While it’s no surprise to see CTV and Insight Productions’ Amazing Race Canada take home an armful of prizes on the first night of the Canadian Screen Awards, the second-place finisher of the night was more of a dark horse.

Songs of Freedom, produced and directed by Barbara Willis Sweete (formerly a principle at Rhombus Media and now spearheading her own prodco), snuck onto the podium with three prizes on night one of awards week. The cross-platform series includes a four-part TV series broadcast on Zoomer Media’s Vision TV, a 90-minute film, website and mobile app and features Canadian opera singer Measha Brueggergosman “in a stylistic blend of musical performance, historical documentary and personal journey.”

Songs took home Best Direction in a Documentary for Sweete, Best Picture Editing: Documentary Program or Series for David New and Best Sound, Non-Fiction Program or Series for Toronto’s Tattersall Sound and Picture.

Amazing Race Canada, crossing the finish line with four awards, took home the big prize, Best Reality / Competition Program or Series, as well as Best Direction in a Reality/Competition Series for Rob Brunner; Best Photography in a Lifestyle/Reality/Competition Series for Ryan Shaw; Best Picture Editing in a Reality/Competition Series for Seth Poulin, Jonathan Dowler, Ben O’Neil, Burak Ozgan and Michael Tersigni.

Also of note is two wins for The Great Human Odyssey, another documentary executed in an ambitious and innovative fashion. The series, which documents the origins of humanity, aired on CBC’s The Nature of Things in 2015 and is this year embarking on a North American live tour, in which it will host screenings with live narration and orchestral score. The series was nominated for four CSAs and took home Best Science or Nature Documentary Program or Series and fittingly, Best Original Music for a Non-Fiction Program or Series.

The now-cancelled Ice Pilots NWT snuck in under the wire with two wins: Best Writing in a Factual Program or Series for Samantha Beck and Best Direction in a Documentary or Factual Series for Matt Shewchuk. Also sitting pretty in the two wins category for the night were CTV’s The Marilyn Denis Show (Best Talk Program or Series and Best Direction in a Lifestyle or Information Program or Series for Bob Haller) and Tricks on the Dead: the Story of the Chinese Labour Corps in WWI, a 90-minute doc produced by Jordan Paterson and Zhan Jun that aired in a condensed version on Rogers Media’s OMNI channel. It took home Best Photography in a Documentary Program or Factual Series for Jordan Paterson and Norm Li and Best Production Design or Art Direction in a Non-Fiction Program or Series for Cole Paterson and Candise Paul.

The full list of winners is as follows:

• Barbara Sears Award for Best Editorial Research: the fifth estate – The Mob and Michael Degroote, CBC

• Barbara Sears Award for Best Visual Research: The Nature of Things: Jellyfish Rule!: CBC, Gina Cali

• Best Biography or Arts Doc Program or Series: Balletlujah, CBC, Corkscrew Media

• Best Cross-Platform Project (NF): Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (CBC), C. Walker, W. Wolfe-Wylie, Tiar Wilson, K. Ivany, M. Pereira

• Best Direction in a Doc or Factual Series: Ice Pilots NWT – D-Day, History/Shaw Media, Matt Shewchuk

• Best Direction in a Doc: Songs of Freedom, Vision TV, Zoomer Media, Barbara Willis Sweete

• Best Direction in a Lifestyle or Information Program or Series: The Marilyn Denis Show, CTV/Bell Media: Bob Haller

• Best Direction, Live Sporting Event “2015 IIHF World Junior Gold Medal” TSN/Bell Media, Andy Bouyoukos

• Best Direction in a Reality/Competition Series: Amazing Race Canada “Man I’ve Got a Big Butt” CTV/Bell Media, Rob Brunner

• Best Documentary Program: SOL, Super Channel, Arnait Video Productions, Marie-Hélène Cousineau, Stephane Rituit

• Best Factual Series, Still Standing, CBC, Frantic Films, Jamie Brown, Catherine Legge, Jeff Peeler

• Best History Documentary Program/Series: Vietnam: Canada’s Shadow War, CBC, Merit Motion Pictures, Merit Jensen Carr, Andy Blicq

• Best Host or Interviewer in a News or Information Program or Series CBC NN – Power & Politics, CBC, Rosemary Barton,

• Best Lifestyle Program or Series, Income Property, HGTV Canada, Shaw Media, Scripps Networks Interactive, SKIT Inc., Jennifer Dick, Kit Redmond, Scott McGillivray, Toni Miceli, Jenna Keane

• Best Live Entertainment Special, The JUNO Awards 2015, CTV, Insight Productions

• Best Live Sports Event, 2015 FIFA Women’s World Cup, TSN, Bell Media, Jim Panousis, Steve Abitrante

• Best News or Information Program: CBC News: Marketplace – Licence to Deceive, CBC

• Best News or Information Series, 16×9, Global/Shaw Media, Laurie Few, Carolyn Jarvis

• Best Original Interactive Production Produced for Digital Media: Highrise: Universe Within, NFB, Secret Location

• Best Original Music, Non-Fiction Program/Series: The Great Human Odyssey “Rise of a Species,” CBC, Darren Fung

• Best Original Program/Series for Digital Media – Non-Fiction: VICE Canada Reports, Patrick Mcguire

• Best Photography, Doc Program/Factual Series: Tricks on the Dead: The Story of the Chinese Labour Corps in WWI, OMNI, Jordan Paterson, Norm Li

• Best Photography, Lifestyle/Reality/Competition show: Amazing Race Canada “Take Your Clue and Gooo! CTV, Ryan Shaw

• Best Photography: News/Info Program/Series/Segment: CBC News: The National “Losing Liberia”, Jean-Francois Bisson

• Best Picture Editing: Documentary Program or Series: Songs of Freedom, Vision TV, David New

• Best Picture Editing, Factual Program/Series: Hockey Wives “Married to the Game” W Net/Corus, Al Manson

• Best Picture Editing, Reality/Comp: Amazing Race Canada “Who’s Feeling Sporty Now” S. Poulin, J. Dowler, B. O’Neil, B. Ozgan, M. Tersigni

• Best Production Design/Art Direction Non-Fiction: “Tricks on the Dead…” OMNI/Rogers Media, Cole Paterson, Candise Paul

• Best Reality/Competition Program or Series: The Amazing Race Canada, CTV, Insight Productions

• Best Science or Nature Doc Program/Series: The Great Human Odyssey, CBC, Clearwater Documentary, Niobe Thompson

• Best Sound, Non-Fiction Program or Series: Songs of Freedom, Vision TV/Zoomer Media, Tattersall Sound & Picture

• Best Sports Program or Series: Defector, Sportsnet/Rogers Media, Marc Leblanc, Jeremy McElhanney

• Best Talk Program or Series: The Marilyn Denis Show, CTV, Bell Media, John Simpson, Michelle Crespi

• Best Writing: Doc Program or Series: 15 to Life: Kenneth’s Story, iChannel (Stornoway Communications), Nadine Pequeneza

• Best Writing: Factual Program or Series, Ice Pilots NWT – D-Day, History Channel Canada (Shaw Media), Samantha Beck

• Best Writing, Lifestyle/Reality/Competition Series: Survivorman Bigfoot, “Legend of Klemtu Hill”, OLN, Science Channel, Les Stroud

• Donald Brittain Award, Best Social/Political Doc: Sugar Coated, TVO, The Cutting Factory, Michele Hozer, Janice Dawe

• Best Local Newscast: CTV News Vancouver at 6, CTV, Bell Media, Ethan Faber, Les Staff, Rhonda Fuller, Len Catling, Charles Wright

• Best National Newscast: CTV National News with Lisa LaFlamme, CTV, Bell Media, David Hughes, Rosa Hwang, Allan Black, Mark Borchiver, Lisa LaFlamme

• Best News Anchor, Local: CBC News: Vancouver at 6, CBC, Andrew Chang

• Best News Anchor, National: CBC News Network with Ian Hanomansing, CBC, Ian Hanomansing

• Best News Special: Decision Alberta 2015, Global, Shaw Media, Kenton Boston, Chris Bassett, Michael Fulmes, Michael Hennigar, Deb Zinck, Michel Gosselin, Lisa Geddes

• Best Reportage, Local: Taxi Assault, Global, Shaw Media, Nancy Hixt, Dani Lantela, Lee Dillman

• Best Reportage, National: CBC News: The National – Ebola, CBC, Adrienne Arsenault