Awards & distinctions
Academy Awards
Maciek Szczerbowski, BFA 94, who co-created The Girl Who Cried Pearls with Chris Lavis, won the 2026 Oscar for Best Animated Short Film. His team included fellow Concordia alumni: stop-motion animators Laura Stewart, BFA 14, Laura Venditti, BFA 15, and former student Peggy Arel. Mould-making and casting were led by Erik Goulet, BFA 90, and Mélissa Rousseau, BFA 21, and Kamil Chajder, BFA 12, contributed to compositing and visual effects.
Oscar winners and creative partners Chris Lavis and Maciek Szczerbowski, BFA 94 (right). | Photo credit: Alamy Stock Photo
Grammy Awards
Serban Ghenea, BFA 92, DFA 25, audio engineer and mixer, received his 24th Grammy Award — the latest is for his work on Lady Gaga’s “Abracadabra,” which won the 2026 Best Dance Pop Recording.
Chase Worrell, BA 22, served as producer and co-writer of “Overqualified,” a track off Bloom, the LP from Durand Bernarr that won the 2026 Grammy for Best Progressive R&B album. This marks Worrell’s second Grammy Award.
Chase Worrell, BA 22
Venice Biennale
Interdisciplinary artist Abbas Akhavan, BFA 04, was selected to represent Canada at the 2026 Venice Biennale — one of the world's most prestigious contemporary art events. Akhavan’s presentation was installed at the historic Canada Pavilion.
Primetime Emmys
Jessica Lee Gagné, BFA 12, made history as the first woman to win the Emmy for Outstanding Cinematography for a Series (One Hour). She was recognized in 2025 for her visual work on Apple TV+’s Severance.
Barry Julien, BA 94, earned a 2025 Emmy as co-executive producer of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, which won Outstanding Talk Series.
Antoni Porowski, BA 08, earned a 2025 Creative Arts Emmy Award for Outstanding Structured Reality Program in his role as one of the executive producers of Queer Eye.
Ordre national du Québec
Four distinguished members of the Concordia community were named to the Ordre national du Québec in 2025. The honour recognizes individuals whose achievements have contributed to the province’s growth, reputation and development across a wide spectrum of fields.
- Peter A. Howlett, BA 63
- Chantal Hébert, LLD 14
- Serge Chapleau, LLD 18
- Farah Alibay, DSc 23
Order of Canada
Nine members of the Concordia community were among the latest appointees to the Order of Canada announced in 2025. The country’s top honour recognizes exceptional contributions to the country.
- Rosalie Silberman Abella, LLD 91, Companion
- Praveen K. Jain, Officer
- Karim Zaghib, Officer
- Reesa Greenberg, Member
- James William Hewitt, Member
- Martha A. Langford, Member
- Barry F. Lorenzetti, Member
- Mahesh Chandra Sharma, Member
- Barry Truax, Member
