The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television has unveiled a new initiative with the Shaw Rocket Fund: The Shaw Rocket Fund Kids’ Choice Award.

Spotlighting children’s live-action and animated TV shows, the new prize builds off of the Academy’s Cogeco Fund Audience Choice Award and sees Canadian kids and their parents vote for their favourite Canadian kids TV program.

“Canada is a globally-recognized hub of creative and innovative kids programming, and we are beyond excited to partner with the Shaw Rocket Fund to put a well-deserved spotlight on the programs and the talented teams behind them,” said Canadian Academy CEO Beth Janson in a statement.

Next week, on April 14, the Academy will lift the lid on the top 10 nominees.

From there, the list will be narrowed down to five contenders – with the winner announced at the Canadian Screen Awards on May 20 at 8 p.m. EDT.

“Who better to choose the best kids’ show than the audience themselves? We are proud to be involved in this great showcase of Canadian programs!” said Shaw Rocket Fund president and CEO Agnes Augustin.

Meanwhile, the Cogeco Fund Audience Choice Award, which sees fans vote for their favourite Canadian digital media, film or TV star is also set to be announced during Canadian Screen Week (May 17 to May 20). Round three of voting for the award opens Monday, April 12 at 1 p.m.

Past winners for the prize include Wynonna Earp‘s Katherine Barrell (2020) and Dominique Provost-Chalkley (2019) as well as Carmilla‘s Elise Bauman (2018) and Natasha Negovanlis (2017).