Nominations are due by Monday, February 6, 2012 and can be submitted by email to awards.wift.at@gmail.com.

Unlike traditional awards, there are no categories for the WAVE Awards.  The goal is   As these awards are not province specific either, anyone from the four Atlantic Provinces can submit nominations, and there is no limit on the number of nominations made by any one person.  Any woman in the industry, at any level can be nominated: from directors to set designers, to bookkeepers, producers, volunteers – every role is eligible.

All nominations will be kept confidential, with only the winners being announced at the WMW Awards Brunch, Sunday, March 11, 2012.

Ally Cameron, 2012 WAVE Awards Coordinator
awards.wift.at@gmail.com

(Halifax, Jan. 16, 2012) The WAVE Awards, honouring women in the screen industry in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, and Prince Edward Island, are now open for nominations. The deadline is Thursday, Feb. 2.

Introduced last year during the inaugural Women Making Waves conference, the WAVE Awards recognize noteworthy women in the industry.

“We are looking for remarkable nominees who have made an indelible mark on the screen industry – and the people it envelopes – in their own unique way,” says Jan Miller, co-chair with Ann Bernier of Women Making Waves 2012.

The WAVE Awards have no categories. The goal is to salute women in the region’s screen industry for their contributions, accomplishments, emerging talent, vision, leadership, dedication and tremendous behind-the-scenes support.

“Any woman in the industry, at any level, can be nominated: from directors to set designers, bookkeepers to producers, wardrobe assistants to volunteers,” says Miller, who is also Chair of Women in Film & Television-Atlantic, which hosts Women Making Waves.

Women Making Waves takes place March 9 through 11 in Halifax, featuring a diverse array of panels, workshops and networking opportunities. It is open to men and women, and nominations for the WAVE Awards can be submitted by any member of the public.

Last year’s winners were Cat LeBlanc, Member Services Director, New Brunswick Film Co-op; award-winning Halifax filmmaker Ann Verrall; PEI’s Cheryl Wagner, creator of The Big Comfy Couch and other children’s television programs; and Jean Smith, Executive Director, Newfoundland Independent Filmmakers Co-operative.

“I was particularly moved to receive an award for vision and accomplishment, because it honours an approach to working not just as a director, writer, producer, educator, community worker,” says Verrall. “For people who work outside the conventional job positions in the film industry, this award acknowledges the many ways artists create and contribute.”

The WAVE Awards will be presented at the Women Making Waves Awards Brunch on Sunday, March 11. For more information, visit http://wift-at.com/women-making-waves-the-wave-awards/. Nominations are due Thursday, Feb. 2, 2012 and can be submitted by e-mail to awards.wift.at@gmail.com

Women Making Waves is an annual conference held in March, coinciding with International Women’s Day. WMW is for everyone, from seasoned industry pros to emerging talents and students. The WMW panels and workshops reach out to above-the-line (writers, directors, producers), below-the-line (crew, technicians, actors) and those blurring the line with a passion for new or transmedia (interactive, mobile, multi-platform).

Women Making Waves is a WIFT-AT and Mount Saint Vincent University partnership. We welcome the generous financial support of the Province of Nova Scotia through the Department of Communities, Culture and Heritage – Culture Division; Telefilm Canada; and Film Nova Scotia.

WIFT, an international organization with 37 chapters and more than 10,000 members, was founded in 1973. It is committed to advancement for women in professional development and achievement in film, video and other screen-based media. WIFT-AT was founded in March 2009 as part of the international movement.

For interviews, or more information, please contact:

Sarah MacLeod

Coordinator, WIFT-AT

sarahamacleod@gmail.com

902-877-5307

Ruth Lawrence’s work as an actor, writer and filmmaker has taken her to Ireland, France, the US, and across Canada. Her short films-Less Than Zero, Jelly Beans, Bark and Sweet Pickle- have screened across Canada and the US. As co-Artistic Director of White Rooster Theatre, she produced and performed in the Canadian tour of MonaRita, a comedy that earned rave reviews and was named Outstanding Ensemble of Fringe Toronto 2011 by NOW Magazine. Ruth won the 2011 Joan Orenstein Best Actress Award for Clipper Gold at the Atlantic Film Festival and the 2011 RBC Michelle Jackson Award for Emerging Filmmaker to produce her next short film, Two Square Feet, to be shot in January 2012. She is a past recipient of the NL Arts Council’s Rhonda Payne Award.

Who am I?
I’m Ruth Lawrence, an actress from St. Jacques, Fortune Bay in Newfoundland, daughter of Tom and Burnsie. Dad was a fishing captain. I grew up (number 6) in a family of 8 children in an outport of 200. After high school, I went to theatre school in Ontario. Just before my final year started, at age 24, I gave birth to my son Luke and we finished college together. He did two plays that year, while I did five! We came back to St. John’s and for the last 20 years, I’ve been working in theatre, film, TV, radio. I have never had to take a job outside the arts and though I’ve been living on the edge of being broke many times, I’ve made a living
and been pretty happy doing what I do. That’s what I always wanted.

Where am I based?
I’m based in St. John’s but through the year work takes me all over the province, the country and beyond, especially in the last 4 years. Once Luke left high school and became independent, it was much easier to travel, though my friends and family always helped me take advantage of every opportunity that came my way. I also have a summer place in New Bonaventure, Trinity Bay with my sweetheart, writer Des Walsh.

What do I do?
I have worked as an actor, writer, director, producer, publicist, festival coordinator, costume designer, dramaturge, masterclass professor, workshop leader, adjudicator, artistic associate, and executive director. I just came out of six years of working in admin for a theatre company then a film festival. Both allowed me to pursue creative projects, because otherwise I wouldn’t have lasted in those jobs. So in the last three years in particular, I’ve been giving myself a real education in filmmaking. I’ve taken workshops in St. John’s, Toronto, and several online writing courses. Through the Nickel, I saw about 200-300 short films a year for 3 years and I went to other festivals. The best lessons are in watching great artists work, so I see everything I can. (I saw Margie Gillis dance this year and my heart moved.) I’m an arts consumer- film, theatre, dance, music, literature, visual arts-I try to see/read/do as much as I can. And all those things inform what I do creatively.

Currently, I’m about to shoot a 6-minute short, the third I’ve written and directed in as many years. I have another that I’ll shoot next summer. I’m writing a musical play that will be workshopped in Montreal in February. After that, I’m coordinating a festival, a school film tour, and producing a premiere play from a wonderful new writer/actor. That covers me up to June 2012. I’m also working on a feature screenplay.

What can I do for others/what services I provide?
In reality, I’m an emerging filmmaker but I’m an established actor and writer. I’ve been producing my own work as well as working with most of the professional companies here for almost 20 years. I have a film and a theatre company and most people will say that I’m very approachable, very collaborative. Some say I take on too much for my own good! I fundraise year round, not just for my own projects but also for others. I write grant applications when I should be sleeping. If I have time to help, I will. I’m also pretty good at what I do and I’m reliable.

I’ve been so fortunate to know and work with many generous people. I believe in surrounding myself with artists more talented than I am, it makes for wonderful results.

What drew me into the industry?
NIFCO. Our film co-operative. I grew up watching homegrown talent, producing shows in Newfoundland for CBC, something I was so sorry to see them abandon. There was such vibrancy in the work that was being shown in the 70’s. It may not all have been stunningly great but gee, everyone was learning, right? If they had stuck with it, we’d have a plethora of internationally known Canadian actors, writers and directors just like they do in the UK. Our industry would be more respected and accomplished. Instead, I came into the industry just as they were pruning their most promising buds. BUT I moved towards the theatre that was, at that time, flourishing and continued to work in film as much as possible. I worked in wardrobe in the early years but then got much busier as an actor. Now, the film and television community has rebounded in the independent scene so I’ve been drawn back to it with more skills, more vision, and more desire to work with these talented and passionate artists. But if those before me hadn’t persevered and continued to create, there wouldn’t be a place for me right now.

If I had a magic wand . . .
I’d make sure the people who control the nations of this world were peaceful, compassionate, creative thinkers…in perpetuity. Imagine.

]]> http://wift-at.com/member-profile-ruth-lawrence/feed/ 2 http://wift-at.com/member-profile-ruth-lawrence/ http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Wift-atlantic/~3/804pXOa0isw/ http://wift-at.com/nl-pulse-january-2012/#comments Mon, 09 Jan 2012 14:00:56 +0000 Rose Allen http://wift-at.com/?p=2544

Four Sisters

NL Pulse
by  Ruth Lawrence

• Four Sisters, the short film by NL screenwriter Wanda Nolan, is now showing at the NSI online film festival. Her feature for Four Sisters is in development with Opportunity Knox Inc. with generous support from the NLFDC for the treatment portion of the project. Wanda is also working on a novel called Rabbittown.

Read more on NL Pulse January 2012…

Four Sisters

NL Pulse
by  Ruth Lawrence

• Four Sisters, the short film by NL screenwriter Wanda Nolan, is now showing at the NSI online film festival. Her feature for Four Sisters is in development with Opportunity Knox Inc. with generous support from the NLFDC for the treatment portion of the project. Wanda is also working on a novel called Rabbittown.

• NL filmmaker Anita Reilly McGee has been very busy mentoring for the RBC Michelle Jackson Emerging Filmmaker Award. She is the Executive Producer for Ruth Lawrence’s film Two Square Feet.

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Lori Bellefontaine

Her Story: Lori Bellefontaine

I grew up in Westmount – a community not too far from Sydney, Cape Breton. The only things Westmount is  really known for are the Canadian Coast Guard College and my mom’s pizza shop,”Lena’s Pizza” where I worked from the time I could make a pizza. My mom died on the night of the space shuttle Challenger disaster, January 28, 1986. She was 43. For the short time I had her in my life, my mom instilled in me strength, compassion and a respect for hard work – all very good qualities to have as a 14 year old.

I had no real idea of where my life was going. Would I take over the family business, or maybe work at the local hardware store? I tried both for a while, then moved out west where I worked at a hotel and ski lodge. But I missed home too much and after about eight months, I decided to come back.

No sooner was I back in Nova Scotia, when my sister (who worked at Cambridge Suites at the time) phoned and told me that there was a movie called Margaret’s Museum in town. As it turned out, the assistant director was staying in one of her rooms and he needed someone to organize his receipts. I had no idea about accounting, but the job paid eight dollars an hour. And the idea of being part of the making of a movie was very interesting to me.

The AD was Stephen Reynolds. He and his wife, Lori, gave me the opportunity to broaden my horizons in the film industry. Lori hired me for the wardrobe department where I spent three days doing the laundry after wrap – which was great but not exactly up my alley. Stephen offered me a job as a driver in transport and I jumped all over it. Again had no idea what that meant, but it sounded awesome.

From my very first day as a member of the film crew, I knew that this was something that I wanted to be part of for as long as I could. I was determined to have a career in the film industry and be part of that family of film makers. But all too soon, Margaret’s Museum finished up and I was once again unemployed. When would there ever be another movie shoot in Nova Scotia? Who knew?

I had no idea that Nova Scotia was a growing centre for filmmaking. I managed to get work on The Scarlet Letter, but only after hanging out in their production office for four twelve-hour days. They put me to work as a background wrangler. The Scarlet Letter was followed by Titanic and Simon Birch. By now, I was definitely hooked on this lifestyle. I now had my IATSE membership which opened the door to a year of work in Toronto and led me to upgrade my licence so I could drive heavy equipment.

I returned home to Nova Scotia to work in the Transport Department as a cast driver on Pit Pony. Fortunately for me, they were looking for someone licensed to drive a ten ton whom they could train as a Genny Op! I quickly picked it up – not without some taking some criticism – but in the end, I proved myself to the boys. I had managed to become one of five Genny Ops on the East Coast and one of the only female Genny Ops in Canada.

I’ve been very fortunate to work with the crews that I have over the years. I’d like to thank Bob Petrie for believing that I could hold my own with the boys and give them a run for their money.

The film industry may not be for everyone. There are a lot of birthdays, weddings, christenings and family gatherings missed and it is known to have broken up a few relationships. For me, it has been almost twenty years and despite a few broken relationships and an unhappy family member or two, I can’t think of a better, more exciting way of making a life and a living so close to home…

WAVE Award

WIFT-AT Programming Sneak Preview News

• Halifax’s Reel Talk begins a whole new season of Conversations in February at Carbon Arc. Candid, generous, inspiring, challenging, these one to one conversations with wonderfully active women in the Atlantic Film industry are hosted by a different WIFT-AT member once a month. Reel Talk offers a chance to spend the evening getting to know one artist and her work in a focused, intimate setting, in the live interview style of Inside The Actor’s Studio. Word has spread and the audience is growing.

In Moncton in April, watch for more information on WIFT-AT’s La génie de Jacques Brel, une soirée rencontre avec la cinéaste Annett Wolf. The conversation with this award winning journalist, interviewer, filmmaker will take place on the third floor of Moncton`s Aberdeen  Cultural Centre on April 10 and will include a screening of Annett’s remarkable hour long interview with Jacques Brel.

March 9-11, join us for our second annual Women Making Waves Conference in Halifax, hosted at the Lord Nelson Hotel, with terrific room rates and a fabulous dinner and screening planned for the evening of Saturday, March 10.  An exciting line-up of workshops, conversations and panels with special guests including the remarkable award winning Sheri Elwood (showrunner, writer, director, Call Me Fitz) and Elizabeth Klinck, producer, researcher and clearance specialist on award-winning Canadian, American and British documentary films that have won Emmy, Gemini, Peabody and Academy awards. Last year was the first year for Women Making  Waves. It just keeps getting better – we’d love to have you join us! Registration is very easy online at www.wift-at.com with discounts for members, for early bird registrations, and for those coming from away. How perfect is that?! We’d love to include you so plan now to be with us in March to listen, network, workshop, screen and celebrate with the WAVE Awards. Anyone can nominate  a woman in the Atlantic Screen Industry who deserves to be recognized. The Deadline for Nominations is Thursday, February 2, 2012. Nomination guidelines can be found at  www.wift-at.com.

Ashley McKenzie, Photo by Krista Comeau

Spotlight: Ashley McKenzie
by Sarah MacLeod

Ashley McKenzie is quickly becoming one of Atlantic Canada’s fastest rising filmmakers. Her lively and spirited short film Rhonda’s Party, produced through AFCOOP’s Film 5 program, has screened at festivals across Canada and around the world as part of Air Canada’s enRoute Film Festival, which screens short films on-demand through its on-board entertainment system. The film has garnered some serious recognition, including being named one of TIFF’s Top 10 Canadian Short Films and winning CBC’s Short Film Face Off, where Ashley and Rhonda’s Party Producer Nelson MacDonald received $50,000 to be put towards their next project.

Ashley is currently completing post-production on her short film When You Sleep funded through NSI Drama Prize with co-producers Nelson MacDonald and Martha Cooley. When You Sleep explores a young, misfit couple expecting a child and battling a rodent-infestation in their slum apartment. They are both feeling trapped and struggle to break from the co-dependent mess of their situation.

Her love for Cape Breton is apparent in Ashley’s work. The stories she has decided to tell have a direct correlation with her roots in New Waterford.

“It didn’t feel possible to make films the way I wanted to in New Waterford” Ashley says. “Coming from Cape Breton has really shaped my worldview into a social realist one, which definitely inspires the type of films I want to make.”

Ashley’s inspiration not only lies in the people and landscape of her hometown, but also in watching films by other women; Agnès Varda and Jane Campion as well as local filmmakers Andrea Dorfman, Ann Verrall, Heather Young, and fellow Cape Bretoner Jacqueline Mills. “It was very important for me to become aware of other female filmmakers in order to believe it was possible to do what I wanted. I needed those role models to take the leap towards telling my own stories.”

Ashley’s next project, entitled Stray, is a Linda Joy Award winning script set in New Waterford, which tells the tale of a young girl’s struggle to exist within a post-industrial town and how it shapes her outlook on life.

Visit Ashley’s website for information on her work and upcoming projects.

Interested in meeting other Atlantic filmmakers, TV professionals, interactive and trans-media creators for a weekend of learning & fun? Then come join us at the 2nd Annual Women Making Waves from March 9-11 in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The Women Making Waves conference is all about connecting and sharing for mutual support in our careers. There will be workshops, panels, plenty of networking opportunities for everyone (men and women!) involved.

FULL DELEGATE REGISTRATION

$150 Non WIFT-AT members

$125 WIFT-AT members

$100 Students/Seniors

10% Discount for Out of Towners

And, if you sign up before February 11, 2012, you can take advantage of our early bird special, and save 10%!

Take advantage of both discounts and save 20%!

Full registration includes opening reception, all events on Saturday including breakfast, lunch and dinner – and movie night, and Sunday events including the Awards Brunch.

For online registration, individual event pricing, and additional information, please go to our website.

Full program will be announced in the next couple of weeks.

WAVE Awards

Do you know a woman in the screen industry whose contributions, accomplishments, and dedication deserve to be recognized? Then nominate her for a WAVE Award!

On March 11, 2012, Women in Film and Television – Atlantic is pleased to be hosting its second annual Women Making Waves Awards Brunch. Unlike traditional awards, there are no categories for the WAVE Awards. The goal is to salute women in the screen industry for their contributions, accomplishments, emerging talent, vision, leadership, dedication, and outstanding behind-the-scenes support. As these awards are not province specific either, anyone (men and women!) from the four Atlantic Provinces can submit nominations, and there is no limit to the number of nominations made by any one person. Any woman in the industry, at any level can be nominated: from directors to set designers, to bookkeepers, producers, volunteers – every role is eligible.

To submit a nomination, please send a letter presenting why the Nominee should be recognized by WIFT-AT (800 words maximum), along with the resume and/or filmography of the Nominee, the contact information of both yourself and the Nominee, and a picture of the Nominee (if available). Nominations are due by Thursday, February 2, 2012 and can be submitted by email to Ally Cameron, 2012 WAVE Awards Coordinator, awards.wift.at@gmail.com.

All nominations will be kept confidential, with only the winners announced at the WMW Awards Brunch, Sunday, March 11, 2012. Join us for this celebration as well.

Who should be the 2012 worthy WAVE award recipients? We would love to hear from you!

Image from Stealin' by Catherine MacLellan, directed by Millefiore Clarkes

PEI Pulse

by Millefiore Clarkes

MusicPEI has nominated three Island-based filmmakers for the music videos they produced for Island musicians for the 2012 PEI Music Awards. All three nominations include members of WIFT-AT!!! The videos are:

Silence, Bloodhound! for Christopher Rodgers, Directed by Susan Rodgers

 The Way We Do’er for Boxcar Dan, Directed by Jason Rogerson and Produced by Harmony Wagner  

Stealin’ for Catherine MacLellan, Directed by Millefiore Clarkes

• The Island Media Arts Festival is looking for films and videos of all genres from Atlantic Canadian
  Filmmakers (20 min or under is preferred, but negotiable). This little festival with a big heart takes place at locations across PEI from May 8-13th 2012. The Deadline for Submissions is February 15^th, 2012 and it’s FREE! IMAFestival is growing each year and includes panels, workshops, street-side projections, parties and more. Go to http://islandmedia.pe.ca/events/imaf/ for more info. The IMAFestival is a program of The Island Media Arts Co-op.

• The Island Film Factory has accumulated applications from a large number of individuals for their upcoming Digital Media Workshops. These workshops,  funded through SkillsPEI with the help of CulturePEI will take people with working skill sets in the areas of:  Production Manager, DOP, Field Audio Recorder, Grip/Gaffer/Electric, Editing (Long Form and Comedy), Online Editing and Sound Design, and bring them to the next level in their professional capabilities. The workshops will run throughout February and March 2012 and will be intensive sessions lead by top industry professionals in their selected fields. More info. on the IFF and the Digital Media Workshops can be found here: http://islandfilmfactory.wordpress.com/

• The Island Film Factory has embarked on a series of Cultural Stakeholder Meetings with a wide range of interested stakeholders in the film and media industry on PEI. Two meetings were held in early December, and two more will take place in early January. These meetings  gathered professionals from every walk of the cultural sector on PEI; from independent film and video producers, to people involved in a range of cultural organizations: CulturePEI, The PEI Council of the Arts, The Confederation Centre Art Gallery, PEI Museum and Heritage, The Holland College Centre for Performing Arts, and many more. The aim of these meetings is to bring diverse interests together to map how they intersect with the film and media sector. The goal is to create a collaborative vision for the industry in partnership with the cultural and broader business sectors on PEI. http://islandfilmfactory.wordpress.com

Lex Gigeroff

NB Pulse

by Cathie LeBlanc

NB Film Co-op writer/director/actor/producer LexGigeroff passed away suddenly at Christmas at home in Fredericton. He was 49. Lex was a well-known creative person in the Canadian film world and internationally. Lex is best known as co-creator of the very popular science fiction series Lexx. He also acted in the comedy series Liocracy and the short film Treevenge as well as multiple other projects over the years. Most recently, he had acted in numerous films at the NB Film Co-op. Lex will be remembered by many members of the Film Co-op as well as so many others who loved him dearly across Canada and beyond. He was only a member for a few years at the NBFC but he left an indelible mark that will never be forgotten here.

TRIBUTES

Village of Gagetown Fire & Rescue Remembers Lex Gigeroff: Saturday, January 14 at 2pm at Branch 71 Legion on Tilley Road, Gagetown, NB.
Contact: Marilee Thomson – ff1mthomas@gmail.com

NB Film Co-op Lex Gigeroff Celebration of Life: Saturday, January 21 at 3pm at the Charlotte Street Arts Centre in the upstairs auditorium (732 Charlotte Street, Fredericton, NB)
Contact: Cat LeBlanc – info@nbfilmcoop.com