Former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has found time away from new romantic partner Katy Perry to launch his own film and TV production banner at the Toronto Film Festival on Friday.

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Hope & Hard Work, to be run alongside co-founder Katie Telford, also unveiled a film and TV scripted and unscripted slate with a focus on Canadian stories for global export. “At a time when the world can feel increasingly divided, we believe in the power of great storytelling to bring people closer,” Trudeau and Telford said in a joint statement.

“As a Canadian company, we have an opportunity to bring values including kindness, optimism, openness and a belief in one another to everything we make, wherever the story comes from and wherever it ultimately finds its audience,” they added. Projects already in development include Closer by Sea, an adaptation of the Perry Chafe book; and another adaptation of novelist Uzma Jalaluddin’s Detective Aunty book to be produced by Neshama Entertainment as Trudeau and Telford executive produce.

The new banner will develop and produce projects across film, TV, audio and live experiences for exploitation at home and abroad by optioning popular literary works and original concepts. Hope & Hard Work also has a strategic partnership with Earth Tones, a media company run by Aliya Jasmine and Aliza Sovani, as they lead the unscripted division and produce documentaries and docuseries.

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Pop star Perry has been busy on the media front herself, having just premiered her upcoming documentary, Katy Perry: The Lifetimes Tour – Live from Paris, at the Tribeca Festival. Directed by Paul Dugdale, the full-length concert film captures Perry’s The Lifetimes tour, which supported the singer’s sixth studio album, 143.

Trudeau and Perry, as a couple, have made more red carpet and social media post appearances of late after the pair first sparked romance rumors in July 2025.

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Hope & Hard Work and its principals are represented by 3 Arts Entertainment.