It was another strange evening, topping last year’s cyber-tarts with more odd characters and technical glitches. The 1997 International Digital Media Awards, held May 7 at the Toronto Design Exchange, part of Multimedia 97 running May 7-9, saw major tech-snafus bring an odd irony to a long night and also saw several Canadian producers walk away with honors.

The show was hosted by ex-MuchMusic personality Steve Anthony, who turned in a valiant effort attempting to overcome the array of problems that plagued the ceremony, including a downed computer which delayed the start of the show for close to an hour.

The shiniest of Canadian digerati, including Shift editor and tv star Evan Solomon, Chantal Payette and Digital Media Studios founder Isabel Hoffman, were on hand to present awards to winners in five categories and seven craft areas.

In the category of World Wide Web sites, The Sports Network’s tsn.ca won the information/reference title as well as the games/entertainment subsection, while the Ontario Science Centre won in the education/training section and was also presented with the IMAT Award of Excellence. The Microsoft Network was the overall winner and won the general interest section of the category.

The People’s Choice Award for best Web site went to MediaLinx Interactive for its Healthyway health information site.

In the category of consumer cd-rom titles, the overall winner was Corbis’ Leonardo da Vinci, which also won the general-interest section. Microsoft’s Encarta 97 Encyclopedia won the reference section, Microsoft’s Nickelodeon 3D Movie Maker won the kids/edutainment prize and Origin Systems’ Wing Commander IV: The Price of Freedom won in the games/entertainment section.

For interactive installations and performance, Parks Canada, the Calgary Zoo and KJPI Film and Video took top prize in the commercial section for Windows on Wildlife: Grizzly Bear, with Lance Chilton presenting the award.

In the category of multimedia applications for corporate clients, Vancouver’s DNA Multimedia won the sales and marketing prize with ‘Nikon Coolpix 300 Imagine.’ Language Connect University was the overall winner in the category.

In the craft categories, best interface design went to Monro Multimedia/National Film Board for Making History: Louis Riel and the Northwest Rebellion, and Cirque du Soleil won best graphics for its Quidam CD Extra.

Microsoft’s The Microsoft Network took home Best of Show honors. And the Special Achievement Award, captured last year by Mainframe Entertainment’s ReBoot, went to u.k.-based Real World Multimedia.

Elsewhere at Multimedia 97, the show was reported a success with 25,000-plus attendees cruising the well-stocked show floor.

In seminars, some of the industry’s biggest guns discoursed on the current and future state of multimedia, which by many accounts is at a critical juncture.

Speaking on the evolving opportunities in multimedia, Ron Whittier, senior vp, gm Content Group at Intel, called this era the ‘golden age’ for multimedia developers. It is the age, says Whittier, of the visual connected pc, the capabilities of which he says will increase 10 times over in the next three years.

Whittier cited the explosion in content creation tools, including those arising from partnerships such as the recent alliance between Intel and Avid, which is supporting Intel’s new Pentium ii processor in its digital imaging gear, and the resulting growth in opportunities for developers.

Whittier pointed to a trend toward decreased viewing of linear media, with video rentals down 15% to 20% in homes with computers and tv viewing down 15% in homes equipped with an online service, and Internet users growing in numbers from 150 million to 200 million by the end of the decade.

In terms of playback, Whittier says at this stage developers are looking at providing rich local content stored locally, with realtime updates supplied via the Internet.

Whittier also discussed the onset of the pc theater whereby interactivity moves from two feet – i. e. the computer experience – to interactivity at 10 feet – a living room experience – as an important trend for multimedia developers.