TV, eh?

From Bill Brioux at TV Feeds My Family:

• Shattered fails to break
  “The first new show of the 2010-11 network season opened to a BBOE (Below Brampton Overnight Estimate) 428,000 viewers Canada wide.” Read more.

From the Toronto Star:

• So You Think You Can Dance Canada: Yonni and Bree’s exit interview
  “They say it’s better to have loved and lost than never have loved at all: that’s how Yonni Fournier and Bree Wasylenko feel about So You Think You Can Dance Canada. The day after their elimination, they were still shocked but grateful to have had the experience of being in the show’s top 20.” Read more.

From a media release:

How to Be Indie and Men with Brooms Join 2010 Actors’ Fund Film & TV Charity Challenge

The 2010 Film and Television Charity Challenge continues to showcase the creativity and generosity of those working in the industry with the latest contributions coming from two new productions.

Returning YTV series How to Be Indie took the idea of creative fundraising seriously, holding a bake sale on its Toronto set. Led by cast member Sarena Parmar, cast and crew members participated by contributing sale items or buying each other’s goods. The event raised over $500 for the Fund and was an enjoyable break in the day, proving that taking part in the Charity Challenge can be fun and easy.

Winnipeg’s Men with Brooms, a comedy series set to debut this fall on CBC, raised $2,150 for the Challenge before the first episode has even aired! Cast member Joel Keller and Production Manager Dave Mahoney led cast and crew in showing their support of the Fund, resulting in a collection of over $1,000 to help industry members in need. Producer Ari Lantos agreed to match what was raised through individual donations.

Whether it’s by holding a bake sale or collecting individual donations, every production can find a way to participate in the Challenge. Past events have ranged from donating proceeds of a prop and costume auction to throwing a barbeque for 400 people, complete with silent auction, pony rides and live fiddlers. Some of the more popular ideas have been to hold a 50/50 draw on set with half the proceeds going to the Actors’ Fund, encouraging cast and crew to sign up for the Reel Friends payroll donation plan or raising money at the wrap party. Productions who want to do something splashier could plan a community event in keeping with the theme of the show. For more ideas and updates on the challenge please visit actorsfund.ca/charitychallenge

The Actors’ Fund of Canada is the lifeline for Canada’s entertainment industry. The Actors’ Fund is not just for actors: performers and those who work behind the scenes in film and television, theatre, music and dance can apply for emergency financial aid from the Fund, which recently set a new record for the amount of financial aid delivered to industry members in a single year, topping $600,000 in 2009. The Fund has helped over 10,000 entertainment industry workers recover from illness, injury or other circumstances causing severe economic and personal hardship since it was founded in 1958. The Actors’ Fund of Canada is a registered charity. It receives no government funding and is wholly sustained by support from individuals and entertainment industry organizations.

From Bill Harris of the Toronto Sun:

• ‘Princess’ targets spendthrift women
  “In Princess, author and money maven Vaz-Oxlade – also the host of Til Debt Do Us Part – attempts to rehabilitate real-life princesses. And when we say real-life princesses, we aren’t talking about anyone with royal blood. Rather, the focus is on financially irresponsible young women whose reckless behaviour is threatening to put themselves and their loved ones in the poor house.” Read more.

From the National Post:

• Brandon Walsh would be shocked by Jason Priestley’s new role, but hey, it’s 09/02/10
  “Priestley plays Richard Fitzpatrick, the title character in HBO Canada’s Call Me Fitz, who in the first episode alone receives sexual favours from the receptionist, puts an unconscious woman in the driver’s seat after he steers a car off a cliff, and tries to sell that same car to the woman after she falls into a coma, all while drinking steadily and cursing like a sailor. If Brandon had a day like that, he would have immediately joined a monastery.” Read more.

From Jo Curtis of Unreality Shout:

• Review – Shattered: Pilot (S01E01)
  “But unluckily for Ben, and indeed the whole show, Canada seems to be the go-to place for shows to die.” Read more.

ANDY FACES THE SHOCKING POSSIBILITY THAT HER FATHER MAY BE A MURDERER

“To Serve or Protect” – After stumbling on gruesome evidence that Andy’s ex-cop father may have committed a murder during a drunken blackout, Andy and Swarek furiously search for proof of his innocence. Meanwhile, Chris and Dov show they’re not superhero crime fighters when a masked vigilante dressed like a caped crusader robs their squad car and the unintentional consequences help a drug dealer.

From John Doyle of the Globe and Mail:

• The award for ineptitude goes to … the Geminis
  “We produce some excellent television in Canada. But there is one reason to despise the Canadian TV racket as 10th-rate, unsophisticated and utterly mediocre, and that reason is the Gemini Awards.” Read more.

From a media release:

BREE and YONNI are Eliminated From So You Think You Can Dance Canada Leaving 18 in the Running to Become Canada’s Favourite Dancer

It was announced tonight that BREE Wasylenko, 22, a Contemporary dancer from Toronto, ON and YONNI Fournier, 27, a Salsa dancer from Montreal, QC would be leaving the SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE CANADA stage. The results were revealed live during tonight’s broadcast after host Leah Miller revealed the three couples with the lowest number of votes would dance for their lives and await their fate. Eighteen dancers are now in the running for the chance to be crowned Canada’s Favourite Dancer.

(more…)

From Renee Ghert-Zand of JTA:

• ‘Being Erica’ TV character transfixes Toronto Jews
  “With much of the character derived from the life experience of the show’s creator and executive producer, Jana Sinyor, this fictional 30-something Toronto Jew is resonating with many young Canadian Jews who see in her something of themselves.” Read more.

From Bill Brioux at TV Feeds My Family:

• First review of the new season: Shattered
  “Rennie keeps it all simple and intense and makes the character real, even if the premise is a tad surreal. As a cop show, this is nuts. As a study in mental illness, it has its moments.” Read more.

From Greg David at TV Guide.ca:

• Callum Keith Rennie shines in psychotic ‘Shattered’
  “Played to perfection by veteran actor Callum Keith Rennie, Ben is a brilliant homicide detective with a secret: he suffers from Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), a.k.a. Multiple Personality Disorder. No one at his Vancouver precinct knows Ben has four alternates swirling around in his psyche, though they do wonder about the fugue states he enters from time to time, and the subtly different guy that emerges from them. When “normal,” Ben is quietly confident in his job and has a dry sense of humour.” Read more.

Wednesday, September 1 – 10pm ET/PT *Series Premiere*
*Starring Callum Keith Rennie (24, Californication), Camille Sullivan (Intelligence) and Molly Parker (Swingtown)*

“The Sins of Fathers”

In the series premiere, Ben Sullivan (Callum Keith Rennie), a smart, tough homicide detective who suffers from Multiple Personality Disorder, unwittingly drags his new partner, Amy Lynch (Camille Sullivan), into a clouded murder investigation.

From Michael Oliveira of the Canadian Press:

• After years of supporting roles, Callum Keith Rennie takes centre stage
  “Canadian actor Callum Keith Rennie has played a drinking buddy to David Duchovny’s Hank Moody on “Californication,” a foil to Kiefer Sutherland’s Jack Bauer on “24,” and chased confused amnesiac Leonard Shelby (Guy Pearce) during a memorable scene in the movie “Memento.” But in “Shattered,” premiering Wednesday night on Global, the actor mostly known for his supporting roles plays the lead, Det. Ben Sullivan, a troubled homicide investigator with multiple personality disorder.” Read more.

From John Doyle of the Globe and Mail:

• A head-case cop show with issues
  “The series, made in Vancouver and making good use of the city, is not easy to review. It has good bits and rather poor bits. It is, like its central character, splintered. This is to be expected, perhaps, from the opening episode of a series that promises rich psychological drama over the long run. Mind you, segments of Shattered are just a tad too rough for some people’s patience.” Read more.

From Bill Brioux at TV Feeds My Family:

• CBC picks up eleventy billion Gemini noms
  “The Gemini Award nominations were announced Tuesday in Toronto. Once again, every fucking thing ever made in Canada over the last 12 months was nominated. There are 107 bloody categories. Find the complete list here. Sorry, here. CBC alone drew 151 nominations, or one for every ten viewers of The Hour. Are there too many nominations when Kenny and Spenny are included in the best ensemble performance category? That would be yes.” Read more.

From Alex Epstein at Complications Ensue:

• Sheri Elwood Interview, Part One
  Sheri Elwood Interview, Part Two
  “CALL ME FITZ is a new HBO CANADA series about a sleazy used car salesman (played by Jason Priestley) whose life spins wildly out of control after a strange man claiming to be his “conscience” starts interfering in his life. I was fortunate to catch up with creator-showrunner Sheri Elwood for some crafty chat.” Read more.

From a media release:

Showcase.ca GETS ANIMATED FOR LOST GIRL WEBSITE WITH EXCLUSIVE INTERACTIVE MOTION COMIC

Showcase.ca joins forces with Bedlam Games and Prodigy Pictures to develop the ultimate fan site for the upcoming supernatural series Lost Girl. In addition to exclusive video content, downloads, episode guide, games and fan forums, the website is anchored by the dynamic Lost Girl: The Interactive Motion Comic. A first for showcase.ca, the premiere installment of the Lost Girl Interactive Motion Comic launched this week at showcase.ca/lostgirl.

Featuring gripping storylines and impressive animation, Lost Girl: The Interactive Motion Comic is a perfect complement to the television series, extending the Lost Girl world into the digital universe. The site puts the fan in the director’s chair, allowing them to choose their own adventure. The six installments of the comic are a prequel to the series. Users are introduced to the heroine of Lost Girl, a succubus named Bo, and, in the first installment, are taken through a day-in-her-life where the fan gets to decide the outcomes of Bo’s dark impulses, among other situations featuring secondary characters. With six installments at roughly four minutes in length, this is the first online interactive motion comic created for a Showcase series.

The website acts to broaden the scope of the Lost Girl underworld, giving users an all-access pass to additional narrative and behind-the-scenes content. In addition to the interactive motion comic, Lost Girl cast biographies and character back-stories are available, and full episodes of the series will be available after broadcast. The site is also home to the online Lost Girl fan community where viewers can discuss favourite moments from the show.

The website was developed to complement the hotly anticipated debut of Lost Girl, produced by Prodigy Pictures. The television series premieres Sunday, September 12 at 9 p.m. ET/PT, exclusively on Showcase.

Caution: May Contain Nuts is back with Reserve Dogs, rappin’ seniors and more! This edgy sketch show is edgier and funnier than ever! Join cast members Mark Meer, Dana Andersen, Aimée Beaudoin, Sheldon Elter, Ryan Parker, Matt Alden, Howie Miller, James Higuchi and Jeff Halaby as they take on all sacred cows with the respect they deserve – lots of barbecue sauce and plenty of heat!

This half-hour sketch comedy series features a racially diverse group of comedians and a unique brand of Canadian Aboriginal humour to create a fast-paced, hilarious, comedy experience. While no topic is off limits to this hilarious troupe, Caution: May Contain Nuts will largely explore Aboriginal topics and Canadian culture through a succession of fast and funny skits. Nominated for a 2009 Gemini Award for Best writing in a Comedy Program, the second season of Caution: May Contain Nuts is one that viewers won’t want to miss!

Caution: May Contain Nuts will air on Tuesdays, starting September 7 at:
10 pm MT on APTN West
10 pm ET on APTN East
10 pm CT on APTN North
10 pm ET on APTN HD

Episode 9: Listen or download here or subscribe via iTunes or with any other program via the TV, Eh? feed

Callum Keith Rennie joins me, Diane Wild, for an interview about Shattered, where he plays a cop with multiple personalities.

But first, I try to convince Anthony Marco that the Emmys are worth watching. I did not succeed. I’m not sure I convinced myself. We mention the Gemini Award nominations which will have been announced by the time you listen to this.

Is 18 to Life returning to The CW? Maaayyyybeeee.

Anthony and I could not be less excited about Canada Sings. But if you disagree, casting is now open.

Then I discuss creative control in the Canadian television industry, from the consistent vision brought to Call Me Fitz to the multiple showrunners and lack of a cohesive vision on Shattered and The Listener. I mention my interview with Peter Keleghan, too, where he brings up some of the same issues. And Anthony laments that Shattered lost a golden opportunity to claim that their multiple showrunners were reflective of the multiple personality of the main character.

We finish up with how PVRs are affecting television viewing – for Anthony, it’s being even more annoyed by commercials, while Diane now gets weepy over iPhone 4 commercials.

Your hosts

• Anthony Marco can be found at Dyscultured and lovehatethings, and on Twitter here and here.
• Diane Wild can be found here at TV, eh? and here, and on Twitter here and here.