The nominees for the Emmy Award for Creative Achievement in Interactive Media: Fiction are:

“Celebrating the best in digital media in the context of the Gemini Awards is a critical step in uniting the twin worlds of television and interactive entertainment, which are increasingly intertwined from the audience’s perspective,” said Catherine Warren, President of FanTrust Entertainment Strategies and a member of the Academy’s advisory board for digital media. “And with two new awards for programs designed to first reach audiences on channels other than TV, the Gemini’s demonstrate a new level in industry leadership and fan awareness.”

When the envelopes are ultimately opened, winners will receive their coveted statues in the following categories:

Best Cross-Platform Project – Fiction
Best Cross-Platform Project – Non-Fiction
Best Cross-Platform Project – Children’s and Youth
Best Original Program or Series produced for Digital Media – Fiction
Best Original Program or Series produced for Digital Media – Non-Fiction

The deadline for submitting entries for this year’s competition is May 18, 2010.

A new “Special Award – Outstanding Technical Achievement Award in Digital Media” may also be presented to honour a recent, worthy Canadian innovation, based on nominations received by July 15, 2010.

Application forms are available online at www.geminiawards.ca

PARIS/NEW YORK, March 22,  2010  – Jason Priestley, best known for his role as Brandon Walsh on the hit series Beverly Hills 90210, will host The International Digital Emmy Awards on Monday,  April 12, at MIPTV in Cannes it was announced by The International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.

The event will recognize excellence in the areas of Digital Fiction, Non-Fiction, Children’s and other content categories for cross-platform programming.

The International Digital Emmy® Awards 2010 are sponsored by Nokia and Ooyala.

Read the full press release

FanTrust President Catherine Warren is a member of the International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, which runs the award program.

Past winners of the International Digital Emmy Awards have received funding support from the Bell Broadcast & New Media Fund, of which Warren is also a board member.

Rules, Regulations, example Presentation Videos and Entry Forms are available on the International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences’ website.

Watch the 2009 presentation video for the Children & Young People category, which included nominee Whack the Mole, digitally produced by Canada’s Xenophile.

Pick 20 is the only national ranking of its kind, identifying “the 20 companies that are driving innovation and changing the way we use the Internet.” Judges scored the nominees against five criteria: ROI, competitive advantage, ongoing value, execution and innovation. Other past winners include Now Public, Kaboose, and social gaming powerhouse Club Penguin.

Pixton.com attracts people of all ages, from 199 countries representing more than 40 languages, to tell jokes, share stories and express opinions in professional-quality comic formats. Members can grab, create and remix their own Pixton comic characters and storylines with a click of the mouse, making do-it-yourself comics a fun, social and interactive game-like experience found nowhere else.

“We’ve doubled our membership twice over the past six months, with over a quarter of a million characters created,” said founder Clive Goodinson. “Our vision is to transform how the world makes comics, creating a premier destination on the web while driving a high-growth business, and this award recognizes us at a time when we’re only just getting started!”

“Pixton is positioning itself squarely in the multi-billion dollar social gaming market and is poised to capitalize on significant consumer revenues and strategic investment in the months ahead,” said Catherine Warren, president of FanTrust Entertainment Strategies, Pixton’s business development partner.

Full press release

The Miller Junior High School teaching team won the Time Warner Cable’s Spotlight on Education Award for their project “Pixton with Shakespeare.” Miller’s eighth grade Language Arts Department was studying “The Tempest”, and the teachers wanted to enrich the learning experience through the use of technology.

One of the ideas that evolved was developing a scene from “The Tempest” using Pixton.com, a website that provides tools for anybody to easily create their own graphic comic strip or novel.

Teaching Shakespeare in middle school is always a challenge, noted teacher Grace Mueller. “Pixton comics provided motivation for comprehension. It was not only fun for the students, but there were so many options the students could use to make the comic fit the scene,” she said.  “All the alternative facial expressions and body movements as well as using speech bubbles added to their ability to get just the right mood.”

Pixton, a FanTrust client, inspires budding and experienced comic creators around the world with simple tools for conceptualizing, producing, publishing and remixing original comics, and provides instant translation in 40 languages.

Read the full announcement at Pixton’s blog
Read the article in San Marcos Record
Visit Pixton.com

“This year’s winners have truly embraced the creative and technological opportunities that the digital space presents,” said Bruce L. Paisner, President & CEO of The International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. “We congratulate them on their cutting-edge achievements.”

The awards ceremony was attended by over 200 international executives from the television, broadband and mobile industries, including FanTrust President Catherine Warren.

Read full press release

As in years past, the awards will gather over 200 professionals across the entertainment, mobile and Internet industries. Catherine Warren, FanTrust President and Academy member, will join other digital luminaries at the invitation-only ceremony.

“We are very pleased to be recognizing these nominees for their outstanding achievements in producing content specifically designed for delivery on a digital platform,” said Bruce L. Paisner, President & CEO of The International Academy. “Digital programming is now a significant option for audiences around the world seeking out content.”

In addition to the presentation of the International Digital Emmy® Awards for Children & Young People, Fiction and Non-Fiction. The International Academy will present a special award – the Pioneer Prize, which is not an Emmy® but rather a special initiative from the Academy which honors an industry personality or organization. “The Pioneer Prize will be presented to Nokia, Inc. for its innovative contributions to the field of digital television and video broadcasting on a mobile device,” added Paisner.

Niklas Savander, Member of the Nokia Group Executive Board and EVP, Nokia Services will accept on behalf of the company.

“We are delighted to accept this prestigious award. As consumers’ digital consumption habits are increasingly going mobile, Nokia and the mobility industry at large is excited by the business opportunity it presents for us together with our content partners,” commented Niklas Savander. “Services like the groundbreaking Comes With Music service and the Ovi Store media distribution network are pushing the boundaries of what is possible in mobile entertainment.”

Read full press release

“The Awards were highly competitive this year,” said FanTrust Entertainment Strategies President Catherine Warren. “We are pleased but not surprised that a number of our distinguished clients were acknowledged by a jury of industry peers.”

Production powerhouse marblemedia swept two key awards, winning for both Company of the Year and Producer of the Year for partner Mark Bishop. Vancouver/Beijing-based Next Level Games won Excellence in Gaming for Mario Strikers Charged.  And the National Film Board of Canada-supported Homeless Nation won for Excellence in Social Media.

As a partner and co-founder of marblemedia, Mark Bishop plays a key role in developing television and interactive projects that tell unique stories that entertain and engage audiences across all platforms, including marblemedia’s This is Daniel Cook and This is Emily Yeung series. Current marble initiatives include The Adrenaline Project and Taste Buds; upcoming projects include the animated comedy The Dating Guy, now in production with Teletoon for debut in 2009.

Mario Strikers Charged is a hall of fame sequel to the high-energy soccer game Super Mario Strikers, for the Nintendo Wii. With this game, Next Level brings Mario Strikers, and its publisher Nintendo, into the online arena, allowing players to compete online via the Wi-Fi Connection.

Homeless Nation is an online forum where Canada’s homeless community share their stories – through blogs and audio visual content – as an on-going dialogue for social awareness and positive change. The project, executive produced by Daniel Cross, was co-produced by National Film Board of Canada.

In addition to FanTrust clients cited for their outstanding contributions to digital media, six awards went to Bell Broadcast and New Media Fund related ventures and individuals.

OddJobJack.com, which won for Excellence in Cross Platform, allows viewers to experience first-hand the on-the-job misadventures of the perpetually unemployed Jack Ryder, a 25-year old Sociology grad, through the sites casual games and contests.

Excellence in News/ Information winner Diamond Road Online brings the technologies of collaborative filtering, tagging and personal recommendations – techniques behind popular sites like Flickr and Amazon.com – into the world of documentary storytelling.

Designer of the Year was awarded to Daniel Riley of Life Capture Interactive; the company was recently received Bell Fund support to develop CBC’s Who Do You Think You Are? website.

Sheridan Scott, instrumental in founding the Bell Broadcast and New Media Fund, received Special Recognition for her long-standing commitment to Canada’s new media industry.

Producer Mark Bishop and marblemedia most recently received funding for TheAdrenalineProject.com, where users play and compete in a tournament style game online with Boomer, the over-the-top cheerleader and drill sergeant who serves as a guide and mentor throughout.

“The Bell Fund continues to play a major part in cultivating digital media leaders and innovation, positioning Canada at the global center of excellence in this industry,” said Catherine, who has also served on the Bell Fund Board for close to a decade.

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