Cultural Hotspot Projects showcase local artists and organizations that celebrate creativity, culture and community. These projects are free and provide opportunities for the public to participate in arts activities and events. Browse upcoming Cultural Hotspot events.
10 Toes
A project to develop the production skills of a videographer through a structured mentorship and learning program, working closely with professionals in the industry to create impactful narratives for future filmmaking projects.
Funding Recipient: Jamal Omar
A capacity-building project to enhance upcoming workshops for Somali women and girls in the Jane and Finch area through training with a Buraanburista. This program will result in a toolkit to teach and perform Buraanbur, a performance by a group of women, with a Buraanburista reciting the song and the others providing a chorus or drum accompaniment.
Funding Recipient: Born Somali
A mentorship project to gain experience in arts facilitation, program design and planning to pilot a one-day workshop on creative direction in fashion arts and photography for youth in Jane and Finch.
Funding Recipient: Tommy Kasi
A series of workshops for children in the Jane and Finch community to learn the cultural uniqueness of mask-making and dancing, culminating in a pilot presentation of the first Caribbean Masquerade in Toronto.
Funding Recipient: Caribbean Canadian Artistic Star Inc.
A two-phase food security project that celebrates the cultural food heritage of the Jane and Finch community through interviews with residents to create a community cookbook, an online archive and a prototype for a multimedia dining experience consisting of sensory interactions and a short animated display.
Funding recipient: P.E.A.C.H.
A project that focuses on mentorship with an Indigenous cultural teacher and knowledge carrier to develop skills in public speaking, facilitation, developing a program toolkit and disseminating a community survey for feedback on the creation of a cross-cultural exchange workshop.
Funding Recipient: Muriel Lopez Silva
A capacity-building and comprehensive training project to produce a toolkit and curriculum for arts-based workshops that responds to participants’ experiences growing up in the Jane and Finch community.
Funding recipient: Smile for Sache
The EastMind Collective will develop a program toolkit including workshop guides, training materials, and participant resources to enhance future Miisaan poetry workshops for Black youth in Jane and Finch. Miisaan is a Somali word for balance and will signal the program aim to foster wellness through creativity.
Funding recipient: EastMind Collective
The development and pre-production of a short film that highlights the journey of Jane and Finch hip-hop artist Chuckie Akenz, exploring his resilience in the face of past struggles while amplifying the voices of contemporary Jane and Finch hip-hop artists.
Funding recipient: Richard Dang
A project to relaunch and re-invent the Routed Podcast with a consistent brand story and community voice, including a community survey to determine which knowledge, narratives and careers youth in the Jane and Finch community want to learn more about.
Funding Recipient: Nancy Huynh
Enhanced programming of the initial Little Jamaica Rising Stars Signature project that offers free arts and culture festivities, as well as portraits of community members taken by local photographers to be featured in an exhibition with live music and performances.
Funding Recipient: Keele & Eglinton Residents (K.E. Residents)
A curated virtual showcase of Toronto’s roots reggae history connecting the communities of Little Jamaica and Jane and Finch through the stories, experiences and artifacts of roots reggae pioneering artist Dennis Reeves.
Funding Recipient: Amexem Mu Centre