Following COVID-19, and prompted by ongoing discussions with WIDC alumni and members of the media arts community, Creative Women Workshops Association (CWWA) partnered with representatives from Family Services of Greater Victoria (FSGV), Songhees Nation Family Counselling (SNFC), and Stigma Free Productions in a ground-breaking collaboration focused on building a mental health toolkit for media artists and media artist leaders to use, particularly when working on ultra-low budget productions.

With funding support from the Canada Council for the Arts, the WIDC Safer Creative Spaces: Building a Mental Health Toolkit project was launched in December 2023 and culminated at the end of May 2024.

We are delighted to share here an account of our activities, findings, recommendations, along with a starter kit of “Wellness” tools and protocols. We invite media artists, leaders, organizations, and the community to use these offerings to help build and sustain safer creative spaces in the media arts.

Part of this Starter Toolkit includes a 4-hour Team Wellness Workshop and Practicum. If you are interested in learning more about the workshop or how to provide tools for your production or organization, feel free to reach out for more information: enquires@widc.ca

DISCLAIMER:
While the WIDC Safer Creative Spaces Starter Toolkit is designed to help media arts leaders to better understand how to help themselves and their cast and crew during the challenges of content creation, it is not meant to replace the services of trained mental health professionals.

If you or someone you are working with is struggling, we encourage you to reach out for help.

If you’re in immediate danger or need urgent medical support, call 9-1-1.

If you or someone you know is thinking about suicide, call or text 9-8-8. Support is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

If you’re experiencing family or gender-based violence, you can access a crisis line in your province or territory.

For non-urgent support, dial 8-1-1 or click on the Mental Health & Wellness Resource Network link below to find supports nearest you.

Project Summary & Recommendations

Full Report – COMING SOON!

Starter Toolkit

Mental Health & Wellness Resource Network