Sheridan Graduates Shine Among 2009 Genie Award Nominees

Graduates of Sheridan’s film and television programs are hoping to shine at the Genie Awards taking place this Saturday, April 4th.

For Immediate Release: March 31, 2009
Oakville, Ontario

Graduates of Sheridan’s film and television programs are hoping to shine at the Genie Awards taking place this Saturday, April 4th. Among the nominees are Richie Mehta (director) and Steven Bray (co-producer) of Amal, which has earned a total of six nominations, including Best Motion Picture and Achievement in Direction. Amal is also nominated for Achievement in Music – Original Song, Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role, Achievement in Overall Sound, and Adapted Screenplay. 

Mehta graduated in 2003 from Sheridan’s post-graduate Advanced TV and Film program, while Bray is a 2003 graduate of the Media Arts diploma program. 

Amal is adapted from a story written by Shaun Mehta, Richie’s brother. It tells the story of an auto-rickshaw driver in New Delhi whose life takes an interesting twist when he encounters a passenger who happens to be an eccentric billionaire. 

A Sheridan graduate is also featured in the Best Documentary category, with John Christou’s nomination as producer of Up the Yangtze. Christou, whose other producing credits include The Colony (2007) and Bone (2005), graduated from Sheridan’s post-graduate Advanced TV and Film program in 2001. 

Up the Yangtze documents the astonishing transformation wrought by the largest hydroelectric project in history, the Three Gorges Dam in China. Both Amal and Up the Yangtze have screened at film festivals around the world to great acclaim. 

The Sheridan Institute of Technology & Advanced Learning annually serves 15,000 full-time and 35,000 continuing education students at its campuses in Oakville and Brampton, Ontario. Sheridan offers an innovative learning environment celebrated for academic excellence, applied research and creativity. Program options range from one-year certificates to four-year Bachelor’s degrees, in the arts, business, community service and technology fields. We prepare students for career success; over ninety percent of graduates are employed within six months of graduation.