Service Organization Guest — All Access 2021:

Susanne Vaas

Vice-President, Corporate & International Affairs, Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA)

Susanne provides strategic and practical guidance to the CMPA and its members on production financing and certification, international co-production, corporate governance and mentorship.

She is responsible for developing and implementing the CMPA's international plan to enhance sales and co-production opportunities for CMPA members. She advises on Canadian content and service production certification, federal tax credit programs and production financing structures. She also oversees the CMPA’s National Mentorship Program, which offers professional development opportunities for emerging producers across Canada.

In addition, she provides strategic guidance on corporate governance matters and is responsible for the production of Profile, Canada’s authoritative information source on the Canadian screen-content production industry.

Before joining the CMPA, she served as Manager of Business and Legal Affairs at the Canadian Audio-Visual Certification Office (CAVCO) where she provided legal, tax policy, and program direction and assistance. Prior to joining CAVCO, Susanne worked in private general practice at a boutique law firm and was a court official at the Federal Court of Appeal.

She sits on the Board of the Coalition for the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, and is a member of the Canadian Bar Association and the Law Society of Ontario.