Latest posts from National Screen Institute - Canada (NSI)

The National Screen Institute – Canada (NSI) recently handed out the latest round of awards in its NSI Online Short Film Festival.

• Fish, directed by Heather Young, won the $1,250 A&E Short Filmmakers Award for best film; and
• Eric Peterson won the $1,000 Brian Linehan Actors Award for his work in Static.

All winners receive a complimentary Friend membership to the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television.

The award selection was made by an independent jury: Atlantic Filmmakers Cooperative executive director Martha Cooley, filmmaker Tarique Qayumi and filmmaker and actor Lina Roessler, recent winner of the A&E Short Filmmakers Award for best film for Winter.

Our jurors had this to say about the films:

A&E Short Filmmakers Award for best film: Fish

Martha Cooley: “Heather Young’s Fish subtly affects the viewer until, like the film’s emblematic fish tank imagery, it reaches a powerful final note.”

Tarique Qayumi: “The film, which is created doc-style over years, is a gem. The story moved me emotionally and stayed with me for days after. The filmmaker captures the heart of the main character’s pain with clarity and manages to build intensity with every phone call.”

Lina Roessler: “Heather Young spins this exceptionally realistic and moving story quietly and confidently, gently pulling open the curtains into a single mother’s lonely heart.”

Director Heather Young said, “Thank you to NSI for this award and for helping to promote and encourage short filmmakers in Canada with their Online Short Film Festival. I would also like to thank my cousin Robyn for being brave and creative in her collaboration with me on this project.”

Brian Linehan Actors Award: Eric Peterson for Static

Martha: “Eric Peterson’s performance in Static carries the film, capturing the horror of loss through the experience of a deteriorating mind.”

Tarique: “There is a lot of range in such a short film for an actor and also a difficult genre to find the right balance. [Eric’s] experience as an actor and his unwavering commitment is to be commended. It’s a heart-wrenching emotional journey that he takes us on.”

Lina: “Eric Peterson masterfully unveils the cracks in his character’s exterior, finally revealing the deep pain, fear and guilt which lie beneath.”

Eric Peterson said, “I am knocked sideways, gobsmacked, very happy and truly honoured by the jury’s decision to award me the Brian Linehan Actors Award. My thanks to NSI for all its fine work, and my profound thanks to Tanya Lemke whose passion, talent and determination is the reason there is a film called Static.”

About the jury

Martha Cooley is a filmmaker and arts administrator living in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Tarique Qayumi is an Afghan-Canadian director based in Vancouver whose feature film Black Kite premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in 2017.

Lina Roessler is a Toronto-based actor and filmmaker and a recent winner of the A&E Short Filmmakers Award in the NSI Online Short Film Festival for her film Winter.

• • •

The NSI Online Short Film Festival is a year-round Canadian short film showcase with new films added every week. Since launching in 2008, the festival has programmed hundreds of films and awarded over $110K to Canadian media artists. Many of the films are available to watch in the archives.

The NSI Online Short Film Festival is made possible through the support of Festival Partner Telefilm Canada; Supporting Sponsors Entertainment One, Super Channel, Corus Entertainment, Blue Ant Media, The Brian Linehan Charitable Foundation and Breakthrough Entertainment; Award Sponsors A&E Television Networks, The Brian Linehan Charitable Foundation and Blue Ant Media; and Industry Partner the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television. NSI Core Funders are Manitoba Sport, Culture & Heritage and the City of Winnipeg through the Winnipeg Arts Council.

All media enquiries

Laura Friesen, Manager, Communications & Alumni Relations
Phone: 204.957.299 or email: laura.friesen@nsi-canada.ca

The post Heather Young, Eric Peterson latest winners in NSI Online Short Film Festival appeared first on National Screen Institute - Canada (NSI).