Right to left: Brendan Brady, Marie Clements, Carla de Jong

TORONTO, October 5, 2026 — The Canadian Media Producers Association today announced the appointment of three new individuals to its Board of Directors, including Brendan Brady (Accent Aigu Entertainment), Marie Clements (Marie Clements Media Inc.) and Carla de Jong (Sinking Ship Entertainment). The incoming Directors join the Board as the CMPA heads to Ottawa for planned advocacy meetings with parliamentarians and government officials on Parliament Hill this week.   

“Our sector is navigating unpredictable challenges, and strong leadership has never been more critical,” said Kyle Irving, Chair of the CMPA Board of Directors. “Brendan, Marie, and Carla have deep domestic and global production expertise, and are a great addition to the Board’s all-star team of producers.” 

The CMPA delegation arrives in Ottawa this week to address urgent priorities facing Canada’s media production sector. Discussions will focus on the timely implementation of the Online Streaming Act, including the enforcement of meaningful Canadian content investments from foreign streamers, as well as expediting the rollout of the promised $600 million interim support to stabilize the sector. 

The CMPA’s meetings will be backed by new public opinion research conducted by Pollara, which shows overwhelming public alignment with key cultural policy objectives:

• Eighty-five per cent (85%) of Canadians support the Online Streaming Act.
• Seventy-four per cent (74%) want the government to stand firm on cultural policies and digital sovereignty as it engages in trade negotiations with the US.
• Eighty per cent (80%) believe we should support Canadian television and film producers the same way we buy Canadian at the grocery store to support Canadian food producers.

“Canadians have been clear, they want the government to defend our culture and our digital sovereignty, and they expect American web giants to play by the same rules as Canadian broadcasters,” said Reynolds Mastin, President and CEO of the CMPA. “With the public firmly behind us and an expanded board driving our advocacy forward, we are ready to carry that message directly to parliamentarians this week.”

About the new Directors: 

• Brendan Brady, Accent Aigu Entertainment: Brendan is co-founder and CEO of Accent Aigu Entertainment, the Canadian production company behind the internationally acclaimed, award-winning series Heated Rivalry. The breakout series has earned a Peabody  Award, a Television Academy Honours Award, and a GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding New Television Series, and received 18 Canadian Screen Award nominations, setting a record for most wins by a series with 16.
• Marie Clements, Marie Clements Media Inc. (MCM): Marie is a renowned writer, director and producer whose decorated career spans film, TV, radio and live performance. A Métis/Dene filmmaker, she is the founder and President of MCM, a production company specializing in the development, creation and production of innovative media that reflect Indigenous and intercultural realities. Her multi-award-winning films have screened internationally at Cannes, TIFF, MoMA, VIFF, the Whistler Film Festival, the American Indian Film Festival, and imagineNATIVE.
• Carla de Jong, Sinking Ship Entertainment: Carla is Head of Co-Production and International Partnerships at Sinking Ship Entertainment, a leading producer of children’s content. A CSA, BAFTA and Emmy Award-winning producer, Carla has held roles as both a producer and a broadcaster in Australia, Canada and the UK. She currently sits on the  CMPA’s International Committee and Children’s and Animation Working Group, and has previously joined the CMPA in meetings with government officials in Ottawa and Toronto to advocate on behalf of the Canadian media production sector.

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METHODOLOGY

Online survey of a randomly selected sample of 1506 Canadians, conducted between September 24 and 28, 2026. 

A margin of error cannot be assigned to online surveys. As a guideline, a probability sample of this size carries a margin of error of ± 2.5%, 19 times out of 20.

Data has been weighted using the most current gender, age, and region Census data, to ensure the sample reflects the actual population of adult Canadians. Find the study here.

About the CMPA:

The Canadian Media Producers Association is the national advocacy organization for independent producers, representing hundreds of companies engaged in the development, production, and distribution of English-language content made for television, cinema, and digital media channels. For more than 75 years, the CMPA has worked to promote the continued success of the Canadian production sector and to ensure a bright future for the diverse content made by our members for both domestic and international audiences. cmpa.ca