GEMINI NOMINATIONS INCLUDE MANITOBA PROJECTS & CREATORS 2009 GEMINI NOMINATIONS ANNOUNCED

(WINNIPEG, MB) August 25, 2009: The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television announced the nominations for the 24th Annual Gemini Awards, which include 26 nominations for Manitoba projects/creators. The 2009 Broadcast Gala, which will recognize the year's best in Canadian English-language television, will take place on Saturday November 14th in Calgary, Alberta and will be broadcast live on Global and Showcase.

"Today is a great day to remember that we must celebrate our achievements, to acknowledge the amazingly talented cast and crew that support all of our projects, and to remember the hard work we all do is really paying off. I am very proud of this community, and what we all know that we are capable of achieving. Congratulations to everyone involved in today’s Gemini nominations. Well done", Phyllis Laing, President/Producer, Buffalo Gal Pictures Inc.

2009 Gemini Awards - Manitoba Nominations: 

Ballet High

Ballet High is the story of the graduating class of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School Professional Division and over the last seven years, it's been non-stop plies, pas de deuxs and pirouettes for these teens. But the stakes are high and they now have this one last year to prove that all the personal sacrifices they made were worth it!

        • Best Direction in a Performing Arts Program or Series Ballet High - Elise Swerhone

4 nominations for Elijah It's June 1990;

Elijah Harper - a reluctant hero from a remote Cree community in the north - is caught in a media hailstorm when he squares off against the political elite. Summarizing his people's response to 300 years of "civilization", Elijah risks his own life and Canada's future when he utters one simple yet irrevocable word: NO.

       • Best TV Movie - Elijah p. Blake Corbet, Gigi Boyd, Kevin Eastwood, Christopher Leeson, Lisa Meeches, Mary Anne Waterhouse (Anagram Pictures Inc., Eagle Vision (Manitoba))

       • Best Writing in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series Blake Corbet – Elijah

       • Best Sound in a Dramatic Program Ken Biehl, Scott Aitken, Stephen Cheung, Ian Emberton, Don Harrison, Ian Mackie, Greg Stewart – Elijah

       • Best Original Music Score for a Dramatic Program, Mini-Series or TV Movie Terry Frewer – Elijah

9 nominations for Less Than Kind

Less Than Kind is a smart, edgy, dysfunctional half-hour comedy that follows 15-year-old Sheldon Blecher, his self-destructive driving instructor father, his pyromaniac mother and his failed-actor brother as they try to revive their failing family business. It's a sharp and humorous look at the collisions and twists that happen between the hugs and kisses in a "loving" family.

       • Best Comedy Program or Series (Breakthrough Films & Television, Buffalo Gal Pictures) p. Phyllis Laing, Marvin Kaye, Ira Levy, Amy Marcella, Mark McKinney, Jan Peter Meyboom, Kirsten Scollie, Chris Sheasgreen, Peter Williamson

       • Best Direction in a Comedy Program or Series James Dunnison - Less Than Kind: Fun Kelly Makin - Less Than Kind: The Daters Henry Sarwer-Foner - Less Than Kind: Pakikisama Shawn Alex Thompson - Less Than Kind: French is My Kryptonite

       • Best Writing in a Comedy or Variety Program or Series Mark McKinney - Less Than Kind: Careers Day • Best Individual Performance in a Comedy Program or Series Brooke Palsson - Less Than Kind: French is My Kryptonite Benjamin Arthur - Less Than Kind: Pakikisama

       • Best Achievement in Casting Susan Forrest, Sharon Forrest, Jim Heber - Less Than Kind: The Daters

9 nominations for Diamonds

Following a trail of greed and obsession, this powerful mini-series traces the international web that brings us diamonds - the world's purest and most dazzling gems. From the fashionable enclaves of London, to the icy tundra of the Canadian Arctic, to the war-ravaged villages of Sierra Leone, DIAMONDS takes viewers inside the glamorous - and sometimes dangerous and illegal - diamond industry.

       • Best Dramatic Mini-Series - Diamonds p. Jennifer Kawaja, Liz Jarvis, Phyllis Laing, Philo Pieterse, Julia Sereny, Carrie Stein, Simon Vaughan, Nick Witkowski(Sienna Films, Rough Cut Pictures Inc., Rough Productions Ltd. (Buffalo Gal Pictures), Love Reigns (Pty) Ltd.)

       • Best Direction in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series Andy Wilson – Diamonds Best Writing in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series David Vainola – Diamonds

       • Best Sound in a Dramatic Program Janice Ierulli, Kevin Banks, Harry Barnes, Brock Capell, Martin Lee, Colin Scott McFarlane, Ian Rankin, Mark Shnuriwsky - Diamonds

       • Best Production Design or Art Direction in a Fiction Program or Series Delarey Wagener, Craig Sandells – Diamonds

       • Best Original Music Score for a Dramatic Program, Mini-Series or TV Movie Adrian Johnston – Diamonds

       • Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series Joanne Kelly - Diamonds Judy Davis – Diamonds

       • Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Supporting Role in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series Louise Rose – Diamonds

2 nominations for: CBC News at Six Manitoba

CBC News at Six: Manitoba is a live 60-minute supper hour news program. The emphasis is on local news and weather. News at Six strives to go farther than the local competition on each story. The show producers', anchors' and reporters' commitment to story telling set the standard for flood coverage. Local news runs 24 minutes before a commercial break.

       • Best Newscast CBC News at Six Manitoba p. Melanie Verhaeghe, Chris Armstrong, Kevin Cox, Brad Lillies, Terry Stapleton (CBC Winnipeg)

       • Best News Anchor Janet Stewart CBC News at Six Manitoba</p>

Part-time Manitoban Matthew Hannam was nominated for:

       • Best Picture Editing in a Documentary Program or Series The Rawside of...Die Mannequin

On Screen Manitoba and Manitoba Film & Music are excited for all the industry professionals who have been nominated. Manitoba Film & Music proudly invested in Less Than Kind, Diamonds, Ballet High and Elijah. Our provinces representation at this year’s Gemini Awards is a testament to the talent and success of our community.

Congratulations and best of luck to everyone!

For the complete list of nominations, please visit www.geminiawards.ca

Media Inquiries:

Angie Lamirande
Marketing & Membership Manager
On Screen Manitoba
Phone: 204.927.5892
Fax: 204.943.4007
angie@onscreenmanitoba.com
www.onscreenmanitoba.com

Tannis Scott
Communications & Marketing Representative
Manitoba Film & Music
Phone: 204.947.2040 X 16
Fax: 204. 956.5261
tannis@mbfilmmusic.ca
www.mbfilmmusic.ca 

MANITOBA’S HIGH LIFE, IKWÉ, NIGHT MAYOR & RUNAWAY SET TO SCREEN AT TORONTO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL 2009

Contemporary World Cinema programme will present one Manitoban project:

High Life (directed and produced by Gary Yates; executive produced by Anna Stratton, Triptych Media; Morris Ruskin, Shoreline Entertainment; co-produced by Liz Jarvis, Buffalo Gal Pictures Inc.; Avi Federgreen and produced by Robin Cass, Triptych Media).

Manitoba writer-director Gary Yates' energetic and gritty crime comedy, High Life, is the story of two drug-addled brothers who go for one last major score. It will be making its North American Premiere at TIFF 2009.

Yates’ 2004 feature film project 7 Times Lucky was the winner of Best Picture and Best Screenplay, MethodFest; Citytv Western Canada Feature Film Award; Vancouver International Film Festival and made Official Selection at the Sundance Film Festival and Toronto International Film Festival.

Short Cuts Canada will present three Manitoban short film projects:

Night Mayor (directed by Guy Maddin and produced by Joe MacDonald of the NFB) Guy Maddin's newest film about an inventor known as the "Night Mayor" of Winnipeg is told with his visually inventive and subversively comic style. It was commissioned by the NFB to mark their 70th anniversary. In January 2009, Guy Maddin's tribute to his hometown, My Winnipeg, was given the Rogers Best Canadian Film Award, presented by the Toronto Film Critics Association. Maddin also received 6 nominations, for My Winnipeg, at the 2009 Cinema Eye Honors.

Runaway (animated by Cordell Barker and executive produced by Derek Mazur of the NFB) A zany and sumptuously animated tale about a reckless train ride that earlier this year walked away with the Petit Rail d'Or Award at Cannes for best short film. Over the years, Cordell has won several awards for previous films and was nominated for 2 Oscars for "The Cat Came Back" in 1988 and "Strange Invaders" in 2002.

Ikwé (Caroline Monnet, filmmaker) A film about a young Algonquin woman reconnected with her ancestral roots through language and dance. Ikwé, Monnet’s first independent experimental work, was created through the Mosaic Women’s Film Project, a collaboration of the Winnipeg Film Group and MAWA (Mentoring Artists for Women’s Art). Monnet’s first film, 360 DEGREES was produced for the NFB and premiered at the Winnipeg Aboriginal Film Festival in 2008.

On Screen Manitoba and Manitoba Film & Music will celebrate the screenings of these Manitoba films during TIFF with our renowned Manitoba Party on September 13, 2009, in Toronto. This event highlights Manitoba’s talented filmmakers and provides networking opportunities with hundreds of industry VIP’s from around the globe.

For additional festival information please visit www.tiff.net

Manitoba Acts Receive 41 Nominations for 7th Annual Western Canadian Music Awards

Fusion folk/rockers The Duhks, roots singer/songwriter Scott Nolan, acoustic pop troubadour J.P. Hoe, twang-tinged singer/songwriter Romi Mayes, pop/rock outfit The Waking Eyes, and composer Sid Robinovitch are all up for two awards each. 2009 JUNO Award winner Chic Gamine, The Duhks, Nolan, and newcomer Oh My Darling take four of five spots for Roots Duo/Group Recording of the Year. Nolan and The Duhks are also up for Songwriter of the Year, along with Mayes and Hoe. The Waking Eyes stand to take home hardware for Rock Recording of the Year and Independent Album of the Year, while 2009 JUNO Award nominee Robinovitch has nods for Classical Composition of the Year and Classical Recording of the Year. Local acts are also strong contenders for Children's Recording of the Year, which features duo LuLu and the TomCat, its Francophone alter ego LuLu et le Matou, and Alphabet Soup. Blues man Billy Joe Green, rock act Eagle & Hawk, and hip-hop outfit Team Rezofficial are all up for Aboriginal Recording of the Year.

Other artistic award nominees include 2009 JUNO Award winners Doc Walker for Country Recording of the Year, Big Dave McLean for Blues Recording of the Year, Steve Bell and Tuesday Bloom for Christian Recording of the Year, T. Patrick Carrabre for Classical Composition of the Year, Alexander Tselyakov for Classical Recording of the Year, Daniel ROA for Francophone Recording of the Year, Grand Analog for Rap and Hip-Hop, and Ishq Bector for Urban Recording of the Year. Innovative group project Record of the Week Club is a contender for Pop Recording of the Year along with Hoe, while Mayes is ready to take home her second WCMA for Roots Solo Recording of the Year.

Industry professionals from Manitoba are also a force at this year’s Industry Awards, to be held at a brunch on September 19. Local talent buyers, labels, managers, producers, and engineers are up for 11 awards. Nominees include three nods for Gilles Paquin and his company Paquin Entertainment, Winnipeg Folk Festival’s artistic director Chris Frayer, Smallman Records’ Jason Smith, Burning Circus Management’s Glen Willows, engineers Mike Petkau and Shawn Pierce, rapper Fresh I.E., and Aboriginal music label Arbor Records.

For a complete list of 2009 WCMA nominees, please visit www.westerncanadianmusicawards.ca.