Join us for BANFF’s international conference, marketplace and Rockie Awards, alongside the world’s top creators, producers, showrunners, talent, networks, studios, streamers, press and media companies.

Indigenous Screen Summit

In partnership with founding partners the Indigenous Screen Office, Canada Media Fund, and with presenting partner Rogers Communications, and supporting partner APTN, the Indigenous Screen Summit - Pitch Forum was created to shine a light on the diverse talent and exciting screen content being created by Indigenous storytellers in Canada.

Meet the 2026 Indigenous Screen Summit Pitch Forum participants.

Rockie Awards nominees revealed

We are thrilled to announce the 151 incredible Rockie Awards nominees from 21 countries, all competing for this year's top honours across 29 categories. This year's nominees were selected from entries submitted from 45 countries in BANFF's flagship competition, which celebrates excellence in global screen content.

See the nominees HERE.

Announcing Spain as our Country of Honour

BANFF is proud to announce Spain as the official Country of Honour for the 2026 festival, recognizing the country’s growing global influence as a hub for premium content production, international co-production, and creative innovation.

Read the full announcement HERE.

Launched in 2018, Diversity of Voices has created 800 opportunities for Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour Canadian producers and creatives, primarily supporting emerging writers, directors, and producers from racialized communities. As the program evolved, BANFF and DOV partners identified a new gap: helping established diverse creators gain the promotion, marketing, and strategic access needed to grow nationally and globally. In 2026, the program was reimagined as Diversity of Voices: Elevate, focused on accelerating career momentum, prestige, and industry visibility.

Meet the 2026 cohort for the reimagined Diversity of Voices: Elevate program!

Introducing the 2026 Grand Jury

Composed of senior executives from leading global media companies, the Rockies Grand Jury selects the Grand Jury Prize from the top-scoring programs across all categories, bringing international expertise that reflects the Rockie Awards’ status as one of the world’s most prestigious content competitions.

See all the judges HERE.

The BANFF Spark Accelerator for Women in the Business of Media: Producers Edition, in partnership with Paramount+, addresses the gap in gender equality by providing market access, training, and networking. The program's core is attendance at the Banff World Media Festival (BANFF), offering unparalleled access to pitch projects and networking with senior decision-makers.

Meet the BANFF SPARK Accelerator for Women in the Business of Media: Producers Edition 2026 Participants.

2026 Speakers

Melissa Ahlstrand

Marketing Director, Americas, Hayu, NBCUniversal International Networks & Direct-to-Consumer (NBCUIN & DTC)

NBCUniversal

Nick Antosca

Creator, Showrunner, Producer

Kelsey Balance

Executive Vice President, Global Scripted Series

NBCUniversal

Kevin Beggs

Chairman and Chief Creative Officer, Lionsgate Television Group and Chairman, International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences

Lionsgate Entertainment

Mark Bishop

Co-President

Blue Ant Studios

Drew Buckley

Group President & Chief Operating Officer

Propagate Content

Sally Catto

General Manager of Entertainment, Factual & Sports, CBC

CBC

Bing Chen

Executive Chairman & CEO

Gold House

Aubrey Clarke

Commissioning Executive, Drama & Animation (7-12)

BBC Children's

Sean Cohan

President

Bell Media

Joel Cohen

Executive Producer and Writer

GRAiNEY Pictures

Robert Cohen

Director

GRAiNEY Pictures

Tom Cox

Executive Producer and Managing Director

SEVEN24 Films

Valerie Creighton

President & CEO

Canada Media Fund

Till Derenbach

CEO and Executive Producer

Zeitsprung Pictures GmbH

James Farr

EVP, Development

Cream Productions Inc.

Nora Felder

Music Supervisor/Executive Music Producer/Producer

Picture Music Company, Inc.

Prentiss Fraser

President

Fox Entertainment Global

Brendan Gaul

Global Chief Entertainment Officer

McCann

Mitsou Gelinas

Owner

Ray-On

Brenda Gilbert

Co-Founder of BRON Media

Media Executive & Producer

Allana Harkin

Writer, Director, Producer

Allan Hawco

Actor & Writer & Producer

Hawco Productions Inc.

Kevin Healey

CEO, Executive Producer

Rodrigo Herrera Ibarguengoytia

Director Drama

ZDF Studios GmbH

Lisa Holme

Head of Content

Roku

Kyle Irving

Co-Owner & Executive Producer

Eagle Vision

Richard Jean-Baptiste

VP Business Innovation, EP, Partner

Attraction

Kevin Johnson

CEO, WPP Media Canada and President, WPP Canada

Gwen Jones

Director, Distribution

CBC Canadian Broadcasting Corporation

Jeniffer Kim

Media Executive & Producer

Carlyn Klebuc

General Manager, Original Programming

Bell Media

Morad Koufane

Director of International and Young Adult Drama

France Televisions

Lisa Kramer

President, International TV Licensing

Paramount Global Content Distribution

Keri Levinsky

Head of Content Acquisition, Canada

Roku Inc

Felicia Litovitz

VP, Acquisitions, North America

Cineflix Rights

Nikki Love

SVP Development & Production, Scripted (ALLBLK/WETV)

AMC Networks

Elaine Low

Staff Writer

The Ankler

David Madden

President

WEBTOON Productions

Zach Marcovici

Executive in Charge of Development, Drama

CBC Canadian Broadcasting Corporation

Marie McCann

Senior Director, Children's Content

CBC Kids

Lisa Meeches

Founder and Executive Producer

Eagle Vision

Robin Mirsky

Executive Director, Rogers Group of Funds

Rogers Communications

Samantha Morris-Mastai

Director of Development, Comedy

CBC Canadian Broadcasting Corporation

Rachel Nelson

VP, Original Programming & Head of Corus Studios

Corus Entertainment Inc

Proinsias Ni Ghrainne

Commisioning Editor

TG4

Cara Nye

Director, Content Development & Production

AMI-tv

Andrew Peterson

Head of Creator Economy Ecosystem

YouTube

Jordan Pinto

North American Editor

C21 Media

Suzanne Prete

President, Game Shows

Sony Pictures Television

Adam Puchalsky

President, Brand Studio

Blink49 Studios

Viviane Richard

Acquisition Executive

ZDF Studios GmbH

Jane Rimer

Senior Vice President, Canada

Banijay Rights

Adam Rodness

Producer

5'7 Films

Jessica Schmiedchen

Director of Development, Unscripted Content

CBC

Michael Schneider

TV Editor

Variety

Denise Seneviratne

Commissioning Editor VP, Non Scripted Originals

Channel 5

Jarrett Sherman

CEO

SuperServe Digital Consulting

Ann Shin

CEO & Executive Producer

Fathom Film Group

Sam Sniderman

President

Electric Palm Media

Justin Stockman

VP Content Development and Programming

Bell Media

Stuart Stone

Co-Creator

5'7 Films

Michelle Strong

Co-President, Distribution

A+E Global Media

Jennifer Twiner-McCarron

President of Kids, Family and Young Adult

Blue Ant Media

Patrick Vien

Group Managing Director, International

A+E Global Media

Dawn Yang

Global Head of Entertainment Partnerships

TikTok

Li Yeh

Director, Strategic Planning, Original Programming

Bell Media

See all 2026 Speakers

BANFF is truly an international festival…with some of the world’s leading creatives in the industry. Not only did we make great connections during the festival, we’ve had the opportunity to continue those conversations long after we returned home.

- Kate Adler,
EVP Comedy Development, CBS Studios

Attending from the UK allowed me to chat in person with talented producers, IP developers and fellow broadcasters that I wouldn’t usually have the opportunity of doing so with. Conversations are ongoing months after the summit so the value of BANFF can not be understated.

- Aubrey Clarke,
Commissioning Executive, BBC Children’s 7+

Every time I attend BANFF, I come back with new ideas for partnerships and content strategy…this conference is a must attend for anyone in entertainment, both inside Canada and internationally.

- Brad Schwartz,
President of Entertainment, CW

The Banff World Media Festival respectfully acknowledges the Treaty territory in which the festival takes place and the heart of what we do, is located on the traditional lands of Treaty No.7, which is comprised of the Stoney Nakoda Nations of Wesley, Chinki and Bearspaw, and the Blackfoot Confederacy, which includes the Piikani, Kainai and Siksika Nation and, the Dene People of the Tsuut’ina Nation. Treaty No.7 is also shared with Metis people of Region III. This area was also occupied by the Ktunaxa Nation and the Maskwacis people. BANFF’s office is located in Toronto, also known as Tkaronto, which is the traditional territory of many nations including the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee and the Wendat peoples and is now home to many diverse First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. We also acknowledge that Toronto is covered by Treaty 13 signed with the Mississaugas of the Credit, and the Williams Treaties signed with multiple Mississaugas and Chippewa bands. We strive for a respectful partnership with all these peoples – past, present and future – on the path to healing and reconciliation.

Thank you to our Grand Patrons

Companies that have attended Banff World Media Festival

All BANFF landscape and event photos courtesy of Kristian Bogner Photography.

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