MEDIA RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 10, 2001

The Banff Centre is collaborating with two other leading Canadian new media institutions to develop content with $5 million over five years from Bell Globemedia. The Banff Centre (Banff), the Canadian Film Centre (Toronto), and L’INIS (L’institut national de l’image et du son in Montreal), will work together on the Bell Globemedia Content Network to develop up to six media content projects a year.

The Banff Centre will contribute to this network a 12-year track record as a successful "matchmaker" and co-producer. The Centre, through its New Media Institute and co-production program, brings together innovative thinkers from the scientific, cultural, and artistic realms to produce new media prototypes and products. This makes The Banff Centre a strong component of this initiative. Sara Diamond, artistic director of Media & Visual Arts at The Banff Centre, says "This is a ground-breaking opportunity to create a new programs by dovetailing the skills of leading Canadian innovators. The Banff Centre has years of experience in new media co-production and technical development, and we are thrilled to bring this to the table." She adds that the Bell Globemedia Content Network will engender a pan-Canadian program that draws from the knowledge and experience of new media visionaries across the country. "Canadian audiences and participants will benefit tremendously. We look forward to being one of three strong links in a chain that will incubate innovative new projects."

Diamond and Joanne Morrow, The Banff Centre’s vice president and director of the Centre for the Arts, envision the Bell Globemedia Content Innovation Network supporting projects in a variety of ways. One of these, says Morrow, is to bring new media artists to The Banff Centre to help develop the building blocks for the larger project of the three-institution network. "Supporting the development of new media artists’ innovations from concept to production is the central mandate of the Banff New Media Institute," says Morrow. "We’re very excited about this opportunity to work in close partnership with the Canadian Film Centre and L’INIS, and we salute Bell Globemedia for its vision in enabling a powerful team to develop Canadian prototypes of new media content."

Joanne Morrow accepted The Bell Globemedia award on April 9^th at the L’INIS offices in Montreal.

The Banff Centre is Canada's only post-secondary institution dedicated to the arts, leadership development, and mountain culture. Programs are designed to enrich professional practice beyond the realm of traditional education. The Centre's unique mountain environment and multidisciplinary setting reflect a commitment to personal growth and lifelong learning.

Contacts:
Caryl Brandt, acting artistic director of Media & Visual Arts, The Banff Centre. Ph. 403.762.6196
Sabrina Grobler, media relations, The Banff Centre. Ph. 403.762.6487 or 403.571.1821

Back to Media Releases
Communications Home Page