May 4, 2016

The first ever Daryl Duke Prize has been awarded to a Newfoundlander and Labradorian.

The $25,000 award will help Mark Hoffe develop his fictional screenplay, No Voices in the Sky, into a feature-length film.

“There’s a certain maverick justice in Daryl Duke meets a screenplay inspired by Motörhead,” said Hoffe in a news release.

“It’s an honour and a privilege that the jury chose my screenplay.”

No Voices in the Sky

No Voices in the Sky is about a 16-year-old music junkie who sets off to find Motörhead frontman, Lemmy Kilmister in Los Angeles. The teenager leaves his family behind but takes his first love along for the ride.

It’s not Hoffe’s first foray into film. His 2010 short, Snarbuckled, was chosen for the 30th Atlantic Film Festival.

He’s also worked on a couple of documentaries and the feature film, Away from Everywhere, that’s yet to be released.

The prize for up-and-coming artists was created in honour of the late Daryl Duke, a British Columbia-born, Emmy award-winning film and television creator and director who worked in the industry for more than 50 years.

A three-person jury determines who wins the award from entries across the country.

The Daryl Duke Foundation is chaired by Noreen Golfman, known for her work with the St. John’s International Women’s Film Festival.

© CBC