2016 Canadian Screen Awards – Television & Digital Media Gala 2 Winners

The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television held their gala evening at the Westin Harbour Castle for the second round of Canadian Screen Award winners for 2016.

The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television is pleased to announce that 49 Canadian Screen Awards and six Academy Special Awards were presented tonight in Drama, Children’s or Youth, Comedy and Variety categories. This Canadian Screen Awards Gala was hosted tonight by comedian Steve Patterson at the Westin Harbour Castle, Toronto.

2016 Canadian Screen Awards – Television & Digital Media, Gala 1 Winners

The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television held its first gala tonight at the Westin Harbour Castle for the first round of Canadian Screen Award winners for 2016. The event was hosted by comedian Seán Cullen and presented 50 Canadian Screen Awards in the News & Sports, Documentary, Lifestyle, Reality & Digital Media categories.

In addition, they presented and three previously announced Academy Special Awards – Canada in Perspective received the Diversity Award; Mark Starowicz received the Gordon Sinclair Award for Broadcast Journalism; and Much Music Video Awards – Router-Based Production Audio Design received the Outstanding Technical Achievement Award.

27th Annual Producers Guild Awards – winners

The 27th Annual Producers Guild Awards were held at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel January 23, 2016.

The big winner of the night was The Big Short which claimed the Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures. Its producers were Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner. Brad Pitt was also in the all-star cast that included Christian Bale, Ryan Gosling, Marisa Tomei, Steve Carell and Melissa Leo.

The winner in the Animated Theatrical Motion Picture category was Inside Out produced by Jonas Rivera. For Documentary Theatrical Motion Pictures, the winner was James Gay-Rees who produced Asif Kapadia's Amy Winehouse profile Amy.

28th Images Festival, April 9-18, 2015

The 28th Images Festival is right around the corner, with 10 days of groundbreaking film screenings, live performances and media-based installations taking place throughout Toronto April 9 - 18, 2015. The Images Festival showcases the innovative edge of international contemporary media art through its ON SCREEN, OFF SCREEN and LIVE IMAGES programming.

The Images Festival continues to embrace new modes of creativity for a radical and unforgettable extravaganza of contemporary moving image culture. More than ever, Images engages audiences through our expanded public programming with more talks, tours, guest writers on our iFBLOG, as well as web-based projects and online screenings on our video player iFPOD. Find out more at www.imagesfestival.com

Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television announces final 2015 Canadian Screen Awards winners

The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television is pleased to announce that 43 Canadian Screen Awards were presented tonight during the pre-show and the CBC Broadcast Gala, hosted LIVE by comedy legend Andrea Martin from the gorgeous Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts in Toronto.

“Tonight we celebrate our country’s brightest and best in film, television and digital media at the 2015 Canadian Screen Awards,” says Academy CEO Helga Stephenson. “We sincerely congratulate all of the nominees and winners. And we would especially like to thank the fans who voted for this year’s Fan’s Choice winner as well as the loyal fans who catapulated the most-watched drama and reality shows to win our new Golden Screen Awards for Television.”

“Our film, TV and digital media inform and entertain us – but more than that; they reflect who we are to one another and to the world,” says Academy Chair, Martin Katz. “We at the Academy are the only organization that reflects all the people working in our industries in front of and behind the camera, above and below the line – working in French and English across the country.”

2015 Canadian Screen Awards – Winners in News & Sports, Documentary, Lifestyle, Reality and Digital Media

by Allan Tong

The first round of Canadian Screen Awards were handed out last night at a gala dinner, celebrating 46 categories in news, factual television and some digital media. The event was hosted by comedian Darrin Rose at the Sheraton Centre Toronto. Highlights include:

Our Man in Tehran which captured Best Direction in a Documentary Program by Drew Taylor and Larry Weinstein as well as best documentary program and Best Picture Editing in a Documentary Program or Series for Steve Weslak and Best Sound in that category. It won all five categories for which it was nominated.

HGTV's Income Property winning Best Lifestyle or Talk Program or Series and Best Direction in a Lifestyle/Practical Information Program or Series.

CBC News: Toronto capturing Best Local Newscast, including co-anchor Anne-Marie Mediwake (pictured here).

PGA's 26th annual Producers Guild Awards – winners

Last night, the Producers Guild of America (PGA) announced this year's winning motion picture, television, and new media productions at the 26th Annual Producers Guild Awards ceremony at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza in Los Angeles.

The Jerry Seinfeld-created web series, Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee won the Producers Guild Award for Outstanding Digital Series.

The television program Breaking Bad and its producers Melissa Bernstein, Sam Catlin, Bryan Cranston, Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould, Mark Johnson, Stewart Lyons, Michelle MacLaren, George Mastras, Diane Mercer, Thomas Schnauz, and Moira Walley-Beckett won the Norman Felton Award for Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television, Drama.

Closing the evening, the film Birdman and its producers Alejandro G. Iñárritu, John Lesher, and James W. Skotchdopole won the Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures. This category is one of the most eagerly-anticipated of season, as it is widely considered a strong prognosticator for the Best Picture Oscar®.

Casting Society of America's 30th Annual Artios Awards – winners

The Casting Society of America (CSA) has named the winners for the 30th Annual Artios Awards, which took place tonight in both Los Angeles at the Beverly Hilton and in New York at 42WEST (formerly XL Nightclub), Cabaret & Lounge. Performers Patton Oswalt and Michael Urie hosted in Los Angeles and New York, respectively. This is the first year that the Artios Awards was moved to January to take place during the height of awards season.

Hosted by Michael Urie, New York presenters included Frankie Alvarez, Nina Arianda, Murray Bartlett, Jason Biggs, Raul Castillo, Carrie Coon, Edie Falco, Renee Fleming, Jonathan Groff, Gaby Hoffmann, Billy Magnussen, Cristin Milioti, Jay Pharoah, Danny Pino, AnnaSophia Robb, Jeremy Shamos, Cecily Strong and Lorraine Toussaint.

In Los Angeles, Jonah Hill was on hand to present Emmy Award®-winning casting director Ellen Lewis with the Hoyt Bowers Award, honoring esteemed casting professionals who have elevated the casting profession by embodying the unique spirit, ideals and creativity of famed casting director, Hoyt Bowers.

Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television announces nominees for 2015 Canadian Screen Awards

“Today we are very proud to reveal the nominees for the 2015 CANADIAN SCREEN AWARDS,” says Helga Stephenson, CEO, Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television.

“2014 was an exceptionally competitive year for Canadian film, television & digital media,” Stephenson adds. “The Academy received a record number of Canadian Screen Awards submissions, which is also a good sign for the industry.”

CSA nominations in 128 categories (24 film, 97 in television and 7 in digital media) were announced today at simultaneous press conferences in Toronto and Montreal and via live webcast on the Academy’s new FanZone website, launched today.

Casting Society of America's 30th Annual Artios Awards – nominations

The Casting Society of America (CSA) has unveiled its feature film nominees for the 30th Annual Artios Awards. Final film ballots have been distributed and votes can be entered at http://www.castingsociety.com/, through Monday, January 12th. All winners for film, television, theater and new media categories will be announced at the 30th Annual Artios Awards on January 22, 2015, during the height of awards season, with award ceremonies to be held simultaneously at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Los Angeles (reception will commence at 6:00 p.m. PT) and at 42WEST (formerly XL Nightclub), Cabaret & Lounge (514 West 42nd Street) in New York (reception will commence at 6:00 p.m. ET).

The bicoastal awards show will be hosted by Patton Oswalt (Los Angeles) and Michael Urie (New York City). The evening will also honor two-time Academy Award®-nominee Richard Linklater (Boyhood) with the Career Achievement Award; Academy Award®-nominated and Emmy Award®-winning director Rob Marshall (Into the Woods) with the New York Apple Award; and Emmy Award®-winning casting director Ellen Lewis with the Hoyt Bowers Award.

2014 Festival du nouveau cinéma, Oct 8–19

Tonight, the 43rd edition of Montreal's Festival du nouveau cinéma kicks off with a screening of Philippe Falardeau’s The Good Lie at Théâtre de Maisonneuve. It stars Reese Witherspoon, Corey Stoll, Arnold Oceng, Ger Duany, Emmanuel Jal and Kuoth Wiel. The film tells the real-life story of an American woman who helps four Sudanese refugees who have won a lottery to be relocated to the United States. The film will be preceded by a screening of the short film Mynarski Death Plummet by Montreal's Matthew Rankin.

After the screening, there will be an opening night party at the Agora Hydro-Québec in UQAM’s Cœur des Sciences, which serves as the Festival headquarters. That is also where the festival holds its parties each subsequent night. The parties are free and open to the public.

Other highlights of the festival include works by other Quebeckers such as Maxime Giroux’s Félix and Meira, Rodrigue Jean’s Love in the Time of Civil War, The Price we Pay by Harold Crooks, In Her Place by Albert Shin, and Wild by Jean-Marc Vallée. Additional highlights include David Cronenberg's Maps to the Stars, Boychoir by François Girard, Nightcrawler by Dan Gilroy, and The Tale of Princess Kaguya by Isao Takahata. The closing film will is the documentary The Salt of the Earth (Le sel de la terre) by Wim Wenders and Juliano Ribeiro Salgado.

2014 imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival announces complete programming

This morning, the complete 15th Anniversary imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival programme was announced at the TIFF Bell Lightbox by Executive Director Jason Ryle, and guests including TIFF's Cameron Bailey and actor Glen Gould.

The 15th Annual imagineNATIVE returns October 22-26, 2014 with the most compelling and distinctive Indigenous works from around the globe featuring: 130 films and videos; nine Radio Works; seven multi-platform New Media works; four art exhibitions featuring 19 media artists; 11 industry panels and public workshops; and 17 commissions. imagineNATIVE will feature 175 artists representing over 70 distinct Indigenous nations from 12 countries.

imagineNATIVE Announces Feature Films & Documentaries and The Witching Hour Program

imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival, with presenting sponsor Bell Media, announces the return of The Witching Hour: Late Night Shorts Program and the Festival’s feature length films and documentaries. Opening night of the festival will be, People’s Choice Award-winner at TIFF’s Midnight Madness, What We Do In The Shadows, on Wednesday, October 22 at the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema with director, Taika Waititi in attendance.

The 15th anniversary of the imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival will present feature length films from October 22-26, 2014 such as Black Panther Woman, about Marlene Cummins, an Indigenous teen full of political conviction, becoming a member Brisbane’s chapter of the Black Panthers, one of many in Australia in the early 1970s. As part of the Australia Spotlight, on Sunday, October 26, this powerful film will reveal how many Indigenous women paid a hefty price for their loyalty to a cause they thought was about equality for all.

Thursday, October 23 holds the World Premiere of The Lodge, a stunning stop-motion animation adopting equal parts Goldilocks and the traditional Anishnaabe legend of the Dandelion. The Lodge challenges colonial concepts of savagery, critiques the de-humanizing of Indigenous peoples and explores the powerful medicine of our animal relations. Later that night, the deadliness of Russian winters reaches psychologically destructive new ground in the International Premiere of A White Day by director Michail Lukachevskyi of the Yakut Republic.

Banff World Media Festival's 2014 Rockie Awards – nominees

The Banff World Media Festival is proud to announce the 2014 Rockie Award Nominees. Selected by over 250 independent industry professionals working in film, television and media from around the world, the 156 nominees represent the best of the best content in broadcast and digital.

The winners if the Rockie Awards will be announced during an awards ceremony at the Banff World Media Festival, which takes place next month from June 8-11 in Banff, Alberta.

The categories for this year are:

Call for submissions: imagineNATIVE 2014

Be part of imagineNATIVE’s 15th Anniversary Year!

Be a part of 15 ground-breaking years showcasing the rise of the Indigenous media arts movement! It’s time to submit your film, video, radio and new media works for the 15th anniversary imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival. This year’s Festival runs from October 22-26, 2014 in Toronto, Canada.

imagineNATIVE is an international Festival that celebrates the latest works by Indigenous peoples at the forefront of innovation in film, video, radio and new media. Each fall, the Festival presents a selection of the most compelling and distinctive Indigenous works from Canada and around the globe. The works accepted reflect the diversity of the world's Indigenous nations and illustrate the vitality and excellence of our art and culture in contemporary media. Last year, imagineNATIVE presented 127 works, and had 70+ artists and 15,558 people in attendance at the Festival.

2014 Canadian Screen Awards for Drama, Children’s or Youth, Comedy and Variety – winners

The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television is pleased to announce that 43 CANADIAN SCREEN AWARDS were presented tonight in Drama, Children’s or Youth, Comedy and Variety categories. This Canadian Screen Awards Gala was hosted tonight by comedian Steve Patterson at the Sheraton Centre Toronto.

“This year marks 65 years of celebrating extraordinary Canadian screen stars,” says Martin Katz, Academy Chair. “We are extremely proud to continue this legacy by presenting the biggest and brightest talent in Canada with Canadian Screen Awards tonight.”

“This evening’s winners add to the legacy that the Canadian Screen Awards have built after our inaugural year,” says Helga Stephenson, Academy CEO. “We congratulate all of the honourees tonight on their well-deserved successes.”

2014 Canadian Screen Awards for News & Sports, Documentary, Lifestyle, Reality and Digital Media – winners

The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television is pleased to announce that 47 CANADIAN SCREEN AWARDS were presented tonight in News & Sports, Documentary, Lifestyle, Reality and Digital Media. This Canadian Screen Awards Gala was hosted by comedian Steve Patterson at the Sheraton Centre Toronto.

“Since industry awards were initiated in this country 65 years ago, we have celebrated together,” says Martin Katz, Academy Chair. “Tonight the Academy is very proud to showcase Canada’s leading television and digital media programs this year.”

“Congratulations to all of this evening’s Canadian Screen Award winners and Academy Special Award winners,” says Helga Stephenson, Academy CEO. “Our industry has gone through massive changes, entering into an age of digital media and continues to evolve into a multi-platform universe, and the Academy is proud to recognize the talented Canadians delivering excellence in television and digital media.”

2013 Festival du nouveau cinéma announces complete programming

This morning at a press conference at the Agora Hydro-Québec in UQAM’s Cœur des sciences, the Festival du nouveau cinéma announced its full programming for the 42nd annual edition. It promises to be another exciting year for what has fast become Montreal's preeminent film festival.

Among the works programmed this year is a web documentary I directed called Jazz Petite-Bourgogne (or Burgundy Jazz. It is presented in the FNC Lab section for "experimental, expanded and multidisciplinary cinematic forms at the crossroads of cinema, art and new technologies." Jazz Petite-Bourgogne explores the rich history of Montreal's jazz scene from the perspective of the black community in the neighbourhood called Little Burgundy or Petite-Bourgogne (formerly called St-Antoine or St-Henri).

The 42nd Festival du nouveau cinéma presents 273 films from October 9–20 at various venues around downtown Montreal.

2013 Images Festival, Apr 11-20

The 26th installment of the Toronto Images Festival is upon us with 10 days of ground-breaking film screenings, media-based installations and live performances. The Images Festival screens and presents a wide range of work and disciplines through its ON SCREEN, OFF SCREEN and LIVE IMAGES programming with 35 programs featuring 135 artists at 20 venues. Tickets for the festival are now available online: http://www.imagesfestival.com/store

DAYTIME HUB + NIGHTTIME LOUNGE
This year, the Images Festival inhabits Cinecycle, the iconic coach house behind 401 Richmond, as our post-screening lounge, keeping Images connected to its “underground” roots! Join us at Cinecycle for drinks, food and dancing every night of the festival. During the day, visit our public Mediatheque and Images Festival Bookstore at Urbanspace Gallery on the ground floor of 401 Richmond.

2013 aluCine Latin Film & Media Arts Festival, Mar 21-31

The 13th aluCine Latin Film + Media Arts Festival opens tonight with the unveiling of Juan Si Gonzalez’s Stay-at-Home Dad multimedia installtion at the Toronto Free Gallery (1277 Bloor Street West at Lansdowne). The gallery also be open free to the public Friday and Saturday from noon-6pm, Sunday 2-6pm, and Tuesday through Saturday next week from noon-6pm. Juan will discuss his installation on Friday, March 22, 7-9 also at The Toronto Free Gallery. Free to all.

Juan Andrés Arango’s La Playa D.C. will make its Canadian premiere when it opens the thirteenth annual film programme of the multi-disciplinary festival. A native-born Bogotáno, writer/director Arango has trained and worked in his homeland, Canada and the Netherlands. He returned to Bogotá to shoot La Playa D.C., his debut feature, which he will personally present on March 27 at 7:30pm at Jackman Hall inside the Art Gallery of Ontario.