i wanna be your right hand by Nemahsis wins the fan-voted Audience Award
Ethan Tobman, TOBi, shy kids, and Jessamine Yú Fok honoured as 2024 Special Award Recipients, rounding out the Prism Prize Class of 2024
Toronto, June 25, 2024 - The Prism Prize, an annual awards event that recognizes outstanding artistry in music video production, is pleased to announce the winners of the Grand Prize and fan-voted Audience Award. Name of God by artist and director Mustafa is awarded the Grand Prize for Canadian music video of the year, along with a $20,000.00 CAD prize, the largest monetary award for music videos worldwide. Mustafa also took home the award in 2022 for his self-directed music video, Ali. The $2,500.00 CAD Audience Award goes to artist Nemahsis and directors Norman Wong and Amy Gardner for their music video i wanna be your right hand.
“Amidst the growing recognition of Canadian creative work, the Prism Prize jury has thoughtfully selected exemplary works that highlight the artistry of music videos and the talents of the creators behind them,” said Louis Calabro, Vice-President of Programming & Awards at the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television and Founder of the Prism Prize. “Congratulations to Mustafa, who consistently creates videos that beautifully complement his music, and to all our award recipients, who are elevating the industry with their creativity and commitment to the art form."
The Prism Prize is also excited to announce the 2024 Special Award recipients, which join the Grand Prize and Audience Award winners to form the Prism Prize Class of 2024. These Special Awards are presented to a diverse collection of powerhouse artists and creatives who are behind some of the most innovative and exciting music visuals of the moment. Each recipient will receive a $2,500.00 CAD honorarium.
The Hi-Fidelity Award (supported by FACTOR, the Government of Canada and Canada’s Private Radio Broadcasters), established to recognize recording artists who utilize music videos in innovative ways, is presented to shy kids, a team of multi-faceted artists that began as three friends from Toronto, Canada and has now evolved into a small but versatile production company. They are known for their vibrant animation, dubbed “punk-rock Pixar,” and their work has garnered recognition from the Emmys and the Oscars.
The Lipsett Award, established to celebrate a unique approach to music video art, is awarded to Jessamine Yú FokYú, a film and video director based in Toronto. Her work has been showcased on Nowness Asia, Visla, Paper Magazine, Director's Notes, and more. Most recently, she directed music videos for Trippy Staircase to Portal Wonderland by Korea Town Acid and Liberté Égalité Sagacité by Pierre Kwenders, which were both shortlisted for the Berlin Commercial Festival in 2023.
The Special Achievement Award (supported by The Slaight Family Foundation), established to recognize an exceptional contribution to music video art on the world stage, is presented to Ethan Tobman, who helms the design studio Remote Design Inc as a Director, Creative Director and Production Designer. Notable works include creative directing Taylor Swift’s record-breaking The Eras Tour and multiple music videos for the artist and directing the Juno-award winning music video Demons for Allison Russell.
The Willie Dunn Award (supported by Telefilm Canada), presented to a Canadian trailblazer who has demonstrated excellence within the music, music video and/or film production communities, is awarded to TOBi. He is a four-time JUNO winning rapper and singer and the co-founder of UNPACK Community, a series of discussions on mental wellness in creative fields. As the recipient of this award, TOBi is asked to select an emerging Canadian creative to honour as an additional beneficiary of $2,500.00 CAD; he selected Niyi Adeogun, a Nigerian/Canadian interdisciplinary artist, design engineer, creative entrepreneur and creative director.
The Prism Prize Class of 2024 will be celebrated at an event in Toronto at the Paradise Theatre on July 16. The event will feature a screening of all music videos featured in the Prism Prize Top 10 shortlist, as well as videos from the Special Award recipients.
All creative teams from the Top 10 will receive complimentary memberships to the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television, courtesy of Telefilm Canada, while the nine runners-up to the Grand Prize will receive a $1,000.00 CAD cash prize, courtesy of the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television. All Prism Prize Award recipients, including the Grand Prize, Audience Award, and all Special Award winners, will also receive equipment rental grants in the amount of $2,500.00 CAD, courtesy of partners at Sunbelt Rentals Film & TV.
The Prism Prize Grand Prize winner is selected from the Top 10 shortlist of Canadian music videos as evaluated by the Prism Prize jury, composed of over 120 leading figures in Canadian music, film, and media arts. To watch music video work from this year's Special Awards recipients and Top 10 finalists, as well as hundreds of other eligible videos from years past, visit PrismPrize.com.
