Fabienne Colas (pictured above), who manages 12 film festivals including the Montreal International Black Film Festival, is among those set to be honoured at the inaugural Legacy Awards this Sunday (Sept. 25). The film festival founder and chair of the Fabienne Colas Foundation, which promotes and awards grants to independent films and artists, will receive the Visionnaire Award during the show put on by the Black Academy.

The 90-minute CBC telecast is being produced by Boat Rocker’s Insight Productions along with the Black Academy founders Shamier Anderson and Stephan James under their banner Bay Mills Studios. Anderson and James will also host the show from Toronto’s HISTORY venue.

Colas — who is also an award-winning actor, filmmaker, and diversity and inclusion consultant — is being recognized “for her tireless work showcasing Black Canadian storytellers,” according to a news release. Other Legacy Award honourees announced Friday (Sept. 23) include Olympic sprinting champion Andre De Grasse, who will receive the Athlete of the Year, and TSN host Kayla Grey, who will get the Jamil French Award.

David Cronenberg snags Donostia honour

Canadian filmmaker David Cronenberg has received the honorary Donostia Award at the San Sebastian International Film Festival in Spain. The ceremony took place on Wednesday (Sept. 21) at the Victoria Eugenia Theatre, followed by the screening of Cronenberg’s latest film, Crimes of the Future (pictured).

Crimes of the Future is a Canada-Greece copro produced by Robert Lantos under his Toronto-based banner Serendipity Point Films with Athens-based Argonauts Productions. It is produced in association with Telefilm Canada, Ingenious Media, Coficiné, Greek Film Centre, Bell Media, CBC, ERT, and the Harold Greenberg Fund, with the support of Ekome. London’s Rocket Science holds international sales rights.

Starring Viggo Mortensen, Léa Seydoux and Kristen Stewart, the sci-fi thriller had its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May. It is now available for streaming on MUBI in Malaysia, India, Turkey and Latin America. It will become available in Singapore on Sept. 29; Finland, Norway and Sweden on Oct. 7; Germany on Nov. 12; and Portugal on Nov. 24.

TIFF appoints Marsha John-Greenwood as VP of people and culture

The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) has hired Marsha John-Greenwood as the new VP of people and culture.

TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey announced the appointment on Thursday (Sept. 22). John-Greenwood (pictured right) begins her new role on Sept. 26 and will oversee the people and culture components of TIFF’s latest three-year strategic plan and goals.

The strategic plan and goals include the growth of TIFF’s year-round engagement with audiences and the industry; establishing the TIFF Bell Lightbox as a landmark cultural hub in Canada by curating experiences that celebrate Canadian and global film; expanding its role in international markets; building “a thriving organization” by inspiring and engaging its staff; and fostering and embodying a collaborative, diverse, equitable, and inclusive workplace culture.

John-Greenwood has more than 18 years of experience in human resources, including two and a half years at the City of Toronto, where she was the interim chief people officer, service hub director, and business transformation director. She started her career in the financial sector in training and development. She worked in retail and commercial banking before becoming a diversity and CSR lead, integrating business and people practices.

The Canadian Screen Music Awards announces winners

The Screen Composers Guild of Canada announced the nine winners of its first-ever Canadian Screen Music Awards (CASMA) on Wednesday (Sept. 21) at the El Mocambo in Toronto.

Steph Copeland received the Best Original Score for a Narrative Feature Film for The Retreat and Best Original Score for a Television Special for Lethal Love. Todor Kobakov also won two awards for best original score: one in the documentary feature film category for A.rtificial I.mmortality and one for non-fiction series or limited series for The Unsolved Murder of Beverly Lynn Smith.

Other winners are Phil Strong for Best Original Score for a Short Film for In the Wake of Progress; Trevor Morris for Best Original Score for a Series or Limited Series for Vikings Valhalla; Layal Watfeh for Best Original Main Title Theme Music for The Journey; Steffan Andrews for Best Original Score for a Children’s Program or Series for LEGO Marvel Avengers: Time Twisted; and Janal Bechthold and La-Nai Gabriel for Best Original Score for Interactive Media for No Reason to Apologize: The Resilient Legacy of Viola Desmond.

The Canadian Film Centre and the Slaight Family Foundation also received the Distinguished Services to the Industry award for supporting the screen composer sector.

Cinelease’s first Ontario location to open its doors in Toronto

Lighting and grip provider Cinelease is officially set to open its new Toronto location this weekend.

The grand opening and ribbon-cutting event will take place on Saturday (Sept. 24), which will mark Cinelease’s second permanent location in Canada and the first in Ontario. Its first permanent location in the country is at Burnaby in Metro Vancouver, which had its opening event in July.

The company, which was created in 1977, also operates out of 12 locations in the U.S.

With files from Victoria Ahearn