Solomon Nagler, 2025 Established Artist Recognition Award
Art Pays Me
Storyteller and filmmaker discusses his artistic journey and the importance of collaboration and community in his work. He emphasizes the grassroots nature of the Nova Scotia art scene – highlighting the support he has received from local film co-ops and fellow artists. Solomon also reflects on the healing power of art and the value of community-based projects that allow for shared learning and storytelling. The filmmaker finds inspiration in the unique places and communities of Nova Scotia, often incorporating local history and folklore into his work. Solomon values the collaborative...
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Leah Johnston, 2025 Emerging Artist Recognition Award
Art Pays Me
Halifax, Nova Scotia based filmmaker discusses her artistic journey and creative process – sharing how a vocal surgery ended her singing career but led her to filmmaking. Johnston emphasizes the importance of patience and openness in finding inspiration for her films, often drawing from personal experiences and merging ideas over time. Leah values the support of institutions in Canada that foster culture and provide funding for film projects, making filmmakers in Canada less reliant on personal savings and investments. Leah also emphasizes the importance of having the time and space to...
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Lee-Anne Poole, Writer and Performer
Art Pays Me
Duane welcomed Writer and Performer, to discuss her residency at Pavia Gallery. Lee-Anne is the author of 7 produced plays, her first full-length play, Splinters, has been adapted into a feature film by Thom Fitzgerald. Splinters premiered at The Toronto International Film Festival and was the Opening Night Gala presentation at The Atlantic Film Festival. Lee-Anne was featured in Hustling Verse: An Anthology of Sex Workers’ Poetry and attended the BANFF Centre for a 3-week-long writing residency where she explored adapting her play Talk Sexxxy. Talk Sexxxy ran in January 2025 at the Saint...
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Vivian Zhou, 2025 Emerging Artist Recognition Award
Art Pays Me
Cartoonist, illustrator and novelist Vivian Zhou discusses her creative process, influences, and experiences – emphasizing the importance of daydreaming and quiet time for developing stories. Vivian also highlights the value of having an agent to navigate the publishing industry and maintain creative control over her work. The are presented by and the to celebrate artistic excellence across Mi'kma'ki. Award categories are as follows: Creative Community Impact Prix Grand-Pré Established Artist Emerging Artist Black Artist Indigenous Artist The Portia White Prize ...
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Duane’s First Artist Residency: Featuring Christopher Webb
Art Pays Me
Return guest joined me to chat about artist residencies and the residency that he hosts out of in Herring Cove, Nova Scotia. This conversation took place in July 2025.
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Nicola Miller, 2025 Emerging Artist Recognition Award
Art Pays Me
Welcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the . Presented annually by and the , these awards celebrate artistic excellence across Mi'kma'ki. Award categories are as follows: Creative Community Impact Prix Grand-Pré Established Artist Emerging Artist Black Artist Indigenous Artist And finally, The Portia White Prize that is given to a person who has made outstanding and significant contributions to Nova Scotia’s creative community over a sustained career – much like the incredible woman that the award is named after. The winner will...
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Aquakultre, 2025 Black Artist Recognition Award
Art Pays Me
Welcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the . Presented annually by and the , these awards celebrate artistic excellence across Mi'kma'ki. Award categories are as follows: Creative Community Impact Prix Grand-Pré Established Artist Emerging Artist Black Artist Indigenous Artist And finally, The Portia White Prize that is given to a person who has made outstanding and significant contributions to Nova Scotia’s creative community over a sustained career – much like the incredible woman that the award is named after. The winner will...
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Cairista MacIsaac, ArtWorks East
Art Pays Me
On this episode, I chat with about . AWE is an association of visual artists and crafters who live in Guysborough County that was founded in 2019. They welcome local artisans of all ages and levels of experience as well as those who want to support the visual arts in their area.
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Jaclyn Cummings, Entrepreneur and Publicist
Art Pays Me
represents fast-growing, people-focused competitive brands who are addressing the evolving consumer market. She tells stories across all media platforms for partners in industries spanning art, fashion, beauty, health & wellness, Consumer packaging goods, technology and home. Most notably having worked with Vega, Saje Natural Wellness, Russell Wilson and Ciara’s fashion brand The House of LR&C, and Lyft as the first hire for the rideshare brand in British Columbia. She can be described as someone with the competitiveness of an alumni basketball player with the curiosity of a writer...
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Alan Syliboy, 2024 Portia White Prize
Art Pays Me
Welcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the . Presented annually by and the , these awards celebrate artistic excellence across Mi'kma'ki. grew up believing that native art was generic. “As a youth, I found painting difficult and painful, because I was unsure of my identity.” But his confidence grew in 1972 when he studied privately with Shirley Bear. He then attended the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design, where 25 years later, he was invited to sit on the Board of Governors. Syliboy looked to the indigenous Mi’kmaq...
info_outlineWelcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the 2024 Creative Nova Scotia Awards. Presented annually by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council, these awards celebrate artistic excellence across Mi'kma'ki. This would not be possible without the fantastic production work of Heist and Keke Beatz.
On this episode I spoke with 2024 Indigenous Artist recognition Award recipient, Stephanie Joline, an Indigenous filmmaker based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. This is Stephanie’s second time on the show so it was great to catch up with her and get vulnerable about feeling like an outsider and deserving of awards.
Equally adept at film and television, Stephanie's stories provoke conversation, break boundaries, and are deeply rooted in inclusivity and feminism. Her feature films include Night Blooms (2022), a coming-of-age story set in the 1990s, and Play Your Gender (2016), a documentary that pulls back the curtain on gender bias in the music industry. Stephanie has also directed for television and streaming platforms; (Women of This Land 2024, CBC; Words Matter 2022, CBC Gem; Stream Me 2020, Amazon Prime; Farm Crime 2020, CBC Gem; Spirit Talker 2019, APTN).
In 2020, she was awarded the Irving Avrich Award from TIFF, recognizing rising Canadian talent. The following year, she was long-listed for the DGC Discovery Award, and in 2022, she received Best Nova Scotia Director from Women in Film and TV Atlantic and won her first Canadian Screen Award for directing in the factual television category.
Stephanie's newest releases include I Place You Into the Fire, which weaves together documentary and animation as Mi'kmaw poet Rebecca Thomas illuminates the ongoing impact of colonization and shares insight into her world as an Indigenous artist. Brought to life by three Indigenous illustrators, the film offers a poignant exploration of empathy and justice.
And Women of This Land, a documentary series that spotlights the resilience and cultural richness of Indigenous women in Atlantic Canada as they share their stories of connection to land and heritage.