The Prism Prize, the annual awards event that recognizes outstanding artistry in music video production in Canada, was held last Thursday evening (July 6th), with the Sterling Larose-directed video for Snotty Nose Rez Kids' Damn Right winning the Grand Prize for Canadian music video of the year, and the video for Dan Mangan's Fire Escape, directed by Lester Lyons-Hookham, winning the Audience Award.

Both videos were chosen from a Top 10 Canadian music videos of the year, which explored complicated and compelling themes of racism, discrimination, violence, sexuality, heartbreak, justice, and self-expression.

“The deeply engaging music videos that were created by the 2023 Prism Prize Top 10 artists and directors prove that the artform continues to reach new heights, and we are thrilled to have celebrated their incredible work tonight at the 2023 Prism Prize,” said Louis Calabro, Vice-President, Programming & Awards, at the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television and the Founder of Prism Prize. “The Grand Prize-winning video for Damn Right is the perfect example of this; offering viewers a three-and-a-half minute journey paying homage to the iconic legacy of The Beatles in a visually stunning and colourful way. Congratulations to Snotty Nose Rez Kids and Sterling Larose on their well-deserved win.”

Previous winners of the Grand Prize have included Mustafa for his self-directed music video Ali (2022), Theo Kapodistrias for Haviah Mighty’s Thirteen (2021), Peter Huang for Jessie Reyez’s Far Away (2020), and Emily Kai Bock for Arcade Fire’s Afterlife (2014).

The 2023 Prism Prize live screening and awards presentation also celebrated the 2023 Special Award recipients. Canadian singer-songwriter, Nemahsis, was presented with the Hi-Fidelity Award (supported by FACTOR, the Government of Canada and Canada’s Private Radio Broadcasters), established to recognize recording artists who utilize music videos in innovative ways; Montreal-based director Aimé Irabahaye was awarded the Lipsett Award, established to celebrate a unique approach to music video art;

Montreal-based photographer and director, Adrian Villagomez, was granted the Special Achievement Award (supported by The Slaight Family Foundation) established to recognize an exceptional contribution to music video art on the world stage; and award-winning Toronto-based director, Sara Elgamal, was given the Willie Dunn Award (supported by Telefilm Canada), presented to a Canadian trailblazer who has demonstrated excellence within the music, music video and/or film production communities.

The Prism Prize is a partner of the UK Music Video Awards, one of a group of music video festivals and awards around the world who form part of a Global Music Video Network initiative, to encourage broader dissemination and promotion of music video talent across territories. Other partners include m-v-f- Brazil, Buenos Aires Music Video Festival, Bogotá Music Video Festival, Music Video Perú and Videoclip Italia.

• Watch music video work from this year's Special Awards recipients and Top 10 finalists, as well as hundreds of other eligible videos from years past, visit PrismPrize.com.