Documentarian named executive director of film group

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This article was published 26/04/2022 (1603 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As an independent filmmaker, Ivan Hughes has tackled a variety of subject matters.

However, his latest behind-the-scenes project might be his most challenging.

Hughes was recently appointed the executive director of the Winnipeg Film Group.

His appointment comes in the wake of the March 2021 dismissal of ex-director Greg Klymkiw, who was accused by former WFG employee Ben Williams of creating a “toxic” environment and using profane, socially backward and mean-spirited language in the workplace.

Hughes is determined to address and rectify any past issues, vowing to learn from what transpired. He says it was “difficult to hear” talk about the toxic workplace.

“I want to be able to put whatever happened then in the past. I don’t want to forget about it; I want to create a safer space where ideas can be shared free from judgment, and get back to what we all love doing, which is appreciating independent cinema,” he said in a recent interview.

While he has yet to speak with Williams, Hughes says they are good friends. He calls the circumstances of Williams’ leaving the group “sad” and is determined to address and rectify past issues.

“Ben Williams and I are solid,” Hughes says. “He is a good person with a huge heart who loves film and filmmakers. He does everything with energy from a place of goodness. Nothing can properly make up for what he went through. I’m looking forward to reconnecting with Ben, having a coffee and a talk, and continuing the legacy of the work that he initiated at the WFG.”

Prior to taking on the role Hughes was, and continues to be, a documentary filmmaker and freelance camera operator and editor. He has taught workshops in filmmaking and editing, co-ordinated outreach programs to remote communities and filmed in Nepal, Tibet, Nunavut and all over Canada.

“The projects I have been working on have been great. They have allowed me to learn some amazing skills, see some incredible places, but they all usually end up with me back in my basement, editing away in solitude.”

This isn’t the first time Hughes has held a role at the WFG. Ten years ago he worked there as the production centre director, a job he says he loved, as he got to work directly with aspiring filmmakers as they learned the craft and made their own films.

“The film group is a great place for this because the space allows for people to have these casual interactions while picking up gear, or taking a class, or watching a film, and it’s through these interactions that creativity is shared and grows resulting in some really incredible work,” he says.

Hughes’s work has screened nationally and internationally in festivals, broadcast and online. He hopes to bring his extensive experience to elevate the WFG and is keen to get started.

“I am really looking forward to connecting with the independent filmmaker community in a bigger way. I am looking forward to working with filmmakers, organizing workshops, attending screenings, helping audiences increase their cinematic literacy.

“We are at a pivotal time not only for the WFG, but also for independent film. We have finally begun to understand the historical injustices and prejudices that have created barriers to BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and people of colour) and (LGBTTQ+) filmmakers and I am acutely aware of my position of privilege and understand the need to see representation from traditionally underrepresented groups in places of power in the arts.”

Twitter: @nuchablue