Toronto-based Temple Street Productions was awarded the $50,000 Shaw Rocket Prize for Wingin’ It, as voted by Canadian children in every province. A staple for Family Channel viewers, the show also airs on Disney XD Canada and is distributed internationally by BBC Worldwide. Wingin’ It was chosen as the winner of the Shaw Rocket Prize at an award ceremony held at the Chateau Laurier in Ottawa on November 29th.
A half-hour sitcom, Wingin’ It chronicles the adventures and misadventures of Porter, an Angel-In-Training and his odd couple other half, Carl, a typical high-school kid. To earn his wings, Porter has been assigned to transform hapless student Carl into the most popular kid in school. If he succeeds, he’ll earn real wings and a halo. If he doesn’t, it’ll be a millennium before he gets the chance to try again – and Carl will still be unpopular. Think of It’s a Wonderful Life with a 21st century twist.
In the second season, Carl (played by Dylan Everett) is still trying to survive high school, while Porter (Demetrius Joyette) continues to iron out the kinks in his magic. In the process, the two get into a lot of exciting and wacky escapades – with clever episode titles like “Err a Parent,” “Don’t Dimension It,” “Carl+Alt+Delete” and “Magical Kiss-tery Tour.”
“We are thrilled about winning the Shaw Rocket Prize. We feel like we’ve earned our wings!,” quipped Wingin’ It producer Ivan Schneeberg.
The 7th annual Shaw Rocket Prize was presented by Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Jason Kenney at Ottawa’s venerable Fairmont Chateau Laurier Hotel, where the top five Canadian programs for kids aged 6 to 12 were celebrated. The other finalist shows produced across Canada made for very tough competition: dirtgirlworld, My Babysitter’s a Vampire – The Movie, Survive This, and Wibbly Pig.
“I’d like to congratulate Wingin’ It for winning this award,” said Minister Kenney. “Being selected by top industry experts, and then confirmed by a jury of child viewers – the hardest critics of all! – is a testament to the true popularity and success of this program.”
An international jury of industry experts selected five finalists for the 2011 Shaw Rocket Prize. The international jury was comprised of Adina Pitt, Cartoon Network; Joe Godwin, BBC; Tim Brooke-Hunt, ABC Australia; Nicole Keeb, ZDF (Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen [Second German Television]); and Michael Carrington, Turner Broadcasting. The international jury selected Wingin’ It as a finalist because of its creativity and appeal to kids.
“Wingin’ It takes the recognizable setting of high school, mixes it with the everyday challenges of young people coming to terms with growing up, and twists it with a little bit of magic to create stories which are engaging and above all great fun!,” said Michael Carrington, Chief Content Officer, Europe, Middle East and Africa, of Turner Broadcasting.
Once narrowed to five finalists, a jury of kids from across Canada chose their favourite program. They voted in October and November after viewing each finalist’s television and digital media content online.
The Shaw Rocket Fund is a not-for-profit corporation that focuses on stimulating excellence in Canadian children’s programming. To date, the Shaw Rocket Fund has invested $120 million towards 488 television productions including digital content. Contributors to the Fund are Shaw Communications, Shaw Pay Per View Ltd., Shaw Direct, EastLink Cablesystems and Delta Cable Communications Ltd.
For more information, visit the Shaw Rocket Prize website at http://rocketprize.ca/.