Toronto, Canada-based prodco marblemedia and Corus Entertainment, which owns the country’s largest kidcaster YTV, have established a new educational award to encourage multiplatform development.

The Innovative Storytellers Award is a US$15,000 prize granted over a five-year period to recognize an outstanding graduate student of Toronto’s Ryerson University whose thesis details how creators can best use new technologies to connect with audiences.

Perhaps the most valuable part of the award will be five one-on-one sessions with industry heavyweights that marblemedia and Corus will set up for winning recipients. It’s a chance to meet with key players and pick their brains on creative production, broadcasting, innovative technology, sales and marketing.

The idea for the award was spawned by marblemedia partners Mark Bishop and Matt Hornburg, both Ryerson graduates. They approached Corus, and the Storytellers Award was born.

The first grant will be handed out in September to a thesis ‘demonstrating that a creative prototype can be delivered on any or multiple platforms.’