Playback is throwing open the doors to its 5 to Watch nominations once again.

We’re looking for the next big talent in the Canadian screen production industry – and we need you to help us find it.

Playback values all the professions that make up Canada’s dynamic screen industry, however, this year we are doing things a little differently. The 2018 5 to Watch feature will focus exclusively on up-and-coming talents in the following categories: writers, directors, producers, executive producers/showrunners and rising talent at production companies or broadcasters. Screen talent will be highlighted in its own sub-category and nominations will continue to be accepted.

We recognize the value in the 5 to Watch list’s historic diversity of professions, but as the Canadian industry has grown bigger (both in domestic and foreign production) so too has the pool of people vying for the five spots and we feel that this will allow the list to reflect a greater breadth of diversity of all kinds (gender, regional geography, race, genre specialty, etc) within a narrower range of professions. And we plan to keep spotlighting other areas of the business, just in different ways.

Now, down to business: who qualifies? The 5 to Watch criteria remain exactly the same and are as follows: Those who have made a significant impact or achieved remarkable success in the first few years of their career.  Age is not a restriction but the length of time a nominee has been working in their field is. Mid-career and well-established professionals will NOT be eligible, even if their success is more recent.

How do I know if my nominee is eligible?

– Take a moment to consider their career path: is their success recent and early in their career?

– Is this person already well-established on the industry’s radar? Or is it someone who’s about to be on everyone’s radar?

– If they’ve won industry awards/accolades for their current profession, are they fairly recent (within the last two to three years)?

– Have they been on other similar lists and if so, was that a long time ago? If they are still in the same career, they are likely not eligible.

Submit your nominations here 

Deadline: All nominations are due by June 15 at 11:59 p.m.

Photo by Evan Kirby on Unsplash