(Toronto) BlackBerry won almost all the awards at the final gala of the Canadian Screen Awards, presented by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television.
The comedy-drama won Best Picture, while Matt Johnson took home the Best Director trophy. Actor Jay Baruchel won the award for best performance in a leading role in a comedy.
Set in 1990s Waterloo, Ontario, the film follows the Icarus-like rise of the BlackBerry mobile device and its inventors. Jay Baruchel plays company co-founder Mike Lazaridis and Glenn Howerton plays co-CEO Jim Balsillie.
“I think there is an ideology in this country that you can’t do the things you want and you can’t stay in Canada. I want to tell you that it’s all in your head,” said Matt Johnson while accepting the award for best film, speaking to young Canadian filmmakers.
“This country is experiencing a renaissance, we have role models again, and if you stick with it, Canada will have a voice in cinema again. It won’t be us. This movie was a joke. But it will be you. »
Cela porte le nombre de prix Écrans canadiens remportés par ce film à 14, alors que BlackBerry avait aussi balayé un récent gala de l’industrie des arts cinématographiques.
« J’ai eu beaucoup de chance d’être invité dans la troupe [de Matt Johnson] and we created something special,” Jay Baruchel said Friday as he accepted his award in a striped blazer with matching shorts and Hockey Night in Canada socks.
PHOTO CARLOS OSORIO, REUTERS
Actor Jay Baruchel posing with his statuette for best performance
“I hope everyone at home can see the ingrown hairs,” he said, pointing to his bare calves. “You’re welcome, Canada. »
Other films up for Best Picture included the drag drama Solothe sci-fi horror film Overflowthe teen romantic comedy-drama Humanist vampire seeking consenting suicidepsychological suspense The red rooms and the social drama Richelieu.
A rich track record
Little Bird was the big winner among television shows, receiving among others the prize for best dramatic series and that of best leading role in a drama series, awarded to Darla Contois. The miniseries collected a total of 13 awards during the week.
PHOTO ARLYN MCADOREY, THE CANADIAN PRESS
Producer Jennifer Podemski
“I’m so excited to see so much young Indigenous talent emerging,” Toronto co-producer Jennifer Podemski said on the red carpet before the party.
“I feel like that was the point of it all, the time when it was just me in certain places […] and I’m also happy for the kids in my show, because they’re here to celebrate and I’m excited for them. »
The prizes awarded to Little Birdcentered on the story of a survivor of the Sixties Scoop taken in by a Jewish family in Montreal, include those for best dramatic ensemble performance, best casting and best supporting role for Braeden Clarke.
Co-produced by Mme Podemski and Ottawa’s Hannah Moscovitch, the series features a largely Indigenous cast and creative team and entered the race with 19 nominations. The six-part story beat Essex County And Plan B from the CBC, Slasher: Ripper of Hollywood Suite and Transplant of CTV in the category of best drama series.
Actress Amrit Kaur, born in Markham, Ontario, won the award for best performance in a leading dramatic role and delivered an impassioned speech calling for a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas, all accepting the award for his role in the film The Queen of My Dreams.
As an artist, my job is to feel and empathize. And for those who tell artists not to speak out for fear of losing their jobs, for fear of losing their career, for fear of losing their reputation, you are telling us not to be artists.
Amrit Kaur, actress
Television winners include Bria Mack Gets A Life of Crave, who beat Workin’ Moms from the CBC, Letterkenny of Crave, Shelved of CTV and Son of a Critch of the CBC for the award for best comedy series.
“It’s been one of the show’s greatest accomplishments to be able to accurately reflect the Jamaican-Canadian immigrant experience in a contemporary way,” creator Sasha Leigh Henry said backstage about her show following a young black woman navigating life with the help of an invisible friend.
Host Mae Martin took a moment to joke about the troubled state of the local entertainment industry during her opening monologue, saying several friends had sent “encouraging” articles before the show with the headline ” Can the Canadian Screen Awards save an industry in crisis mode? “.
This was certainly the case for the creators and cast of BlackBerrythe most nominated film in the 11-year history of the Canadian Screen Awards, with 17 nominations.