Sisler Create Mission:
In September 2019, the Winnipeg School Division and Sisler High School launched the new CREative Arts & Technology Education (CREATE) post-high pilot program for Manitoba’s department of Education. The CREATE program is an 8-credit vocational cluster of courses from the Interactive Digital Media and Motion Picture Arts frameworks. The pilot is designed to nurture and develop a skilled workforce to support the demands of the Manitoban Creative Industries (Interactive Digital Media, Film and Animation sectors). The CREATE program enhances career opportunities beginning in grade 9 though post-high by offering industry workshops, mentorships, educational talks, industry certification and intern opportunities. The goal of the CREATE program is to offer 8 credits to a maximum of 50 post-high students in the 2020-21 academic year.
About Sisler Create:
Sisler’s CREATE program is a new entertainment arts training program located at Sisler High School of the Winnipeg School Division. Founded in 2019, the CREATE Program provides high school and post-high students with an educational pathway to creative industries worldwide. Starting in grade 9, students in the CREATE Program will build foundational skills with hardware and software while using a wide range of creative toolsets. As students progress through the program they specialize in a chosen creative field and apply their skills in project-based courses. The program culminates in post-high by providing portfolio development, studio training and certification.
Sisler’s CREATE program is comprised of three educational pathways: Graphic Design (Industrial Arts), IDM -Interactive Digital Media (Vocational) and MPA – Motion Picture Arts (Vocational). By combining technical training from vocational and innovative educators with industry mentorship and internship opportunities, the CREATE program brings job-readiness into focus. Our connection to talented creatives and industry leaders gives our students an advantage not found in any other high school; mentorship and guidance from the people who live it every day… here in Manitoba. Sisler instructors were key in the development and writing of the provincial Interactive Digital Media and Motion Picture Arts vocational frameworks. From 2015-2019, Sisler offered ICT framework courses to supplement creative art education. In September 2019 the Motion Picture Arts framework was launched at Sisler High School. Currently we have 23 post-high students and 958 grade 9-12 students enrolled in the 2019-20 academic year.
Sisler’s CREATE Program is leading the next generation of content creators by helping our students become better visual storytellers, to find their voice, and to realize their dreams of bringing entertainment to the world stage through their art. As a program, we anticipate that our post-high program will have 40 to 50 Post-High students enrolled in the CREATE program in the 2020-21 academic year. We also anticipate that more local studios will support and partner with the CREATE program by providing internship and employment opportunities.
Our Alumni:
Since 2015, sixty-two of our grads have chosen post-secondary programs in the fields of IDM, MPA, computer science and Digital Design. Over 20 of our alumni since 2015 have already secured employment, working for: APTN, Archiact – VR/AR Studio, Atomic Cartoons, Amblin Studios, Biba Ventures, Blackbird Interactive, Bold Commerce, Cartel Productions, CBC’s Burden of Truth, Eagle Vision, EA Studios, Encore Studios, Farpoint Films, Loogaroo Studios, Manitoba Film & Music, Media Rendez-Vous, Moving Picture Company (MPC), Sierra-Affinity, ThinkingBox Studios, Twentieth Century Fox, Universal Studios, Vancouver Film School, and VMC Studios.
Industry Collaborations and Educational Partners:
- Apple Canada – Assisting in school certification and certification in SWIFT
- BitSpace Development – Providing Internship, workshops and mentoring
- Capilano University – Providing numerous Industry talks and training opportunities
- ComIt – Assistance with Internships and Industry project
- Corus Entertainment – Providing feedback of student projects
- Film Training Manitoba (FTM) – Organizing IATSEE and Film training tests for MPA students
- Flipside – Providing Internship, workshops and mentoring
- JamFIlled Animation – Providing mentorship, workshops and talks
- Langara Centre for Entertainment Arts – Industry Talks
- Manitoba Film and Music (MFM) – Organizing Industry talks, workshops, employment opportunities and Internships for MPA students
- Media Rendezvous – Providing employment and internship opportunities
- New Media Manitoba (NMM)– Organizing Industry talks and Internships for IDM students
- On Screen Manitoba (OSM)- Organizing Industry talks and Internships for MPA and IDM students
- School of The Arts, University of Manitoba – Talks and Workshops
- The Story Institute – Providing Master Classes in Script writing and Story
- Think Tank Training – delivering post-secondary “Foundations in 3D Asset Design Foundation Certificate” at Sisler
- Toon Boom Animation – Providing Industry training, Industry Certification, Workshops, and connections to Canadian and Los Angeles Animation studios
- Ubisoft Winnipeg – Provide mentorship, workshops and Talks
- Vancouver Film School – Providing numerous Industry Intensive workshops and scholarships
- Winnipeg Art Gallery – Providing Internships for student
Our new CREATE Courses:
Grade 9
- Exploration of Interactive Digital Media
- Exploration of Graphic Design
- Exploration of Motion Pictures
Grade 10
- Intro to Motion Picture Arts
- Graphic Design (Photography and Photo Editing)
- Intro to Interactive Digital Media (2D Arcade Based Game Development)
Grade 11
- Fundamentals of Animation
- Fundamentals of Previsualization
- Fundamentals of Visual Effects
- Interactive Digital Media Design (3D Game Design)
- Introduction to IDM Asset Creation (Sound Design)
- Introduction to Interactive Digital Media Coding
- Computer Science
- Graphic Design (Photography, Digital Publiucations and Motion Graphics Design)
Grade 12
- Graphic Design (Photography, Digital Design and UX Design)
- Advanced Interactive Digital Media Asset Creation
- Advanced Interactive Digital Media Coding
- Interactive Digital Media Project Management
- Futures in Interactive Digital Media
- Computer Science
- Applied Motion Picture Arts
- Motion Picture Arts Project Management
- Motion Picture Arts Studio Training
- Motion Picture Arts Portfolio Development