It was a “soulful” night one at the Canadian Screen Awards Tuesday as nominees vied for the chance to make their way to the stage for trophies across the documentary, reality, lifestyle, news, sports, and digital media categories.

With Motown the theme of the night and performances by American soul singer Thelma Houston, the night’s big winner was Rhombus Media and Film House’s Our Man in Tehran, which took home the most trophies (by title) with five Screenies in its haul.

The documentary, which profiles the true story of Canada’s role in the 1980 Iranian hostage crisis, took home awards for best photography, picture editing, sound and direction in a documentary, and best documentary program overall.

Hot on its heels was Ric Esther Bienstock’s already multiple-award-winning documentary Tales from the Organ Trade, which took four trophies home, including best music, writing, editorial research and the Donald Brittain Award for Best Social/Political Documentary Program.

Also earning multiple trophies was Insight Productions and CTV’s The Amazing Race Canada, with three wins, TSN’s Grey Cup coverage with two wins and TVO/Knowledge Network’s Apocalypse WWI from Ideacom international and CC&C with two wins. RTR Media and HGTV’s Income Property also picked up two trophies. 

As well, the Canadian Screen Awards Diversity Award (sponsored by Playback) went to documentary The Exhibition by Damon Vignale, which focused on one woman’s fight to bring the plight of missing Aboriginal women into the spotlight, and the CSA’s Humanitarian Award went to sports host Michael Landsberg, for his work raising awareness of mental health.

On the digital side, Secret Location once again swept the cross-platform categories, as the Toronto-based digital agency took home the Best Cross-Platform Project – Children’s and Youth award for Grojband – The Show Must Go On!, Best Cross-Platform Project – Fiction for Played – Interference, and Big Brother Canada Digital for Best Cross-Platform Project – Non-Fiction.

Also taking home a trophy and providing the entertainment highlight of the night was a troop of Toronto high school students (pictured) from Shaftesbury and TVO’s Unsung: Behind the Glee, which took home the win for Best Biography or Arts Documentary Program or Series.

Night one of the Canadian Screen Awards took place in the Sheraton Hotel in Toronto.

The full list of winners is as follows; to see who each winner competed against, check out our CSAs Nominations Primer.

Barbara Sears Award for Best Editorial Research

Tales From The Organ Trade / History Channel Canada (Shaw Media) / Ric Esther Bienstock, Sheila Mandell, Anastasia Trofimova

Barbara Sears Award for Best Visual Research

Apocalypse WWI – Fury / TVO / Knowledge Network / Valerie Combard, Elizabeth Klinck

Best Biography or Arts Documentary Program or Series

UNSUNG: Behind the Glee / TVO  / Shaftesbury / Scott Garvie, Christina Jennings, Moze Mossanen, Jeff Spriet

Best Cross-Platform Project – Children’s and Youth

Grojband – The Show Must Go On! / (Secret Location, Fresh TV) / Noora Abu Eitah, Ryan Andal, Pietro Gagliano, Tom McGillis, James Milward

Best Cross-Platform Project – Fiction

Played – Interference / Secret Location, Bell Media, Back Alley Film Productions / Ryan Andal, Lisa Collings, Melonie de Guzman, Marty Flanagan, Pietro Gagliano, Janis Lundman, James Milward, Greg Nelson, Chris Skinner, Lindsay Zier-Vogel

Best Cross-Platform Project – Non-Fiction

Big Brother Canada Digital / Secret Location / Ryan Andal, Lynne Carter, Michala Duffield, Zach Feldberg, Sean Fernie, Pietro Gagliano, CJ Hervey, Cynthia Long, James Milward, Emily Morgan, Christine Shipton

Best Direction in a Documentary or Factual Series

Wild Canada – The Eternal Frontier / CBC / Jeff Turner

Best Direction in a Documentary Program

Our Man in Tehran / TMN / Movie Central (Bell Media / Corus Entertainment) / Drew Taylor, Larry Weinstein

Best Direction in a Lifestyle/Practical Information Program or Series

Income Property – Jamie / HGTV Canada (Shaw Media) / Marc Simard

Best Direction in a Live Sporting Event

2013 Grey Cup / TSN (Bell Media) / Paul Hemming

Best Direction in a Reality / Competition Program or Series

The Amazing Race Canada – What’s it Take to Get a Cup of Tea / CTV (Bell Media) / Rob Brunner

Best Documentary Program

Our Man in Tehran / TMN / Movie Central; Bell Media, Corus Entertainment / Rhombus Media Inc., Film House Inc. / Niv Fichman, Drew Taylor, Larry Weinstein

Best Factual Program or Series

Ice Pilots NWT / History Channel Canada; Shaw Media / Omnifilm Entertainment / Michael Chechik, David Gullason, Gabriela Schonbach

Best History Documentary Program or Series

Apocalypse WWI / TVO / Knowledge Network / Ideacom international, CC&C / Josée Roberge, Eric Michel, Josette D. Normandeau, Louis Vaudeville, Pascale Ysebaert

Best Host or Interviewer in a News or Information Program or Series

W5 / CTV (Bell Media) / Tom Kennedy

Best Lifestyle or Talk Program or Series

Income Property  / HGTV Canada (Shaw Media) / SKIT / Jennifer Dick, Jenna Keane, Al Magee, Scott McGillivray, Kit Redmond

Best Live Sports Event

Olympics – Gold Medal Hockey Game – Women  CBC (CBC) / (CBC) / Chris Irwin, Brian Spear

Best Local Newscast

CBC News: Toronto / CBC (CBC)  / Dwight Drummond, Dayna Gourley, Alan Habbick, Anne-Marie Mediwake, Alexandra Sienkiewicz  

Best National Newscast

Global National / Global (Shaw Media) / (Global News) / Kenton Boston, Dawna Friesen, Michael Hennigar, Doug Sydora, Doriana Temolo

Best News Anchor, Local

Global BC News Hour / Global BC (Shaw Media) / Chris Gailus

Best News or Information Program

CBC News: the fifth estate – Made in Bangladesh / (CBC) / Tarannum Kamlani, Mark Kelley, Lysanne Louter, Aileen McBride

Best News or Information Segment

W5 – The War Zone / CTV (Bell Media) / Mary Dartis, Garry Dwyer-Joyce, Paul Freer, Denis Langlois, Victor Malarek, Jerry Vienneau

Best News or Information Series

CBC News: the fifth estate / CBC (CBC) / (CBC News) / Julian Sher, Jim Williamson

Best News Special

CBC News: Moncton Shooting – The Capture of Justin Bourque / CBC / (CBC News: The National, CBC News Network, CBC New Brunswick) / Derek Desouza, Mark Harrison, Darrow MacIntyre, Mark Ross, Kate Scroggins

Best Original Interactive Production Produced for Digital Media

 Fort McMoney / (TOXA, NFB) / David Dufresne, Raphaëlle Huysmans, Philippe Lamarre, Hugues Sweeney

Best Original Music for a Non-Fiction Program or Series

Tales From The Organ Trade / History Channel Canada (Shaw Media) / John Welsman

Best Original Program or Series produced for Digital Media – Non-Fiction

A Short History of the Highrise / (The New York Times, NFB) / Katerina Cizek, Gerry Flahive, Jacqueline Myint, Jason Spingarn-Koff

Best Photography in a Documentary Program or Factual Series

Our Man in Tehran / TMN / Movie Central (Bell Media / Corus Entertainment) / John Minh Tran

Best Photography in a Lifestyle or Reality / Competition Program or Series

Survivorman – Survivorman: Argentina / Travel & Escape / Science Channel (Blue Ant Media Production Inc/Discovery Communications LLC) / Max Attwood

Best Photography in a News or Information Program, Series or Segment

16×9 – Lev Tahor / Global (Shaw Media) / Kirk Neff

Best Picture Editing in a Documentary Program or Series

Our Man in Tehran / TMN / Movie Central (Bell Media / Corus Entertainment) / Steve Weslak

Best Picture Editing in a Factual Program or Series

Mayday – Into the Eye of the Storm / Discovery Channel Canada (Bell Media) / Daniel Hawkes

Best Picture Editing in a Reality/Competition Program or Series

The Amazing Race Canada – What’s it Take to Get a Cup of Tea / CTV (Bell Media) / Jonathan Dowler, Al Manson, Kyle Martin, Seth Poulin, Michael Tersigni

Best Production Design or Art Direction in a Non-Fiction Program or Series

Big Brother Canada – Finale / Slice (Shaw Media) / Peter Faragher, Andy Roskaft, Sandra Svendsen

Best Reportage, Local

Mount Polley Mine Disaster / Global (Shaw Media) / John Daly, Jas Johal, Marc Riddell

Best Reportage, National

CTV News – They Would Bury the Children Last / CTV (Bell Media) / Janis Mackey Frayer

Best Science or Nature Documentary Program or Series

The Nature of Things – Invasion of the Brain Snatchers / CBC / Radio-Canada (CBC /Radio-Canada) / (CBC / Radio-Canada) / Sue Dando, Mike Downie, FM Morrison, David Wells

Best Sound in a Documentary, Factual or Lifestyle Program or Series

Our Man in Tehran  / TMN / Movie Central (Bell Media / Corus Entertainment) / Martin Lee, David McCallum, Sanjay Mehta, Brennan Mercer, Jane Tattersall

Best Sports Analyst in a Sports Program or Series

2014 NHL Playoffs – Game 7- Los Angeles/Anaheim / TSN (Bell Media) / Ray Ferraro

Best Sports Feature Segment

Re/Orientation / TSN (Bell Media) / Brent Blanchard, Mike Farrell, Paul Harrington, Josh Shiaman, Ken Volden, Aaron Ward

Best Sports Opening/Tease

2013 Grey Cup / TSN; Bell Media / Matt Dunn, Owen Ewers, Michael Farber, George Hupka

Best Sports Play-by-Play Announcer

2014 Sochi Winter Olympic Games / CBC (CBC) / Jim Hughson

Best Sports Program or Series

What If: The Unlikely Story of Toronto’s Baseball Giants

Sportsnet / Rogers Media / (Fadoo Productions Inc, TBJ 2014 Docs Inc. / Corey Russell

Best Writing in a Documentary Program or Factual Series

 Tales From The Organ Trade / History Channel Canada (Shaw Media) / Ric Esther Bienstock

Best Writing in a Lifestyle or Reality / Competition Program or Series

The Amazing Race Canada / What’s it Take to Get a Cup of Tea / CTV; Bell Media / Rob Brunner, Mark Lysakowski

Donald Brittain Award for Best Social/Political Documentary Program

Tales From The Organ Trade / History Channel Canada; Shaw Media / Associated Producers Ltd. / Ric Esther Bienstock, Felix Golubev, Simcha Jacobovici

Photo credit: Academy.ca/credits G.Pimentel Photography