Six special awards were handed out by the The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television ahead of the Canadian Screen Awards – among the recipients was the comedy show This Hour Has 22 Minutes along with Ivan Fecan.
The six winners include:
– Academy Board of Directors’ Tribute: Ivan Fecan – Ivan Fecan has been in the media industry over 40 years. Currently Ivan is Executive Chair of Thunderbird Films, which is comprised of multiple production and distribution companies. Ivan, with his wife Sandra, are philanthropists who believe in giving back to the arts, making major gifts to York University’s Faculty of Fine Arts, the National Ballet, the AGO, the National Ballet School, and the Soulpepper Theatre Company, among others.
Academy Icon Award: This Hour Has 22 Minutes – This Hour Has 22 Minutes is an acclaimed, provocative Canadian satirical sketch/variety show that skewers politics, culture and world events. Cast members include Mark Critch, Cathy Jones, Shaun Majumder and Susan Kent, and politicians as well as celebrities frequently make guest appearances. 22 Minutes is currently in its 23rd season on CBC, and continues to be one of Canada’s best-known and top-rated comedy shows.
Digital Media Trailblazing Award Sponsored by the Ontario Media Development Corporation (OMDC): Ana Serrano – Ana Serrano is the Chief Digital Officer of the Canadian Film Centre and Founder of CFC Media Lab, the world-renowned and award-winning institute for interactive storytelling created in 1997. She is credited for driving the digital transformation of the CFC into a unique blend of talent, product and company accelerator and creative production house.
Gordon Sinclair Award for Broadcast Journalism: Mark Starowicz – “There’s a persistent idea that Canadians aren’t interested in their own stories,” Mark Starowicz once said (Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television). “I’ve made a living proving that isn’t true.” The ultimate expression of Starowicz’s passion for Canadian history and culture is the 30-hour CBC documentary series Canada: A People’s History (2000-01), which he created and executive produced – it brought in more than 14 million viewers and won three Gemini Awards.
Margaret Collier Award (for Writing): Karen Walton – Karen Walton is an award-winning screenwriter and creative producer whose credits span an eclectic array of popular, critically-acclaimed and/or ground-breaking film and television works. To film lovers, she’s the sardonic scribe behind the international cult horror classic Ginger Snaps. In television, she’s been in the earliest writing rooms for game-changing series such as gay culture classic Queer As Folk, and science fiction sensation Orphan Black.
Humanitarian Award: Performing Arts Lodges (PAL Canada) – PAL Canada Foundation is a national charitable organization whose mandate is to create and encourage programs and services for senior and disadvantaged members and associates of Canada’s professional artists’ community, in the areas of affordable accommodation and overall well-being.
Photo: This Hour Has 22 MInutes/CBC
