2022 SOCIAL IMPACT AWARDS
The winners of the 2022 OTT.X Social Impact Awards were announced on Tuesday November 29th at the OTT.X Social Impact Awards Ceremony.
OTT.X created this awards show to celebrate the content creators and organizations using their art and technology to inspire positive action and promote acceptance of, and equality for, all people.
A documentary on gay love and a film about Asian hate crimes were among five honorees at the third annual OTT.X Social Impact Awards, held November 29th at the IPIC Theatre in Westwood, California.
Here Media won the Full-Length Nonfiction Film award for the documentary 100 Years of Men in Love: The Accidental Collection, filmmaker David Millbern’s look at Neal Treadwell and Hugh Nini’s collection of vintage photographs of men in love with each other. Many of these photos date back to a time when same-sex partnerships were frowned upon, if not illegal.
The Full-Length Fiction Film award went to TriCoast Worldwide for Almighty Zeus, an action film produced by eight-division world boxing champion Manny Pacquiao. The film centers on anti-Asian hate crimes and showcases unity through the sport of boxing.
The Series award went to Demand Africa for “MADE BKLYN,” in which four successful New Yorkers share their stories of what it means to be first generation African immigrants in America.
Awards also went to Girls Voices Now for A Letter to You (Short Title) and Stingray for Stingray Naturscape (Technology).
“We are honored to recognize content and technologies that use the power of OTT streaming to inspire positive action, promote understanding, acceptance, equality and make a positive impact on the world,” said Mark Fisher, OTT.X president and CEO.
A special thank you too all participants and congratulations to this year's winners!
2022 SOCIAL IMPACT AWARD RECIPIENTS
Impactful Short Title
A Letter to You, Girls Voices Now | Here Media
This short documentary is about four young women of color, their struggles with beauty standards, and their journey towards self-love and collective empowerment. The film focuses on highlighting the negative effects of beauty standards on young women of color, while deconstructing it as well. The filmmakers want to effect change by empowering youth to embrace who they are, and to not fixate on what society wants them to be. As a society, it is our duty to encourage self-love and acceptance at a young age — to develop a healthy relationship between girls and their self- esteem.
Impactful Series
Made BKLYN | Demand Africa
Immigrants built America, long described as a place where the “American Dream” is open to all. What does that dream look like when the country and its history seem at odds today? Can the efforts of 4 New Yorkers of African heritage achieve that dream and make a difference for others? Made BKLYN debuted on Demand Africa, a division of The Africa Channel, Inc, a global OTT and streaming video service. Its mission is to celebrate and amplify modern Africa’s influence on the world by connecting global audiences to entertainment as diverse and bold as the continent itself. Through this dynamic subscription on-demand service, Demand Africa is able to deliver thousands of hours of curated content from Africa and throughout the African Diaspora, bridging communities through entertainment.
Impactful Full Length Feature | Non Fiction
100 Years of Men in Love | Here Media
100 Years of Men in Love: The Accidental Collection is a documentary focusing on a unique, moving, and joy-filled collection of vintage photographs of men in love from the 1850s to the 1950s. Taken when male partnerships were often illegal, the photos were found at flea markets, in shoe boxes, family archives, estate sales, and old suitcases. Directed by Emmy award winning actor-producer David Millbern, and with spoken words from curators Hugh Nini and Neal Treadwell, 100 Years of Men in Love: The Accidental Collection showcases the beauty of everlasting and universal love.
Impactful Full Length Feature | Fiction
Almighty Zeus | TriCoast Worldwide
Asian Hate is on the rise in the US in 2022, it’s 361% higher than 2021. More than 11,400 incidents. TriCoast Worldwide is proud of the film that Film Maker Chris Soriano and his team have made. Almighty Zeus shines a light on everyday incidents of violence made against Asian Americans bringing awareness and inspiring positive action.
Impactful Technological Innovation
Naturescape | Stingray
Stingray is a music, media, and technology company that offers many exciting and innovative products and services, including Stingray Naturescape. The Naturescape channel is a slowTV concept designed to emphasize the beauty of our planet, from waterfalls in Hawaii to the green pastures of New Zealand. Stingray leveraging their technology and business partnerships, Stingray collaborated with the One Tree Planted organization. Donating to their reforestation efforts to directly impact community empowerment and local agroforestry projects. What we take for granted about trees is how they help scrub the air we breathe by absorbing pollution and releasing clean oxygen. Not only that, but their roots absorb rainwater and help prevent natural catastrophes like floods or landslides. There's no denying their importance in sustaining the earth's unique biodiversity. Now that our world population has surpassed 8 billion and pollution continues to overheat our planet, we need to look to trees to help reduce this phenomenon. With the support of distribution partners, Stingray has committed to donating all proceeds of the Stingray Naturescape channel on Earth Day to the One Tree planted organization, Through of their efforts, we can all breathe a little better.