Fan Choice Digital Content Creator Award voting closes on September 27 at 6 p.m. ET
TORONTO, September 19, 2024 – Shamier Anderson and Stephan James, Scarborough, ON, natives and co-founders of The Black Academy, alongside CBC, Insight Productions, and Bay Mills Studios today announced that TIFF CEO Cameron Bailey will receive the Visionary Award. Bailey joins previously announced recipients Kardinal Offishall and Weyni Mengesha. Hosted by Adrian Holmes, The Legacy Awards broadcasts live on CBC and CBC Gem on Sunday, September 29 at 8 p.m. (9 p.m. AT/9:30 p.m. NT). The show features performances, award presentations, and tributes honouring both established and emerging Black Canadian talent. Performers and presenters will be announced in the coming days.
Voting for the Legacy Awards Fan Choice Digital Content Creator Award closes on September 27 at 6 p.m. ET. This award allows fans to choose their favourite Black-identifying Canadian digital content creators. This year’s nominees are: Access By Tay (Toronto); Citron Rose (Montréal); OT The OG (Toronto); Queeny Kuffour (Toronto); Ryan Holtz (Edmonton); and Toni Olaoye (Toronto). The winner will be announced during The Legacy Awards on September 29. Visit vote.blackacademy.ca for more details.
“Cameron has been an undeniable force and tastemaker in the international film community for decades now, and for his entire career he has championed Black filmmakers,” said Shamier Anderson, Co-Founder, The Black Academy. “His stewardship of TIFF is unprecedented, and we’re absolutely thrilled to honour all that he has accomplished.”
Cameron Bailey – 2024 Visionary Award
For his consummate leadership of a major international arts institution and the largest public film festival in the world, for pushing Black filmmakers to the foreground of the cultural conversation, and for building audiences for those filmmakers through his work both as a film critic and as a programmer at TIFF, Cameron Bailey will receive the Visionary Award.
Cameron Bailey is the Chief Executive Officer of TIFF and the Toronto International Film Festival. He directs the vision, strategy and overall management of one of Canada’s premier cultural brands, responsible for presenting the world’s largest public film festival each September. Bailey is a voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and a Chevalier in France's Order of Arts and Letters. For 12 years (2012–2023), Toronto Life magazine has named him one of Toronto’s 50 Most Influential People. Born in London, Bailey grew up in England and Barbados before migrating to Canada. He began his career as a film critic, then joined TIFF in 1990 as a seasonal programmer. At TIFF he headed the Festival's Perspective Canada program, and founded its Planet Africa section in 1995, curating a selection of new films from the African continent and diaspora. For 20 years, he worked as both programmer and critic, contributing to Toronto's NOW Magazine, CBC Radio One, TVO and CTV’s Canada AM. He has been published in The Globe and Mail, The Village Voice and the UK's Screen, as well as in several books. Bailey has taught film curation at the University of Toronto, and holds an honorary Doctor of Laws from Western University. Bailey has organized film series for festivals and institutions and has hosted filmmaker conversations at industry events, including in Cannes, Goa, Dubai and Doha.
The Legacy Awards is executive produced by Shamier Anderson and Stephan James of The Black Academy and Bay Mills Studios. John Brunton, Lindsay Cox, and Shannon Farr are the executive producers for Insight Productions (a Boat Rocker company) and Jordan Rudder is the producer/talent producer. Daniel Abrams also serves as EP. For CBC, Sally Catto is General Manager, Entertainment, Factual & Sports; Jennifer Dettman is Executive Director, Unscripted Content; and Nic Meloney is Executive in Charge of Production, Unscripted Content. The Black Academy, Insight Productions, and CBC are committed to hiring Black senior staff and crew members for The Legacy Awards.
Social Media:
@blackisnowcanada
@legacyawardsca
@insight.productions / @insightprod
@CBC / @CBCGem
#TheLegacyAwardsCBC
#TheBlackAcademy
#CelebrateBlackCanadians
The Black Academy is a national, year-round Canadian organization that operates at the intersection of Black popular culture and social justice. The goals of The Black Academy are to showcase Black excellence and to share those achievements with all of Canada; to establish new spaces for Black Canadians to celebrate and network; and to kickstart careers through training and knowledge-sharing. Across all our initiatives, we inspire young people and generations to come. Co-founded by actors, producers, and Scarborough-born brothers Shamier Anderson and Stephan James, The Black Academy is born out of a longstanding commitment to their community and is dedicated to dismantling systemic racism in Canada. Gail Case serves as its Executive Director. Established in 2020, The Black Academy is based in Toronto and is a division of the not-for-profit B.L.A.C.K Canada. https://blackisnow.com; Instagram: @BLACKISNOWCANADA
About CBC/Radio-Canada
CBC/Radio-Canada is Canada’s national public broadcaster. Through our mandate to inform, enlighten and entertain, we play a central role in strengthening Canadian culture. As Canada’s trusted news source, we offer a uniquely Canadian perspective on news, current affairs and world affairs. Our distinctively homegrown entertainment programming draws audiences from across the country. Deeply rooted in communities, CBC/Radio-Canada offers diverse content in English, French and eight Indigenous languages. We also deliver content in Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Punjabi and Tagalog, as well as both official languages, through Radio Canada International (RCI). We are leading the transformation to meet the needs of Canadians in a digital world.
About Insight Productions (A Boat Rocker Company)
Insight Productions is Canada’s most established content producer, known for its award-winning ratings juggernauts and many of the country’s biggest award shows & music specials. Headed by John Brunton, Insight is an industry leader in the development, financing, and production of both scripted and unscripted hit programming. John Brunton, Lindsay Cox, and Shannon Farr serve as executive producers on The Legacy Awards and Jordan Rudder is the producer/talent producer. Programming highlights include Stronger Together, Tous Ensemble, The JUNO Awards, The Canadian Screen Awards, The Amazing Race Canada, Big Brother Canada, Top Chef Canada, Canada Day 150! From Coast to Coast to Coast, and Canada’s Ultimate Challenge. In 2016, Insight produced The Tragically Hip: A National Celebration for CBC, a live concert special seen by one in three Canadians. Insight Productions was founded in 1979 and has since created thousands of hours of ground-breaking content. https://insighttv.com
About Bay Mills Studios
Bay Mills Studios is a cutting-edge production company founded by powerhouse brothers and actors Shamier Anderson & Stephan James. BMS is focused on showcasing an eclectic and inclusive lineup of diverse stories from feature films, scripted and unscripted TV, short-form, digital media and a panoply of other platform-agnostic content. Shamier and Stephan combine their creative expertise and ability to engage global audiences, to create ground-breaking content that pushes the boundaries all while being rooted in entertainment.
Media Contacts:
Gabrielle Free | Free Publicity (for The Black Academy & Insight Productions)
GabFree.Publicity@gmail.com | 416-220-0201
Winston Ma | CBC PR
winston.ma@cbc.ca | 647-327-7408
