Primitive Entertainment
Primitive Entertainment is a leading producer of documentary feature films, television series and digital media. Working with a diverse range of international and domestic partners, programs from Primitive Entertainment are known for their integrity and high production values.
- Canadian Made
Canadian Made
- Beauty Day
Beauty Day
- The National Parks Project
The National Parks Project
- Waterlife
Waterlife
- Ancestors in the Attic
Ancestors in the Attic
- Four Wings and A Prayer
Four Wings and A Prayer
- Working Over Time
Working Over Time
- Lovable
Lovable
- Things That Move
Things That Move
- In the Reign of Twilight
In the Reign of Twilight
- Cod: The Fish that Changed the World
Cod: The Fish that Changed the World
- I, Curmudgeon
I, Curmudgeon
- A Perfect Fake
A Perfect Fake
- The Face of Victory
The Face of Victory
- The Falls
The Falls
Background
Primitive Entertainment has produced some of Canada’s most daring and successful feature documentary films, television series and digital media. Over the course of our 22 year history, we have won numerous domestic and international awards.
In 2010, Primitive Entertainment earned a Webby Award for Best Individual Documentary; a Genie Award for Best Feature Length Documentary; a SXSW Interactive Award for Activism; the Toyota Earth Grand Prize at the Tokyo International Film Festival; and an Emmy Nomination for Outstanding Nature Programming.
In 2011, our feature documentary Beauty Day made its world premiere at MoMA, and its Canadian premiere at Hot Docs; The National Parks Project television series launched on Discovery World HD, and the National Parks Project collection of short films premiered at the Berlin Film Festival, SXSW, and Hot Docs.
In October of 2011, Primitive Entertainment's founding partner, Kevin McMahon, was honoured with the Canadian Eco Hero Award at the Planet In Focus Environmental Film Festival.
In 2012, The National Parks Project: Sirmilk screened in the Canadian Front at MoMA, and won a Genie Award for Best Short Documentary . The National Parks Project Interactive site was nominated at SXSW Interactive, and also for a Banff Rockie Award (Cross Platform Project - Non Fiction Programs). Our new series Canadian Made launches in June on History Television.
The case for making the documentary Canada’s official art form
by Kevin McMahon | The National Post | May 5, 2012
How To Build A Time Machine Documentary - VIDEO
by Shaun Hatton | The Electric Playground | March 12, 2012
In the Works: HOW TO BUILD A TIME MACHINE
by Basil Tsiokos | what (not) to doc | March 9, 2012
National Parks Project wins at inaugural AToMiC awards
By Katie Bailey | Playback Online | October 5, 2011
Planet in Focus honors Kevin McMahon with Canadian Eco Hero prize
By Kelly Anderson | Realscreen | September 22, 2011
Gemini Awards honour best in news, sports, lifestyle & reality TV
The National Post | August 30, 2011
The Original Jackass
By Lucy Meyer | The Sydney Morning Herald | August 12, 2011
Silly on Celluloid
By Mathew Hays | The Montréal Mirror | July 21, 2011
The original Jackass: Cap'n Video
By Melissa Leong | The National Post | June 9, 2011
Jay Cheel and Ralph Zavadil talk ‘Beauty Day’
By Andrew Parker | Criticize This | June 8, 2011
Cap'n Video HIts the Silver Screen
By John Law | The Niagara Falls Review | June 8, 2011
The National Parks Project: Wildlife and wild music
By Guy Dixon | The Globe and Mail | May 20, 2011
The National Parks Project
By Jason Anderson | The Grid | May 18, 2011
The Rise and Fall of Cap'n Video
By Joel Rubinoff | The Record.com | May 5, 2011
Beauty Day - Directed by Jay Cheel
By Will Sloan | exclaim.ca | May 3, 2011
Alan Zweig, The Man in the Mirror
By Geoff Pevere | The Toronto Star | April 29, 2011
Hot Docs Review - Beauty Day
By Andrew Parker | Criticize This | April 20, 2011
Hot Docs Preview - Beauty Day
By Blake Williams | blog TO | April 18, 2011
Homegrown Canuck culture invades MoMA
By Peter Goddard | The Toronto Star | March 18, 2011
Genie Award, Best Short Documentary, 2012 - The National Parks Project: Sirmilik
Platinum Award - Animation, Pixie Awards, 2011 - Canadian Made
Gold Award - Use Of Effects, Pixie Awards, 2011 - Canadian Made
Best Documentary, Flyway Film Festival, 2011 - Beauty Day
Canadian Eco Hero Award, Planet In Focus, 2011 - Kevin McMahon
Bronze Award, Transmedia, AToMIC Awards, 2011 - The National Parks Project
Gemini Award, Best Performing Arts Program or Series or Arts Documentary Program or Series, 2011 - The National Parks Project
Toyota Earth Grand Prize, Tokyo International Film Festival, 2010 - Waterlife
Webby Award, Best Individual Documentary, 2010 - Waterlife Interactive
Genie Award, Best Feature Length Documentary, 2010 - A Hard Name
SXSW Web Award, Activism, 2010 - Waterlife Interactive
Emmy Nomination, Outstanding Nature Programming, 2010 - Four Wings and A Prayer
April 5, 2012 - THE NATIONAL PARKS PROJECT is nominated for a Rockie Award in the category Cross Platform Project - Non Fiction Programs at the Banff World Media Festival.
March 8, 2012 - THE NATIONAL PARKS PROJECT: SIRMILIK wins Best Short Documentary at the 32nd annual Genie Awards.
February 27, 2012 - Cinematographer John Minh Tran has been nominated for the Robert Brooks Award for Documentary Cinematography for his work on Kevin McMahon's film STANDING WAVE, part of THE NATIONAL PARKS PROJECT collection of short films.
January 28, 2012 - THE NATIONAL PARKS PROJECT INTERACTIVE has been nominated for a SXSW Interactive Award in the category Art. From traditional photography to non-traditional performances, this category focuses on interactive collections of life, society and culture.
January 17, 2012 - BEAUTY DAY is nominated for Best Feature Length Documentary at the 32nd annual Genie Awards.
January 17, 2012 - THE NATIONAL PARKS PROJECT: SIRMILIK is nominated for Best Documentary Short at the 32nd annual Genie Awards.
November 14, 2011 - CANADIAN MADE wins Platinum (Animation) and Gold (Use Of Effects) at the Pixie Awards.
November 4, 2011 - THE NATIONAL PARKS PROJECT is nominated for Best In Cross Platform: Factual at the Digi Awards.
October 27, 2011 - THE NATIONAL PARKS PROJECT is nominated for Best Limited Series at the International Documentary Association Awards.
October 24, 2011 - BEAUTY DAY wins Best Documentary at the Flyway Film Festival.
October 12, 2011 - Kevin McMahon is awarded the 2011 Canadian Eco Hero Award at the Planet In Focus Environmental Film Festival in Toronto, Canada.
October 5, 2011 - FilmCAN and Primitive Entertainment’s NATIONAL PARKS PROJECT wins Bronze, Transmedia at the inaugural AToMIC Awards.
September 22, 2011 - Celebrated filmmaker and writer Kevin McMahon will receive the 2011 Canadian Eco Hero Award at the Planet In Focus Environmental Film Festival, running October 12 - 16 in Toronto, Canada.
August 31, 2011 - Primitive Entertainment and FilmCAN win the Gemini Award for Best Performing Arts Program or Series or Arts Documentary Program or Series for THE NATIONAL PARKS PROJECT.
August 3, 2011 - Primitive Entertainment and FilmCAN are nominated for two Gemini Awards for THE NATIONAL PARKS PROJECT in the categories of Best Performing Arts Program or Series or Arts Documentary Program or Series and Best Cross-Platform Project - Non-Fiction.
March 22, 2011 - Alan Zweig is the subject of this year's FOCUS ON retrospective at Hot Docs. Three of Alan's feature documentaries produced by Priimitive Entertainment, I, CURMUDGEON; LOVABLE; and A HARD NAME, will screen as part of the programme.
March 22, 2011 - BEAUTY DAY and THE NATIONAL PARKS PROJECT make their Canadian premiere at Hot Docs.
March 20, 2011 - BEAUTY DAY makes its world premiere at The Museum of Modern Art.
March 18, 2011 - THE NATIONAL PARKS PROJECT makes its US premiere at SXSW.
February 10, 2011 - THE NATIONAL PARKS PROJECT: SIRMILIK makes its world premiere at The Berlin Film Festival.
October 29, 2010 - WATERLIFE wins the Toyota Earth Grand Prize at the Tokyo International Film Festival, 2010