If you’ve always loved movies, and the idea of telling stories through the magic of filmmaking, then the Centre for Arts and Technology digital film school could be the right fit for you. You know that a successful film production relies on much more than the director and talent under the spotlight. You understand that every crew member, from grips to set decorators, plays an important role in the final product that hits the screen. Are you ready to dive into one of these exciting roles and say “Action!” to your career in film?
Start your learning journey about digital filmmaking at the Centre for Arts and Technology’s digital film school. Our digital filmmaking program offers students the opportunity to work with our industry pros while gaining valuable knowledge and industry insights.
You could launch your career as a:
British Columbia has one of the largest film industries in North America, which continues to expand yearly. Centre for Arts and Technology’s campus in Kelowna puts our film students in a central location with access to film sets in both the Okanagan and the Lower Mainland. In addition to small independent film shoots and larger budget production industry projects, all of our students get the chance to direct at least one of their own short films.
In just 18 months, this accelerated program will teach you: Production Planning • Budgeting • Screenwriting for Narrative Films • Cinematography • Lighting, Composition and Framing • Film Blocking and Staging Casting and Directing • Post Production and Editing with Final Cut Pro, After Effects and Pro Tools • Proposal Writing, Financial Backing, Marketing and Distribution • Promotion and Film Festival Submission.
CAT graduates go on to work with some of the largest blockbuster titles, brands, companies and artists around the world.
“Centre for Arts and Technology is a world-class education facility, playing an important role in developing the next generation of filmmakers.” – Mark Vonesch, Director of Reel Youth Canada
“Centre for Arts and Technology had everything I hoped for: a small class size, one-on-one attention, and dedicated instructors. I get to make art every day and it never feels like work. For all, you potential students—be prepared to make something awesome out of your life. Anyone who takes this course is in for a real treat.” – Carly Sappier
Victor’s interest in film started at age 17 when he had the opportunity to work as a PA on the documentary film A Life, by the late award-winning Canadian documentary filmmaker Frank Cole. After his work on the film (described by Andrienne Mancia of New York’s Museum of Modern Art as doing “some of the things that Scorsese does in The Last Temptation of Christ, but perhaps better”) Victor moved into photography, studying for a BFA at the University of Ottawa.
Post university, Victor worked as a set photographer, gaffer, camera assistant and camera operator in the Ottawa, Toronto and Montreal film industries; he then opened Erebus Productions, a facilities house which serviced the Eastern corridor with grip, electric, 16 mm and 35 mm film cameras. After a period directing music videos for Canadian bands, he moved to producing and directing under the banner Panfilms, where he won several awards in various categories, including documentary, national PSA’s, and animation, for a variety of networks, including CTV, OLN TVO and CBC.
In 2001, Victor moved to the UK where he became the director of BBC Scotland’s longest serving episodic television series The Beechgrove as well as several series for ITV and BBC Gaelic. Over the course of eight years he directed and produced over 150 episodes of primetime, from documentary, to lifestyle to reality. Victor also acted as Executive Producer on the BBC series, The Food Trail. Victor gained national recognition for his role as producer/director on the ITV series The Woman Who Ate Scotland, which broke established viewing figures and gained a Scottish Thistle nomination.
After moving back to Canada in 2008, he worked as director of development at Ocean Entertainment in Halifax, Nova Scotia before relocating to the Okanagan.. Victor now lives in Kelowna and works at the Center for Arts and Technology managing the Digital Filmmaking, and Digital Photography departments.
To learn more about working in the Filmmaking Industry, you can listen to our PODCAST with Victor on our Soundcloud Stream.
Don Ferguson has 36 years of experience in the broadcast industry, spanning from the end of the film days to the digital age of today. Don has had the privilege of working as a Studio Cameraman for the Evening Newscast, worked in Master Control on commercials and TV shows and from there progressed to producing for ENG (Electronic News Gathering). There he worked in the field with reporters and anchors, producing the news. Don also has experience as a Production Switcher for live broadcasts of the news and has worked as a News Director, responsible for the audio and video for live newscasts. Don is versed in all the software used for live productions and non-linear editing techniques. Don is a partner in the film production company Techyoumedia and has produced several documentaries and TV pilots through this partnership, including “The Force” hosted by Leslie Nielsen and The KVR Diaries with TV host Mike Roberts. A full length sci-fi motion picture from Techyoumedia is in the final stages of effects and sound design.
Don brings his diverse experience with him to Centre for Arts and Technology as an instructor in the Digital Video Fusion Production Program and the Digital Filmmaking Program.
Growing up between Glasgow’s inner-city grit and the rugged isolation of the Isle of Skye on Scotland’s west coast, Henrietta’s world view has been shaped by local folklore and fairytales of travel and adventure. She traveled extensively on her own with little more than a backpack and a pair of sandals, volunteering in India’s southern regions, smoking with sadhus in the Himalayas, traveling by camel through the Gobi Desert, and teaching English in Cairo; wherever she went, Henrietta immersed herself in the culture, stories, and language of the region. From studying Hebrew in Israel, working in France, Greece, and Turkey to living out of a VW van in Mexico and the US, Henrietta’s love for story has been inspired by many cultures.
Educated in both the broadcast and media arts and cultural studies across two continents, she now makes her home in Kelowna BC, where she lives with her husband of 28 years.
Henrietta has worked at the Centre as a part-time contract instructor for ten years, bringing lively and informed instruction across a number of programs, including Photography, Film, and Events and Planning Management. Her love for the written word, warm presence, and dedication to her craft have been both a valuable asset and well-loved addition to our students’ education here at the college.
She is passionate about giving her students informed and insightful feedback and working with them to explore story and improve their writing skills.
With 20+ years writing for film, television, and commercial productions, her writing career has crossed platforms from business to entertainment. She has had short films shortlisted, sold a feature on the Hutus and Tutsis to World Changer Productions; she was the creator/writer of a television series optioned by TVO, and wrote the script for an award-winning documentary aired on OLN.
Additionally, her treatments and proposals have secured development funding from CTV, TVO, and Bell Media.
Henrietta works as a freelance writer both locally and internationally with ongoing contracts in marketing and media production industries. She has had poetry published in three anthologies, and four books published as a ghostwriter. Henrietta is currently working on the adaptation of a novel into a television series set in Neolithic Scotland.
Tamie Williams began her career as a broadcaster in 1999. During her time as a television producer, she hosted a variety of programming – including live broadcasts as well as long and short form recorded segments. Her technical skills include videography (for live and recorded programs), non-linear editing, Master Control (scheduling programs) and operating NewTek 3 play unit (for live replays during sporting events). As a producer, she worked with crews for live and recorded programming (including talent and crew coaching and scheduling). She’s also produced commercial video content. Tamie has written and produced news, community and commercial content for online media sources. As an anchor/host for radio, Tamie writes and edits news and community-based stories, does live story hits, and is a fill-in host for a 3 hour live talk show.
Tamie has been very active in local theatre for more than 15 years, as an actor, stage manager, producer and most recently, a director. She has also been involved in locally produced short movies.
Tamie has lived in Kelowna for 20+ years and has been a part-time instructor at Centre for Arts and Technology for three years. For Tamie, student success is paramount, and providing support, purpose-driven feedback and an opportunity to explore creativity is part of that journey.
“I’ve worked on ‘TED Talks’, I was a video engineer for the ‘Oxford Stomp’ at the Calgary Stampede, and I was the handheld cameraman on ‘Siggraph 2018’ (biggest Tech conference in North America). I was also a key grip on ‘The Nature of Things’ with David Suzuki. CAT gave me the tools to succeed in my industry, as well as iron-clad confidence that the stories I have to tell will be listened to.”
– Jordan Marlin, Digital Filmmaking Alumni
“Surround yourself with like minded people, lose the unnecessary distractions and be proactive, don’t wait for opportunities, make them. It won’t be easy and if it is it won’t last so work hard, it will pay off. Also don’t be scared to take a job or work on a film that isn’t your dream project. Take it as a challenge to make a dull thing amazing. I like to use the analogy of taking someone like Steven Spielberg and getting them to make an infomercial. You can bet that would be the most bad ass infomercial you’ve ever seen! If you are passionate and do good work people will notice.”
– Thomas Bowerbank, Digital Filmmaking Alumni
