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Helga Stephenson

TORONTO | MONTREAL – Powerhouse leader Helga Stephenson will be stepping down from her role as Chief Executive Officer of the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television, it was announced today by Academy Chair Martin Katz. An executive search is now underway. Stephenson will remain as Academy CEO until this position is filled.

“Nobody could have done it better than Helga,” says Katz. “On behalf of the Academy Board, I thank Helga for setting the Academy on a new path and congratulate her on being inducted into Playback’s Canadian Film and Television Hall of Fame.”

Stephenson has been Academy CEO since May 2011 and spearheaded the merger of the Academy’s film, television and digital media awards into the Canadian Screen Awards. She created Canadian Screen Week, an event-filled calendar for both industry veterans and newcomers, with a distinctly new outreach program to the Canadian public. She greenlit the increasingly popular Fanzone.Academy.ca website (targeted to a younger demographic), and countless other outreach initiatives.

Stephenson says she is looking forward to more world travel and other new challenges, but is extremely pleased with the work she has done for the Academy and the entire Canadian screen industry. “On a personal note, it has been my honour and privilege to work with you over the past five years. My admiration for your passion, talent and creativity knows no bounds,” says Stephenson.