Latest posts from National Screen Institute - Canada (NSI)

Podcast NDNs on the Airwaves from Jackson 2Bears and Janet Rogers, a companion project to the NSI IndigiDocs short of the same name, won two awards at T.O. Webfest last weekend.

NDNS on the Airwaves took home the best podcast award and the Independent Web Creators of Canada (IWCC) Canadian Spotlight award.

NDNs on the Airwaves is a series of interviews collected and presented in segments reflective of the span and variety of ways Indigenous radio is offered today, yesterday, and what is to come.

The post Janet Rogers, Jackson 2Bears’ podcast NDNs on the Airwaves wins at T.O. Webfest appeared first on National Screen Institute - Canada (NSI).

Congrats to the NSI grads who won 2018 Leo Awards.

The Leo Awards recognize the strength, diversity and talent of British Columbia’s film and television industry and celebrate artistic excellence within the province.

Best motion picture, best direction and best screenwriting

• Black Kite – director Tarique Qayumi (NSI Diverse TV Director)

Best supporting performance by a female, motion picture

• Sonja Bennett (TELUS Optik Local) – Kayak to Klemtu

Best screenwriting, dramatic series

• Sarah Dodd (NSI Features First) – Cardinal: Blackfly – Red

Best feature-length documentary, best direction, best screenwriting, best picture editing

• The Road Forward – writer/director Marie Clements (Featuring Aboriginal Stories Program, NSI Storytellers)

Best short documentary

• A Theatre Near You – A Powell River Story – producers Greg Bartels, Andrew Muir (both TELUS STORYHIVE)

Best direction, short documentary program

• Andrew Muir – A Theatre Near You – A Powell River Story

Best documentary series

• 1491: The Untold Story of the Americas Before Columbus – co-director Lisa Jackson (NSI Storytellers, Featuring Aboriginal Stories Program, NSI IndigiDocs program advisor), co-writer Marie Clements

Best information, lifestyle or reality program or series

• Hand Crafted – producers Greg Bartels, Andrew Muir

Best direction, information, lifestyle or reality program or series

• Andrew Muir – Hand Crafted – The Bowyer

Best cinematography, information, lifestyle or reality program or series

• Greg Bartels – Hand Crafted – The Neon Bender

Best performance, youth or children’s programming

• Peter Benson (NSI Totally Television) – Mech-X4 – X4 Versus Harper’s Ghost

Best web series

• Inconceivable (TELUS STORYHIVE web series) – series creator Joel Ashton McCarthy

Best music video

• Breakfast With Liz by HUMANS – producer Amber Ripley (NSI Drama Prize)

The post 18 Leo Award wins for NSI grads appeared first on National Screen Institute - Canada (NSI).

Above: pictured with Renee Laprise (left)

I had the great opportunity to be part of PEI Screenwriter’s Bootcamp for the second year in a row and it feels like coming home. If you’ve never been to Prince Edward Island, the landscape, feel and history are priceless.

Louise Lalonde is the director, writer and producer behind this blockbuster project along with help from Renee Laprise from FilmPEI.

Louise has been planning this year’s event since this time last year. Several key mentors ran the screenwriters and producers, from all over Canada, through their paces.

I was lucky to be asked to jury Pitch for Your Life. Five writer/producer teams presented to the panel (Gosia Kamela, production exec at Bell Media; Claire Dion, associate director, Independent Production Fund – Montreal office; and me), What a hard task that was to decide who would get the life-changing $15K towards their proof of concept. The decision is announced at a reception on today, June 4, at the Delta in Charlottetown, just prior to the Show Canada kickoff.

During the bootcamp, I was given the floor to spotlight what NSI does. We have such a wide variety of programs and opportunities and I’m always happy to share my knowledge and experience.

My leading men were NSI Features First PEI alumni Jason Arsenault and Adam Perry. They spoke about their experience in the NSI Features First program and told tales about the journey to get their NSI-developed project, A Small Fortune, made.

Above: Jason Arsenault and Adam Perry

I shared trailers from two of our award-winning features that played theatrically this year: Adventures in Public School and Venus and the upcoming action-packed thriller SuperGrid.

I also found time to take a tour of the new PEI Film centre with Renee Laprise and saw the state-of-the-art equipment. What an incredible space for a creative group.

The week ended with an excellent turnout at the Digital Distribution Forum.

The PEI Screenwriter’s Bootcamp is a must-attend for writers at all levels. The care and professionalism of the mentors and opportunities for creative connections make this an experience you don’t want to miss.

Mark your calendars for next year, and see you there. That’s a wrap!

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