, Communication Arts, Online Journalism Awards and Prix de la Photographie Paris.
Jimmy is a founding member of Rogue Collective and a member of DiversifyPhoto.
JimmyShoots.com
PAT KANE
Pat takes a documentary approach to the stories impacting Northerners, with a special focus on Indigenous issues and empowerment. He approaches his subjects with respect and empathy, giving people a collaborative sense to the photo making process and creating visual stories that are expressive and intimate.
He’s the co-founder and president of the Far North Photo Festival — a platform to help elevate the work of photographers in underrepresented parts of northern Canada. He’s also part of the photo collectives Natives Photograph and Boreal Collective, and is a 2020 World Press Photo Joop Swart Masterclass Participant.
Pat identifies as mixed Indigenous/settler and is a proud Algonquin Anishinaabe member of the Timiskaming First Nation (Quebec).
PatKanePhoto.com
CHRISTOPHER KASAROV LUNA
Christopher is a Latino-Canadian news, documentary and set photographer based in Toronto, Canada and sometimes Lima, Peru. The focus of his self driven projects have often focused on labour and society, drawing from his past work experience and academic training. , His editorial work has been published widely and aside from taking daily assignments and shooting on film sets, he is deeply interested in creating immersive digital narrative experiences.
Christopher believes that all our past experiences contribute to how we frame the stories we tell.
ChristopherLuna.ca
CARLOS OSORIO
Carlos Osorio is an award-winning Salvadoran Canadian photographer with more than 13 years of professional experience with the Toronto Star, the largest circulation newspaper in Canada.
His work has taken him from Mexico and then to Vancouver, reporting on the journey of illicit drugs up the west coast, and then later to Massachusetts, where he documented the devastating impact the opioid crisis is having on the middle class.
Carlos was a finalist in the portrait category for the 2017 National Photos of the Year and is a two time nominee for the National Newspaper Awards, for his feature work and news photography.
COsorio.com
BRIANNA ROYE
Brianna Roye is a film photographer specializing in portraiture. A graduate of Humber’s photography program, she’s extended her lens to Adidas, has had her work featured in publications like MacLeans and FLARE and has shot festivals inclusive of ManifesTO and Afropunk. Inspired by her Jamaican roots, she uses her ongoing project, “Out of Many, One People” to chronicle portraits of queer, Afro-Caribbean people. Using intention as a guiding principle, she strives towards a level of organicness in her imagery. “I try to take photos of people as they are. I like to capture people's beauty and essence in as much as an honest way as I can,” she says. Hailing from Toronto’s west end, Roye is passionate about using her talent to tell stories and document underrepresented communities.
BriannaRoye.com
JUSTIN TANG
Justin Tang is a news photographer based in Ottawa. He covers federal politics, breaking news and sports as a regular contributor to The Canadian Press. His clients include the Globe and Mail, Bloomberg, the Winnipeg Free Press and the Toronto Star. His image of Prime Minister-designate Justin Trudeau being embraced by his mother Margaret on election night in 2015 received a National Newspaper Award that year. He loves cycling, hiking and camping, and is happiest when merging his outdoor pursuits with making beautiful pictures.
JustinTang.ca
SHELBY LIST
Shelby Lisk is an Ottawa-based photographer and filmmaker with roots in Kenhté:ke (Tyendinaga Mohawk Territory). After completing a degree in studio art and gender studies, she earned both a diploma in photojournalism from Loyalist College and a certificate in Mohawk language and culture through Queen's University and Tsi Tyónnheht Onkwawén:na. In 2019, she worked with Anne-Marie Jackson’s production house, AMJVisuals, followed by internships with the Globe and Mail and APTN, before taking a position as the Indigenous hub reporter for TVOntario. Most recently, Shelby was selected as a participant in the Reelworld Film Festival’s Emerging 20, a script and pitch development program for BIPOC filmmakers, to work on an experimental feature length film following the lives of Haudenosaunee women. Through photography, filmmaking, writing and podcasting, Shelby aims to contribute positive representations of Indigenous people and communities to news and media.
AMBER BRACKEN
A lifelong Albertan, Amber Bracken photographs primarily across western North America. After getting her start as a staffer in daily newspapers, she has founded a successful freelance career.
Select clients include National Geographic, The Globe and Mail, The Wall Street Journal, BuzzFeed, Maclean's, ESPN, The Canadian Press, and The New York Times. Select recognition includes The World Press, The Marty Forscher Fellowship and an ICP Infinity Award.
In her personal work, Amber's interest is in the intersection of photography, journalism and public service with a special focus on stories about de-colonization. With the rise of movements like Idle No More, Indigenous communities are increasingly empowered to fight for a more just relationship with the government and non-native people. Amber has built relationships in Indigenous communities and documents important issues around culture, environment and the effects of inter generational trauma from residential schools.
AmberBracken.com