Mahalia Verna

Mahalia Verna began her mandate as Program Development Manager (Quebec Region) for CBC Television in February 2007. Prior to her appointment at CBC, Verna had served as Development Officer for the National Film Board of Canada, managing cultural diversity initiatives and developing documentary films such as In the Name of the Mother and the Son, and Has God Forsaken Africa? As an independent producer, her credits include the Jutra-nominated short film SUNK: Un soleil dans l’encre noire, and the Genie-nominated feature film Saved by the Belles. She began her career in the film and television industry in 1997, as a publicist for some of Canada’s top production companies such as CINAR, and Galafilm Productions.

Verna has served as a jury member for the Vues d’Afrique International Film Festival, the Montreal International Human Rights Films Festival, the CIDA Award at Hot Docs, and the Banff International Television Festival. She represents the CBC on the board of Quebec’s Documentary Network. She is a member of the consultation committee on cultural diversity at the Conseil des arts de Montréal (CAM), is a board member at the MAI (Montréal Arts Interculturels), and recently joined the board of the Social Justice Committee (SJC). In recognition of her contributions and achievements, Mahalia Verna was one of twelve community figures celebrated by the Montreal Black History Month Roundtable in 2005.
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