THE 2023 YMA CHILDREN, YOUTH & MEDIA CONFERENCE
IN TORONTO was an amazing success!

Montréal, November 16 2024 - The YMA was pleased to present its Children, Youth & Media Conference, held on November 14 2023 at CORUS in Toronto – a one-day event. We were thrilled to welcome more than 150 delegates, returning to in-person format, with 22 speakers, panelists and moderators covering current hot topics: AI, Working with Streamers, Gaming, Reaching the Kids Audience, Brand Building, and Diversity.

The conference is an idea exchange, training and development forum for Canada’s youth screen-based media professionals. This unique event, featuring leading experts addressed programming trends and provide insights into young people’s needs and interests.

In conjunction at the conference, the 2024 YMA Andra Sheffer Scholarship winner was announced – Sheridan Riggillo from the Toronto Metropolitan University who is now able to be introduced to the industry by attending the next 2024 Kidscreen Summit in San Diego CA and the 2024 Banff World Media Festival in Alberta, as well as access mentorship throughout the year; the YMA AGM occurred where a new Board of Directors was elected, and finally the YMA Prix Jeunesse is now available online to showcase the 2023 Awards of Excellence material and the 2022 Prix Jeunesse International – Munich. 

The Conference has been a great opportunity for learning and relationship building for all and join forces to share our stories.

The YMA wishes to thank the Board of Directors, the Conference Advisory Committee, the speakers, panelists and moderators, the volunteers and the sponsors for their financial contribution: CBC, CBCKids, CORUS, Nelvana, Sinking Ship Entertainment, Shaw Rocket Fund, Nelvana, CMF, CMPA, TFP, and above all to all who have attended and supported our organization for almost 50 years.

About the YMA Children, Yourth and Media Conference

Annually, the YMA present its Children, Youth & Media Conference. The conference is an idea exchange, training and development forum for Canada’s youth screen-based media professionals. More than 200 delegates are expected to attend this unique event, featuring leading experts who will address programming trends and provide insights into young people’s needs and interests. The lineup includes themed workshops, talks, screenings, discussions and meetings with prestigious guests from Canada and abroad.

Conference Objectives

• To provide a forum for professional exchange amongst specialists in the field.
• To provide updated information on target audiences.
• To explore issues arising from new technologies.
• To spur creativity.
• To pique curiosity about youth production from abroad.
• To encourage innovation and quality in homegrown production.
• To discuss where the Canadian youth programming industry is headed.

About the Youth Media Alliance

Youth Media Alliance (YMA) seeks to enrich the lives of Canadian children and teens by helping improve the quality of the content created for them on all screen-based media. The Alliance pursues its mission of encouraging high-quality content by presenting annual awards of excellence to the best productions targeting young English- and French-speaking Canadians. It offers ongoing training tailored to the special needs of youth production professionals through workshops, seminars, and special events such as the Children, Youth & Media and Média-Jeunes conferences. Since 2015, the Youth Media Alliance has developed and now offers four scholarships: the YMA Andra Sheffer, the YMA Thérèse-Pinho, the YMA Steven DeNure and the John Rooney Creator Fund. YMA also conducts original research investigating the impact of screen-based media on young people. Finally, Youth Media Alliance advocates for the needs of Canada’s child and youth media consumers in matters of public policy.

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Source:

Margaux Soumoy, Youth Media Alliance

alliance@ymamj.org

514-483-5417