Christopher Plummer Does Canada Proud at the Academy Awards
In today’s Toronto Star, Richard Ouzounian reported that “Ohristopher Plummer, when asked the first thing that went through his mind when his name was announced as the winner of the Best Supporting Actor Oscar Sunday, didn’t hesitate with his answer. “I winked at Rooney Mara, who was sitting beside me,” he said, speaking of his co-star from The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. “She was so supportive of me in all the pre-show publicity that I had to thank her. And I also adore her.” After that came more practical concerns. “Is my fly open? Should I button my dinner jacket?” All of this whizzed through his mind in a few seconds and that includes the change in mental attitude when he found out he had won. You have to be prepared to lose. . . . You steel yourself for that. But once you’ve found out you won, you empty your mind for a second, then as you start walking up the stairs, you form your opening sentence.” Read more 
Freedom to Read Week: A discussion with Paula Simons (Edmonton Journal) and Greg Hollingshead (U of A)
Celebrate Freedom to Read Week with the Canadian Literature Centre and the Writers Guild of Alberta as renowned author, Greg Hollingshead, joins his former writing student and Edmonton Journal columnist, Paula Simons, for a conversation on her experiences as a local journalist who has received both acclaim and criticism for her columns. The two literary personalities will also discuss how Freedom to Read Week is connected with freedom of expression and challenges that both novelists and journalists face once their work is published. There will be time for questions and socializing at the end. Read more
“The Hill: A Documentary of the Edmonton Folk Music Festival” On Sale Soon
The Hill: A Documentary of the Edmonton Folk Music Festival is about to be released in DVD. Folk Films, a co-operative of Edmonton film makers, has spent a number of years capturing the essence of the Edmonton Folk Music Festival (EFMF) from main stage performances, workshops to backstage interviews with musicians and volunteers. They have documented the intimate nature of the festival that overtakes the city hillside for four days every summer where tens of thousands flock to hear the music and thousands more volunteer their time to be part of the magic. Principal photography is complete. The target date for premiere is late 2012. The finished production will be a high quality DVD with several special features. Blue Rodeo, Solomon Burke and Bill Bourne are just some of the over 30 artists to be highlighted. Read more
Edmonton’s 91.7 FM The Bounce Celebrates 7th Anniversary with ‘Birthday Bash’ on March 22, 2012
Rogers Radio station 91.7 The Bounce, Edmonton, celebrates its seventh birthday this year in style, throwing a massive bash that showcases some of the world’s hottest acts in music. As announced earlier this week, tickets are on sale today for the 91.7 The Bounce Birthday Bash – an all-ages concert featuring international recording artists Pit Bull and Flo Rida. Throughout the weeks leading up to the event, listeners are encouraged to enter to win tickets through both on-air and online contests. The 91.7 The Bounce Birthday Bash takes place at Edmonton’s Rexall Place on Thursday, March 22 . Read more
OMNI TV Alberta to Broadcast Zee Cine Awards on Sunday, February 19
OMNI Television celebrates the best in Indian film with the three-hour broadcast of the Zee Cine Awards 2012, Sunday, February 19 OMNI. 2, OMNI Alberta and OMNI BC. Hosted by Bollywood stars Shah Rukh Khan (My Name is Khan) and Priyanka Chopra (Rah.One), the awards ceremony is the most prestigious recognition in the Indian film industry. Known as the biggest viewer’s choice awards for South Asian cinema, the three-hour broadcast celebrates the meaningful contributions and ground-breaking performances from 2011. Read more
Edmonton International Film Festival Presents the Oscar Nominated Short Films on Family Day
The Edmonton International Film Festival will present the nominees for Best Live Action Short Film and Best Animated Short Film at public screenings in the Princess Theatre on February 20. “Based on attendance and feedback from our immensely popular Lunchbox Shorts programme at the Edmonton International Film Festival, we know that our audiences adore bite-sized cinema!” says Kerrie Long, Festival Producer. “When was the last time you could admit (honestly) to seeing all of the Oscar Nominated Short Films? This could be your first. And, you get boasting rights to seeing ALL of the nominees in these categories, versus just a handful of films in every other category.” Read more
CBC Launches CBC Music – Canada’s Free New Digital Music Service
CBC today launched CBC Music and the CBC Music App – a free new digital music service designed to connect Canadians to the music they love. With a choice of 40 different web radio stations, 14 distinct genre-based communities, and music from nearly 1,000 major and independent music companies, CBC Music provides listeners with access to the very best Canadian and International music. Featuring original content from the most knowledgeable and experienced music personalities and programmers from across the country, hundreds of concerts, features, blogs, playlists, and more, the new music service is a place for music lovers to explore, discover and connect with other music fans. Canadians can experience CBC Music now at cbcmusic.ca. Read more
Khan Academy, Free Online Learning Resources for a World Class Education
The Khan Academy is an organization on a mission. They’re a not-for-profit with the goal of changing education for the better by providing a free world-class education to anyone anywhere. All of the site’s resources are available to anyone. It doesn’t matter if you are a student, teacher, home-schooler, principal, adult returning to the classroom after 20 years, or a friendly alien just trying to get a leg up in earthly biology. The Khan Academy’s materials and resources are available to you completely free of charge thanks to the support of Bill Gates and other philanthropists. While some of the videos are required viewing for rocket scientists, the site has other learning resources in Art History, World History and even videos to help improve SAT scores. Check it out at www.khanacademy.org.
Pinterest Hits 10 Millions Monthly Uniques Faster Than Any Standalone Site Ever
It’s beautiful, it’s addictive, and now Pinterest is having its glorious hockey stick moment. TechCrunch has attained exclusive data from comScore showing Pinterest just hit 11.7 million unique monthly U.S. visitors, crossing the 10 million mark faster than any other standalone site in history. In fact, users are spending so much time sharing their favorite images that now only Facebook and Tumblr have more social media time on site than Pinterest. Who’s propelling its rise? 18-34 year old upper income women from the American heartland. See the rest of the report on Pinterest on TechCrunch.com.
Nominees for 2012 Juno Awards Announced
The nominees for the 2012 JUNO Awards were announced by The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences in Toronto this morning, as top Canadian artists now gear up for JUNO Week, March 26-April 1 in Ottawa. It was also revealed that Canadian icon William Shatner will host The 2012 JUNO Awards Broadcast, airing live on CTV the evening of Sunday, April 1 from Scotiabank Place. 2012 JUNO Award nominees Hedley and Nickelback were added to the lineup of performers for the broadcast, bringing the total number of performers announced so far to six. They will join 2012 Canadian Music Hall of Fame inductees Blue Rodeo and 2012 JUNO Award nominees City and Colour, deadmau5 and Feist onstage at this year’s show. More performers will be announced in the coming weeks! Read more
CRTC to Hear Applications for New Calgary Radio Stations in Calgary on February 6, 2012
On Monday, February 6, the CRTC will hold public hearings on fourteen applications for new radio station licences in Calgary. Five applications are proposing an ethnic format, four for FM licences and one for an AM licence. Bell Media is proposing a Rythmic Contemporary Hit format, Clear Sky out of Lethbridge is proposing a 90s Country format, Saskatchewan-ased Harvard Broadcasting an Adult Contemorary format, Saskatchewan-based Rawlco a Hit Music format, and BC-based Jim Pattison an Adult Alternative format. Hearings typically take three or four days and the public is invited to attend. They also provide a live feed of the hearings at www.crtc.gc.ca. Read more
Golden West Broadcasting to Launch Fort Saskatchewan’s First Radio Station
The Canadian Radio and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) gave its approval on January 10, 2012 to an application by Golden West Broadcasting to operate an FM station in Fort Saskatchewan broadcasting on the 107.9 Mhz bandwidth with a format of classic hits, classic rock. Lyndon Friesen, Golden West president, said the decision will allow the company to firm up its plans with a view to hitting the airwaves in about a year’s time. We are delighted and excited with this decision,” he said. “There’s always a question as to whether or not you’ll be allowed to proceed, but we are delighted the commission agreed with us that Fort Saskatchewan is its own unique community and we look forward to being heavily involved in the community.”
Marilyn
Jones is a corporate and social media advocate for individuals, small businesses
and nonprofit organizations in Alberta. She lives in Edmonton, Alberta,
Canada and is the proprietor of RiverCity Productions. You can contact her
by phone at 780-695-5675 or by email at marilyn@mediamag.ca.