Montréal Hosted The 67th World Science Fiction Con

Details

Parent Category: Expos and Conventions

Category: Reviews

Published on Saturday, 05 September 2009 10:50

Written by fftraveler staff

The 67th World Science Fiction Convention (or Worldcon), dubbed Anticipation, was hosted in Montréal, Québec, Canada, on 6-10 August 2009. The fifth Worldcon to be held in Canada - and the first one to be held in an officially French-speaking city - Anticipation also incorporated the annual Canvention, the Canadian national sf con.

Guests of Honour (sic; Canadian spelling) at the convention were:

Neil Gaiman and Elisabeth Vonarburg (Invitée d'honneur, the con officially being bilingual)
Taral Wayne (Fan Guest of Honour)
David Hartwell (Editor Guest of Honour)
Tom Doherty (Publisher Guest of Honour).

Julie Czerneda was Master of Ceremonies.

As traditional at Worldcons, the Science Fiction Achievement Awards, or Hugo Awards, voted on by all Worldcon members (attending and not attending, or supporting), were presented. Recipients were:

 Best Novel: The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
 Best Novella: "The Erdmann Nexus" by Nancy Kress
Best Novelette: "Shoggoths in Bloom" by Elizabeth Bear
Best Short Story: "Exhalation" by Ted Chiang
Best Related Book: Your Hate Mail Will Be Graded: A Decade of Whatever, 1998-2008 by John Scalzi
Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form: WALL-E, story by Andrew Stanton and Pete Docter; screenplay by Andrew Stanton & Jim Reardon; directed by Andrew Stanton (Pixar/Walt Disney)
Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form: Doctor Horrible's Sing-Along Blog, written by Joss Whedon, Zack Whedon, Jed Whedon, and Maurissa Tancharoen, directed by Joss Whedon
Best Editor, Long Form: David G. Hartwell
Best Editor, Short Form: Ellen Datlow
Best Pro Artist: Donato Giancola
Best Semiprozine: Weird Tales, edited by Ann VanderMeer and Stephen H. Segal
Best Fanzine: Electric Velocipede, edited by John Klima, Cheryl Morgan, and Frank Wu
Best Fan Writer: Cheryl Morgan
Best Graphic Story: Girl Genius, Volume 8: Agatha Heterodyne and the Chapel of Bones, written by Kaja and Phil Foglio, art by Phil Foglio, color by Cheyenne Wright (Anticipation was the first Worldcon to include the category graphic story on the Hugo ballot.)
John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer (not a Hugo Award): David Anthony Durham

Elsewhere at the convention, the Association of Science Fiction & Fantasy Artists (ASFA) awarded their 24th annual Chesley Awards. The winners for 2008 were:
Best Cover Illustration: Hardback Book: Donato Giancola for A Book of Wizards, edited by Marvin Kaye
Best Cover Illustration: Paperback Book: John Picacio for Fast Forward 2, edited by Lou Anders
Best Cover Illustration: Magazine: Matts Minnhagen for Clarkesworl

Best Interior Illustration: Donato Giancola for "The Wraith" by J. Robert Lennon

Best Color Work: Unpublished: Simon Dominic for "The Gift" (digital)

Best Monochrome Work: Unpublished: Simon Dominic for "Kraken" (digital)
   * Best Three-Dimensional Art: Vincent Villafranca for "The Celestial Itinerant" (bronze)
   * Best Product Illustration: Dan Dos Santos for Hellboy II promotional art
   * Best Gaming-Related Illustration:  Volkan Baga for Stoic Angel Magic Card, Shards of Alara
   * Best Art Director: Lou Anders of Pyr Books
   * Award for Artistic Achievement: Julie Bell
In addition, the Sidewise Awards for Alternate History were announced by its panel of judges:
   * Long form: Chris Roberson, The Dragon's Nine Sons
   * Short form: Mary Rosenblum, "Sacrifice"
and the winners of this year's Prometheus Awards (for libertarian sf/fantasy) by the Libertarian Futurist Society:
* Best Novel: Little Brother by Cory Doctorow
* Hall of Fame Award: The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

In its role as Canvention, Anticipation oversaw the presentation of the Prix Aurora, or Aurora Awards (or “Canadian Hugos”):

   * Best Long Form: Marseguro by Edward Willett
   * Meilleur livre: Les vents de Tammerlan by Michèle Laframboise
   * Best Short Form: "Ringing in the Changes in Okotoks, Alberta" by Randy McCharles
   * Meilleure nouvelle: Le Dôme de Saint-Macaire by Jean-Louis Trudel
   * Other, in English: Neo-opsis Science Fiction Magazine, Karl Johanson, editor
   * Meilleur ouvrage (autre): Solaris, Joël Champetier
   * Fanzine: The Original Universe, Jeff Boman, editor
   * Fan (Organizational): Randy McCharles (Chair of World Fantasy 2008)
   * Fan (Other): Joan Sherman for Heather Dale Concert (organizer)
   * Artistic Achievement: Looking for Group by Lar deSouza

Besides the Hugos, the other important decision made by Worldcon members is future site selection. Reno, Nevada, was chosen to host the 69th World Science Fiction Convention, to be held in 2011 and to be called Renovation, and Raleigh, NC as the hosting city for the 10th North American Science Fiction Convention (or NASFiC), to be held in 2010 and to be called ReConStruction. Both were decided by uncontested elections. Additionally, the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Association selected Winnipeg, Manitoba (the site of the 1994 Worldcon, Conadian) as the site of Canvention 2010 and the 30th Prix Aurora/Aurora Awards.

The 68th World Science Fiction Convention, Aussiecon Four, will be held in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 2-6 September 2010.

• < Prev