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Mark Sandiford of Beachwalker Films Wins a Gemini
October 31, 2008
ITAP Member Mark Sandiford of Beachwalker Films recently won a Gemini for 'Qallunaat! Why White People Are Funny' at a special presentation on October 20th, 2008.
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23rd Annual Gemini Awards
Honours Five Recipients With Special Awards
(October 6, 2008) Toronto, ON
The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television today announced the recipients of its 2008 Special Awards, leading to the Academy's annual celebration of excellence, creativity and dedication in the television industry.
Each of these winners has risen to the pinnacle of their profession and distinguished themselves across the Canadian cultural landscape. They will all be honoured for their outstanding achievements at upcoming galas in October and November in Toronto.
This year's honourees included:
- The Canada Award - 'Qallunaat! Why White People Are Funny' to be presented at the Gemini News, Sports and Documentary Gala on Monday, October 20th, 2008.
The Canada Award honours excellence in mainstream television programming which best reflects the racial and cultural diversity of Canada. The general objectives of the Canada Award are:
1. To foster a greater awareness among Canadians of the multicultural and multiracial nature of the country.
2. To promote greater opportunity for ethnic and visible minority professionals within the broadcasting industry on both sides of the camera.
'Qallunaat! Why White People Are Funny' is a docu-comedy collaboration between filmmaker Mark Sandiford and Inuit writer and satirist Zebedee Nungak. Nungak is CEO and head researcher at the mythical Qallunaat Studies Institute (QSI). He says, 'Qallunaat' (Inuit word for white people) ought to be the object of some kind of study by other cultures. The more I thought about the way they have studied us over the years, it occurred to me: Why don't we study them? 'Qallunaat! Why White People Are Funny' brings the documentary form to an unexpected place. Those who held the mirror up to Inuit culture finally have it turned back upon them.
Filmmaker Mark Sandiford's extended time in the Arctic resulted in a fresh, funny and long overdue 'study' of Qallunaat from the Inuit point of view. Not surprisingly, these 'Qallunologists' found the ways of white culture a bit peculiar when reviewing its odd dating habits, lame attempts at Arctic exploration, overbearing bureaucrats, need for police, and curious obsession with owning property.
The Canada Award is sponsored by CBC.
For more information on the 23rd Annual Gemini Awards, visit www.geminiawards.ca.
The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television is a national, non-profit, professional association dedicated to the promotion, recognition and celebration of exceptional achievements in the Canadian film and television industries. Created in 1979, and today unifying industry professionals across Canada, the Academy is a vital and integral force representing these industries.
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