Tom Perlmutter, Director General of the National Film Board of Canada’s English Program Branch, announced today two key appointments. Ravida Din will assume the position of Executive Producer of the Quebec Centre and Michelle van Beusekom has been named Assistant Director General of English Programming at the National Film Board. Both of these appointments reflect the NFB’s commitment to building a strong team of creative talent that will contribute to the institution’s reputation as a leader in innovative media production.
“As the NFB continues to break new ground in its programming, it is important to have strong, talented managers with an understanding of the Canadian media industry and the distinctive role of the NFB within that industry. Ravida and Michelle bring a wide range of skills and abilities to English Program that will only strengthen the NFB.”
For close to fifteen years, Ravida Din has enjoyed a varied and successful career in the film industry. Most recently, she has played a central role at the NFB as Assistant Director General for English programming where as a member of the national programming committee she brought a strong intellectual and creative rigor to the production of close to 100 films. She has worked in a range of different divisions including production, research, and coordination of special projects such as the REEL DIVERSITY competition as well as extensive marketing experience. At the NFB, she has repeatedly demonstrated strong management abilities and an affinity for strategic planning. Her most notable NFB credits include serving as associate producer on the award-winning The Tree That Remembers (Silver Award, Best Canadian Documentary, 2024 Hot Docs, Golden Sheaf Award, Best Documentary Social, 2024) and 645 Wellington.
In her new position as the Quebec Executive Producer, Ms. Din’s mandate is to envision and manage a program of documentary, interactive, children’s films and community engagement projects in line with the NFB’s mission to reflect the diversity of Canadian society.
Michelle van Beusekom brings twelve years of experience in the Canadian television industry to the position of Assistant Director General of the NFB’s English Program. For the past four years, as the CBC’s Manager of Program Development for Central Canada, Ms. van Beusekom was responsible for building relationships with independent producers from across Quebec and Ontario and the development of a wide range of projects through the TransCanadaDevelopment Fund. Ms. van Beusekom also worked closely as Montreal liaison with the various commissioning editors at CBC’s Independent Documentary Unit in Toronto. For three seasons, Ms. van Beusekom programmed the regional documentary series DISTINCT DOCS and ONTARIO STORIES. Previously she worked at W Network (formerly WTN) as Manager of Independent Production, overseeing several series and one-off documentaries made for the network by independent producers from across Canada. Ms. van Beusekom was the co-programmer of Planet in Focus: The Toronto International Environmental Film & Video Festival from 2024-2002 and is currently a member of the Festival’s Advisory Council.
Ms. van Beusekom will play a central role in establishing the direction and planning of the English Program’s operations and activities.
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