PSAC Prairies Video Project wins national award

PSAC collected several awards at the Canadian Association of Labour Media (CALM) Awards this past weekend, with the PSAC Prairie Region taking home the award for “Best narrative video, or video series documentary” and honourable mention for “Best photograph”.


PSAC collected several awards at the Canadian Association of Labour Media (CALM) Awards this past weekend, with the PSAC Prairie Region taking home the award for “Best narrative video, or video series documentary” and honourable mention for “Best photograph”.

The annual CALM awards recognize excellence in union publications and productions in a variety of categories and classes. Entries are judged by independent experts and awarded at the annual CALM conference. 

At the awards banquet held Friday evening in Montreal, PSAC Prairies was awarded “Best narrative video, or video series documentary” for the Prairies Video Project.

CALM judges commended the project for the “compelling interview subjects” and for finding “creative but focused ways to shape the storylines”.

“From overviews to personal storytelling to rhetorical intercutting, the series takes a diverse format, but the style and form feel focused and coherent from episode to episode,” one of the judges remarked. “The simple stylistic signature of fading in the subjects in power poses is fun and effective.” 

The Prairies Video Project was filmed in the summer of 2013 with interviews across the Prairie Region and produced using union labour by Road Dog Media, UNIFOR – Canadian Freelance Union Local 2040.

The Prairies also received honourable mention for “Best photograph” for a photo from our “Crash The(ir) Party!” rally in November, where devoted activists and concerned Canadians gathered to protest the Conservative’s Convention and their impaired judgment and reckless policies. In the photo, by Calgary-based freelance photographer Candice Ward, Clayton Thomas-Muller, writer and advocate on environmental justice and indigenous rights, speaks about uniting social movements.

PSAC also took home two awards for national projects, including “Best short video, made for TV broadcast or online distribution” for the Veterans campaign video and “Best website content” for the new PSAC national website.

From left to right (all photos by: Stacy Lee)

1. Ariel Troster, PSAC Communications Officer, accepts the award for “Best narrative video, or video series documentary” on behalf of the PSAC Prairie Region.
2. CALM Award for 
“Best narrative video, or video series documentary” for the PSAC Praries Video Project.
3. Kerry Pither, PSAC National Campaigns Officer, accepts the award for “Best short video, made for TV broadcast or online distribution”.
4. Chris Lawson, PSAC Communications Officer-New Media, accepts the award for “Best website content”.