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LEO AWARDS: Film BECOMING REDWOOD & TV series CONTINUUM & ARCTIC AIR Top 2013 Nominations

Last night’s Leo Awards nominations, celebrating the best of B.C.-made film and television, favour Jesse James Miller’s 70s-era coming-of-age film Becoming Redwood, Vancouver-cop-from-the-future TV series Continuum and northern adventure TV series Arctic Air. The many tweets of congratulations to all the nominees today are a great way to recognize B.C.’s creative talent ahead of tomorrow’s provincial election. So please go vote and as the hashtag says, #SaveBCFilm. 

Becoming Redwood‘s 14 nominations include well-deserved director and writing nods for Vancouver-born-and-raised Jesse James Miller and performance nods for Ryan Grantham as the young golf-obsessed long-haired title character Redwood; Jennifer Copping (Miller’s wife) as Redwood’s mother; Chad Willett (producer) as Redwood’s draft-dodging, pot-dealing father;  Derek Hamilton as Redwood’s red-neck stepfather Arnold and Scott Hylands as Arnold’s basement-dwelling elderly father Earl. Miller shot the Vancouver International Film Festival’s most popular Canadian feature in rural Langley for 24 days in the late spring of 2011.

Related: Jesse James Miller’s Becoming Redwood Opens at International Village

In the television category, Continuum dominates with 16 nominations, including nods for creator and UBC grad Simon Barry for his season one finale script End Times and for performances by Richard Harmon, Brian Markinson, Jennifer Spence and Liber8 “terrorist” Lexa Doig. Lead cop Rachel Nichols is not nominated but she is American and not considered a BC actor, even though she lives here for half-a-year each season and owns Vancouver Canucks season tickets (what more do you need?)

Over at Arctic Air, bona fide BC actors Kevin McNulty and Pascale Hutton are nominated for their lead performances on the filmed-in-Vancouver-and-Yellowknife aerial adventure series, two of 14 nominations for the CBC show. Other AA performance noms go to John Reardon and Emilie Ullerup, as well as guest performances noms to Aleks “the Griz” Paunovic, Chelah Horsdal, Michelle Thrush and Lexa Doig (also nominated for her supporting Liber8 performance on Continuum). Yes, Vancouver film and TV is like one big repertory company sometimes.

Joining Continuum and Arctic Air in the Best Dramatic Series competition is American show Arrow, one of its 8 nominations. A lot of BC talent works on this CW hit, demonstrated by its  two cinematography and two stunt coordination nominations. 

Vancouver’s own dinosaurs-run-amok drama Primeval: New World racked up 6 nominations too, including  a lead performance nod for famous Vancouver Film School grad Niall Matter, supporting performance nod for Miranda Frigon and a VFX nod for whiz Mark Savela and team.

As for BC talent in other American shows,  Fringe’s final season Big Bad Michael Kopsa got a nod for his supporting performance and crew picked up cinematography and directing nominations.

In the Youth TV category, Brendan Meyer, Gig Morton and Milo Shandel are all up for their performances on hit teen sitcom Mr. Young. 

Click here for a complete list of nominees. And click here for tickets to the Celebration Awards Ceremony on Friday, June 7th and the Gala Awards Ceremony on Saturday, June 8th,  at the Westin Bayshore Hotel.

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