Edmonton Screen is mobilizing its new Greenlight Alberta program to train and accredit more professionals to work in so-called below-the-line roles in the film and television industry.
"'Below the line' really means the crew in production and post-production, and it's extremely important for us to continue to develop that in the province," Dorian Rowe, the film commissioner for Edmonton Screen, told Taproot. "A lot of programs look at talent: Writer, director, actor, producer … This program is specifically aimed at trying to develop crew."
The term comes from budget sheets for film and TV productions. The bulk of workers fall below that line, such as those who work in lighting, sound, wardrobe, and editing.
For the first round of Greenlight Alberta's below-the-line training, Edmonton Screen has streams for production assistants, production coordinators, and assistant directors. Each stream has room for roughly 20 participants, Rowe said, but the number of successful applicants ultimately depends on how many suitable candidates apply.
"We're trying to connect with people who have done some work, even if it's student films," Rowe said. "We're not going to fill the seats just to have bodies there. We're selectively going through and looking at each applicant as an individual and whether they're a good fit." Production assistant is one of the more entry-level roles on a set, he said, while an assistant director requires more familiarity with how other jobs function on a production.
While foreign productions that come to Edmonton, like HBO's The Last of Us (which generated $141 million in the province between 2021 and 2022), depend on qualified local talent, Greenlight Alberta isn't just a gambit to bring in big productions, Rowe said.
"A healthy world of film and television for the Edmonton region — or any particular place — is going to have a wide range of project types, budget levels, and crew sizes. (Whether it be) unscripted, documentary, smaller dramas, larger dramas, or massive dramas, they all sort of feed each other."
For example, Rowe said a crew member with the right experience might be a second or third in command for a crew department on a foreign production, but could be the head of a department on a national or local project. "They all kind of uplift each other," he said. "The experience that people gain on short films, on television, on guerrilla documentaries, in whatever role … all of that contributes to the capacity for the bigger shows."
Experienced crew members can also take what they've learned into writing and directing original projects. "It works on multiple levels, but one level, for sure, is the capacity to tell our own stories and to bring Alberta stories to the screen," Rowe said.
The applications for production assistant opened on Oct. 20 and close on Nov. 3. Applications for production coordinator open on Nov. 3 and close on Nov. 17, and the applications for assistant director open on Nov. 17 and close Dec. 1. The courses are delivered in person and online in partnership with Stage 32, a Los Angeles company with industry-recognized certification programs, and participants will likely get to work on a set in 2026, depending on what's shooting. There is no fee to apply for or participate in any of the programs.