Ryerson announces new pilot project with City of Toronto and six top arts and culture organizations
Future Makers internship program student participants
April 27, 20201 (Toronto, ON) — On May 1, 2021, Ryerson University FCAD, the faculty of communication and design, will launch The Creative Innovation Studio Future Makers program in partnership with the City of Toronto (external link) and national not-for-profit organization Mitacs (external link) . The initiative will match six students with six community organizations to help them adapt to the post-pandemic economy through digital transformation. The goal is to develop recovery and rebuild strategies that engage with evolving audiences and help shape the future of the creative sectors in Canada. The six partner organizations include Canadian Live Music Association (external link) , Galleries Ontario (external link) , Pride Toronto (external link) , Reelworld (external link) , Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts (external link) , and the Toronto Fringe Festival (external link) .
The Future Makers project will support arts and culture organizations future-proof their business models by pairing FCAD students and industry mentors with organizations from the creative industries to facilitate a pivot towards adopting hybrid forms of audience engagement that include digital and in-person experiences, establish cross-collaborations between FCAD faculty, researchers and students as well as industry networks, and expand the possibilities for the creative industries in Toronto and across Canada. The program will be supervised by two FCAD professors.
“The pandemic has had a disproportionate impact on members of Canada’s creative sectors. Since last spring, we’ve focused our efforts on helping members of those industries,” said FCAD professor and Future Makers co-supervisor Ramona Pringle. “With Future Makers, our goal is to support organizations across the creative ecosystem with digital transformation and planning for the future, while giving students an amazing opportunity to gain critical skills to navigate the creative fields in ways that are future forward.”
“In consultations held in response to the pandemic, leaders in the creative industries expressed a strong desire for greater support in exploring hybrid models of creating and engaging with audiences,” said Marguerite Pigott (external link) , Film Commissioner and Director of Entertainment Industries. “This program is one of the first initiatives of the City’s new Interactive Digital Media Office, and our hope is that it will be a step toward a sustainable recovery and a more boundless future.”
“The selected arts and culture organizations for this first cohort include umbrella organizations in industries that have been directly impacted by the pandemic, such as live music, live performances and festivals,” said Dr. Lorena Escandon, FCAD professor and Future Makers co-supervisor. “We are hoping that the innovations and strategies stemming from this industry-university-city collaboration will have a positive impact that will extend beyond the six organizations in the program.”
Collaborative pilot project
The pilot project will launch next month through The Creative Innovation Studio at FCAD, a unique network for creative innovation, experimentation, incubation and entrepreneurship, in partnership with the City of Toronto. The program will support partner organizations through the Mitacs Business Strategy Internship (external link) (BSI) program. BSI is a four-month internship program designed to give students the opportunity to develop strategic analysis for an organization to help restore or modify business operations in the new economic environment. Future Makers is primed to help arts and culture organizations pivot in the midst of a global pandemic as a way to not only survive, but thrive in the future.
Project mentors
Project mentors include Loc Dao, executive director of DigiBC and Co-founder NFB Interactive & CBC Radio 3, Anthea Foyer, strategic leader, creative strategist, narrative designer and city builder, Owais Lightwala, assistant Professor in the School of Performance, Former Director for Why Not Theatre, David Maggs, artist, author, academic, and Metcalf Foundation Innovation Fellow, and Marguerite Pigott, Toronto's Film Commissioner and Director of Entertainment Industries.
About FCAD
FCAD, Ryerson University’s home of creativity, is committed to the evolution of the cultural industries, reflecting the needs of a dynamic and rapidly evolving marketplace. As a leader in innovative education FCAD offers more opportunities to prepare the next generation of creative leaders than anywhere else. https://www.torontomu.ca/fcad/
About the Creative Innovation Studio
Devoted to innovation in storytelling, music, fashion, design, and maker culture, The Creative Innovation Studio at FCAD provides support to forward-looking creators and entrepreneurs, including resources, programming and guidance within a supportive community environment. We help emerging and established creative innovators to connect with each other, leverage new technologies, work across creative practices, develop new ways of engaging with audiences and customers, and advance the cultural sector. https://www.torontomu.ca/the-studio-fcad/
Download the Full (PDF file) Press Release
Media contact:
Tania Ulrich
Ryerson FCAD
tulrich@torontomu.ca