The Canadian Society of Cinematographers held its annual awards dinner April 3 in Toronto, presenting major awards to directors of photography John Walker, Douglas Munro, Ronald Plante, Robert McLachlan and Pierre Gill.

"There's nothing like being endorsed by your peers," says the Toronto- and Halifax-based Walker, referring to his win in the documentary category for Men of the Deeps, which he both shot and directed. "Cinematographers have the most critical eye of anyone on set, so to have fellow DOPs give you the nod is a great honor."

Men of the Deeps, about Cape Breton coal miners, was shot mostly underground in June 2002.

"The stories of the men were all shot underground or in the dark; but counterpoint to that you have the women in the bright, sunny kitchens that tell their own stories, intertwined with the landscape of Cape Breton," Walker explains.

The film, coproduced with the National Film Board, was shot on Super 16 for broadcast on CTV, where it attracted nearly one million viewers. Walker, who has shot his share of TV drama, says he is particularly drawn to docs, explaining, "You don't know what tomorrow's going to be like."

Straddling those two formats is docudrama, and this year the lenser with bragging rights in that category is Calgary's Douglas Munro, who won the prize for On the Edge of Destruction: The Frank Slide Story, directed by Matt Palmer.

"Often [docudrama] is a documentary that employs dramatic sequences through the use of re-enactments," Munro explains.

On the Edge is a one-hour shot entirely in high-definition, chronicling events surrounding the devastating 1903 landslide of Turtle Mountain in the Crowsnest Pass area of southern Alberta.

"As one of the goals was to digitally project the program onto large cinema screens, we felt that the HD format was best to use throughout," Munro says. "To assist in telling the story, we chose to shoot all the modern-day sequences in 1080i/60, which has an immediacy that connects with the large-screen audience."

The project was produced by Margot McMaster of Echoes from the Pass Productions in association with HDTV Productions. It was picked up by Alberta specialty Access and HDNet and Discovery HD Theater in the U.S.

Ronald Plante's work on episode four of Les Aventures tumultueuses de Jack Carter earned him the award in the TV series category. The Montreal cameraman is pleased with the attention the show has received because of its nomination.

"It's the CSC Awards, and not just anybody can vote - you have to see the work," he says. "Being a French[-language] television series, [none of the anglophone members] had really seen it before, but when they did, they liked it."

In the ep, shot in Montreal for Radio-Canada, private investigator Carter is hired by the city zoo to find a tiger kidnapped by the Chinese Mafia.

"It was really interesting since we were shooting with a real tiger and could actually touch it, although I'm terribly allergic to cats," the DOP says.

Plante says the filmmakers watched many movies for inspiration, especially the British features Sexy Beast and Snatch for a "trashy, dirty" look. Jack Carter, produced by Montreal's Cirrus Communications, was shot on 24p HD with two Sony HDW-F900 cameras. Plante has become quite an HD expert, having also shot Robert Lepage's multi-Genie nominee La Face cachee de la lune in the format.

Vancouver- and L.A.-based DOP Robert McLachlan won in the prestigious theatrical feature category for his work on the New Line Cinema horror comedy Willard, directed by Glen Morgan. Despite having won nine previous CSC Awards in various categories, McLachlan says it still means a lot to him.

"It is unlike [most] other similar awards - the entries are judged by a panel of one's peers who actually sit down together and watch all the entries," he notes.

Shot in Vancouver in the spring of 2002, Willard was originated on the widescreen Super 35 format, and McLachlan says that style-wise it owes much to the master of suspense, Alfred Hitchcock.

Pierre Gill nabbed the statue for TV drama for the Alliance Atlantis/CBS miniseries Hitler: The Rise of Evil. The Montreal DOP also won an American Society of Cinematographers award for Hitler back in February.

Toronto lenser Phil Earnshaw, who has been involved with the CSC since the start of his career in the mid-1970s, was honored with the Fuji Award for outstanding service to the organization.

"I think it's really great that Fuji recognizes the CSC as a haven for camera people and a great place for young filmmakers who are just starting out to latch on," Earnshaw says.

Ever-busy Toronto cinematographer Paul Sarossy was the winner of the Kodak New Century Award for outstanding contribution to the art of cinematography. Sarossy's illustrious credit list includes the Atom Egoyan features Exotica, The Sweet Hereafter, Felicia's Journey and Ararat, as well as Affliction and The Snow Walker. Sarossy's father attended in his place, as the DOP is currently in Halifax shooting The River King, starring Edward Burns.

"It was an amazing surprise, totally unexpected, and I think the award has a bit of a connotation of the crowning achievement with it," Sarossy says from on set. "So I'm hoping it's the introduction of the next stage in my career."

Michael Spencer, founding director of the Canadian Film Development Corporation, now Telefilm Canada, received the Bill Hilson Award for his outstanding contribution to the development of the motion picture industry in Canada.

2004 CSC Awards winners
Following are the winners of this year's CSC Awards, presented in Toronto April 3.
* Theatrical Feature: Robert McLachlan csc asc, Willard
* TV Series: Ronald Plante csc, Les Aventures tumultueuses de Jack Carter
* TV Drama: Pierre Gill csc, Hitler: The Rise of Evil
* Documentary: John Walker csc, Men of the Deeps
* Docudrama: Douglas Munro csc, On the Edge of Destruction: The Frank Slide Story
* Roy Tash Award for Spot News: Keith Whelan, HMCS Montreal, CBC The National
* Stan Clinton Award for News Essay: Keith Eidse, Manitoba Mushers, A Channel Manitoba
* Dramatic Short: Yves Belanger csc, Wildflowers/Les fleurs sauvages
* Music Video: Christopher Soos csc, Christina Aguilera Fighter
* Fritz Spiess Commercial: Barry Parrell csc, Bacardi "Rigo"
* Student: Steven Deneault, Vancouver Film School, White Grease Paint
Special Honorees
* Bill Hilson Award: Michael Spencer, for outstanding service contributing to the development of the motion picture industry in Canada
* Fuji Award: Phil Earnshaw csc, for outstanding service to the Canadian Society of Cinematographers
* Kodak New Century Award: Paul Sarossy csc bsc, for outstanding contribution to the art of cinematography
-www.csc.ca