With 2023 underway, Playback is reflecting on the standout companies, organizations and industry folks who made waves in the past year and are poised to continue to do so in the next 12 months.

Over the next two and a half weeks in our daily newsletter and online, we’ll roll out individual profiles of the honourees from our annual Best of the Year list, which is also in our winter magazine out Wednesday (Jan. 18).

Here’s a glimpse at the dynamic dozen, who were chosen by Playback‘s editorial team for their significant impact in their respective sectors in 2022.

New Metric Media is Production Company of the Year for its momentum in the comedy space, with successful series including CTV’s Children Ruin Everything, Crave’s Letterkenny and spinoff Shoresy.

APTN CEO Monika Ille has been named Executive of the Year for keeping the network adaptable while successfully leading it through modernization and its mandate to represent First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples.

The Director of the Year designation goes to Sarah Polley for her deft touch in helming the critically acclaimed and award-winning drama Women Talking (Plan B Entertainment, hear/say Productions and Orion Pictures), adapted from the novel by Canadian author Miriam Toews.

Earning the Changemakers of the Year honour are Shamier Anderson and Stephan James, co-founders of The Black Academy who made history with their inaugural Legacy Awards on CBC and are developing a robust slate of projects with their Bay Mills Studios banner.

The French-Language Scripted Series of the Year is Club Illico’s Pixcom-produced dramedy Audrey est revenue (Audrey’s Back), which has won numerous awards and has been sold to Canal+ in France and RAI in Italy.

The English-Language Scripted Series of the Year is CBC and HBO Max dramedy Sort Of, produced by Sphere Media (formerly Sienna Films), which stormed the awards circuit with honours including a prestigious Peabody.

A multitude of strategic partnerships, first-look deals and IP options at Blink49 Studios earned the John Morayniss-led company Dealmaker of the Year.

First Generation Films founder Christina Piovesan was chosen as Producer of the Year for her major expansion into TV and kids content, such as Apple TV+’s Pinecone & Pony and CBC’s Essex County, while continuing a film slate with Elevation Pictures including Sundance-bound Infinity Pool.

The hit glass-blowing competition series Blown Away from Toronto’s marblemedia made the cut as Unscripted Series of the Year for continuing to heat up viewership numbers on Netflix with its third season.

Kids Production Company of the Year goes to Guru Studio, which is building momentum by focusing on long-haul IP, such as True and the Rainbow Kingdom.

Annmarie Morais and Marsha Greene are deemed Showrunners of the Year for bringing meaningful representation and authenticity to CBC and BET+ drama The Porter, produced by Inferno Pictures and Sphere Media.

Last, not but certainly not least, Changemaker Organization of the Year goes to the Black Screen Office, led by executive director and co-founder Joan Jenkinson, for inspiring meaningful change with its revolutionary research and data findings.