I respect Shannonn Kelly — as an administrator, as a creative artist, as a mentor, as a supporter of the arts, as a woman of integrity who gets things done. I know I am not alone in this. Over the 16 years of ReelHeART International Film Festival, she has supported the development and the careers of thousands of people from Ontario, across Canada, and around the world. Drea Burck

Shannonn’s grassroots approach to supporting talent has resulted in new talent constantly being discovered as a result of ReelHeART in that same way we were when she chose to screen our first feature when nobody else would. We are always impressed with who we meet and what we see at ReelHeART all these years later. It’s a tribute to Shannonn’s devotion to independent cinema and the championing of the “little people”. Jason Butler