Last night the Video Game, Animation Industry and Digital Art Students turned out in full force to celebrate Canadian supremacy in the fastest growing entertainment industry in the world. Canadian video game developers and publishers, animators and studio heads and the brightest students and top academia gathered at 2nd Annual Elan Awards held at The Centre in Vancouver for the Performing Arts in eager anticipation to learn the winning names behind some of the biggest games and shows in North America.
This year's show also saw the Elan Awards open up to include International Award Categories attracting companies such as Microsoft, DreamWorks SKG, Insomniac Games, EA USA, VIZ Media and, of course, Fuzzy Door Productions that is the brain child of this year's Host, Seth MacFarlane. MacFarlane lived up to his enormous reputation as one of the Industry's top talents and rewarded the room full of top Video Game and Animation Talent/Execs with a hilarious "classic Seth" performance including a singing "Stewie" final act to close the show. The night went on to see MacFarlane win his first Elan in the category of "Best International Animated Television Production" for FAMILY GUY.
Nick Fletcher, Producer of DreamWork's the BEE MOVIE flew in from Los Angeles to accept the "Producer's Choice for the Inaugural Best Animated Feature" and Don Mattrick, recipient of this year's "Video Game Hall of Fame" sent a message of acceptance to the evening's attendees: "I wanted to send a very sincere thank you for this Video Game Hall of Fame Award. I am truly honored to be selected, and sorry that I can't be there to accept in person. Congratulations to all the other winners at the Canadian Awards for Electronic Arts & Animation! Thanks should also go to Holly Carinci and Jack Weatherell for putting all this together. Hope you all enjoy the evening."
And on that note, the winners from last night's 2nd Annual Elan Awards are:
ANIMATION CATEGORIES
1. BEST FEATURE LENGTH ANIMATED PRODUCTION
Barbie as the Island Princess Rainmaker Animation Jennifer Twiner Mccarron
2. THE SEVEN GROUP AWARD FOR BEST ANIMATED PRODUCTION (Television Series)
Edgar & Ellen Bardel Entertainment Delna Bhesania, Barry Ward, Trish Lindsay, Barbara Ferro
3. BEST ANIMATED SHORT SUBJECT
Yellow Sticky Notes Jeff Chiba Stearns
4. BEST DIRECTION in a FEATURE LENGTH ANIMATED PRODUCTION
Barbie as the Island Princess Rainmaker Animation Greg Richardson
5. BEST DIRECTION in an ANIMATED TELEVISION SERIES
Ruby Gloom: Venus de Gloomsville Nelvana LTD Robin Budd
6. BEST MALE VOICE OVER IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE OR TELEVISION PRODUCTION
Lee Tockar George of the Jungle Studio B
7. BEST FEMALE VOICE OVER IN AN ANIMATED FEATURE OR TELEVISION PRODUCTION
Marÿke Hendrikse Johnny Test Cookie Jar Entertainment
8. BEST ORIGINAL MUSICAL SCORE
Bruno and the Banana Bunch Cuppa Coffee Studios Adam Goddard
9. BEST STORYBOARDING
George of the Jungle: Naked Ape Man Studio B Dennis Crawford / Lyn Hart
10. BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN OR ART DIRECTION
Edgar & Ellen: Crushed Bardel Entertainment Greg Huculak and Zoe Evamy
11. BEST WRITING IN AN ANIMATED PRODUCTION
Storm Hawks Nerd Corps Entertainment Rob Hoegee
12. THE ELECTRONIC ART'S AWARD FOR BEST INTERNATIONAL ANIMATED PRODUCTION (Television Series)
Family Guy Fuzzy Door Productions Seth MacFarlane, David A. Goodman, Chris Sheridan, Danny Smith
13.THE INAUGURAL AWARD FOR BEST INTERNATIONAL ANIMATED PRODUCTION (Feature)
Bee Movie: Dreamworks Animation SKG
14. LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD IN ANIMATION
Kai Pindal
ELECTRONIC GAME CATEGORIES
1. THE AUTODESK GAME OF THE YEAR
Mass Effect Bioware/Microsoft Games BioWare
2. BEST CONSOLE GAME
Assassin's Creed Ubisoft Assassin's Creed Development Team
3. BEST PC GAME
Company of Heroes Relic Entertainment Ian Thomson
4. BEST NEW VIDEO GAME COMPANY
We are honouring two companies this year:
Blue Castle Games Rob Barrett for The Bigs and Slant Six Games Brian Thalken for their Socom U.S. Navy Seals: Tactical Strike
5. BEST SOUND DESIGN IN VIDEO GAMING
Skate Electronic Arts: Audio Director: Lance Brown Sound Designers: Francois Lafleur, Bryan Rennie, Sean Webster, Terry Fairfield
6. BEST ORIGINAL MUSICAL SCORE IN VIDEO GAMING
Assasins Creed Ubisoft Jesper Kyd
7. BEST CHARACTER IN VIDEO GAMING
Commander Shepard (Mass Effect) BioWare/Microsoft Games Drew Karpyshyn
8. BEST ART DIRECTION IN VIDEO GAMING
Mass Effect BioWare/Microsoft Games Derek Watts
9. BEST HANDHELD GAME OF THE YEAR (psp, ds, etc…)
Socom U.S. Navy Seals: Tactical Strike Slant Six Games Brian Thalken
10. BEST GAME DESIGN OF THE YEAR
Mass Effect BioWare/Microsoft Games Preston Watamaniuk
11. BEST MOBILE/CASUAL/ARCADE GAME OF THE YEAR
Skate Electronic Arts David Manriquez
12. BEST WRITING FOR A GAME PRODUCTION
Mass Effect BioWare/ Microsoft Games Drew Karpyshyn
13. THE NOKIA AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING INNOVATION IN GAMING
Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts Relic Entertainment Josh Mosqueira
14. THE ERNST & YOUNG AWARD FOR INTERNATIONAL VIDEO GAME OF THE YEAR
Crysis Crytek/Electronic Arts USA Cevat Yerli CEO, Crytek
15. VIDEO GAME HALL OF FAME
Don Mattrick
STUDENT ANIMATION AND ELECTRONIC GAME CATEGORIES
1. THE GOVERNMENT OF BRITISH COLUMBIA'S AWARD FOR STUDENT ANIMATED OR MOTION GRAPHIC PRODUCTION OF THE YEAR
Legend of Boruta Emily Carr Institute Bartosz Nowakowski
2. STUDENT GAME OF THE YEAR
Bloom Vancouver Film School Boring Games; Project Manager: Adrian Audet TEAM: Brennan Massicotte, Guilherme Ramos, Mike Wilson, Brian Vidovic
3. BEST ORIGINAL SOUND DESIGN/MUSICAL SCORE FOR AN ANIMATED PRODUCTION OR GAME
Le Building Vancouver Film School Doug Woods
4. BEST Student ART DIRECTION – GAME PRODUCTION
Seas of Europa Vancouver Film School Todd Agnello, David Bowring, Diego Rodriguez Pons,Ryan Stancl
5. BEST STUDENT ART DIRECTION – ANIMATED PRODUCTION
Mano Sinistra Emily Carr Institute Kate Lee
6. BEST STUDENT WRITING FOR AN ANIMATED OR GAME PRODUCTION
Documentary Vancouver Film School Lawrence Chung
7. READY TO ROCKET
Bartosz Nowakowski Emily Carr Institute