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Dear friends and colleagues,
As a part of our efforts to better understand what makes Manitoba an attractive place to film and produce content, and where there may be opportunities to improve, we are asking for your input through our Manitoba Production Infrastructure Survey. The survey takes less than 10 minutes, and your input will help us better understand production needs related to infrastructure, locations, and more. Please take the survey by Aug. 5.
After its July 9 premiere, Little House on the Prairie climbed to number one on Netflix. Kudos to all who worked on the production!
Congratulations to director Ian Bawa, as his first feature film Strong Son has been selected to play at TIFF in September. MFM is a proud supporter of the project.
Manitoba Documentary Archive has some eco-friendly titles to check out this month, including And This is My Garden by Katharina Stieffenhofer, Paradise Picked: Our Second Hand Life by Beth Azore, and Urbee: The World’s Greenest Car by Doug Howe.
We are happy to welcome Olaf Pyttlik of DACAPO Productions to the Manitoba Film & Music Board of Directors. With his decades of industry experience in both the film and music industries, we look forward to Olaf’s insight and leadership.
Enjoy the sunshine, we’ll be back next month!
~From the team at MFM
Tina Keeper, producer and star of Acting Good, talks about the show’s fifth season
With four seasons out in the world, and the fifth being shot right now in the province, Acting Good has had an impressive run. Historic, actually, being the only scripted show to have gone to five seasons in Manitoba. We were delighted to chat with Tina Keeper, producer and star of the show, about the evolution of the show, and how she transitioned from producer to actor on set.
You’re filming the fifth season of Acting Good now. How have the show and the characters evolved since season one?
The show’s premise was always about Paul (Paul Rabliauskas), the man who wouldn’t grow up. He talked like a big shot, and was always ACTING GOOD. The series unfolds from this place where we find there is a world which supports Paul as an overgrown baby. Paul returns from the big city of Winnipeg to his small fly-in home community of Grouse Lake First Nation because he couldn’t cut it in the big city. The series follows all of our characters, Paul's family and friends, as they adjust to Paul’s return and as they all go through the many phases of family, school and work life.
It is quirky and much of the writing is infused with traditional Anishinaabe fantastical storytelling mechanisms including trickster.
The show was the co-creation of Paul Rabliauskas, Amber Sekown Daniels, Eric and Pat Thornton. Subsequent showrunners include Tim Fontaine and Sage Daniels, as writers have left for their own shows. We have been fortunate to have had the seasons to write Paul's journey in his quirky little home community.
You shot in a few locations around Manitoba – how do those locations set the tone?
The most important impact was for the locations to provide the right imagery of the fictional fly-in, isolated community of Grouse Lake First Nation. Baaskaandibewiziibing Brokenhead First Nation was perfect in that it gave the sense of the community layout, the houses which are not placed so closely together, the type of roads, the lake, and the forests.
We also shot a lot in the surrounding areas to find the right lodge, or wide-open spaces in the forest. This brought us to Gull Lake and to Birds Hill Park.
These locations delivered the world of Grouse Lake First Nation.
What would you say is the most Manitoba thing about the show?
The most Manitoba thing about the show was nature; I would say the references to Lake Winnipeg and the Unesco Boreal Forest on the east side of the lake.
You’re a producer on this show, as well as an actor – how do you approach these two different roles?
My approach to the two roles as producer and actor is so different. I am not able to easily slip left brain to right brain when I am working. As an actor, I really do need a day to prepare for Agnes - to bring her out each year. Sometimes I didn’t have that luxury and I would literally be taken from my desk as I was working on an application in an unexpected call to set. Lol, I would feel like a wooden figure being told what to do - it was so funny! I loved it all, though, and it was such a wonderful experience.
The first four seasons of Acting Good can be streamed now on Crave and Lumi, and season five will air on CTV on October 19, 2026.
MFM is proud to have supported all seasons of Acting Good through the Television and Web-Based Production Fund. We also provided development support through the Television and Web-Based Development Fund for season 1.
More to explore:
Manitoba-shot project premieres: Ancestral Beasts at Fantasia International Film Festival, American Hostage at TIFF, and Sundown at the Locarno Film Festival
The Long Walk, Mike & Nick & Nick & Alice and Normal all received nominations for the Critics Choice Super Awards
Gizmodo calls Channel Zero: No-End House a perfect watch for fans of Backrooms
Congratulations to Vince Fontaine Legacy Award recipient Ila Barker
Anishinaabe folk soul artist Ila Barker has been named recipient of the Vince Fontaine Legacy Award. In addition to her impressive musical talent, Ila is also an educator and advocate. She is the founder and facilitator of AIRsessions, a free music workshop series that mentors Indigenous youth, and she works with the Good + Plenty Arts Collective, which aims to create opportunity for women, 2Spirit, non-binary and gender-expansive individuals within the Manitoba music industry.
The Vince Fontaine Legacy Award, which recognizes an emerging Indigenous artist or music industry professional, honours the legacy of Manitoba musician and leader, Vince Fontaine, who passed away in 2022.
“As a founding partner in the Vince Fontaine Legacy Award, we are thrilled that Ila Barker was selected as this year's prize,” says Stephen Carroll, MFM’s director of music programs. “Vince was a leader, breaking new ground for Indigenous artists and serving as a mentor to the next generation of talent, which he showcased in his highly acclaimed projects Eagle & Hawk, and Indian City. Ila, who is already an accomplished artist and songwriter with chart-topping tracks, has also taken up the role as a leader in our province. Her work with AIRSessions shows leadership and vision by supporting young Indigenous artists across Canada.
We look forward to seeing what Ila does next and are grateful for her work as a musician and leader.”
Ila was chosen as recipient for this award by the Indigenous Music Steering Committee at Manitoba Music. Follow Ila’s website for tour dates and new music. Her new EP Honey is set for release in early 2027.
Manitoba Film & Music is proud to have supported Ila Barker’s career, as well as this award.
More to explore:
Congratulations to Begonia whose album Fantasy Life made the Polaris album short list
Best of luck to the nominees for the new Meridian album prize, to be awarded at BreakOut West 2026
MFM Programs
Music – Promote Program: Open now
Music – Perform Program: Open now
Music – Produce Program: Deadline Sep. 17
Music – Produce (Out-of-Province Artists) Program: Deadline Sep. 17
Manitoba Indigenous Short Film Fund: *EXTENDED DEADLINE* Jul. 31
Various Film & TV funding programs without deadlines: Open now (including Development Loans, Emerging Talent Grants, and Feature Film Marketing Funds)
Partner Opportunities
Winnipeg Film Group - 2026 Members’ Screening Submission Deadline: Jul. 31
Mâwacihitowinihk Nikamowak: Indigenous Music Residency – Application deadline: Aug. 12
Alberta Music Cities Convention 2026: Sep. 29-Oct. 1
Spotlight
Women in Film & Television – Toronto (WIFT+ Toronto) is a member-based, not-for-profit organization – join WIFT+ Toronto today and get benefits like 30% off TIFF: The Market passes, a free ticket to the Sept 15 reception, and more.
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