Rob Sim, President and CEO of the SIM Group of Companies, today announced that Alexandra Raffé, Vice President of Production for Thunderbird Films, is the recipient of the 2015 Douglas James Dales Industry Builder Award. The award was presented to Raffé at the annual PS Dinner on the Hill, held during the Canadian Media Production Association Prime Time Conference in Ottawa.
“PS takes great pride in honouring Alexandra as this year’s recipient of the Douglas James Dales Industry Builder Award,” said Sim. “She has worked tirelessly over many years to help filmmakers achieve their visions and to foster a vibrant production community. She truly embodies the spirit of Canadian filmmaking.”
As a long-time advocate for the advancement of Canadian film and television, Raffé has spent many years building organizations that ensure feature films get made in Canada and are seen around the world. An active member in the industry, she is the former CEO of the Ontario Film Development Corporation and has served on the boards of Film Ontario, the National Screen Institute and the Canadian Film Centre Feature Film Project. She is also a past member of the National Board of the Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA), a member of the CMPA-BC Branch Council and currently serves on the Board of the Youth Media Alliance.
“It’s a great honour to accept an award named for Doug Dales, one of the pioneers of our industry, and to join the company of past recipients, who have made lasting contributions to the growth and success of filmmaking in Canada,” Raffé observed. She added that while the industry is in an enormous state of flux in Canada, as it is internationally, she is confident that Canadian talent and smarts will find new paths to storytelling and distributing our stories. “I’m always an optimist,” she said.
Over the years, Raffé has helped bring many critically-acclaimed Canadian feature films to the big screen, including I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing, White Room, Zero Patience, The Lotus Eaters and I Love a Man in Uniform, which have collectively won 11 Genie Awards. She was Executive Producer on Keith Behrman’s debut feature film, Flower and Garnet, which won numerous awards including the Claude Jutra Award at the 2003 Genies, and Larry Di Stefano’s 2006 Love and Other Dilemmas. After moving into television production a decade ago, she produced three seasons of the teen hit multi-cam sitcom Mr. Young, airing on YTV in Canada and Disney XD in the U.S. and internationally, as well as two seasons each of the multi-camera sitcoms Package Deal and Some Assembly Required. She also acted as Supervising Producer for Zigby, an animated pre-school series for Treehouse. Raffé developed and produced three seasons of Zixx, an innovative live action/animation series for Treehouse, and has recently moved back into feature film, executive producing The Birdwatcher, Siobhan Devine’s debut feature film. Raffé is also an avid fan of digital media, and has now notched up production on nearly a dozen games over the last five years.
About the Douglas James Dales Industry Builder Award
The Douglas James Dales Industry Builder Award is presented annually by PS in recognition of a producer’s sustained contributions and commitment to strengthening the Canadian film and television industry. Each year’s honouree is selected by a jury composed of the previous recipients including Sandra Cunningham, Linda Schuyler, Stephen Stohn, Wayne Grigsby, David MacLeod, Doug MacLeod, Ira Levy, Stephen Ellis, Phyllis Laing, Robin Cass and Paul Pope.
About The SIM Group
Backed by Toronto-based investment firm Granite Partners, the SIM Group is a leading supplier of technology to the film and television industry from production through post. Its operating units, PS Production Services, SIM Digital, Bling Digital, Chainsaw and Pixel Underground, maintain offices across the USA, Canada and China. PS Production Services is a rental supplier of lighting, grip, generators and dolly equipment, supplying equipment for projects ranging from small commercials to the largest feature films in the world. SIM Digital is a rental facility specializing in digital production equipment and workflow services. SIM Digital’s inventory includes digital cinematography tools from top manufacturers such as ARRI, Sony, RED, Panasonic, Canon, Fujinon, Angenieux, Zeiss, Cooke and Leica. In tandem with Bling Digital, the company offers the industry’s most comprehensive workflow solutions for feature and television production, encompassing cameras, data, dailies, offline editorial, finishing and archiving. Chainsaw is a full service post-production facility based in Hollywood with award winning artists who provide creative editorial, editorial finishing, color grading, visual effects and related services utilizing AVID, Flame, Baselight and DaVinci Resolve. Pixel Underground is a file-based post-production facility in Toronto that specializes in color grading, visual effects and online finishing, with two associated companies FINI Films and StationEX, which provide physical and file-based media fulfilment and distribution services. For more information, visit simgroup.com.
Suzanne Lezotte
Director of Marketing
The SIM Group
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ArtisansPR
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2024 AICP Awards Tour Concludes with Stops in Dallas and Chicago
The 2024 AICP Awards Tour concludes with stops in Dallas and Chicago this month as it wraps up its tour of cities across the U.S. The National Tour brought presentations, panels and screenings to marketers, advertising agencies, production and post production companies. The AICP Awards will be in Dallas on Thursday, November 14th, at the Perot Museum of Nature and Science, followed by the Chicago event, set for Thursday, November 21st at The Old Post Office. Tickets are available now for both events at www.aicp.com. In Dallas, the program kicks off at 6:45 pm with a happy hour, followed by the screening and panel discussion at 7:30. The evening ends with a networking reception from 8:30 to 11:30. The Perot Museum of Nature and Science is located at 2201 N. Field Street in Dallas. Appearing in Dallas will be Abe Garcia, Chief Creative Officer, Dieste; Julia Melle, Director of Brand and Content, Southwest Airlines; and Isaac Pagán Muñoz, VP, Executive Creative Director of PepsiCo Foods. The panel will review selected winners from the suite of the AICP Awards programs, offering insights into what made them rise to the top of their respective categories and share their viewpoints on key trends in the industry. The Chicago stop starts at 6:00pm with a happy hour, followed by the presentation and screening at 7:00pm. A reception caps the event, starting at 8:00pm and concluding at 11:30pm. The Old Post Office is located at 433 W Van Buren Street in Chicago. The panel there will feature 2024 AICP Awards Curators and Winners from the marketer, agency, production and post production sectors who’ll highlight this year’s winners. The conversation will include a discussion about the winning work, including insights... Read More