It is through seeing oneself reflected in the media that we as individuals become more visible to society around us. Media companies and content creators alike are finally waking up the damage that story tropes and stereotypes can do to a person’s ability to rise and be amplified by the world around them. In this prescient discussion we’ll dig into how images in media can powerfully change society’s perceptions and prejudices, and some of the image campaigns that are pushing the boundaries to do just that.
Moderator:
Sangita Patel, ET Canada, Entertainment Reporter
Born and raised in Toronto, Sangita Patel is an engineer turned television personality, who worked her way up in the Canadian news landscape reporting on local lifestyle and entertainment news. Sangita joined ET Canada in 2014 to cover the hottest red carpets and interview the biggest stars on the planet including Julia Roberts, Dwayne Johnson and Helen Mirren. Sangita also acts as the host of HGTV Canada’s popular home renovation series, Home to Win. In 2019, Sangita was named as the Canadian spokesperson for COVERGIRL’s Simply Ageless Collection. A strong believer in education, she is a supporter of Pathways to Education, Children’s Wish and ONE Campaign.
Panelists:
Genevieve Citron | Writer and Curator
Genevieve Citron holds a Master’s degree from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) where she studied cultural sociology. Her writing and research questions how the social world is rendered through film and examines how war cinema is linked to militarization. She is the lead editor of The Film Atlas, a screen arts journal that blends academic and journalistic voices, and in 2019 she was honoured with the Toronto Film Critics Association’s Emerging Critic Award. Genevieve has served as a member of the Toronto International Film Festival’s programming team and is currently working at Entertainment One.
Hamza Haq | Actor
Named a Canada Rising Star by The Hollywood Reporter in 2017, Hamza Haq stars as Bashsir “Bash” Hamed in the new CTV medical drama TRANSPLANT. The series centres around an ER doctor who fled his native Syria to come to Canada where he must overcome numerous obstacles to resume a career in the high stakes world of emergency medicine. In 2018, Hamza appeared alongside William Shatner and Russell Peters as twins Amal and Gopal in the CTV mini-series INDIAN DETECTIVE, and earned critical acclaim as Raza Ali in the CBC drama THIS LIFE, for which he earned a 2018 Canadian Screen Award Nomination for Best Guest Performance. Other notable credits include recurring roles on the Cinemax series JETT opposite Carla Gugino, QUANTICO starring Priyanka Chopra, and THE ART OF MORE with Denis Quaid and Kate Bosworth. He has also appeared in DESIGNATED SURVIVOR, THE BOLD TYPE, BEING HUMAN, and BEST LAID PLANS. He hosted two seasons of the International Emmy Award nominated children’s series LOOK KOOL and plays Jassie the CBC Gem digital original drama THE 410. On the big screen, Hamza holds supporting roles in BON COP BAD COP 2 with Colm Feore, THE DEATH AND LIFE OF JOHN F. DONOVAN directed by Xavier Dolan, Darren Aronofsky’s MOTHER! and RUN THIS TOWN, detailing the turbulent final year of Rob Ford’s tenure as the mayor of Toronto. Most recently, he appears opposite Margaret Qualley in the MY SALINGER YEAR which opened the 70th Berlin International Film Festival in February 2020. Raised in Ottawa, Hamza is youngest of four siblings born in Saudi Arabia to Pakistani parents and has called Canada home for almost twenty years. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Film Studies with a minor in Law from Carleton University.
Ravi Srinivasan | International Programmer, Toronto International Film Festival
Ravi Srinivasan is an International Programmer for the Toronto International Film Festival. Ravi also serves as an International Associate Programmer for the Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival, the lead programmer for National Canadian Film Day and founder and Executive Director of the South Western International Film Festival. When he’s not watching 400 films a year, he’s listening to Sharon Van Etten and Big Thief.
