Animation producer Marcy Page will receive lifetime achievement award at the 51st Annie Awards which will take place in California.
Page – who was formerly at National Film Board of Canada (NFB) – is this year’s recipient of the Winsor McCay Award honouring achievement and contributions to animation. The award will be presented to her on 17 February 2024 by ASIFA-Hollywood, the Los Angeles branch of the International Animated Film Association.
The Winsor McCay Award was established in 1972 and is named in honour of animator Winsor McCay, a prolific artist and pioneer in the art of comic strips and animation.
“On behalf of the National Film Board of Canada, congratulations Marcy on this richly deserved tribute recognising your immense contributions to the art of animation. You’ve produced an amazing body of work during your distinguished career at the NFB, inspiring and mentoring countless animators,” said government film commissioner and NFB chairperson Suzanne Guèvremont.
“I think we should all thank our lucky stars that we have Marcy. Not only because she is such an accomplished and gifted producer, but because she is an exceptionally lovely human being. I am sure there are many people around the world who will say that they cannot think of anyone more deserving of this award than Marcy Page. I am very happy to join that chorus of voices singing Marcy’s praises. She is and always will be a beacon in the international community of animation and a bright star in many, many lives,” said short film The Danish Poet director Torill Kove said.
“Marcy Page was our champion from the first day we met—she recognised something in us that we did not yet even recognise in ourselves. She mentored us through every aspect of filmmaking and then every aspect of a film’s success (which at times could be overwhelming). She protected us, picked us up, and never stopped believing in us. She deserves all the awards she’s ever gotten and more,” said Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski (Madame Tutli-Putli).
Born and raised in California, Page immigrated to Canada and joined the NFB in 1990, first as a director and associate producer and then as a producer. She sought out eclectic and unusual productions and co-productions during her career as a producer with the NFB’s English Program Animation Studio, pushing the boundaries of the animation medium.
Her NFB credits include two Academy Award-winning animated shorts, Chris Landreth’s Ryan (2004) and Torill Kove’s The Danish Poet (2006). She was also NFB producer on four more Oscar-nominated films: Kove’s My Grandmother Ironed the King’s Shirts (1999) and Me and My Moulton (2014); Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski’s Madame Tutli-Putli (2007); and Amanda Forbis and Wendy Tilby’s Wild Life (2011).
Over the course of her rich career at the NFB, Page helped shape acclaimed animated films with both emerging and seasoned directors, which together have garnered over 350 international awards and honours. She retired from producing at the NFB in 2014 to pursue her first love, directing and animating more personal work. Virgin Fandango is a project that she developed, inspired by Portugal, where she spends her summers with her partner, distinguished composer and sound designer Normand Roger.