William Shatner to Receive Lifetime Achievement Award at Banff World Television Festival / nextMEDIA 2010
Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning actor to share career highlights in Special Master Class

TORONTO, CANADA, March 06, 2010 /24-7PressRelease/ -- The Banff World Television Festival and nextMEDIA are pleased to announce that William Shatner will be presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Banff World Television Awards. The award winning actor will also be presenting a Master Class at this year's highly anticipated event taking place June 13-16th at the Banff Springs Hotel in Banff, Alberta.

Best known for his epic role as "Captain James T. Kirk" in the television series 'Star Trek', the Canadian born, Emmy and Golden Globe winning actor, director, producer, screenwriter, recording artist, and author's career has spanned over 50 years. Shatner's career highlights include such television successes as his title role in the network hit series 'T.J. Hooker' and most recently his starring role in ABC's 'Boston Legal' which garnered him Emmy and Golden Globe awards for his larger-than-life character "Denny Crane".

Shatner's Master Class session will be held on Tuesday, June 15th from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. where he will talk about his illustrious career, his recent bold move into the social media age, and his recently announced CBS comedy project based on the irreverent 'Shit My Dad Says'.

"William Shatner is one of the most celebrated pop-culture icons in the 21st century and we are delighted to be honouring his career achievements at Banff," says Peter Vamos, Executive Director of the Banff World Television Festival. "His ability to keep pace with the times, leverage the latest industry and technology trends, and inject humour every step of the way, have been the keys to an unbelievably successful, decades-long career. To stay on top throughout it all, particularly in such a tough, evolving industry, is truly inspiring."

This year's Banff World Television Festival announced a strategic partnership that will combine nextMEDIA and the Banff World Television Festival (BANFF) into a joint event at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel on June 13-16th, 2010.

During the enhanced four-day event in Banff, some of the biggest international names in broadcasting, television production, distribution and digital media will come together to experience industry insight, learn, strategize and network with the media community. Over 1500 delegates are expected to attend.

Delegates will have the opportunity to build the indispensable relationships required to succeed in the international marketplace through shared BANFF and nextMEDIA networking, social events, and our prestigious awards ceremonies. Delegates can continue to expect the high-quality programming, ground-breaking speakers, high level participants, facilitated networking sessions and new initiatives dedicated to generating business opportunities and building relationships that continue to make Banff the most important event in the world that is specifically dedicated to media content production and development.

About nextMEDIA
nextMEDIA is a series of digital media conferences, products and programs. It has established itself as Canada's leading platform for business development and training around the digital media ecosystem. nextMEDIA is owned and produced by Achilles Media Ltd. with the help and support of an international advisory board from the digital media industry. nextMEDIA Banff will take place concurrently with the Banff World Television Festival from June 13-16, 2010 at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel. http://www.banff2010.com/nextmedia.program.php

About the Banff World Television Festival
The 31st Banff World Television Festival will take place June 13-16, 2010 at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel, Banff, Canada. International broadcasters, producers, writers, directors, distributors and industry executives from over 25 countries will be attending. A core feature of the festival is the prestigious Banff World Television Awards ("The Rockies"). In 2009, 130 programs from over 30 countries were chosen as finalists in 23 program categories. www.banff2010.com

Media contact:
Almira Bardai
Jive Communications
Tel: 604-568-7214
Email: almira@jivecommunications.ca

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