BLK: An Origin Story swept its categories to become the leader on the first night of the Canadian Screen Awards, winning all five trophies for which it was nominated.

We’re All Gonna Die (Even Jay Baruchel) was close behind with four awards while writer-director Nisha Pahuja’s To Kill a Tiger nabbed three, including a top category of Ted Rogers Best Feature Length Documentary, during Tuesday (April 11) evening’s News, Documentary & Factual ceremony.

The 4 x 60-minute BLK: An Origin Story, produced by Hungry Eyes Media in association with Corus Studios for History, won awards including Best Writing, Documentary for Sudz Sutherland (pictured far right) and Best Direction, Documentary Series for Jennifer Holness (pictured middle).

Holness and Sutherland executive produced the exploration of Canada’s Black history, which also won Best Photography, Documentary or Factual for Ricardo Diaz; Best Picture Editing, Documentary for Avril Jacobson; and Best Original Music, Documentary for Tom Third.

Doomsday docuseries We’re All Gonna Die (Even Jay Baruchel) from 90th Parallel Productions took hardware including Best Factual Series (for Baruchel, Gordon Henderson, Stuart Henderson, Victoria Lean, Ben Travers) and Best Direction, Factual for Lean.

The 6 x 30-minute Crave original — produced by Henderson, Lean and Travers — also won the Barbara Sears Award for Best Editorial Research (for Lean, Jackie Carlos, Rita Kotzia, Britt Wray, Henderson, Travers, and Simone Zucker), and Best Picture Editing, Factual for Kirk Ramsay and Nick Taylor.

The other honours for To Kill a Tiger (Notice Pictures, National Film Board of Canada) included Best Editing in a Feature Length Documentary for Mike Munn, and Best Original Music in a Feature Length Documentary for Jonathan Goldsmith. The harrowing story of a father’s search for justice for his child in India was produced by Cornelia Principe and Pahuja for Notice Pictures, and David Oppenheim for the NFB.

Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On (Eagle Vision, White Pine Pictures, Paquin Entertainment) was a two-time winner, taking Best Direction, Documentary Program for Madison Thomas; and Best Sound, Documentary or Factual for Stephen Paniccia, Kane Kirton, Daniel Pellerin, Chris Birkett, Michelle Irving and Elma Bello. Thomas directed the Ontario-Manitoba coproduction, about the titular Cree musician-activist, and shared writing credit with Andrea Warner.

Best Biography or Arts Documentary Program or Series went to Makeful’s The Kids in the Hall: Comedy Punks (Blue Ant Studios). Named in the honour were Michael MacMillan, Laura Michalchyshyn, Jennifer Harkness, Reginald Harkema, Paul Myers, Nicholas McKinney and Kimberley Creelman.

Lisa Rideout, Sam Dunn and Scot McFadyen took Best Documentary Program for W Network’s Sex with Sue (Banger Films).

Other winners at the in-person Toronto ceremony, put on buy the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television (the Canadian Academy), included Discovery Channel’s Underground Railroad: The Secret History (Attraction) for Best History Documentary Program or Series. Joey Case, Nicole Hamilton and Margot Daley were named in the honour.

The Rob Stewart Award for Best Science or Nature Documentary Program or Series went to Elliott Halpern and Elizabeth Trojian for CBC’s Ice and Fire: Tracking Canada’s Climate Crisis (Yap Films), while the Donald Brittain Award for Best Social/Political Documentary Program was presented to Drew Hayden Taylor and Paul Kemp for CBC’s The Pretendians (Counterfeit NDN Productions, in association with Paul Kemp Productions).

Landing the Best Writing, Factual honour was CBC’s Still Standing (Frantic Films), presented to Jonny Harris, Fraser Young, Graham Chittenden and Steve Dylan.

Best Cinematography in a Feature Length Documentary went to Nicholas de Pencier for The Colour of Ink (Sphinx Productions, NFB).

Kenya-Jade Pinto and Erin Chisholm of History’s Black Liberators WWII (Yap Films) took the Barbara Sears Award for Best Visual Research, and Patty vs. Patty nabbed the Best Short Documentary award, presented to Chris Strikes, Kate Fraser and Maya Annik Bedward.

The Canadian Academy is holding a total of seven ceremonies this week, culminating in Sunday’s pre-recorded broadcast show produced by Makers and hosted by comedian Samantha Bee on CBC.

Photo credit: George Pimentel Photography