TFCA unveils 2023 Canadian film nominees in split categories

The 27th annual film awards also saw BlackBerry's Glenn Howerton win the first-ever award for performance in a Canadian film.

The Toronto Film Critics Association (TFCA) unveiled the winners of its 27th annual awards and the nominees for the newly-split Canadian film categories.

This year, Rogers has divided its $100,000 award fund into two $50,000 prizes: the Rogers Best Canadian Film and Rogers Best Canadian Documentary.

The finalists chosen for Rogers Best Canadian Film are BlackBerry (Rhombus Media, Zapruder Films; pictured), Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person (Art et essai) and Solo (Bravo Charlie).

The nominees for Rogers Best Canadian Documentary are Rojek (Metafilms), Someone Lives Here (LaRue Entertainment) and Swan Song (Visitor Media, Mercury Films, Quiet Ghost). The two runners up in each category will receive $5,000.

The winners of the two categories – as well as the Company 3 Luminary Award, the Stella Artois Jay Scott Prize for an emerging artist, and the Telefilm Canada Emerging Critic Award – are all to be announced at the TFCA gala on March 4, 2024, hosted by Amanda Brugel (The Handmaid’s Tale).

The TFCA also introduced a new category, Outstanding Performance in a Canadian Film, won by Glenn Howerton for BlackBerry.

In a move towards inclusivity, the TFCA abolished gender-based acting categories for 2023, recognizing two lead and supporting performances without gender distinctions. Lily Gladstone and Sandra Hüller won Outstanding Lead Performances for their roles in Killers of the Flower Moon and Anatomy of a Fall, respectively, while Canadian actor Ryan Gosling and Da’Vine Joy Randolph secured Outstanding Supporting Performances for Barbie and The Holdovers.

Jonathan Glazer’s The Zone of Interest claimed Best Picture and Best Director.

A full list of winners and credits is available on the TFCA website.

Image courtesy of Elevation Pictures