Toronto Film School Celebrates 2026 Recipient of the President’s Award for Teaching Excellence
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Toronto Film School recently announced Writing for Film & TV instructor Alan Resnick as the 2026 Recipient of its President’s Award for Teaching Excellence – an annual award celebrating faculty who inspire and facilitate learning in ways that have a positive and sustained influence on our students.
Launched in 2024, the award is the highest honour for teaching at Toronto Film School. Its recipients not only exemplify the school’s Core Values but also demonstrate exceptional abilities to encourage and motivate students, to create supportive and inclusive learning environments, to foster student success within and beyond the classroom, and to reflect upon and refine their teaching practice.
In addition to Resnick, TFS also shortlisted Acting for Film, TV & the Theatre instructor Rosanna Saracino for this year’s President’s Award for Teaching Excellence.
“Our faculty are the heart and soul of Toronto Film School, and the President’s Award is a meaningful way to honour those who go above and beyond to shape the next generation of creative professionals,” said Andrew Barnsley, President of Toronto Film School.
“Alan and Rosanna are exactly the kind of educators who make this school what it is – bringing not just expertise, but genuine passion and generosity to our classrooms every day, and sending students into the industry ready to make their mark.”
The President’s Award for Teaching Excellence recognizes and celebrates faculty who:
- cultivate dynamic and interactive learning environments that motivate and challenge students to explore their curiosities, deepen their skills, and apply their learning in new and impactful ways
- offer learners constructive, timely, and specific feedback that inspires them to reflect on their work, encouraging growth, resilience, and a commitment to continuous improvement
- create inclusive learning environments that anticipate, celebrate, and respond to the diversity of learner needs and experiences
- engage students in authentic learning opportunities that enable them to demonstrate our Signature Learning Outcomes (SLOs), enhance their employability, expand their professional networks, and connect them to communities
2026 President’s Award for Teaching Excellence Recipient:
“I’m deeply honoured to have been chosen as the recipient of the President’s Award for Teaching Excellence from amongst a group of terrific instructors. The award encourages me to continue to serve the comedy writing students at TFS in helping them to become better writers and in preparing them for the ups and downs of the industry.”
Bio: Alan is a writer, director, three-time Gemini Award winner for comedy writing and a Writer’s Guild of Canada award recipient. He was a showrunner for two Comedy Network series, and a writer on This Hour Has 22 Minutes, Total Drama Island, Stoked, Jimmy Two-Shoes, Rocket Monkeys, Ruby Gloom, and Koati, the animated adventure comedy feature film starring Sofia Vergara. For the past couple of years, Alan served on the jury for the International Emmys’ Sir Peter Ustinov Scriptwriting Award. Alan is passionate about teaching comedy and mentoring. He has been a mentor at the National Screen Institute and for the BIPOC Kids TV Writing Bootcamp. Since 2020, Alan has been a comedy writing instructor at TFS and has relished working with, and guiding, the young writers on their journey as artists.
2026 President’s Award for Teaching Excellence Shortlist:
“Receiving this recognition is deeply meaningful because it affirms what I have come to believe after many years of teaching: our role as educators is not to shape students into who we think they should become, but to create the conditions in which they can discover and reveal who they already are. In creative education, that means building safe and inclusive spaces where rigour and compassion coexist – where students feel safe enough to take risks, curious enough to question, and supported enough to find their own voice. Every student arrives carrying experiences, perspectives, and stories that matter. To witness them surprise themselves with what they are capable of, and to play even a small part in that process, remains one of the greatest privileges of my life.”
Bio: Rosanna Saracino is an award-winning educator, theatre and film artist, producer, director, writer, and curriculum leader whose career spans more than 25 years across professional practice and post-secondary education. She has served as Head Coordinator of an Acting Department at a private post-secondary arts institution, has lead curriculum development, mentored faculty and students, and helped shape the next generation of instructors, performers and storytellers across various professional and academic arts institutions. Alongside her educational work, she has built an accomplished career producing, directing, writing, and script editing for theatre, film, conferences, and interdisciplinary arts initiatives. She also works as a coach, facilitator and consultant with artists, creative teams, leaders, and arts and corporate professionals, supporting psychologically safe, inclusive, and high-performing environments through practices grounded in emotional intelligence, communication, boundaries, and consent.
Recognized for her innovative and deeply human approach to teaching, Rosanna’s work explores the intersection of artistic rigour and psychological safety, integrating emotional intelligence, consent and boundary practices, and inclusion into creative education. She believes that education is not about shaping students into who we think they should become, but creating the conditions in which they can discover their own voice, trust their instincts, and take meaningful creative risks as they learn and refine their technique and artistry. By bridging professional practice with relational, student-centred pedagogy, she empowers emerging artists to develop not only as skilled professionals, but as courageous, compassionate, and collaborative human beings.
