Everything about Industry News, eh?

Industry News

Award winning producer/director Jennifer Podemski launches The Shine Network

From a media release:

Today The Shine Network, a federally incorporated social enterprise which commits to empower and celebrate Indigenous Canadian female content creators, goes live online at shinenetwork.ca. Founded by award-winning actor, director, writer and producer Jennifer Podemski (Empire of Dirt, Dance Me Outside, Cardinal, Degrassi: The Next Generation), The Shine Network is currently seeking donors and strategic partners to champion its mandate and to help build its professional development incubator.

Slated to officially launch with full programming in early 2021, the free subscriber-based platform will provide both an exhibition space for content and a talent incubator with virtual training for those pursuing a career in the Canadian film, television and media industry. The Shine Network’s digital cinema space will feature a diverse variety of content made by Indigenous women. Additionally, special presentations will include curated works by established Indigenous filmmakers, virtual artist discussion sessions and exclusive online screening events.

“Being forced to pivot during a pandemic got me thinking about how I can best serve my community and make a positive and lasting impact on the Canadian media landscape,” says Jennifer Podemski, The Shine Network, Founder and CEO. “The Shine Network is my call to action to address the grossly disproportionate realities Indigenous women face when it comes to inclusion, access and funding.”

Statistics show that the current industry paradigm is not providing equal opportunity to Indigenous female creators and The Shine Network is devoted to shifting this reality with a commitment to fostering talent. The Shine Network’s Professional Development Incubator will provide Indigenous women access to an array of masterclasses and tutorials created to motivate and inspire. All classes will be virtual and custom designed to address the unique challenges Indigenous women face and provide insight and actionable steps to overcoming those obstacles. Subscribers who complete all classes and tutorials will be given access to one-on-one sessions with a select group of virtual mentors.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail
Industry News

Link: CFC and Netflix announce the creators and TV series concepts selected for Project Development Accelerator

From a media release:

The Canadian Film Centre (CFC) and Netflix are proud to announce the creators and TV series projects selected for the inaugural TV series portion of the CFC/Netflix Project Development Accelerator, an individually tailored development initiative, which runs from September to November 2020.

The CFC/Netflix Project Development Accelerator is a three-month accelerator designed to offer advanced project development and workshopping support for the four selected TV series projects. Tailored to their specific creative and business needs, the Accelerator will see these creators and projects benefit from international creative and marketplace expertise and feedback from Netflix executives, as well as a range of additional industry professionals, to help them elevate and amplify their original series on an international level.

MEET THE PARTICIPANTS AND THEIR TV SERIES PROJECTS:

 Alter Boys
Creator/Writer: Jonathan Lawrence; Producer: Ryan Wilson Cooper
Format/Genre: Half-hour drama

Alter Boys follows a group of young men who are thrust into furtive practices of conversion therapy in an isolated camp veiled by the woods. The new camp director’s aggressive program leaves the men struggling to navigate one summer’s haunting interplay of hope and ruin.

Jonathan Lawrence is a Winnipeg-based Indigiqueer filmmaker and actor who has produced several award-winning short and feature films and has appeared on both stage and screen. Most recently, Jonathan is working to expand his latest short film into a limited drama series. Jonathan aims to create evocative work that draws on a distillation of human vulnerability and brokenness amid visceral landscapes and the beauty therein.

#RELATIONSHIPGOALS
Creators/Writers: Jennifer Holness and Sudz Sutherland
Format/Genre: Half-hour comedy/drama

 #RELATIONSHIPGOALS follows Keisha Winters, a relationship blogger, podcast host and artsy divorced mom, who lives with her supremely capable daughter, Kelly, and her very Jamaican mother, Althea. Together, these women represent three generations of Black girl magic – all under the same roof, and all with strong opinions. About everything. Through the crazy stories that land in Keisha’s inbox, to the guests on her podcast and her own complicated personal life, #RelationshipGoals explores the funny side of friendship, family, life and love.

Jennifer Holness is an award-winning writer, producer and director. She created the TV series Shoot the Messenger and the award-winning mini-series Guns for CBC. She has produced numerous docs, including Stateless (PBS), which won the Hot Docs 2020 Special Jury Prize for Canadian Feature Documentary. Her dramatic feature, Home Again, was nominated for two CSAs and earned her a DGC nomination for Best Directing. Additionally, Jennifer produced Love, Sex and Eating the Bones, which won nine festival awards, including Best Canadian First Feature Film at TIFF 2003. Currently, she is directing the feature documentary Subjects of Desire and is developing the drama series Talk to Me with BellMedia.

Sudz Sutherland is an award-winning writer and director who has directed two award-winning features, Home Again and Love, Sex and Eating the Bones (Best Canadian First Feature Film, TIFF 2003), as well as more than 75 hours of television on shows including Batwoman, The Flash, Blindspot, Designated Survivor, Reign, Murdoch Mysteries, and many others. Additionally, Sudz co-created the series She’s the Mayor (VisionTV), Shoot the Messenger (CBC) and Guns (CBC). He has won an International Emmy for his work on The Phantoms, three CSAs for Best Direction and one CSA for Best Writing. Sudz is currently developing a drama series entitled Talk to Me with Bell Media, as well as a feature, Everything is Everything.

The Ageless
Creator/Writer: Faisal Lutchmedial
Format/Genre: One-hour sci-fi action/drama

The Ageless is a serialized one hour sci-fi action drama that follows an elderly WWII vet, who, once transformed by an age reversal experiment back into his young Nazi fighting prime, sets out to dismantle a fascist cult of the eternally young.

Faisal Lutchmedial is a screenwriter who most recently wrote on Endlings (CBC / Hulu) and Ransom (CBS / Global). He was invited to develop his latest feature screenplay The Voices Inside at TIFF Writers Studio in 2019. Faisal’s director credits include the short Useless Things, which won the Writers Guild of Canada English Script Prize at the Festival Nouveau Cinema Montreal, and the labour rights feature documentary My Cultural Divide.

girl
Creator/Writer: Pat Mills
Format/Genre: One-hour comedy/drama

Taylor gets ‘mistaken’ for a girl on the first day of high school. Instead of correcting everyone, Taylor runs with it and learns first-hand what it’s like to be a teenage girl – but is the perception of their gender more accurate than what Taylor is prepared for?

Pat Mills is a Toronto-based writer/director. His first feature, Guidance, was hailed as a “Grade A” comedy by the Los Angeles Times and was a New York Times Critics’ Pick. His sophomore feature, Don’t Talk to Irene, won Best Comedy Screenplay at the Austin Screenplay Competition, and two Canadian Comedy Awards (Best Feature; Best Writing in a Feature), among other festival awards. Pat was named one of MovieMaker Magazine’s 25 Screenwriters to Watch and was University of Toronto’s Universal Studios Screenwriter-in-Residence in 2018/19. He is currently in post on the queer thriller The Retreat (Alyson Richards Productions/Clique Pictures), and recently directed Queens, a drag queen comedy series for CBC Gem.

 

The CFC/Netflix Project Development Accelerator is one component of the larger Netflix/CFC Global Project, which supports Canada’s traditionally underserved creatives, including Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPOC), women, LGBTQ2S+, Francophone creators (French as a first language), and creators living with disabilities.

The two additional accelerators, the Calling Card and Marketplace Accelerators, are yearlong accelerators, which, to date, have supported more than a dozen projects, ranging from shorts to features and TV series. For more information on specific projects and participants, please visit https://bit.ly/2SwOLkA.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail
Industry News

AMI-tv announces its fall 2020 programming schedule

From a media release:

Today, Accessible Media Inc. (AMI) unveiled its AMI-tv schedule for the 2020 fall broadcast season, with a lineup of exciting new and returning AMI originals available in described video for the blind and partially sighted community in Canada.

AMI original productions are the centrepiece of the schedule, broadcast in the coveted 8 p.m. timeslot from Monday to Friday.

The previously announced AMI original Level Playing Field debuts on Monday, September 7 at 8:30 p.m. Eastern. Hosted by Paralympian Greg Westlake, Level Playing Field highlights and celebrates the power of sport by introducing audiences to the athletes, community groups, healthcare professionals and grassroots innovators who demonstrate a desire to help drive positive social change through sport.

Season nine of AMI This Week bows on Monday, September 14, at 8 p.m. Eastern. The weekly magazine show—featuring host Victoria Nolan and Bureau Reporters Grant Hardy (Vancouver), Beth Deer (Edmonton), Alex Smyth (Toronto), Shelby Travers (Ottawa) and Laura Bain (Halifax)—continues to stay safe during COVID-19 by continuing its distinct community focus, sharing events and interesting stories from coast to coast from the safety of home.

Back for a third season is Reflect and Renew with Kevin Naidoo, and viewers can catch up on previous seasons of Our Community, Eyes for the Job, Double Tap TV and the award-winning Employable Me.

AMI-tv’s newest acquired series in described video include back-to-back broadcasts of Seasons one and two of Coroner. Based on the book series by M.R. Hall, Serinda Swan stars as Jenny Cooper, a Toronto-based coroner juggling a tumultuous personal life with solving crimes. Season one of the critical and fan favourite Anne with an E joins AMI-tv’s Sunday schedule. Created by Moira Walley-Beckett (Breaking Bad), L.M. Montgomery’s beloved characters are re-imagined for a new generation. And, Janette Oke’s best-selling novels come to the small screen in Season one of When Calls the Heart, which follows the adventures of a young teacher who swaps big-city life for a small coal-mining town in 1910 Canada.

Past seasons of Murdoch Mysteries and Frankie Drake Mysteries continue on AMI-tv; new seasons join the lineup later in the broadcast year. Other returning favourites include the final season of Monk, as well as Suits, American Greed, Attitude, Schitt’s Creek and Kim’s Convenience.

Friday and Saturday nights on AMI-tv are being shaken up, with James Bond feature films joining the schedule. It all begins with Dr. No on Friday, September 4, through to Skyfall, with every Bond film in the library part of AMI’s Friday Night Movie and Saturday Night Movie. This is the first time the James Bond films have been broadcast in described video on AMI.

In keeping with AMI’s mandate of making accessible media for all Canadians, AMI’s original series and documentaries utilize Integrated Described Video (IDV) so they are accessible to individuals who are blind or partially sighted.

All dates subject to change. Additional fall programming will be announced in the coming weeks. Stream past episodes of AMI original programming on demand post-broadcast at the newly-redesigned AMI.ca or via the AMI-tv App.

AMI-tv’s fall premieres and debuts (all times Eastern)

Friday, Sept. 4
8 p.m. – AMI originals
9 p.m. – Friday Night Movie, Dr. No

Saturday, Sept. 5
8 p.m. – Our Community
8:30 p.m. – AMI This Week
9 p.m. – Saturday Night Movie, From Russia with Love

Sunday, Sept. 6
9 a.m. – Reflect and Renew with Kevin Naidoo (Return)
3 p.m. – Anne with an E (Debut)
5 p.m. – American Greed (Return)
7 p.m. – Frankie Drake Mysteries (Return)
8 p.m. – Murdoch Mysteries (Return)
9 p.m. – Monk (Return)
10 p.m. – Suits (Return)
11 p.m. – Coroner (Debut)

Monday, Sept. 7
11 a.m. – When Calls the Heart (Debut)
6:30 p.m. – Attitude (Mon.-Thur.) (Return)
7 p.m. – Kim’s Convenience (Mon.-Thur.)
7:30 p.m. – Schitt’s Creek (Mon.-Thur.)
8:30 p.m. – Level Playing Field (Debut)
9 p.m. – Murdoch Mysteries (Mon.-Thur.)

Monday, Sept. 14
8 p.m. – AMI This Week (Return)

Tuesdays
8 p.m. – Eyes for the Job
8:30 p.m. – Double Tap TV

Wednesdays
8 p.m. – Employable Me

Thursdays
8 p.m. – Our Community
8:30 p.m. – AMI This Week

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail
Feudal, Industry News

CBC greenlights new original drama Feudal, created by Sheri Elwood

From a media release:

CBC today announced new original one-hour series FEUDAL (8×60, Six Eleven Media and eOne), created by Sheri Elwood (Call Me Fitz, Lucifer). FEUDAL tells the tale of the Finley-Cullens, a dysfunctional clan of adult half-siblings battling for control of their family business, The Moonshine, a ramshackle summer resort on the South Shore of Nova Scotia. The series is produced by Halifax-based Six Eleven Media and eOne, and production is now underway on location in Nova Scotia for broadcast on CBC in 2021.

FEUDAL is an epic tale of lust, legacy and lobster, set against the backdrop of financial hardship, small town intrigue and a long-buried secret that threatens to annihilate the Finley-Cullens once and for all. Corrine Koslo (Anne with an E) and Peter MacNeill (This Life) play Bea and Ken Finley-Cullen, the heads of the family and owners of The Moonshine, their own little slice of paradise that is starting to become a nightmare – if only they could decide which of their flawed brood is fit to take over the business. 

Jennifer Finnigan (Salvation) plays Lidia, an architect and the eldest sibling who wants to redevelop and exploit the valuable coastal property, giving her an opportunity to shine and overcome past disappointments, and Anastasia Phillips (Reign) plays her often-overlooked younger sister Rhian, who sees The Moonshine as her own chance to shine. 

Other family members include Lidia’s sister Nora, the sexy local DJ, who knows all the family secrets and is played by Emma Hunter (Mr. D, Fridge Wars); Alexander Nunez (Avocado Toast) as Sammy, Lidia’s musically gifted adopted brother who holds secrets of his own; and Tom Stevens (Wayward Pines) as aging party boy Ryan, Rhian’s twin, who is running his own (illegal) business out of the resort. Allegra Fulton (The Shape of Water) plays Jill LeBlanc, an old family friend with some nefarious motives and secrets of her own. Jonathan Silverman (Weekend at Bernie’s) plays Daniel Bennett, Lidia’s husband and a star architect, suffering through his own mid-life crisis.

A CBC original series, FEUDAL is produced by Six Eleven Media and eOne. Created by Sheri Elwood, who is also showrunner, and executive producer alongside Six Eleven Media’s Charles Bishop. Jocelyn Hamilton serves as executive producer for eOne. For CBC, Sally Catto is General Manager, Entertainment, Factual & Sports; Trish Williams is Executive Director, Scripted Content; Helen Asimakis is Senior Director, Scripted Content; and Sarah Adams is Executive in Charge of Production. The series writers are Sheri Elwood, Matt MacLennan, Kate Spurgeon, and Josh Saltzman. The pilot is directed by Scott Smith with additional episodes directed by Smith, James Genn, and Sheri Elwood. The series is produced with the assistance of the Government of Nova Scotia, Nova Scotia Film & Television Production Incentive Fund. Additionally, funding comes from the Canada Media Fund, Ontario Film and Television Tax Credit and the Canadian Film or Video Tax Credit. eOne distributes the series internationally. 

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail
Industry News

marblemedia heads to camera on new unscripted series, Race Against the Tide

From a media release:

marblemedia, leading global entertainment producers of numerous award-winning TV series such as Netflix’s “Blown Away” and “Restaurants on the Edge” announces today that production is now underway on location in New Brunswick on a new CBC original Canadian competition series, RACE AGAINST THE TIDE (10×30), hosted by actor and comedian Shaun Majumder. The first of its kind, the show is slated for broadcast in Canada on CBC and the CBC Gem streaming service in 2021.

The half-hour competition series features 10 teams of two world class, highly skilled sand sculptors competing to create extraordinary works of art made entirely out of sand while avoiding elimination. Not only are these best-in-show duos competing against each other, they are competing against Mother Nature’s unstoppable ticking clock and the world’s highest tide at New Brunswick’s iconic and beautiful Bay of Fundy. The stakes have never been higher in the world of sand sculpting as the competitors’ creations – no matter how impressive – are all destined to be washed away the same day by the tide.

In the end, only one team whose skill, creativity and tenacity leaves a lasting impression will be crowned the RACE AGAINST THE TIDE “Champions.”

RACE AGAINST THE TIDE is executive produced by Matt Hornburg and Mark Bishop of marblemedia; series producer and writer is Carly Spencer and Donna Luke of marblemedia serves as Co-Executive Producer. Produced with the participation of the Province of New Brunswick and Co-produced with Hemmings House. For CBC, Sally Catto is General Manager, Entertainment, Factual and Sports; Jennifer Dettman is Executive Director, Unscripted Content; Alexandra Lane is Senior Director of Production; and Ann-Marie Redmond is Executive in Charge of Production.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail