Banff World Media Festival
| Banff World Media Festival | |
|---|---|
| Frequency | Annual |
| Location(s) | Banff, Alberta, Canada. |
| Inaugurated | 1980 as the Banff World Television Festival[1] |
| Website | |
|
www | |
The Banff World Media Festival (formerly known as the Banff World Television Festival) is an international media event held in the Canadian Rockies at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel in Banff, Alberta, Canada. The festival is dedicated to world television and digital content and its creation and development.
As well as honouring excellence in international television, professionals from around the world participate in seminars, master classes, and pitching opportunities. Film directors, screen-writers, and producers from PBS, BBC, NHK, ARTE, Channel 4, ABC, Sony Pictures, HBO, CBC, NFB, ICP (Israel Cable Programming), SBS and many other broadcasters and production companies attend the annual event.[2]
Described as "the Olympics of television", the festival provides a global platform for industry members to discuss and debate, and explore current issues, challenges and trends.[3]
Awards
The festival features an international program competition, the Banff Rockie Awards, which are broadcast on CBC. Past winners include PBS for The Hobart Shakespeareans and No Direction Home: Bob Dylan, ICP for Aaron Cohen's Debt, BBC and HBO for The Children of Beslan, NHK for Children Full of Life, BBC and WGBH for Bleak House, and ARTE for Fellini: I'm a Born Liar.
The awards ceremony also bestows the Sir Peter Ustinov Comedy Award. Past recipients of the award include John Cleese, Dame Edna, Bob Newhart, Martin Short, Tracey Ullman, Kelsey Grammer, Ricky Gervais, Craig Ferguson, Shane Smith, and Suroosh Alvi. Jan Randall was Music Director and Composer for the awards from 1995-2007.
See also
- Festivals in Alberta
- List of television festivals
References
- ↑ Barry Turner, ed. (2008). "Festivals". The Screenwriter's Handbook. New York: St. Martin's Griffin. p. 267. ISBN 0312379544. Retrieved 2013-04-20.
- ↑ "CBC Executives at Banff" The Star
- ↑ ARTE Magazine, Issue 39, 23 November 2006, p. 30.
External links
Coordinates: 51°09′51″N 115°33′41″W / 51.1641°N 115.5615°W