People

Robin Mirsky
Executive Director

Robin Mirsky has led the Rogers Group of Funds since 1989. Under her leadership, the fund expanded to include feature films as well as television programming, plus support for Canada’s film and television festivals and related events. In 1996, she launched the Rogers Documentary Fund to foster the growth and creation of Canadian documentaries. In 2000, she created the Rogers Cable Network Fund to help support content destined for the cable channel market. In 2024, the Rogers Series Fund was created to support series television for both the Canadian broadcast and international streaming markets.

Robin is also active in the community, including serving as a director on the boards of the Banff World Media Festival, the Pacific Screenwriting Program, the Giller Prize, and OneFamily Fund Canada.

RogersGroupofFunds@rci.rogers.com

Marilyn Blanchette
Assistant to Robin Mirsky

Elissa McBride
Manager of Business Affairs

Sergio Enriquez
Accountant

Jan Innes, CHAIR

Jan Innes is a board director and public affairs specialist. Ms. Innes worked for 25 years at Rogers Communications handling corporate communications, public affairs and government relations.

She joined the Board of Directors of Rogers Communications in 2021.

With a long-time interest in film and television, Ms. Innes sat on the Board of the Toronto International Film Festival for 15 years and is a long-time member of Hot Docs’ Founders Circle.

Alison Clayton

Alison Clayton is a senior broadcasting executive with many years of experience in the production, distribution, programming and financing of Canadian television.

As an award-winning producer with Crawley Films, Ms. Clayton oversaw the production of more than 100 children’s television programs, including two Gemini Award winners. During this time, Ms. Clayton was President of the Canadian Film and Television Association (now the Canadian Media Producers Association).

Her broadcasting experience includes the launch and management of The Biography Channel, G4 Tech TV and MSNBC Canada, as well as senior programming positions with The Family Channel, The Movie Network and MOVIEPIX.

Ms. Clayton is a former member of the boards of the Canada Media Fund, Outdoor Life Network, and the Canadian Television Fund. Ms. Clayton is the board member responsible for Official Language Minority Communities (OLMCs) and their consideration in all funding decisions.

Rosemary Sadlier

Rosemary Sadlier O.Ont. (Order of Ontario) is a renowned diversity, inclusion, and equity consultant, social justice advocate, researcher, writer, and international speaker specializing in Black History, anti-racism, and women’s issues.

With a remarkable 22-year tenure as President of the Ontario Black History Society, she spearheaded the establishment of February as Black History Month nationwide and secured the recognition of August 1st as Emancipation Day. Ms. Sadlier played a pivotal role in the creation of the national day for the Hon. Lincoln Alexander and has provided expert input to various organizations, including the UN Rapporteur on Race Relations, the Royal Ontario Museum, the Canadian Museum of Human Rights, Historica and the Bi-National Study of the Underground Railroad.

She has been recognized with honorary doctorates from the University of Toronto and OCAD. As an educator, she has contributed to African Canadian curriculum development, national exhibits, films, and publications, authoring seven books on African Canadian history. Committed to social justice, Ms. Sadlier uses the lens of Black history to educate and empower others.

Carolyn Stamegna

Carolyn Stamegna (B. Comm, LLM (IP), ICD.D) currently serves as counsel in the Business Law Group of a leading Bay Street law firm, where her practice focuses on domestic and international transactions in the film, television, media, and technology sectors. Carolyn represents financial institutions, investors, media companies, content creators, and service providers, and advises on outsourcing transactions in the media and financial services industries. Her expertise includes structuring entertainment ventures, acquisitions of content, and intellectual property rights protection.

Carolyn has been recognized as a leading entertainment and media lawyer by global legal ranking bodies Chambers Canada, Lexpert, The Legal 500 Canada, and Best Lawyers in Canada, among others. Carolyn is a long-serving guest lecturer in entertainment finance at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law and Osgoode Hall Law School.

Carolyn currently serves on the Boards of Directors of the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario and Ontario Creates.

Karen Tanaka

Karen Tanaka is a strategic leader with experience across media, technology, and cultural institutions.

Most recently, she served as Chief Operating Officer of the Vancouver Chinatown Foundation, where she led operations and strategic initiatives during a period of significant development. Under her leadership, the Foundation launched the acclaimed Chinatown Storytelling Centre, a vibrant cultural hub dedicated to preserving and sharing Chinatown’s living history through the power of storytelling.

Earlier in her career, Ms. Tanaka held senior roles at Immersive Media, Xerox, and Centrinity, leading marketing, digital innovation, and strategic partnerships.

Ms. Tanaka completed the Directors Education Program at the Rotman School of Management. She serves as a director of the Nikkei Place Foundation, is a member of the Bob & Michael’s Place Advisory Committee, and is a mentor with Creative Destruction Lab. She previously served as Vice-Chair of the Alzheimer Society of British Columbia & Yukon.

Susan Wheeler

Susan Wheeler is Vice-President, Regulatory, Broadcasting for Rogers Communications Inc. and has worked in Canadian broadcasting for over 20 years. Susan’s experience and expertise in broadcast regulation combined with her strong legal and business background ensures an informed perspective on issues of cultural policy and content financing and monetization across both the audio and audio-visual sectors.

Susan has held a number of director and executive board member positions in the cultural sector, including the director and chair of the Canadian Association of Broadcasters (CAB), the Canadian Broadcasters Rights Agency (CBRA) (a copyright collective for private broadcasters), and music funding agency the Foundation to Assist Canadian Talent on Recordings (FACTOR). Most recently, she has joined the boards of the Rogers Group of Funds and the Polaris Music Prize, where she is delighted to have the opportunity to support Canadian and Indigenous film and television creators and music artists.