Entertainment Community Fund, Humanitas, and Motion Picture & Television Fund to receive 2023 CIMA Awards

Amid this historic time in our profession, CIMA is proud to present its Board of Directors Award to three industry organizations that have provided - and continue to provide - food, social services, and assistance to our striking and unemployed colleagues.

The CIMA Awards were established in 1993 to recognize achievements in the industry that promote human dignity and uplift the human spirit. We can't think of a better example than the actions of these fine organizations, who answered the call to service and support in this time of great need for so many of us.

The awards will be presented at a light reception following the annual entertainment industry mass on Sunday, October 22 at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. Both the mass and awards reception are free and open to all! Please join us in celebrating the work of the Entertainment Community Fund, Humanitas, and the Motion Picture & Television Fund.

During this historic industry shutdown

Dear friends,

As I write this letter, the WGA membership has ratified their hard-fought agreement with the studios, and the SAG-AFTRA and AMPTP negotiating teams are continuing to talk. This industry-wide shutdown may be, at last, coming to an end. There is much to hope for.

Yet, times like these remind us of the importance of fellowship, reflection, and reconciliation – experiences especially important in sustaining one’s fight for equity and dignity, in this work or another. It is CIMA’s wish, that each of us may find an opportunity for these experiences at our annual entertainment industry mass.

So, on behalf of CIMA, I invite you to join us at the annual mass and awards on Sunday, October 22 at 10 a.m. In light of the continued hardships in the industry, we will forgo our traditional ticketed brunch and instead host a coffee and tea reception following mass, free and open to all (an RSVP is requested).

There, we will present awards to those industry organizations who have answered the call to serve by providing food and related services to our unemployed colleagues. Those names will be announced in the coming days.

I encourage you to join us at Loyola Marymount University in west Los Angeles on the morning of October 22. Let us find a moment together, especially with those striking, unemployed, hurting or questioning their future in this work, to celebrate each other and create, at least, one such opportunity for fellowship, reflection, and reconciliation.

Sincerely,

Michael McNaught
CIMA President

Documentary 'With This Light' to receive 2023 CIMA Social Justice Award

with this light (Miraflores Films LLC)

With This Light will be presented the 2023 Social Justice Award for documenting the life and ministry Sister María Rosa Leggo, which has accelerated the cause for her beatification and ensured that her humanitarian efforts continue in Honduras.

The award will be presented as part of the annual film showcase at the Los Angeles Religious Education Congress on Friday, February 24 at the Anaheim Convention Center. The program will include a conversation with Co-director Nicole Bernardi-Reis and a full screening of the documentary.

During her 70 years as a nun, Sister Maria Rosa Leggol helped over 87,000 Honduran children escape poverty and violence through an ecosystem of social, educational and entrepreneurial projects, inspiring an international network of supporters to expand her work. In the midst of civil wars, economic collapse and natural disasters, she continued her charge to help young people, such as Maria and Rosa, break familial cycles of poverty and violence to create lives of their own. With This Light poetically interweaves the compelling present-day stories of these teenagers with the epic life and noble actions of Sister Maria Rosa.

Vincent “Vin” Di Bona to receive 2022 CIMA Entertainment Legend Award

producer vin di bona

Producer Vincent “Vin” Di Bona will receive the 2022 CIMA Entertainment Legend Award in recognition his distinguished career, contributions and service to the entertainment industry.

Vin Di Bona, chief executive officer of Vin Di Bona Productions and chairman of FishBowl Worldwide Media, has built a celebrated career that has garnered him multiple awards including four Emmys and a Peabody. A pioneer in comedic reality television, Vin chartered new territory in the television industry when he introduced America’s Funniest Home Videos in 1989. For over four decades Di Bona has tapped into the heart of stories that entertain and uplift, using the power of television to bring them into homes across America.

Beyond reality television, Di Bona’s diverse experience in producing and directing includes television movies, broadcast and cable series, network specials, music award shows and variety programming. Among those are Entertainment Tonight, MacGyver, and the Showtime series, Sherman Oaks. He has also produced three highly acclaimed movies-of-the week, For the Love of Nancy, Touched By Evil and Voices From Within, as well as documentaries, including Down at the Dunbar, for which he won the Peabody.

'Father Stu', 'Hollywood Priest', and 'The Chosen' among 2022 CIMA Awards

We are proud to announce the recipients of the 2022 CIMA Awards, which will be presented at the annual mass and awards brunch on Sunday, October 23.

Father stu (sony pictures)

Feature Film Award
Father Stu

Based on a true story, Father Stu is an unflinchingly honest, funny and uplifting story about finding purpose in a most unexpected place. After surviving a terrible motorcycle accident, Stuart Long (Mark Wahlberg) wonders if he can use his second chance to help others find their way — and leads this former amateur boxer to the surprising realization that he is meant to be a priest. Despite a devastating health crisis and the skepticism of Church officials and his estranged parents (Mel Gibson and Jacki Weaver), Stu pursues his vocation with courage and compassion, inspiring not only those closest to him but countless others along the way.

Director Rosalind Ross will accept the award on behalf of the film.

Hollywood priest (paulist productions)

Documentary Award
Hollywood Priest: The Story of Fr. Bud Kieser

When Father Elwood “Bud” Kieser arrived in Los Angeles in 1957, he had no idea of the adventure that awaited him. After being encouraged by the entertainment professionals attending his parish, Fr. Bud begins a forty-year career as a television and film producer. Tinseltown, however, can be a precarious place to navigate under the best of circumstances, let alone for a priest in the 1960s when his church and the larger society are going through tremendous changes.

Producers Tom Gibbons and Maria-Elena P. Pineda will accept the award on behalf of the documentary.

the chosen (Angel Studios)

Series Award
The Chosen

As the biggest crowdfunded project in TV history, The Chosen is the first-ever multi-season show about the life of Jesus. This series allows viewers to see the life of Jesus (Jonathan Roumie) through the eyes of those that knew him. Follow the transformations of his followers through the ministry of Jesus as he journeys to change the world.

Series creator and producer Dallas Jenkins and actor Johnathan Roumie will accept the award on behalf of the series.