TORONTO — Creator and writer of Amazon’s multi-Golden Globe award-winning series Transparent Jill Soloway and Amazon Studios, are both set to be honored at the upcoming Banff World Media Festival. Soloway will be presented with BANFF’s Showrunner of the Year Award for her accomplishments on her award winning series Transparent. Soloway will receive the Award during BANFF’s Rockie Awards Program Competition Ceremony on Monday, June 8. Amazon Studios will be presented Banff’s Award of Innovation for their amazing innovation and success in original programming.
Soloway will also present an exclusive Master Class to open programming for the 2015 BANFF Fest on Transparent that will dissect the series.. Transparent made history as the first online series to ever win a Best Television Series-Musical or Comedy Award, at the 2014 Golden Globes.
Written, directed and executive produced by multi-award winner Soloway, Transparent is a half hour novelistic series that explores family, identity, sex, and love. The series stars Tambor as Maura, who has spent her life as Mort—the Pfefferman family patriarch. When she reintroduces herself to her family, everyone’s secrets finally start to come out. This includes her ex-wife Shelly (played by Light), and their children—meandering Ali (played by Hoffmann), record producer Josh (played by Duplass), and sexually conflicted Sarah (played by Landecker). Each family member spins in a different direction as they begin to figure out who they are going to become.
“Jill Soloway has made history with Transparent, a game changing series which has really shifted the traditional television landscape, while Amazon Studios has really revolutionized the current entertainment climate with their innovative programming model,” said Ferne Cohen, Executive Director of the Banff World Media Festival. “We are delighted to honor them both at this year’s Banff World Media Festival. We are delighted to welcome them to BANFF and give our delegates access to such incredible talent and creativity.”
Jill Soloway is an accomplished Director. She picked up a DGA Award this year in the Comedy Series category for Transparent’s episode Best New Girl. In 2013, she won the US Dramatic Directing Award at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival for her first feature, Afternoon Delight, which was released by Cinedigm/Film Arcade. She is also a three-time Emmy nominee for her work writing and producing Six Feet Under. She co-created the theater experiences Real Live Brady Bunch, Miss Vagina Pageant, Hollywood Hellhouse and Sit N Spin, and co-founded the community organization East Side Jews.
The Banff World Media Festival has unveiled its full schedule for the 2015 Festival. For details visit the Banff Schedule page to brows through the program. Registration is also currently available at: http://banffmediafestival.com/
