Producers including Niv Fichman, Damon D’Oliveira and Denise Robert are among the nominees for the second annual CFTPA Feature Film Producer’s Award, announced earlier this week.

The award, which comes with a $10,000 cash prize, is presented in partnership with the Toronto International Film Festival. It acknowledges a producer who ‘demonstrates commitment and passion for the profession,’ and whose film is part of TIFF’s official selection.

Fichman is nom’d for the drama Silk, D’Oliveira for the Halifax-shot Poor Boy’s Game and Robert for Days of Darkness (L’âge des ténèbres), which will make its North American premiere as a gala on Sept. 12. Rounding out the nominees are Jennifer Jonas for the crime drama All Hat and Anna Stratton for Emotional Arithmetic, which closes the fest on Sept. 15.

A jury comprised of producers David Hamilton, Luc Déry, Peter Sussman and Lynne Stopkewich were tasked with selecting five nominees from a list of 30 eligible films.

‘The great thing about it is it just gives us extra exposure because we all struggle to get our films out to audiences, specifically English-Canadian audiences, so I think this award acknowledges the hidden contributions that producers make,’ D’Oliveira tells Playback Daily, adding that festivals tend to be director-driven.

D’Oliveira is currently working with distributor Seville Pictures on the promotional campaign for Poor Boy’s Game, helmed by Clement Virgo, which hits theaters on Oct. 5. The film premieres at TIFF as a Special Presentation on Sept. 11.

The winner of the CFTPA producer’s award will be announced at a reception on the opening of TIFF on Sept. 6.