The 11th edition of the Kidscreen Summit took place in Miami from February 10 to 13, 2020, and it was the place to be for the kids television and digital media industry! With more than 2150 people from 62 countries registered to take part, including more than 430 Canadians, Canada was well represented with more than 230 companies and partners.
In addition to nearly 500 meetings at the Canada Lounge, our dedicated space for Canadians at Kidscreen (where we had the honour of welcoming Susan Harper, Consul General of Canada in Miami, United States), we were excited to be part of loads of productive networking opportunities! Highlights included a Meet & Greet with more than 75 Canadians and special B2B sessions with delegations from Brazil, Chile, and the U.K.
The Canada Lounge was presented by the Youth Media Alliance (YMA) with the support from Telefilm Canada, SODEC, Ontario Creates, Creative BC, the APFC, BC Producers Branch, Canadian Heritage and the Consulate General of Canada in Miami!
Which brings us to our Canadian networking and VR demo event (co-hosted by the YMA, Telefilm Canada, Canada Media Fund and Canadian Heritage) which was a huge hit with more than 250 guests in the house. Even cooler, more than 100 attendees had the chance to try out our two VR projects showcased at the reception:
- First, described as “a multi-sensory experience,” the Bogey Ogre Mixed Reality Attraction is a coproduction between Canada’s Dark Slope studios and New Zealand’s Pukeko Pictures brings augmented and mixed reality technology to four carnival games! Using a Magic Leap headset, players can explore ogres and “slimy” special effects.
- We also presented a VR game called Museum of Symmetry, a National Film Board of Canada production, created by Paloma Dawkins and developed by Casa Rara Studio. For use on the HTC Vive headset, the game takes players through a virtual museum and on a fun, artsy voyage into nature and self-discovery. Check out the trailer.
Canadian talent rewarded at the Kidscreen Awards ceremony
Hosted by Canadian actor/comedian Emma Hunter, Canadian talent took home 11 awards in total. Here’s the breakdown.
Programming Kids section:
- Hilda won Best Animated Series. Canada’s Mercury Filmworks is one of its producers.
- Angela’s Christmas won Best One-Off, Special or TV Movie. (Ireland’s Brown Bag Films, owned by Canadian television studio 9 Story Media Group, is one of its producers.)
- Paper Port won Best Mixed-Media Series. Canada’s Pipeline Studios is one of its producers.
- Angela’s Christmas won Best in Class. (Brown Bag Films was also one of its producers.)
Programming Teens-Tweens section:
- #ROXY won Best One-off, Special or TV Movie. Canada’s Mosaic Entertainment is one of its producers.
Creative Talent section:
- Dino Dana won Best Directing, Best Acting and Best Game App—Branded, produced by Canada’s Sinking Ship Entertainment.
- TVOKids won Best Programming Block
- Cutie Pugs Games won Best Game—Other, produced by Canada’s Little Engine Moving Pictures
- Lili & Lola won Best Web/App Series—Original, produced by Canada’s Big Bad Boo Studios
P.S. Did you know Kidscreen is striving to be more eco-friendly through Kidscreen Greenup? That’s right, green initiatives include eliminating the use of plastic cups, bottles, and straws plus donating to the Gold Standard environmental group (as a means to offset the impact of carbon emissions of flights).
