Canada Dominates At This Year's International Interactive Emmy Awards

Canada Dominates At This Year's International Interactive Emmy Awards

Spotlight shines on Canada in recognition of excellence in the field of interactive and new media television

TORONTO, ON The Bell Fund is thrilled to congratulate the Canadian nominees and award recipients at the second International Interactive Emmy Awards held in Cannes, France earlier today at the 2007 MIPTV featuring MILIA event. The Bell Fund is particularly pleased to announce that two Bell Fund supported projects, Zimmer Twins by zinc Roe design and ReGenesis Extended Reality Game produced by Toronto-based Xenophile Media with ReGenesis TV series production company Shaftesbury Films, won the top prize in the Interactive Program category.

“We thank the International Interactive Emmy’s for this award and we are proud to be in the company of such truly impressive Canadian talents this year,” said Patrick Crowe, Producer at Xenophile Media. “With organizations like the Bell Fund committed to investing in the development and production of new media projects, Canada is the best place to work on innovative new media projects. We are extremely grateful for its support in helping us to realize this project.”

“We are thrilled to be the recipients of such an award and to be in the company of so many outstanding Canadians at this year’s event,” said Jason Krogh, Producer at zinc Roe design. “Canada is truly the envy of the world when it comes to leading edge work in the field of new media. With the Bell Fund’s ongoing support of company’s like ours, Canada will continue to gain international recognition and acclaim for furthering excellence in the field.”

By encouraging the development of convergent new media projects, Canada is at the forefront as a world leader in the field of new media. Three of the four nominees in this year’s Interactive Program category were Canadian. In addition to this year’s winners, multiple Bell Fund recipient marblemedia was nominated for Shorts in Motion: The Art of Seduction, produced in partnership with BravoFACT! and the NFB.

“The awards represent a premier platform for the interactive television community to celebrate their achievements and we are pleased to see so many Canadian producers being recognized on a global stage,” said Catherine Warren, Bell Fund Board Member and President of FanTrust Entertainment Strategies. “With the assistance of the Bell Fund, Canadians continue to set a high standard of excellence for new media innovation.”

In her capacity as a Bell Fund Board Member, Catherine Warren was invited to be on the selection jury for the Interactive Channel nominees at this year’s International Interactive Emmy’s. She also sat on the National Film Board’s jury for the Content 360 pitching session, a competition calling for creative ideas that explore the potential of digital platforms, also taking place at MIPTV featuring MILIA 2007.

Presented by the International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, the annual International Interactive Emmy Awards is a key event for television, broadband, mobile and Internet professionals. The event recognizes outstanding achievement and excellence in new media and interactive television programming produced outside of the United States.

About The International Academy
Founded in 1969, the International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences is the largest organization of broadcasters in the world, with over 500 members from nearly 70 countries and over 400 companies. The Academy was chartered with a mission to recognize excellence in television programming produced outside of the United States, and it presents the International Emmy Award to programs in fourteen categories: Arts Programming; Best Performance by an Actress; Best Performance by an Actor; Breaking News; Children & Young People; Comedy; Continuing News Coverage; Documentary; Drama Series; Interactive Channel; Interactive Program; Interactive TV Service; Non-Scripted Entertainment; TV Movie/Mini-Series.

About The Bell Fund
The Bell Fund provides grants to Canadian independent producers who develop and produce outstanding television content complemented and enhanced by innovative, interactive content designed for digital delivery. These new media projects reflect state-of-the-art technology and are helping traditional television producers and broadcasters to discover the value added benefit of a web presence.

The Bell Broadcast and New Media Fund receives annual contributions of approximately $8M from Bell ExpressVU as part of its broadcast distribution undertaking (BDU) contributions to the industry. In addition, the Development Program is supported by the interest generated by a $10M endowment resulting from BCE-CTV benefits. The Bell Fund is incorporated as a not-for-profit organization, governed by an independent Board of Directors representing various sectors of the television and new media industry. The Fund is administered by the Independent Production Fund.

###

For more information please contact:

David Gollom
High Road Communications
Tel: 416-644-2267
Email: dgollom@highroad.com