2013 Ted Rogers Best Feature Length Documentary

STORIES WE TELL

Winners: Sarah Polley & Anita Lee

This feature documentary is an inspired, genre-twisting film directed by Oscar®-nominee Sarah Polley. Polley’s playful investigation into the elusive truth buried within the contradictions of a family of storytellers paints a touching and intriguing portrait of a complex network of relatives, friends, and strangers.

2014 Original Screenplay

EMPIRE OF DIRT

Winner: Shannon Masters

Going home was never an option for single mother Lena Mahikan. But when her 13-year-old, Peeka overdoses in the streets of Toronto, she is forced to return home to her estranged mother and face a life-long legacy of shame and resentment. Empire of Dirt is a story about second chances and summoning the power of family to soothe the pain of cyclical damage.

2023 Academy Board of Directors’ Tribute Winner Jennifer Podemski nominated for Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role.

2015 Best Live Action Short Drama

HOLE

Winners: Martin Edralin, Laura Perlmutter & Andrew Nicholas McCann Smith

A daring portrait of a disabled man yearning for intimacy in a world that would rather ignore him.

2016 Best Original Program or Series produced for Digital Media – Fiction

CARMILLA

Winners: Jay Bennett, Denise Darroch, Carrie Hayden, Christina Jennings, Steph Ouaknine & Kaaren Whitney-Vernon

Small town girl Laura Hollis has just finally moved out to go to Silas University. When her missing roommate is replaced without explanation, Laura vows to find out what is happening on campus while she deals with her new roomy… a vampire.

2017 Best Short Documentary

THIS RIVER

Winners: Katherena Vermette, Erika MacPherson, Alicia Smith & David Christensen

This short documentary offers an Indigenous perspective on the devastating experience of searching for a loved one who has disappeared. Volunteer activist Kyle Kematch and award-winning writer Katherena Vermette have both survived this heartbreak and share their histories with each other and the audience. While their stories are different, they both exemplify the beauty, grace, resilience, and activism born out of the need to do something.

2018 Adapted Screenplay*

THE BREADWINNER

Winner: Anita Doron

The Breadwinner tells the story of Parvana, an 11-year-old girl growing up under the Taliban in Afghanistan in 2001. When her father is wrongfully arrested, Parvana disguises herself as a boy in order to support her family. Drawing strength from the stories her father told her, Parvana ultimately risks her life to discover if he is still alive.

2019 Achievement in Direction*

FIRECRACKERS

Winner: Jasmin Mozaffari

Two best friends’ plan to escape their destitute town becomes derailed when the consequences of a night of debauchery begins to dismantle their friendship and threatens their chance at freedom.

2020 Best Animated Short

GIANT BEAR | ᓇᓄᕐᓗᒃ

Winners: Neil Christopher, Daniel Gies, Emily Paige & Monica Ittusardjua

Giant Bear follows a hunter in the depths of starvation. The snow is thick, his dogs are mysteriously dying and food is nowhere to be found. A quest for answers leads him straight to a nanurluk, an iceberg-sized polar bear, setting up a kill or be killed battle that pits one man’s wits against a fearsome foe.

L’Ours polaire géant suit un chasseur en train de mourir de faim. La neige est profonde, ses chiens meurent mystérieusement, et il n’y a aucune nourriture en vue. En quêtes de réponses, il se retrouve face à face à avec un nanurluk; un ours polaire de la taille d’un iceberg. Le chasseur doit se mesurer à un adversaire redoutable.

2021 Best Lifestyle Program or Series*

MARY’S KITCHEN CRUSH

Winners: Cathie James, Lesia Capone, Allison Grace & Garrett Wintrip

National best-selling cookbook author and MASTERCHEF CANADA winner, Mary Berg, shares delicious twists on home-cooked classics inspired by those she loves most. In each episode, Mary demonstrates her culinary skill and creativity with three to four original recipes inspired by someone who has made a meaningful impact on her life. The resulting meal acts as an edible love letter for family members and close friends.

2022 Best Live Action Short Drama

GIRLS SHOULDN’T WALK ALONE AT NIGHT | LES FILLES NE MARCHENT PAS SEULES LA NUIT

Winner: Katerine Martineau* & Guillaume Collin

*2021-22 Participant in the Canadian Academy Directors Program for Women

After a late night high school graduation party, Chantal and Delphine find themselves walking home alone in the dark. Lost in the forest, their long night walk is punctuated by carelessness and an irrepressible desire to exist.

Par une nuit d’été, leur secondaire terminé, Chantal et Delphine reviennent chez elles à pied. Perdues au milieu de la forêt, leur longue marche nocturne est ponctuée d’insouciance et d’une envie irrépressible d’exister.