Michael MacMillan

Michael I. M. MacMillan, born in 1957, is a Canadian film and broadcasting executive and the CEO of Blue Ant Media. His career belongs to an era when Canadian film and television companies were growing from production houses into broadcasters, specialty channels, and digital media businesses. Across that changing field, MacMillan has been closely tied to building companies that create, distribute, and broadcast film, television, and lifestyle content.

MacMillan co-founded Atlantis Films in 1978. In its early years, Atlantis was mainly a film and television production house, and it earned major recognition for its work. The short film Boys and Girls won an Oscar in 1984, while Lost in the Barrens won an Emmy in 1992. Atlantis was also nominated for an Oscar for The Painted Door. In 1993, the company moved into broadcasting with the launch of its first network, Life Network.

In 1998, Atlantis acquired Alliance Communications and became Alliance Atlantis, with MacMillan serving as Executive Chairman. Under his leadership, the company operated 13 Canadian television networks, including HGTV Canada, Showcase Television, History Television, and Food Network. It also distributed and produced movies and television programs, among them the hit series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. In 2007, MacMillan retired from Alliance Atlantis after selling the company to Canwest and Goldman Sachs.

MacMillan returned to broadcasting in 2011 by launching Blue Ant Media, a privately held Canadian media company. Blue Ant Media creates and distributes content in categories including lifestyle, travel, music, and entertainment. Its specialty channels include Cottage Life, Travel + Escape, Makeful, and A.Side TV, along with premium, commercial-free channels such as Smithsonian, Love Nature, HIFI HD, and BBC Earth. The company also includes digital publishing, monthly tablet magazines, and Cottage Life Media. In 2012, Blue Ant Media was named Marketing Magazine’s Media Player of the Year.

Beyond broadcasting, MacMillan’s work points to a steady interest in civic life and community. He is co-founder and chairman of Samara, a non-partisan charitable organization created from a belief in the importance of public service and public leadership. Samara works to improve political participation in Canada and to strengthen the health of Canada’s democracy. He is also co-founder of the Open Roof Festival and co-founder and co-owner of Closson Chase, a vineyard and winery in Prince Edward County, Ontario, known for pinot noir and chardonnay.

MacMillan lives in Toronto with his wife, Cathy. He has three daughters and one grandson, and volunteers with organizations including Community Food Centres Canada, Civix, and Human Rights Watch. For readers of his words, the line “You can't start the next chapter of your life if you keep re-reading the last one” fits a career marked by building, selling, returning, and starting again. It is plain advice from a life spent moving with change rather than standing still.