(February 10, 2017 – Toronto, ON) Do you want to meet your favourite Canadian media personalities? The Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television and the Shaw Rocket Fund are inviting fans of Canadian film and television to meet their favourite stars on Saturday, March 11 at the first annual Family Fan Day event at the Sony Centre for the Performing Arts from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. At this free event, fans can meet & greet with Canadian screen talent, featuring exciting interactive activations, contesting, mascots and the first 100 people get a free “swag” bag.
“Watching film and television is an activity that brings families together,” said Academy CEO Beth Janson. “We created the Family Fan Day event to be inclusive of families while also creating a bridge between the fans and their favourite artists.”
Hosted by YTV The Zone’s Carlos Bustamante, stars expected at the Family Fan Day include:
• Dan Riskin and Ziya Tong, Daily Planet (Bell Media)
• Simu Liu, Andrea Bang and Andrew Phung, Kim’s Convenience (CBC)
• Hélène Joy and Lachlan Murdoch, Murdoch Mysteries (CBC)
• Alisha Newton, Heartland (CBC)
• Janaye, Tony, Victor, Gary the Unicorn and Dot, CBC Kids (CBC)
• Dwight Drummond, CBC News Toronto (CBC)
• Victoria Baldesarra and Shelby Bain, The Next Step (Family Channel)
• Chelsea Clark and Ehren Kassam, Degrassi: Next Class (Family Channel)
• Devyn Nekoda, Colin Petierre and Julia Tomasone, Backstage (Family Channel)
• Noah Cappe, The Bachelor Canada (Corus Entertainment)
• Anthony Farnell, Global News (Corus Entertainment)
• Ella Ballentine, Sara Botsford, Kate MacDonald Butler, L.M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables (Corus Entertainment/Breakthrough Entertainment)
Fans can also take part in activities such as:
• Visit exciting animals courtesy of Hands on Exotics
• Take a workshop on coding provided by Ladies Learning Code
• Find out the look for spring 2017 at the M.A.C. booth
• Enjoy free donuts provided by Jelly Modern Doughnuts
Additional guests and full details on the Family Fan Day activities will be announced in the coming weeks. Go online for more information.
Fans can also have their say by voting for their favourite Canadian star as well as the newly minted award for favourite social innovator. Voting for the Fan’s Choice Award is now open and will continue until 6 pm EST on March 12. The Fan’s Choice Award winner will be announced at the end of the Canadian Screen Awards Broadcast Gala on Sunday, March 12 on CBC.
The winner of the Canadian Social Innovator Award will be announced on Thursday, March 9 at the Gala Honouring Excellence in Digital & Immersive Storytelling. Voting is open from now until 12 pm EST on March 7. Visit Academy.ca to vote.
The Canadian Screen Awards will be broadcast live on CBC from Toronto’s Sony Centre for the Performing Arts on Sunday, March 12, 2017 at 8 pm (9 pm AT; 9:30 pm NT). Fans will have a chance to see their favourite stars walk the Canadian Screen Awards Red Carpet. Visit academy.ca/family-fan-day to sign up for a spot in the Fan Section.
