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DAILY NEWS
Jan 8, 2008 8:07 AM
Family Guy Hosts BC Animation and Video Gaming Awards
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Seth MacFarlane will host the 2nd Annual Elan Awards Show for the professional video and gaming industries.
Producers of the Canadian Awards for the Electronic and Animated Arts (CAEAA) along with Event Partners Ernst & Young, Electronic Arts (EA), Autodesk, N-GAGE by NOKIA, and the Government of British Columbia, announced the popular TV program producer and animator will host the event, to be held on February 15th, 2008 at The Centre in Vancouver for the Performing Arts.
Creator, Executive Producer, and star of one of the most bankable franchises in all of television, Family Guy's Seth MacFarlane reports: "I am extremely excited to be hosting the 2nd Annual Elan Awards. I am, of course, heavily involved in animation, and gaming seems to be the wave of the future."
"It's obvious that he's the perfect host for our awards show especially given the industries we honour, Animation and Video Gaming, and it's these industries that we owe the idea of inviting Seth to Host," Holly Carinci, Founder & Producer of the Elan Awards, said in a release. "It's not easy finding the right host for two different industries and we've certainly got that with Seth."
The Elan Awards, which awards the talent behind the burgeoning professional Video Gaming and Animation industries, as well as the raw talent (students) coming from Digital Art Educational Institutions, began in its first year as a Canadian-only Awards show but added International "Best of" categories for all three of these industries for their second production of the show. Participation exploded after only one year into an enormous network of Video Game, Animation and Digital Art Schools worldwide who were eager to participate, organizers describe.
"We are quite taken aback by the enthusiasm of so many countries outside of Canada to participate in this show." says Carinci. "We believe that this early World wide Industry participation in the Elans is positive indication of our mandate in establishing Canada as the World centre for Video Gaming and the celebration of Canada's incredible contribution to the world in Animation and the educational Institutions behind the future talent in both phenomenal industries. In short, we are looking to one day soon produce the Oscar-equivalent for both Animation and Video Gaming. Having a host the caliber of Seth MacFarlane and worldwide participation in what is only the second show, the future looks very bright."
MacFarlane began his career studying animation and design at the Rhode Island School of Design, where he created the animated short film "The Life of Larry," which later became the inspiration for Family Guy. The show was picked up by FOX in 1998, and MacFarlane went on to receive an Emmy Award for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance for his role as Stewie Griffin (MacFarlane voices the popular characters Peter Griffin, Stewie Griffin and Brian Griffin in the series), and the show has garnered two nominations for Outstanding Animated Series. In 2002, he also received an Emmy for Outstanding Music and Lyrics for Family Guy. The show was canceled in 2002, but exceptional ratings on Cartoon Network's "Adult Swim" and astonishing DVD sales convinced FOX to make the unprecedented move to return the show to production and their schedule. Family Guy has since established itself as the anchor of FOX's Sunday night lineup and as MacFarlane also serves as co-creator/executive producer/star of the animated series American Dad, entering its fourth season.
The 2nd Annual Elan Awards will be held in Vancouver, BC at The Centre in Vancouver for the Performing Arts and the Official Hotelier, The Sutton Place Hotel, Vancouver.
Supporters of the Elans include Alexander Holburn Beaudin & Lang LLP, Seven Group, Annex Pro, Foundation 9/Backbone Entertainment, Radical Entertainment, Next Level Games, slant six games, Studio B Productions, Mercury Filmworks, Action Pants, Atomic Robot Games, Blue Castle Games, Voicebox Productions, Western Imperial Magnetics, 90 Degree Software, David Kaye Productions, Raven Tales, Selkirk College, The Art Institute of Vancouver, Emily Carr Institute, Sheridan College, Vancouver Film School, School of Interactive Arts and Technology (SFU), University of Washington Department of Communications, BC Film, Vancouver Economic Development Commission, Tourism Vancouver, BC Innovation Council, as well as Uniglobe Advance Travel, FedEx, Paramount Limousines, Chloe Angus Designs, Moore's Clothing for Men and the Awards Auditing firm, Buckley Dodds & Assoc's., organizers describe
