What exactly is a mentor and what does a mentor do? According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary a mentor is an experienced and trusted advisor. Expanding on that definition, a good mentor has a willingness to share or teach their skills and knowledge, is non-judgemental, gives honest and constructive feedback, is flexible and values diversity.

There are many benefits to being mentored, to being a mentoree, especially for youth. There is the encouragement for personal development and an opportunity to explore different options and interests with someone who has life experience and knowledge. There is the empowerment and increased confidence to be gained with someone who has good listening skills, is a role model and is willing to invest in the mentoree’s personal growth.

Patrick Shannon has been described as a dedicated mentor with the technical savvy and talent of a professional filmmaker. An award-winning social entrepreneur, film director, Haida storyteller and University of Victoria business school instructor from HlGaagilda Skidegate, Nang K’uulas (Patrick) of the T’aanuu Raven Clan strongly believes that, “Youth are the future so let’s give them real opportunities for growth.” Of his own upbringing he says, “I didn’t have a ‘mentor’ per se. My values were instilled in me by my grandmother, parents, and community. I’ve had my creative communities and peers in Vancouver teach me a lot, but something I’ve always felt lacking has been a mentor, so I try my best to provide that for other young people trying to make their ways in this industry.” Read on to discover the ways Patrick is giving back - one mentoree, one young person, one creative opportunity at a time.

It was inevitable. Bring two forward-thinking heavyweights together and stand back to see what happens. Yolanda Clatworthy is an independent consultant and climate justice advocate who engages in projects that shape new socio-economic stories with a unique approach to community engagement. Patrick and Yolanda teamed up, and in 2015 they launched the highly successful InnoNative, an Indigenous video production company. Since its inception they have travelled all over Canada teaching media and technological workshops and classes for Indigenous entrepreneurs and youth. Topics include: Introduction to Photography, Introduction to Documentary Film Making, Community Video Documenting, Introduction to Web Design, and Introduction to Graphic Design and Branding for Indigenous Artists and Businesses.

InnoNative is based out of Haida Gwaii and Vancouver with a creative team spread all across Canada. The company brings traditional Indigenous storytelling and values into contemporary mediums. The focus is on youth capacity building by giving youth an opportunity for personal growth.

The InnoNative team has mentored over one hundred youth from every province, supporting the next generation of storytellers. Their workshops can be virtual or in person, and include the equipment required by attendees, along with hands-on instruction in how to use it. The equipment can be left with attendees so they can continue exploring their creativity. Facilitators focus on a fun, educational approach with the intention of teaching fundamental skill sets that will stay with attendees for a lifetime.

InnoNative workshops are for all ages - be it training youth how to shoot and edit films, or teaching aspiring entrepreneurs how to use branding, marketing, and social media to launch and grow businesses in their home communities. The hope is that attendees will continue growing and learning beyond the workshop and will use their acquired skills to continue contributing to their community and their personal growth. As Patrick says, “When we leave, the learning doesn’t stop. It’s never just one-and-done.”

Another of Patrick’s projects is Supernaturals, an Indigenous boutique modelling agency, the first of its kind, launched in May of 2021. Supernaturals focuses on healthy high-end cultural representation. Patrick is a co-founder of Supernaturals along with Joleen Mitton, a Cree model who created Vancouver Indigenous Fashion Week (VIFW) in 2017, a company that produces Indigenous fashion shows with clothing designed by local Indigenous designers and worn by models of First Nations, Metis and Inuit descent. She brings decades of modelling experience to identify Indigenous people who could do well in the industry. The models currently on the roster have been hand selected by Joleen and Patrick. The agency will address issues of representation, mental awareness, and poor cultural sensitivity within the fashion world. In a press release Joleen states that, “Our mission at Supernaturals is to celebrate and make visible Indigenous People at a high level in media arts, culture, community, land-based wisdom, and the global market.”

Since May, Supernaturals has been featured twice in Vogue magazine. The Today Show and Global BC News have also highlighted the agency. “We launched and it blew up,” says Patrick about the huge positive media response the agency has received.

In the first seven months of operation, Supernaturals had over 800 model applications from across North America. By November applications had to be temporarily closed as over a thousand had been submitted. The vast majority are new to modelling and need a lot of professional development before they can go out and thrive. To that end, there is a development roster dedicated to training and opportunities to get more experience. Professional head shots for their portfolios are taken by Patrick. Agency models currently represent Cree, Dene, Sechelt, Salish, Squamish, Metis, and Haida. Three Haida models with the agency are Sienna Richardson-Isberg, Gwaliga Hart, and Kiefer Collison.

In August of 2021 Supernaturals was honoured with a request to take the team to participate in the huge Santa Fe Indian Market featuring Indigenous models. The focus was on gifted North American artists, and the new agency represented the west coast.

Models from Supernaturals have worked with the top Indigenous designers across the continent, including Jamie Okuma, Pam Baker, Yolonda Skelton, Orlando Dugi, Lauren Good Day, Alicia Designs, Dorothy Grant, Totem Design House, and Korina Emmerich. Each designer chooses which models wear their clothing. In November, prospective models were sent to a casting session for ROOTS.

Walking his talk and a testament to his graphic design and marketing skills, Patrick created both the Supernaturals logo and all of the branding strategies. “We wanted to project a level of class and culture that would position us visually alongside the top agencies across the world. The design is based off of my own Haida design elements, with a nod to Coast Salish influence as we are operating the agency on the unceded territories of the Coast Salish peoples.”

"Representation matters, but good representation matters more." - Patrick Shannon

As Patrick explains, “In our experience, Indigenous people are not set up to succeed in many industries, especially in ones so predatory and unhealthy as the fashion and media production industries. Several of our models quit previous agencies because of the cultural insensitivity and blatant racism that’s the reality for many of our people. Many of our models are former youth-in-care and come from remote communities, and we have specific needs and supports that are required to thrive. Until Supernaturals, our people were left alone to be taken advantage of. With that context, we are pushing the industry to not only address racism, but also grow beyond stereotypes and tokenism which has been almost exclusively how Indigenous people have been used. By preparing our models to succeed at the highest levels, and to advocate for them and build relationships with our clients, we can make sure that we can focus on healthy and ‘good’ representation, instead of just showing up to check a cultural diversity box. Representation matters, but good representation matters more.”

Supernaturals focuses on uplifting and supporting talent from an Indigenous worldview that prizes culture over profit by providing clients with the opportunity to be a part of healthy reconciliation within the media, fashion and modelling industries.

To quote Patrick again, “Indigenous people are in high demand right now and we want to be at the forefront of this new wave of cultural awareness, supporting our own people in an industry that has traditionally been very difficult to thrive in.”

Stereotype: A mistaken idea or belief about a certain social group or a type of individual based on how they look on the outside. Stereotyping people is a form of prejudice because what is on the outside is a small part of who the person is.

Tokenism: Can be any act of putting a minority into the mix to create some sort of publicly viewed diversity. It is the practice of making only a perfunctory or symbolic effort by recruiting a small number of people from underrepresented groups to give the appearance of equality.

The Haida Gwaii Media Collective (HGMC) launched on December 1, 2021. The barrier-free collective is a community- driven media education and production initiative for all residents of Haida Gwaii to gain the resources, skills, and experience for digital storytelling. Its mission is to preserve the integrity of the Haida and island culture, to inform and make sure the process is done respectfully and never misrepresents.

Co-founders Julia Weder and Patrick Shannon have signed a number of mentors, some of whom reside on Haida Gwaii. Those interested in developing an idea will be connected with a media mentor from the network to then develop the idea and build capacity for moving forward with a project. At other times, mentorship may be a hands-on approach to teaching the use of media equipment including cameras, camcorders, grip, lighting, audio, and drone operation, as well as skills in acting, writing and directing. A mentor could also facilitate a media-focused workshop.

The recently launched HGMC is a huge new initiative that aims to build off the momentum of the award-winning Haida language movie Edge of the Knife to promote local storytelling through affordable access to professional equipment, mentorship, and industry professional training. This will be an all-island initiative, open to all, and prioritizing equity seeking groups.

Patrick’s pandemic project was to teach himself woodworking so he could transform a jitney bus into a mobile HGMC mentorship/teaching venue and to house an equipment library, all with the goal of supporting emerging Indigenous and under-represented artists in film and other digital art forms. The project is funded by Grand Challenges Canada as a two-year innovation that aims to dismantle systemic barriers faced by Indigenous women and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people.

Ongoing Projects for Patrick

• Patrick has been a mentor for Haida Youth Assembly (HYA) since 2013. He leads his own youth media team, who film and edit a short documentary and music video that screens at the end of the final day. Hopefully the HYA will happen again in the spring of 2022.
• Patrick has produced music videos which include the one he recently directed for Haida songstress Carsen Grey LaPlante’s recording of Colours Like Yours.
• The Haida basketball feature film project called Saints and Warriors will tell the in-depth story of basketball on Haida Gwaii, the history and the players, the community and the culture that cemented the Haida as one of the greatest of basketball Nations.
• The Deadly Uncle Show is an audio podcast to answer questions and to educate people using a made-up, 40ish, well meaning native who is angry over the Indian Act. Merchandise is available from the Deadly Uncle’s Closet Collection at innonative.ca/merch.
• Patrick is working on developing an educational board game about Haida villages pre and post contact.
• Also in the works is a children’s book, in collaboration with a Musqueam elder. It is a re-imagining of a Coast Salish Tale.
• All the while, members of the Supernaturals team are pursuing the goal of opening satellite Supernaturals Modelling agencies across Canada.

When asked about having an end goal he’s working towards Patrick replied, “I’ve always considered myself a leaf on the wind, going where my gut tells me and trying to be involved as much as possible in projects that I feel passionate about.

I don’t have an end goal, or even goals period. I follow the wind and love the freedom to go in any direction, never knowing what’s happening even a few months out - just trusting that my values and strong relationships will guide me in the right direction.”

Spending time with Patrick Shannon has been compared to positive overwhelm. And now I think you will all understand why.

If you are interested in any of the projects mentioned in the article, more information can be gleaned by contacting This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , and by visiting supernaturalsmodelling.com or innonative.ca.