Here is a brief wrap-up of recent industry news relevant to Canada’s independent production community.

Sales/distribution updates

Peace Point Rights has sold their new food series Bake with Anna Olsen to Euforia Lifestyle TV (part of Antena TV Group) in Romania; the Asian Food Channel in Singapore and The Home Channel in South Africa.

Meanwhile, DHX has secured a raft of broadcast sales across Europe, including Central and Eastern European territories for its kids series Martha Speaks, Grandpa in My Pocket, and The Latest Buzz.

Poland’s Canal+ Cyfrowy has snapped up additional episodes of Martha Speaks and renewed season one for its MiniMini+ HD channel, while Spain’s Ypsilon Films has signed a Martha Speaks Pay TV and VOD deal.

For the live-action series Grandpa in My Pocket, Finland’s MTV3 has locked a VOD deal; meanwhile Individ has been appointed by DHX to rep all three seasons of the series for Russia, Kazakhstan, and the Baltics.

In addition, DHX has appointed White Fox to rep The Latest Buzz and Martha Speaks for Free TV in Greece and Cyprus.

And Vancouver- and Toronto-based Picture Box Distribution sold Slice Network original program Brides of Beverly Hills to TLC in the U.S., and into a slew of international territories including Spain (to Telecinco), Italy (to GB Omnimedia), and the U.K., Africa, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Finland, Greece and Australia.

(DHX news from Kidscreen)

Awards news

Digital design firm Jam3 has won a Gold Cyber Lion Award at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity for NFB interactive doc Bear 71. The doc was created by Jeremy Mendes, Leanne Allison and the NFB’s Loc Dao, and produced by Dao. It had also been nominated in the Rockie Awards, which were handed out at the Banff World Media Festival last week.

Meanwhile, FilmCAN won in the international pilots documentary competition at Banff for Northwords.

The multimedia, interactive doc project, a follow-up to the prodco’s National Parks Project with Primitive Entertainment, follows CBC Radio personality Shelagh Rogers and five Canadian authors travelling to Torngat Mountains National Park in northern Labrador. It is produced by Ryan Noth, Geoff Morrison and Joel McConvey.

Still focusing on the East Coast, St. John’s N.L.-based prodco Best Boy Entertainment won the 2012 Innovation in Business Award, presented by the government of Newfoundland and Labrador’s Department of Innovation, Business and Rural Development.

The company was recognized for its work in digital media, including game development and augmented reality game design, for projects like MathFun123, an interactive mobile games package designed to teach math to preschool children.

Best Boy’s interactive arm is headed up by VP interactive/distribution Robert Evans.

Elsewhere, Jason Priestley last week won a Golden Nymph award for best actor in a comedy series for his role in Call Me Fitz, at the 52nd Monte Carlo TV festival.

And the U.K.’s Graham Rathlin won the $1,500 audience choice award for The Money Shot at the CFC and Shortnonstop Mobile Movie Festival.

Recently announced

In Studio will premiere on The Movie Network’s Mfest on Sunday, July 1 at 8 p.m and on Movie Central on Friday, July 27 at 7 p.m. The Genies special from the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television is hosted by Don McKellar and features interviews with David Cronenberg, Phillippe Falardeau, Larysa Kondracki and Jean-Marc Vallée.

Original OLN series, Get Stuffed and The Liquidator, have also received premiere dates: Get Stuffed will premiere Tuesday, July 3 at 9 p.m., and The Liquidator will premiere Thursday, July 5 at 9 p.m.

Season five of YTV’s The Next Star will premiere Monday, July 16 at 7 p.m.