Women in Film and Television – Toronto (WIFT-T), in partnership with Kodak Canada Entertainment Imaging, has announced Audrey Cummings as the winner of the 2007 Kodak New Vision Fellowship. Cummings will build on her creative and business skills in the coming months with acclaimed Canadian filmmaker Ruba Nadda (Sabah) and senior executive Laurie May, Co-President of Maple Pictures Corp.

“On behalf of Kodak, I’m delighted to congratulate Audrey Cummings as this year’s winner of the Kodak New Vision Fellowship,” said Johanna Gravelle, Kodak Canada Entertainment Imaging, Country Manager. “Having the opportunity to be mentored by such prominent industry leaders as Ruba Nadda and Laurie May underlines the importance of the Kodak New Vision Fellowship in nurturing the talent and vision of Canadian female filmmakers.”

“After watching Audrey’s short film, A Stolen Moment, I was immediately interested in Audrey. She knows the sci-fi genre and with some guidance, she will be on her way to becoming a master in the feature filmmaking world,” said May.
“I am thrilled and honoured to have received this award. What an incredible gift to be given the opportunity to mentor with two phenomenal women at such an important development time in my career,” said Cummings. “The jump into feature filmmaking is an extremely challenging journey and being given the opportunity to learn from such experienced and knowledgeable women will be an invaluable experience for me.”

A self-confessed sci-fi buff, Quebec-born Cummings graduated from Queen’s University before moving to Toronto. She has written and directed several award-winning short films including A Stolen Moment and The Battle for Arthur, which have played in festivals worldwide including Vancouver, Seattle, Korea, Austria and Montreal, and which have been sold for broadcast in the U.S. and Canada. She participated in the 2006 CFC Director’s Lab Programme and her short film Burgeon and Fade will premiere at the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival before making its way to the Vancouver International Film Festival. Cummings is currently in development for her first feature film, Perfecting Chaos, a sci-fi thriller that she is hoping to shoot in the fall of 2008. Other projects in development include the feature film Cheebo, a sci-fi comedy, and HSN, a television comedy series.

The Kodak New Vision Fellowship is presented annually to one emerging Canadian female filmmaker. The award offers the invaluable opportunity to prepare for the Toronto International Film Festival through intensive industry coaching and a post-festival creative mentorship.