The Market - The Charles Officer Legacy Award

Presented by CBC

In December 2023, the Canadian screen industry lost celebrated and beloved writer, director, documentarian, and filmmaker Charles Officer. To honour his legacy and contributions, CBC and TIFF: The Market have partnered to present a monetary award of distinction, the Charles Officer Legacy Award.

This award will recognize a Black director and/or writer whose body of work exemplifies the creative excellence, strong point of view, and community-mindedness of our dear friend and colleague Charles.

The Award Recipient will receive

• A $25,000 cash prize
• TIFF Industry Membership, which includes free access to year-round programming at TIFF Lightbox for one year
• One Market badge to attend the inaugural 2026 edition of TIFF: The Market

How to Nominate

We invite those submitting nominations to describe how the candidate demonstrates these core qualities in their work:

• Creative Excellence: The intention and impact of the nominee's work, including:
  • Their creative process
  • Their unique style and aesthetic
  • Their craft
• POV: What the nominee’s work communicates, including:
  • The topic they are exploring and examining
  • The community or experience they are invested in showcasing
  • Their approach to storytelling
• Community: The nominee’s impact, including:
  • As a mentor
  • As a collaborator
  • As a member of community
  • As a builder of opportunity
  • As an advocate

Submission Guidelines

To support a nominee for the Charles Officer Legacy Award, we ask that the following materials be provided:

• A nomination letter. Using the qualities listed above as a guide, share a one-page summary of the nominee’s most significant contributions.
• Up to two letters of support. The letters can be cosigned by multiple colleagues, mentors, mentees, peers, institutions, etc.
• The nominee’s biography (maximum 500 words).
• A list of the nominee’s most significant works (must be no longer than one page).
• Optional: If there are links to supporting materials where the nominee is credited as a writer or writer-director, please share them via a password-protected Vimeo link (with the password ‘COLA2026’). A sample of work may be requested at a later date.
• All written documents should be submitted in a single merged PDF with the file title “THE CHARLES OFFICER LEGACY AWARD 2026 - [NOMINEE NAME]”.
• Please email the nomination to themarket@tiff.net with the subject line [CHARLES OFFICER LEGACY AWARD NOMINATION - [Nominee Name]
• Nominators may be contacted during the review period to provide sample work if it is not readily accessible online.

All submissions must be in English. Self-nominations will not be accepted.

Eligibility

• The award is open to Black writers and/or directors working in film, series, and documentary who have:
  • One or more feature films that have premiered at a major film festival, or
  • One or more writing and/or directing credits on a series (including digital) commissioned by a network or platform
• Participants need to be:
  • Canadian citizens or Permanent Residents
  • 19 years of age or older

Key Dates