Photo: Poster for limited series Little Bird, nominated for 19 Canadian Screen Awards.
The Canadian Screen Awards are being presented this week, beginning on May 28 and wrapping up with the televised broadcast on May 31, hosted by award-winning Canadian comedian Mae Martin.
The 12th edition of this annual awards show celebrates achievements in content created for film, TV and digital media from coast to coast to coast. We are thrilled to see so many faces from National Screen Institute programs past and present among this year’s list of nominees. Limited series Little Bird leads the list of both TV and overall nominations, led by showrunner and National Screen Institute alum, Jennifer Podemski.
Congratulations to the 35 National Screen Institute alumni and 2024 Canadian Screen Award nominees! You can cheer them on during the awards show on Friday, May 31 at 7 p.m. CT on CBC and CBC Gem.
TV
Best Drama Series
Little Bird — Jennifer Podemski (NSI Global Marketing), Christina Fon (NSI Global Marketing), Catherine Bainbridge (NSI Global Marketing), Tanya Brunel (NSI Global Marketing), Ernest Webb (Featuring Aboriginal Stories Program), Zoe Hopkins (Featuring Aboriginal Stories Program)
Donald Brittain Award for Best Social/Political Documentary Program
Coming Home | Wanna Icipus Kupi — Jennifer Podemski (NSI Global Marketing), Tanya Brunel (NSI Global Marketing), Catherine Bainbridge (NSI Global Marketing), Ernest Webb (Featuring Aboriginal Stories Program)
Best Biography or Arts Documentary Program or Series
Photo: Still from the documentary Living Weaving, developed by Dustin McGladrey through NSI IndigiDocs 2023.
June is National Indigenous History Month! To celebrate, the National Screen Institute is proud to highlight films made by Indigenous storytellers. This year, we are excited to share the moving, masterful short films created by participants from the 2023 edition of NSI IndigiDocs.
Films from IndigiDocs 2023 and Kokum, with love. – from IndigiDocs 2022 – will air on documentary Channel at the times listed below. You can also stream them on CBC Gem beginning on June 1. Join us in honouring Indigenous voices and stories throughout the month and beyond.
A Cree man tries to make sense of his recurring nightmares by confronting the ghosts of his past and by paying attention to the messages coming through spiritual visitors in his present. In this one-off documentary short, co-director Glen Reid shares his story of resilience and healing in the face of intergenerational trauma and the ongoing effects of colonization.
Living Weaving (2023) by Dustin McGladrey
Deborah Sparrow’s journey to breathe a new life into the Musqueam nation’s living culture of weaving.
pî-kiwîk (Come Home) (2023) by Keisha Erwin
Keisha shares their transformative journey of reconnecting with their family and culture in northern Saskatchewan, demonstrating the power of healing through reconnection.
Kokum, with love. (2022) by Kim Stadfeld
Flora Bear’s youngest granddaughter searches for truth and answers about her Indigenous grandmother’s life. This short documentary is the filmmaker’s personal journey of discovery to honour her late grandmother’s life and understand her family history.
Thursday, June 27
Airing at 8 a.m. / 1 p.m. ET
Athegus(2023) by Glen Reid
Living Weaving (2023) by directed by Dustin McGladrey
pî-kiwîk (Come Home) (2023) by Keisha Erwin
Through NSI IndigiDocs, participants received customized training and mentorship to develop a short documentary idea into a 10-minute broadcast-ready film. Phase 1 consisted of online training sessions and assignments designed to prepare for production. Phase 2 focused on film production where participants worked with a mentor and executive producer to bring their vision to the screen.
