The 2014 Canadian Screen Awards nominees were announced with speeches, coffee and a packed crowd at the Ritz Carlton in Toronto this Monday, January 13. “It’s our 65th anniversary” said Academy CEO Helga Stephenson, starting the conference, “which makes us older than TV.”
Back in 1949 the awards were called the Canadian Film Awards, and were hosted by Mary Pickford and Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent in Ottawa’s Little Elgin Theatre. Pre-television, VCR, or digital media, the small celebration grew with the times, and continues to change with the media it celebrates. In 2012 the Canadian Gemini and Genie Awards merged and the Canadian Screen Awards were born. This year the nominations list is the longest yet.
All Canadian film and television are eligible for awards, but certain names keep coming up as the nominations are listed off. Orphan Black, Bomb Girls and Rookie Blue lead the pack in the Television category.
In film, Tom at the Farm, The F-Word, and Robert LePage’s Triptyque receive several mentions under the warped and bejewelled snowshoes of the conference room’s lit chandeliers. An unheard of 8 films are up for Best Picture this year.
With 22 film, 88 TV, 5 Digital Media and 2 Special Awards, the actual ceremony, hosted by Martin Short on March 9th and broadcast live from Toronto, promises to be quite the party. You can read the full nominee list on Academy.ca.
A hush falls over the crowd. Is that a snowshoe dropping?
