Film Director Jeff Barnaby is pictured as he promotes the film "Blood Quantum" at the Toronto International Film Festival, in Toronto, Friday, Sept. 6, 2019. Barnaby, John Brunton, Marilyn Denis and Tonya Williams are set to receive special honours at this year's Canadian Screen Awards. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young
TORONTO – Late Indigenous filmmaker Jeff Barnaby is among those set to receive special honours at this year’s Canadian Screen Awards.
The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television says Barnaby, who died of cancer in 2022, will be posthumously presented with the board of directors’ Tribute Award, which recognizes “extraordinary impact” on the industry.
The late Mi’kmaq director was considered a pioneer of contemporary Indigenous cinema for titles including 2013’s “Rhymes for Young Ghouls” and 2019’s “Blood Quantum.”
The tribute award is also going to veteran reality TV producer John Brunton, chair and CEO of Insight Productions, whose long-running hits include CTV’s “The Amazing Race Canada” and Global’s “Big Brother Canada.”
The Changemaker Award goes to former “Young and the Restless” star Tonya Williams, who founded Toronto’s Reelworld Film Festival to showcase racially diverse Canadian talent, while the Lifetime Achievement Award goes to morning show host Marilyn Denis nearly a year after she wrapped 13 seasons on CTV’s “The Marilyn Denis Show,” which followed nearly 20 years helming Citytv’s “Cityline.”
The special awards will be handed out during a series of events known as Canadian Screen Week, starting May 26 and culminating in a gala May 31 hosted by comedian Mae Martin. It’s set to air on CBC and CBC Gem a few hours later.
The Canadian Screen Awards celebrate the best in homegrown film, television and digital media. The Crave/APTN series “Little Bird” leads the TV categories with 19 nominations and “BlackBerry” leads the film categories with 17 nods.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 19, 2024.
