Tag Archives: The Book of Negroes

The Book of Negroes, Orphan Black and Schitt’s Creek top WGC Screenwriting Awards

Clement Virgo (The Book of Negroes), Russ Cochrane (Orphan Black) and Amanda Walsh (Schitt’s Creek) were among the winners recognized at the 2016 Writers Guild of Canada Screenwriting Awards on Monday night in Toronto. Hosted by Elvira Kurt, the WGC event—delivered to a packed Koerner Hall—also celebrated the 25th anniversary of the WGC, which broke away from ACTRA in 1991 to become a guild of independently congregated writers.

“Writers, this is a big night for you,” Kurt joked during her opening monologue. “I look around and I see that the Chuck Taylor’s have been polished, the Spanx have been spanked, spiffy outfits have been borrowed and for some of us the meds we take for social anxiety are almost kicking in.”

“I want to thank all of my fellow finalists, and to all female screenwriters for telling their stories because you inspired me to tell my story,” Walsh said upon winning the TV Comedy category for her Schitt’s Creek script “The Cabin.” Orphan Black writer and co-executive producer Aubrey Nealon accepted Cochrane’s award for Season 3’s “Newer Elements of Our Defense,” while Virgo and The Book of Negroes author Lawrence Hill (pictured above) were on hand to accept the trophy for writing in a Movie of the Week or Miniseries.

Clive Endersby received the Alex Barris Mentorship Award, Penny Gummerson the Sondra Kelly Award, Peter Mohan the Writers Block Award and Frank van Keeken the Showrunner Award, who stunned the crowd by announcing he’d been ousted as showrunner on The Next Step and Lost & Found Music Studios.

Frank van Keeken (Image courtesy of Christina Gapic.)
Frank van Keeken (Image courtesy of Christina Gapic.)

Here’s the complete list of categories (winners denoted in blue):

CHILDREN
Numb Chucks, Season 2 “Witless to the Prosecution”
Written by Evan Thaler Hickey

Odd Squad, Season 1 “Puppet Show”
Written by Charles Johnston

Pirate Express, Season 1 “Fountain of Misspent Youth”
Written by David Elver

DOCUMENTARY
Deluged by Data
Written by Josh Freed

Ninth Floor
Written by Mina Shum

MOW & MINISERIES
The Book of Negroes: Episode 1
Story by Lawrence Hill, Teleplay by Clement Virgo

The Gourmet Detective
Written by Becky Southwell & Dylan Neal

Kept Woman
Written by Doug Barber & James Phillips

SHORTS & WEBSERIES
Bob! The Slob
Written by James Nadler

Goldfish
Written by Michael Konyves

TV COMEDY
Mr. D, Season 4 “President Jimmy”
Written by Anita Kapila

Mr. D, Season 4 “Short Stocked”
Written by Marvin Kaye

Schitt’s Creek, Season 1 “The Cabin”
Written by Amanda Walsh

TV DRAMA 
19-2, Season 2 “Orphans”
Written by Jesse McKeown

19-2, Season 2 “Property Line”
Written by Nikolijne Troubetzkoy

19-2, Season 2 “School”
Adapted by Bruce M. Smith

Orphan Black, Season 3 “Newer Elements of Our Defense”
Written by Russ Cochrane

X Company, Season 1 “Into the Fire”
Written by Mark Ellis & Stephanie Morgenstern

TWEENS & TEENS
Some Assembly Required, Season 2 “Rocket with a Pocket”
Written by Jennica Harper

Some Assembly Required, Season 2 “Snappo”
Written by Cole Bastedo & Jennifer Siddle

The Stanley Dynamic, Season 1 “The Stanley Grandpa”
Written by Alice Prodanou

FEATURE FILMS
A Christmas Horror Story
Written by James Kee and Sarah Larsen and Doug Taylor and Pascal Trottier

End of Days, Inc.
Written by Christina Ray

The Saver
Written by Wiebke von Carolsfeld

(Images courtesy of Christina Gapic.)

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Link: The Illegal by Lawrence Hill to be adapted by CBC-TV

From Laura Thompson of CBC News:

The Illegal by Lawrence Hill to be adapted by CBC-TV
Canadian author Lawrence Hill’s The Illegal will become an eight-part TV miniseries, following the path of his earlier work, The Book of Negroes.

CBC has teamed up with Toronto-based production company Conquering Lion Pictures to develop Hill’s latest novel for television.  Continue reading.

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Celebrate the Writers: WGC Screenwriting Awards, May 2

From a media release:

The WGC Screenwriting Awards recognize the talented Canadian writers whose scripts spark an entire television and film industry.

On May 2, 2016 the screenwriter is in the spotlight at the awards gala, held at the Royal Conservatory of Music’s beautiful Koerner Hall. Host Ryan Belleville brings his sharp wit to the stage in a fast-paced show co-written with This Hour Has 22 Minutes writer Jeremy Woodcock.

Writers from Orphan Black, 19-2, and X Company compete for the best TV Drama Award, to name just one category. Awards will also be handed out for the winning children’s, documentary, feature film, MOW and miniseries, shorts and webseries, TV comedy, and teens and tweens scripts. Close to 150 scripts were nominated, with 24 scripts chosen as finalists, and 32 screenwriters up for awards.

Awards presenters include The F Word screenwriter Elan Mastai, What Would Sal Do? showrunner Andrew De Angelis with star Dylan Taylor, powerhouse couple Sudz Sutherland and Jennifer Holness (Shoot the Messenger), Mohawk Girls showrunner Cynthia Knight, documentary writer Michael McNamara (The Cholesterol Question), and Jessie Gabe, writer of Cas & Dylan.

A full slate of special awards, including the WGC Showrunner Award, the Alex Barris Mentorship Award, and the Sondra Kelly Award will also be presented.

The 2016 WGC Screenwriting Awards mark the 25th anniversary of the Writers Guild of Canada. Join us Monday, May 2, 2016, at the TELUS Centre for Performance and Learning’s Koerner Hall.

2016 WGC Screenwriting Awards Finalists

CHILDREN
Numb Chucks, Season 2 “Witless to the Prosecution”
Written by Evan Thaler Hickey

Odd Squad, Season 1 “Puppet Show”
Written by Charles Johnston

Pirate Express, Season 1 “Fountain of Misspent Youth”
Written by David Elver

DOCUMENTARY
Deluged by Data
Written by Josh Freed

Ninth Floor
Written by Mina Shum

FEATURE FILMS
A Christmas Horror Story
Written by James Kee and Sarah Larsen and Doug Taylor and Pascal Trottier

End of Days, Inc.
Written by Christina Ray

The Saver
Written by Wiebke von Carolsfeld

MOW & MINISERIES
The Book of Negroes: Episode 1
Story by Lawrence Hill, Teleplay by Clement Virgo

The Gourmet Detective
Written by Becky Southwell & Dylan Neal

Kept Woman
Written by Doug Barber & James Phillips

SHORTS & WEBSERIES
Bob! The Slob
Written by James Nadler

Goldfish
Written by Michael Konyves

TV COMEDY
Mr. D, Season 4 “President Jimmy”
Written by Anita Kapila

Mr. D, Season 4 “Short Stocked”
Written by Marvin Kaye

Schitt’s Creek, Season 1 “The Cabin”
Written by Amanda Walsh

TV DRAMA
19-2, Season 2 “Orphans”
Written by Jesse McKeown

19-2, Season 2 “Property Line”
Written by Nikolijne Troubetzkoy

19-2, Season 2 “School”
Adapted by Bruce M. Smith

Orphan Black, Season 3 “Newer Elements of Our Defense”
Written by Russ Cochrane

X Company, Season 1 “Into the Fire”
Written by Mark Ellis & Stephanie Morgenstern

TWEENS & TEENS
Some Assembly Required, Season 2 “Rocket with a Pocket”
Written by Jennica Harper

Some Assembly Required, Season 2 “Snappo”
Written by Cole Bastedo & Jennifer Siddle

The Stanley Dynamic, Season 1 “The Stanley Grandpa”
Written by Alice Prodanou

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Schitt’s Creek and The Book of Negroes dominate Night 2 of the Canadian Screen Awards

Schitt’s Creek and The Book of Negroes were among the winners of Night 2 of the Canadian Screen Awards. Hosted by Steve Patterson, the non-broadcast spectacle gave a nod to supporting actor and actress roles in television drama and comedy, children’s categories, and writing, directing, sound, makeup, costume in scripted series.

“Welcome to Night 2! I don’t care if you laugh or boo, as long as you’re listening,” Patterson quipped. “I do believe these awards mean something. Exactly what, I don’t know because I’ve never won one.” CBC’s Schitt’s Creek—recently picked up for a third season—took home a number of awards, including those for co-stars Chris Elliott and Emily Hampshire in the performance categories and Daniel Levy for writing.

The Amazing Race Canada continued its winning streak from Night 1, as host Jon Montgomery was recognized for Best Host. The Book of Negroes won a slew of trophies, including Aunjanue Ellis for Best Actress, Lyriq Bent for Best Actor and Shailyn Pierre-Dixon for Best Supporting Actress, Best Writing in a Dramatic Program or Limited Series, Best Sound, Best Original Music and Best Production Design.

Here are the winners in some of the key categories:

Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Supporting Role or Guest Role in a Comedic Series
Chris Elliott, Schitt’s Creek

Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Supporting Role or Guest Role in a Comedic Series
Emily Hampshire, Schitt’s Creek

Best Host in a Variety, Lifestyle, Reality/Competition or Talk Program or Series
Jon Montgomery, The Amazing Race Canada

Best Pre-School Program or Series
Odd Squad

Best Writing in an Animated Program or Series
Mark Steinberg, Numb Chucks

Best Writing in a Comedy Program or Series
Daniel Levy, Schitt’s Creek

Best Writing in a Variety or Sketch Comedy Program or Series
Rick Mercer, Rick Currie, Greg Eckler, Tim Steeves, George Westerholm, The Rick Mercer Report

Best Writing in a Dramatic Program or Limited Series
Clement Virgo, Lawrence Hill, The Book of Negroes

Best Writing in a Dramatic Series
Alex Levine, Orphan Black

Best Children’s or Youth Fiction Program or Series
Degrassi

Best Animated Program or Series
Rocket Monkeys

Best Variety or Sketch Comedy Program or Series
The Rick Mercer Report

Best Performance in a Guest Role, Dramatic Series
Christine Horne, Remedy

Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Supporting Role in a Dramatic Program or Series
Torben Liebrecht, X Company

Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Supporting Role in a Dramatic Program or Series
Shailyn Pierre-Dixon, The Book of Negroes

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Program or Limited Series
Aunjanue Ellis, The Book of Negroes

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Program or Limited Series
Lyriq Bent, The Book of Negroes

Here’s the complete list of winners.

The Canadian Screen Awards gala airs Sunday at 8 p.m. on CBC.

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The 14th Annual ACTRA Awards in Toronto Nominees

From a media release:

ACTRA Toronto is delighted to announce the nominees for the 14th Annual ACTRA Awards in Toronto. The ACTRA Awards in Toronto will take place at The Carlu on Saturday, February 20, 2016.

Nominees for Outstanding Performance – Voice:

  • Christian Distefano (Artie) Creative Galaxy, “Christmas Memories” (9 Story Media Group)
  • Andrew Jackson (Buford) Numb Chucks, “Flock of Steven Seagulls” (9 Story Media Group)
  • Julie Lemieux (Granny Butternut) Numb Chucks, “Tough Love” (9 Story Media Group)
  • Bryn McAuley (Quills) Numb Chucks, “Quills and Present Danger” (9 Story Media Group)
  • Adrian Truss (Armand the Sasquatch) Camp Lakebottom, “The Abominable Dr. Squatch” (9 Story Media Group)

Nominees for Outstanding Performance – Female:

  • Torri Higginson (Natalie Lawson) This Life, “Gut Punch” (Sphere Media Plus)
  • Christine Horne (Jennifer) Hyena Road (Rhombus Media)
  • Tatiana Maslany (various) Orphan Black, “History Yet to Be Written” (Temple Street Productions)
  • Catherine O’Hara (Moira Rose) Schitt’s Creek, “Wine and Roses” (Not A Real Company)
  • Shailyn Pierre-Dixon (Young Aminata) Book of Negroes, Episode 1 (Conquering Lion Pictures)

Nominees for Outstanding Performance – Male: 

  • Nigel Bennett (Giles) Murdoch Mysteries, “What Lies Buried” (Shaftesbury Films)
  • Kevin Hanchard (Detective Art Bell) Orphan Black, “Formalized,
  • Complex and Costly” (Temple Street Productions)
  • Dylan Harman (Eugene) The Rainbow Kid (Other People’s Films)
  • Christopher Plummer (Zev Guttman) Remember (Serendipity Point Films)
  • Rossif Sutherland (Ryan) Hyena Road (Rhombus Media)

Sarah Gadon will pick up the 2016 ACTRA Toronto Award of Excellence. The Award of Excellence recognizes an exceptional body of work and a commitment to advocacy on behalf of all performers. The show will be hosted by comic Martha Chaves.

ACTRA Toronto is the largest organization within ACTRA, representing over 15,000 of Canada’s 22,000 professional performers working in recorded media in Canada.  As an advocate for Canadian culture since 1943, ACTRA is a member-driven union that continues to secure rights and respect for the work of professional performers.

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