Gold Winner Rhonda’s Party by Ashley McKenzie
Silver Winner Heart of Rhyme by Cory Bowles
Bronze Winner Deep End by Brett Hannam
McKenzie is from New Waterford, in Cape Breton, which she loves unreservedly. She says older folks in her town caution her to not make movies like New Waterford Girl. “They say it made us look so bad, but man, when I saw it, that’s exactly the way it is!” Even though the movie was set in the 1970s? “It’s still the same.” So far, McKenzie’s short film isn’t much like the feature that immortalized her hometown, beyond that it’s appreciated by many. Rhonda’s Party won CBC’s Short Film Face-Off and has earned kudos in other festivals, and McKenzie, with producing partner Nelson MacDonald, has just wrapped a new short, When You Sleep, that we’ll get to see in the new year.
