49th Rose d'Or Award Winners announced
Lucerne, Switzerland (ots)
The 49th Rose d'Or closed this evening at a glittering awards ceremony in Lucerne with a major triumph for Canada, which is taking home five Golden Roses including the prestigious Honorary Rose d'Or presented to Sheena Macdonald, Director of Special Projects at The Canadian Film Centre (CFC) and writer/producer George Anthony.
The coveted Best of 2009 Golden Rose, chosen from the winners of the ten categories, went to I Survived a Japanese Game Show from the US.
International stars including Anatole Taubman (Quantum Of Solace), Sofia Milos (CSI: Miami) and Jennifer Gareis (The Bold And The Beautiful) presented the awards at the event, hosted by American actor and comedian Maz Jobrani.
Presenting the Honorary Roses, Festival Director Urban Frye said: "Sheena and George have made outstanding contributions during their careers. Their extraordinary achievements demonstrate the value of embracing quality, originality and creativity."
The Festival has seen a major return this year from important international broadcasters and institutions. The closing day also saw major conference sessions such as Stand and Deliver: Creating Public Value in a New Media Economy, organized in collaboration with the Adolf Grimme Academy, The European Journalism Centre Maastricht and the Cologne Conference, featuring industry luminaries such as the Academy's Director Günter Clobes and the BBC's Alan Yentob, as well as FRAPA (the Format Recognition and Protection Association) previewing its important new report on the global format industry.
There has been a strong focus on performing arts at this year's Festival with highlights including a Performing Arts on Prime Time panel and public screenings of Don Giovanni Unmasked and El Sistema.
The newly formed Rose d'Or Advisory Board met for the first time and discussed how the Festival's 50th anniversary next year would be celebrated, and, according to its president John Gough, "how we can move forward to embrace ther next 50 years."
This year's festival also saw the launch of the Rose d'Or Academy at which 10 students had the chance to direct, shoot and edit a live recording of Swiss band Pegasus. The finished product was judged by course instructors - marketing and production expert Jon Diamond, Managing Director LipSync and award-winning director David G.Croft - who selected Daniel Farrèr's video to be screened at the Awards Ceremony, and win the cash prize of 2000 CHF.
"This was an incredibly difficult decision as the enthusiasm and quality of work of the students would put many professionals to shame," said Diamond and Croft. "They are all winners and we are proud to be part of the inaugural Rose d'Or Academy."
The competition set a new record with 424 programmes entered by 170 companies from 33 countries. From these, a pre-selection jury nominated 79 programmes from 53 companies and 18 countries to compete in their respective categories.
A high-profile group of 25 jury members from 22 countries narrowed this field to the winners in each of the following ten categories: Arts Documentary, Comedy, Drama, Sitcom, Entertainment, Game Show, Performing Arts, Reality and the newly introduced Multi Platform and Pitch Pilot.
"The Rose's true strength is its incredible breadth, with the largest international jury to meet in one place," said Urban Frye, "Programmes are judged on Originality, Creativity and Quality, and this year's winner clearly demonstrates the broad international perspective of the Rose d'Or jury"
The winners are as follows:
BEST OF 2009
I Survived A Japanese Gameshow (US)
Production Company: A. Smith & Co. Productions Broadcaster/Distributor: Small World IFT
Nine unsuspecting westerners travel to Tokyo to compete in hilarious Japanese game shows, while immersing themselves in cultural excursions and living together in a Japanese apartment. Their entire upside-down-world experience is captured on television. It's an outrageous combination of Real World meets Lost in Translation, and there is no predicting who will end up with the honor of being Big in Japan, winning piles of Japanese yen!
ARTS DOCUMENTARY
The Curse of Mona Lisa (UK)
Production Company: Oxford Film & Television Broadcaster/Distributor: Channel 4
The Mona Lisa Curse, the first film in Channel 4's three-part Art and Money season, is a timely polemic by internationally renowned art critic Robert Hughes which examines how the world's most famous painting came to influence the art world. With his trademark style, Hughes explores how museums, the production of art and the way we experience it, have radically changed in the last 50 years.
COMEDY
Rick Mercer Report (Canada)
Production Company: Island Edge Broadcaster/Distributor: Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Rick Mercer Report is a half hour comedy that takes a satiric look at the week's events, lampoons annoying, over-played commercials, and travels across the country to talk with celebrities and ordinary Canadians alike. In this episode, Rick experiences zero gravity at the Canadian Space Agency. Also, Rick visits Canada's leading recycling program in Edmonton.
DRAMA
Windfall & Misfortunes (Canada)
Production Company: Locomotion Television Broadcaster/Distributor: Distraction Formats
This is a true story about the rise and fall of a dysfunctional family that strike gold when they win the lottery. On April 1st, 1986, Jean-Guy Lavigueur and his family won 7.6 million dollars. It was the largest amount ever won at Loto-Quebec's weekly drawing. What could have been the start of a fairytale rapidly turned into a nightmare. A modern Cinderella story. The castle has been replaced by a huge lottery draw. Still, 'at midnight' the fairytale switches back to reality.
ENTERTAINMENT
The Anthill (Spain)
Production Company: 7 y acciòn Broadcaster/Distributor: 7 y acciòn
The anthill its a atypical live TV show daily programme which contains a lot of sections in the program and that makes the program very dynamic and as said before very atypical. The programme contains every day sections like: humor monolog, today's news, science section and a lot of humor
GAME SHOW
Relentless (UK)
Production Company: Zig Zag Productions Broadcaster/Distributor: ITV Global Entertainment
Relentless is a chaotic 48-hours reality game show where questions will be asked at any time, any place, anywhere. Contestants will sign up for the show but they'll have no idea when it will start. They do know, however, that when it does start, it'll be relentless! In each show one contestant's life will be totally hi-jacked when they'll be asked 10 questions in 48 hours - these questions will come when they're least expecting them!
PERFORMING ARTS
The Eternity Man (Australia)
Production Company: Goalpost Pictures & Illumination Broadcaster/Distributor: Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Eternity Man is a film opera like no other; in a universal tale of hope and redemption, a lonely man consumed with self-loathing and religious zeal, wanders the streets of Sydney writing the word 'Eternity' on the pavements in an immaculate, copperplate hand. Based on the 2003 Opera, The Eternity Man is a unique film where words, music and moving images combine to create something both startling and new - 'The Eternity Man' excites the senses.
PERFORMING ARTS - SPECIAL MENTION
La Traviata At Zurich Main Station (Switzerland)
Produced by: SF Schweizer Fernsehen Broadcaster/Distributor: SF Schweizer Fernsehen
In September 2008 commuters at Switzerland's busiest railway terminal have been surprised with a live performance of Verdi's La Traviata. Zurich's station remained open for business, while the soloists, the choir and the orchestra of Zurich opera house, conducted by Paolo Carignani, Performed around the passengers. La Traviata in Zurich main station" brought Verdi's tragic love story to a daily stage and became the most successful culture programme ever produced by National Swiss Television.
MULTI PLATFORM
MI High, Whack The Mole, The MI High Alternate Reality Game (Canada)
Production Company: Xenophile Media Broadcaster/Distributor: BBC
Whack the Mole, The MI High Alternate Reality Game, was created to enhance the viewer's connection to the second season of MI High. Thirteen online episodes linked to thirteen episodes on TV broadcast from January to April 2008. The interactive experience brings the world of MI High to life; offering viewers the chance to become an MI High Field Agent, literally joining the MI High Team, foiling villains and solving cases of vital importance to the British secret service.
PITCH PILOT
The Telephone (Canada)
Production Company: Productions Pixcom Inc Broadcaster/Distributor: Productions Pixcom Inc
Le Téléphone is the meeting of two publicly-known personalities who talk on the phone from two different locations. Each show features three phone calls on different topics. Whether hilarious, light, serious or unconventional, the conversations between these twosomes (sometimes threesomes) are lively, with people cutting in and talking at the same time. Captivated, the viewer listens in, curious, amused, hanging on to every word in anticipation of what they will say next.
REALITY
I Survived A Japanese Gameshow (US)
Production Company: A. Smith & Co. Productions Broadcaster/Distributor: Small World IFT
Nine unsuspecting westerners travel to Tokyo to compete in hilarious Japanese game shows, while immersing themselves in cultural excursions and living together in a Japanese apartment. Their entire upside-down-world experience is captured on television. It's an outrageous combination of Real World meets Lost in Translation, and there is no predicting who will end up with the honor of being Big in Japan, winning piles of Japanese yen!
SITCOM
My Family (UK)
Production Company: DLT Entertainment/ Rude Boy Broadcaster/Distributor: DLT Entertainment
Michael finds Abi's note saying she's become a nun and asking Ben/Susan to break the news to husband, Roger. Susan meets Roger in a restaurant to tell him. Ben's convinced he'll go ballistic; Susan thinks he'll cry. Janey thinks her new boyfriend Ron is married, so sends Michael on a dirt digging mission. However, it's not a wife he lives with, it's his mum! Roger decides he has to visit Abi and wants Ben to go with him to the convent. Ben comes up with a plan to gain entrance to the convent.
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