Producer and distributor Factory Film Studio has promoted Dru Viergever to VP, business development.

The VP previously held the title of director of acquisitions and has been with the prodco for seven years, according to a news release. Viergever, who has also worked as an actor for more than two decades, is responsible for identifying projects to produce in Alberta.

FFS has relocated its production operations from Toronto to Edmonton as it expands its producing work. The company’s second feature, Cape Holly Christmas, recently wrapped in Leduc, Alta., just south of Edmonton.

Canadian film legend to be feted by MacDowell

Alanis Obomsawin will become the first woman filmmaker to receive the Edward MacDowell Medal. The honour is given by U.S. artist residency program MacDowell, and has been awarded annually since 1960 to artists who have made ” an outstanding contribution to their field,” said a news release. It is given to a range of artists, including composers, visual artists, playwrights, architects, and photographers, as well as filmmakers.

Abenaki filmmaker Obomsawin is an acclaimed documentary pioneer, whose credits under the National Film Board of Canada include Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance (1993) and Incident at Restigouche (1984). Jesse Wente, chair of the Canada Council for the Arts, will introduce Obomsawin during the awards ceremony, scheduled for July 23 in Peterborough, NH. Previous recipients of the award include David Lynch, Art Spiegelman, Alice Munro, and Stephen Sondheim.

Eligibility changes at SODEC

The Société de développement des entreprises culturelles (SODEC) has made a notable change to two of its television production assistance programs for the fiscal year. The programs Aide corporative à la production télévisuelle and Aide à la production télévisuelle – Bonification de la valeur de production will now include animated minority coproductions under the list of eligible projects. Additional information on programs changes are available on the SODEC website.

Canadian shorts headed to Annecy

A number of Canadian short films have been selected for the 2023 Annecy International Animation Film Festival, which runs from June 11 to 17. A total of three animated shorts have been selected for official competition, including Richard R. Reeves’ Intersextion, Thomas Corriveau’s Marie.Eduardo.Sophie, and Kaho Yoshida’s Canada/Japan title Tongue.

German/Canadian short Baigal Nuur – Lake Baikal from Alisi Telengut, and Amanda Woolrich’s Mexico/Canada title Trasiego, will premiere in the Perspectives short film competition. Janice Nadeau’s short Harvey, coproduced by the National Film Board of Canada, has also been selected for the Young Audiences competition, while Vivien Forsans’ short Bedroom People from Concordia University will compete in the Graduation short films program.

Rounding out the selections are the Ottawa International Animation Festival’s 2022 “Signal Film,” created by Winston Hacking, which is part of the Commissioned Films competition, and “In the Heat” from the horror series Red Iron Road, directed by Sam Chou, in the TV films competition.

Luke Hutchie rebrands production banner

The production company behind OUTtv original series Ezra has been rebranded. Hell Yes Entertainment is now known as Luke Hutchie Productions. The rebrand “comes from the company’s new focus to produce genre diverse projects,” according to a news release. The prodco is led by Luke Hutchie, who was the star, showrunner and executive producer of Ezra.

Image courtesy of Factory Film Studio