Here are the winners of the Vancouver Poet Laureate’s City Poems Contest 2023 that were announced and screened at a ceremony this afternoon at the Museum of Vancouver on Sunday, June 11th, 2023.
The two-stage contest commenced in January 2022 with a poetry contest. The second stage of the contest in 2023 involved student teams from three local public post-secondary institutions making short poetry videos based on poems shortlisted from the previous year’s contest, along with a few additional site-based poems. More details about the background of the contest can be found here. All the poetry videos can still be viewed on the VPL’s YouTube Playlist for the Contest.
(A selection of these and some of the other poetry videos submitted to the contest will also be screened on September 16, 2023 at the Word Vancouver Festival at UBC Robson Square.)
FIRST PLACE:
“Contrasts” (Entry #1010) Based on a poem by Donna Seto about gentrification in Chinatown.
Student Team: Brian Baldueza, Nanop Yansomboon, and Wilson Pham (SFU IAT 344 Term 2)
SECOND PLACE (TIE):
“What do I remember of the evacuation” (Entry # 1025) Based on a poem by Joy Kogawa about the forced evictions and internment of Japanese Canadians in 1942.
Student Team: Kris Reyes, Poppy Suro, Hoang Son Vu, and Sodam Hong (ECUAD Foundation 160 Core Media Studies)
SECOND PLACE (TIE):
“An Existence That We Can Call Home” (Entry #1036) Based on a poem by James Kim about the displacement of First Nations and racialized communities in what is now known as Stanley Park.
Student Team: Xinran Han, Delai Gao, Minyang Zhang (SFU IAT 344 Term 1)
THIRD PLACE:
“This Was Meant to be for Nora” (Entry #1014) Based on a poem by Junie Desil about Hogan’s Alley, the site of a historic Black community in Vancouver.
Student Team: Yenan Huang, Dongmei Han, Hanako Oba and Joanne Kim (SFU IAT 344 Term 2)
BEST DOCUMENTARY STYLE POETRY VIDEO
“Welcome” (Entry # 1011) Based on a poem by Sadhu Binning about the infamous Komagata Maru incident in 1914.
Student Team: Kais Neffati, Bhalinder Oberoi, Ishmael Togi and Minh Truong (SFU IAT 344 Term Two)
BEST ANIMATION
“This Was Meant to be for Nora” (Entry #1030) Based on a poem by Junie Desil about Hogan’s Alley, the site of a historic Black community in Vancouver.
Student Team: Emilio Terrazas Rocha, Deanne Angelina Emery, Carola Campa Garcia, Rachel Christina Kearney, Luna Davies, Lingjun Mi, and Mingyang Pan (ECUAD 2DN 211 Animation)
BEST VISUAL STORYTELLING
“Know Who You Are and Know Where You Come From” (Entry #1033) Based on writing by Debra Sparrow about her grandfather taking her family to visit historic Musqueam village sites.
Student Team: Robert Burns, Delanie Austin, Bea Lehmann, and Rachel Williams (UBC FNIS 454)
HONOURABLE MENTIONS
“The Stone Artist” (Entry #1006) Based on a poem by Theresa Rogers about a stone artist in English Bay.
Student Team: Grace Yang, Jalene Pang, Brandyn Chew and Erin Yeonjae Choi (SFU IAT 344 Term One)
“Entertainment” (Entry # 1016) Based on a poem by Jeremy Chu about the former Marco Polo nightclub in Chinatown.
Student Team: Christy Fang, Vito Fan, Cici Tan, and Calvin Lin (SFU IAT 344 Term Two)
“Know Who You Are and Know Where You Come From (Entry #1024) Based on writing by Debra Sparrow about her grandfather taking her family to visit historic Musqueam village sites.
Student Team: Madison Harvey, Cass Minkus, Olivia Carriere McKenna, and Sofia Bergman (UBC FNIS 454)
AUDIENCE CHOICE PRIZES (one per university)
“Diaspora” (Entry #1005) Based on a poem by Jeremy Chu about the former Marco Polo nightclub in Chinatown.
Student Team: Kayla Canama, Tingting Liu, Andrea Huang, and Eleonora Shive (SFU IAT 344 Term 2)
“This was meant to be for Nora” (Entry #1030) Based on a poem by Junie Desil about Hogan’s Alley, the site of a historic Black community in Vancouver.
Student Team: Emilio Terrazas Rocha, Deanne Angelina Emery, Carola Campa Garcia, Rachel Christina Kearney, Luna Davies, Lingjun Mi, Mingyang Pan (ECUAD 2DN 211 Animation)
“Know Who You Are and Know Where You Come From” (Entry #1028) Based on writing by Debra Sparrow about her grandfather taking her family to visit about historic Musqueam village sites.
Student Team: Madelyne Nowell, Kira Doxtator, Claire Everson, and Eva Moulton (UBC FNIS 454)
Prizes:
First Prize $1000, Second Prize $500, Third Prize $300
The top three prizes and the Vancouver Poet Laureate’s Legacy program are funded by a generous endowment by Dr. Yosef Wosk to the Vancouver Foundation, overseen by the City of Vancouver (Cultural Services), Vancouver Writers’ Festival and the Vancouver Public Library.
Donations and funding for prizes for Best Documentary-Style Poetry Video, Best Animation, Best Visual Story-Telling, Honourable Mentions, and the three Audience Choice Prizes were from the Museum of Vancouver (museum passes), TransLink (cash prizes), the Vancouver International Film Festival (vouchers to attend films at VIFF), and Vancouver’s Poet Laureate.
Fiona Tinwei Lam 