Season 1, Episode 12

Meghan Westelmajer: The Art of Production

Meghan has always had a passion and love for film. But she got into the industry in a less traditional way: it was an online job ad as an executive assistant that got Meghan into the industry. A few years later, and after lots of hard work, she was well into television production in Canada.

Now based out of Calgary, she’s used to spinning a lot of plates. She’s worked as a production coordinator on large projects like the FX series Fargo, which can be watched on Netflix.

She’s also worked on high-budget Hollywood films like Ghostbusters: Afterlife and the Disney+ film Togo.



In this episode:

We hear about Meghan’s start in the film industry, her experiences as an executive assistant, and some of the challenges of being a production coordinator. Next, we hear from Meghan about some of the highs and lows of her career, her experiences on set for productions like Fargo and Togo, and her relationship with Alberta. After that, we hear about how Meghan thinks the COVID-19 pandemic will impact her job and the industry. Finally, we hear Meghan’s three tips for starting out in the industry.


Links

Credits:

Executive Producers: Elise Graham, Ava Karvonen, Samantha Quantz, Theresa Wynnyk; Senior Producer: Sheena Rossiter; Associate Producer: Shayna Giles; Host: Sheena Rossiter; Audio Technician: Sheena Rossiter; Social Media Coordinator: Shayna Giles; Original Storylines theme composed by Aaron Macri and Laura Raboud. Produced with support from Alberta’s Ministry of Culture, Multiculturalism and Status of Women. Special thanks to FAVA for it’s support in this production.

This episode sponsored by:


The Alberta District Council of The Director’s Guild of Canada is part of a national labour organization which represents key creative and logistical personnel in the film and television industries. The DGC enjoys a long standing relationship with fellow Unions and Guilds across Canada. The Alberta District Council of The DGC was formed in 1982 as a part of the National Association. Today, the Alberta District Council has approximately 219 members and over 100 permittees in membership categories covering Directors to Production Assistants and many other creative positions. For more information visit: https://www.dgc.ca/en/alberta/  or DGCAlberta on facebook.