Hello ACTRA Members,

It is an honour to be elected as your new National President.

I am feeling inspired. As we enter this time of change and a new era of awareness, we have the opportunity to insist on a fairer, more diverse and equitable screen industry for all Canadian performers. I look forward to continuing the work with those who sit at ACTRA’s leadership table. If you don’t know who we are, please take a moment to meet your National Council.

In addition to being the National President, I currently serve as ACTRA Montreal Vice President, chair of the ACTRA National Women’s Committee (ANWC), and the founding chair of ACTRA Montreal’s Casting Standards Committee (CSC).

Having spent 29 years making my living within our screen industry, like many of you, I’ve had great work opportunities and some not-so-great ones. It’s from my experiences and from hearing those of our ACTRA colleagues that fuel my drive to move fiercely forward on the most important and prevalent demands that have challenged our industry for decades. These include addressing diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) issues and opportunities, as well as our right to harassment-free, safe, respectful, and consent-based work environments.

The two most effective ways to implement change are through lobbying the government and negotiating our collective agreements.

The remarkable thing about our industry is that it has the ability to provide stories that can shape and influence the world. When we don’t reflect our realities, we’re left with tropes and stereotypes that affect societal behaviour. Representation matters. Canadian performers need the opportunity to reflect the change we seek. Therefore, it is crucial respect and dignity are integrated into the stories of our diverse talent across this country. These are our stories, reflecting who we are as Canadians.

This is why it’s important we build a stronger Canadian production industry. To achieve this, we need a modernized Broadcasting Act (Bill C-10), one that prioritizes Canadian creators and ensures streaming services, like Netflix and Disney+, are contributing to the development of Canadian content. The more broadcasters that do so, the more jobs it generates for writers, directors and performers.

As your National President, I will connect with local ACTRA Branches across the country to learn about the issues specific to your region.

Together, we can bring even greater solidarity within our membership, our union, our country, and in turn, affect things globally.

I’m determined to bring about change. I look forward to taking this journey with you.

In solidarity,
Eleanor Noble