In the first of two posts — expect another in February — the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television has named Roman Bittman (posthumous), Elizabeth Klinck, Kevin Tierney (posthumous), and Carole Vivier as this year’s recipients of its annual Board of Directors’ Tribute, an award that is given to individuals who have made an extraordinary impact on the growth of the Canadian media industry.
The Canadian Academy has also announced Brad Wright as this year’s recipient of the Margaret Collier Award, a lifetime achievement award for writing in Canadian film and television.
Finally, eOne has been named as the recipient for the inaugural presentation of the Industry Leadership Award, presented to a Canadian company or organization in recognition of their exceptional leadership in the media sector.
Roman Bittman
On November 7, 2017, the Canadian creative world lost Roman Bittman, writer, producer, and director. His influence on our country’s media landscape was — and remains — indelible.
As self-made moguls go, Roman wasn’t built in a day. Truly a man of Canada, Bittman travelled the corners of the country and spurred industry growth wherever he landed, including practicing amateur radio in the Northwest Territories as a boy, producing CBC television shows like The Nature of Things in Toronto as a young professional, and later becoming the chief executive of the Nova Scotia Film Development Corporation, where he created English Canada’s first Film Industry Labour Tax Credit.
Born of Métis ancestry, Bittman was also an early advisor of the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network — a channel that has since gone on to thrive — and held an interim CEO position at the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation (now known as Indspire), a charity dedicated to delivering programmes for Indigenous youth across Canada.
Whether he was producing himself or working for creatives to get things moving, he brought passion and business acumen to Canadian media. This award, our Board of Directors’ Tribute, recognizes his grace and everyday excellence he consistently worked towards.
Elizabeth Klinck
To be successful, documentary filmmaking requires two things: one, a keen eye for compelling stories and how to frame them; and two — perhaps most importantly — impeccable research.
Emmy-nominated and three-time Canadian Screen Award-winning visual researcher Elizabeth Klinck — who has also worn hats as a producer, a clearance specialist, and more — has made a career out of informational deep dives, lending her talents to some of the most groundbreaking documentaries and to ever have been produced in Canada, including: Stories We Tell, Anthropocene: The Human Epoch, Hurt, Dirty Money, Claude Lanzmann: Spectres of the Shoah, Into the Inferno, Giants of Africa, Amanda Knox, and We Can’t Make The Same Mistake Twice.
Of course, we could go on. But we’ll let Werner Herzog sing her praises.
“Elizabeth has the gift of insight,” he writes in his letter of recommendation for this very award. “[She has] an extraordinary knowledge of the world’s archives, a vivacity, tenacity, and attention to detail that makes her a pleasure to work with and a highly valued member of the production team.”
(There were dozens of letters like these.)
As you can see, it doesn’t take much digging to learn why Klinck is wholly deserving of our Board of Directors’ Tribute. When watching any of her projects, one thing is clear: her work is, at once, invisible yet ever-present — which is to say, when she’s excelling at her job, it’s like she was never there. We hope this award ensures her craft gets the spotlight it deserves.
Kevin Tierney
Gone too soon; won’t soon be forgotten. Before his death last year, Kevin Tierney (1950 – 2018) was one of Canada’s most accomplished — and beloved — film producers.
In our tribute to the man published last Spring, we noted that Tierney was “an immensely kind, extraordinarily funny man who made it his life’s work as a Canadian film producer to mine the comedic rift between English and French Canada, in doing so producing and co-writing 2006’s Bon Cop, Bad Cop, still one of the highest grossing Canadian films of all time.”
In return, the Board of Directors’ Tribute is the Academy’s way of saying thanks. Thanks, Kevin, for making us laugh, for uniting Canadians, and for entertaining millions. You are, and will continue to be, missed.
Carole Vivier
This June, Manitoba Film & Music CEO and Film Commissioner Carole Vivier will retire after 26 years with the corporation, a much-deserved break after three decades of developing her province’s creative industry.
Before she does, she’ll accept our Board of Directors’ Tribute for her leadership and enduring championship of Manitobans working in film, television, and music.
With towns like Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver regularly making headlines, it might be easy to, forget about little ol’ Winnipeg. As a passionate ambassador for western Canada, Vivier made sure Canada’s media sector — and Hollywood location scouts — didn’t.
Indeed, throughout her tenure at MFM, several milestones stand out under her direction, including the development of western Canada’s first film tax credit in 1997; the creation of Manitoba’s first soundstage that same year, still in use today; and the filming of landmark films in Manitoba, such as Capote, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, and everybody’s favourite hockey hit: Goon.
We’ll admit: Our Board of Directors’ Tribute may not be as shiny as the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal, which Vivier received in 2014. But it should remain a wonderful parting gift for a truly tireless Manitoban.
Brad Wright
Thanks to Toronto-born producer and screenwriter Brad Wright, Canadians might not immediately think “Trek” or “Wars” when they hear someone raving about stars, space, and compelling science fiction.
Indeed, Stargate SG-1 recently celebrated its 20th anniversary, Wright’s planet-hopping, space-travelling series that saw great ratings, 10 seasons, and two major spin-off programmes: Stargate Atlantis and Stargate Universe, both of which Wright co-created.
If the Stargate saga wasn’t enough to satisfy your sci-fi itch, Travelers — another mind-bending adventure from the mind of Brad Wright — launched its third season just last month, which Canadians can catch on Netflix at their leisure.
Who can say they’ve created a franchise? Brad Wright can. He’s had a celestial career, and by awarding him our Margaret Collier Award — a prize given to writers for their outstanding bodies of work — the Academy hopes to recognize that.
eOne
How do you acknowledge exceptional organizational stewardship? The Canadian Academy’s new prize, the Industry Leadership Award, intends to do just that.
Private Eyes. Cardinal. Burden of Truth. Mary Kills People. Ransom. Back In Time for Dinner. 1991. La Bolduc.
And that was just last year.
With its hit content and global reach, naming Entertainment One (eOne) as the inaugural recipient of the Industry Leadership Award was an easy choice. Under the leadership of CEO Darren Throop, the Toronto-based studio has regularly produced top-rated Canadian content for screens large and small, exporting our entertainment to international audiences. In doing so, they’ve established a reputation not just for successful programming, but also a deep, sincere investment in the long-term growth and appreciation of homegrown talent.
Now, to February…
Stay tuned, Canada! Next month, we’ll detail the recipients of the rest of our 2019 Special Awards.
Written for the Academy by Jake Howell.
Graphic designed by Orest Kus.
