Cree film-maker surprised by Gemini Award win

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In early October, Dennis Jackson found out he was one of just seven honourees selected to receive a 2006 Gemini Special Award. Now, he's up for another award, this time not as a film-maker, but as an author.

At the end of October, Jackson will receive the Canada Award, which recognizes television programming that reflects Canada's racial and cultural diversity. The award will be presented during a special Gemini ceremony in Toronto, recognizing Jackson's work on Wapos Bay-There's No "I" in Hockey.

On Oct. 19, he'll find out if the book Christmas at Wapos Bay, nominated for a Saskatchewan Book Award (SBA) will make the cut and be included on the SBA shortlist. The book, co-written with Jordan Wheeler, is based on characters from Jackson's award- winning short film of the same name.

"This is the first book that I ever got published so it's pretty good being the first book," said the Cree film-maker.

As for his Gemini win, he said he is happy but also surprised about receiving the award.

"I'm definitely happy about my Gemini win," said Jackson. "It came as quite a surprise because we submitted it last spring and on Aug. 29 they came out with the nominees just for the Gemini Awards and not for these special awards, so I thought that was it. But they called me and said that I won the Canada Award, which I thought was already given to someone else, so I was quite surprised."

Jackson credits the crew who worked on the stop motion claymation production for helping him earn the Canada Award.

"To me this award represents a recognition of the crew and there were a lot of people who worked on the show," said Jackson.

"To me, it's recognition for all of the voice actors, the animators who acted the little clay characters to give them the expressions they needed, the people in lighting and even the people who built all of the miniature sets. This award is recognition for all of their hard work and it was just great."

Wapos Bay -There's No "I" in Hockey has been broadcast throughout Canada on APTN. The episode is a Canadian hockey story set in a northern community and tells about teamwork and working together for a common goal.

Jackson said he knew he wanted to get into the film industry after watching Star Wars in 1977.

"It was everything about it that intrigued me," he said. "It was the special effects and even the stop animation."

Following the success of the film Journey Through Fear, which Jackson created in 2000 while he was a film student, he and his wife Melanie started their own production firm, Dark Thunder Productions.

Jackson said he finds inspiration for his film work from the stories he's been told about his family.

"I was inspired from the stories that my mom told me about my grandpa raising 22 kids on the trap lines," said Jackson. "My inspiration has always been from my mother, all of my relations up in Sandy Bay, particularly my moshum and kokum who are no longer with us, but just them and their life is just inspiring to me. Just with what they had to go through to survive there because today we have it easy. We don't have to go out and hunt if we're hungry."

More information about Dennis Jackson, Dark Thunder Productions and the various Wapos Bay projects can be found on the company's Web site at www.darkthunder.ca.