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Link: The magically mad mash-up of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell

From John Doyle of the Globe and Mail:

The magically mad mash-up of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell
The TV adaptation, Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell (Sunday, The Movie Network/Movie Central, 8 p.m.), is by turns a delight and terribly annoying. It is also very male, and underlines the fact that the book, the premise and the entire concoction, is seriously nerdy. Entertaining, if you like that sort of thing – serious men talking in their code of seriousness, and fantastic special effects erupting at regular intervals. Continue reading.

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Kevin White on the Toronto Screenwriting Conference and Canadian comedy

KevinWhiteKevin White (InSecurity, Dan For Mayor) is one of the speakers at the upcoming Toronto Screenwriting Conference on April 6 and 7. He shared his thoughts on the conference, the Canadian comedy sensibility, and our national batting average for TV comedies.

What do you want to convey at the Toronto Screenwriting Conference?

I think series are better when the creative and executive power of the show rests with the writer and creator. It may sound obvious but it doesn’t happen enough in this country. If you have a young untested writer with a great original script then pair them with a senior writer with showrunning experience who can execute the creative and train the creator to take over as showrunner in Season 2. Too often a creator is paired with a non-writing executive producer who show runs while the creator is relegated to ‘head writer.’ There he or she only deals with script creation, and not how the script is realized for television.

Creating a show is about having something to say. A lot to say. You want to drill down on a world and tell how the people in that world get through their day. If the creator doesn’t have the power to shape the telling of that story all the way along (from props to locations through to final cut and mix) then what’s being told? And why?

What do you hope to get out of it?

I find it very helpful to hear how other show runners approach their job managing writers and production. Particularly in this country where show runners have to get the most out of small rooms and tight budgets.

Have conferences like this played a role in your career development?

Hugely. The WGC once held a Directors & Writers conference at the CFC which I thought was great. They brought in top people from Canada, the US and Britain and I learned a ton. I never tire of hearing the insights and horror stories of other writers.

How did you get your start?

I had a few starts. CBC Radio, TVOntario, CBC’s Comics. But I feel like I started writing for real on This Hour has 22 Minutes. Mark Farrell took a flyer and hired me when I hadn’t done much. My first three weeks on the show were unremarkable and most of what I wrote was shit. But I gradually came to understand the tone of the show and got closer to the target. It was the best comedy writing training of my career.

Any advice for upcoming writers? Is it possible to specialize as a comedy writer in Canada?

My advice would be, listen. Write something, get people you trust to read it then shut up and listen. The shutting up part is important. You don’t have to agree with their comments but don’t defend it on the spot. Take in what they’re saying and sit with it a while. If, after your initial reaction, the note has merit, run it. If it doesn’t, don’t.

As for specialization, I remember a talented feature writer/director saying to me that he wanted to try his hand at comedy. I thought it was kind of presumptuous. I don’t think you can try your hand at comedy. You either look at the world a certain way or you don’t. I think comedy is about laughing at failure, evil and weakness. If that’s your outlook then I think your writing will tend to be comic. I guess what I’m saying is, I’m not sure you have a choice. Who you are, what you want to say and how you like to say it, all dictate how you’ll specialize. In Canada or anywhere else.

You’ve been involved in at least a couple long-running successes – 22 Minutes and Corner Gas – that seem like very different forms of comedy. But do you think there’s an identifiable Canadian sense of humour?

I do and I don’t. Corner Gas, Rick Mercer Report, 22 and Republic of Doyle have all done very well. To me they share certain qualities. They all come from a very specific place – the prairie, the east coast, Newfoundland – and they give voice to that culture and point of view. They also have a very unpretentious, everyman quality to them. Regular people in regional settings. We live next to a big, loud, neighbour and I think we see ourselves as a quieter nation, wryly observing from the sidelines. Comedies that do well seem to embrace that ethos. Did I just say ethos? Clearly my everyman is a pretentious dick.

I have to ask the depressing question: what’s your take on why Canadian comedies haven’t had a lot of longevity lately? Every round of award nominations it seems all the comedy contenders have already been cancelled. Is it cyclical? Systemic? Something else?

On This Hour has 22 Minutes, you’d write maybe 10 to 20 jokes for every 1 that got in the show. I think that ratio is the same for shows.

Last year in LA maybe 40 or so comedy pilots were shot. Then how many of those went to series… 20? Then not all of those went to air. And how many of those were breakout hits? You’d be hard pressed to name one. Then in Canada we piloted how many scripted comedies… 2, 4? And we expect them all to be hits. And we’re doing it with half the budget and a much smaller, less experienced talent pool. So I don’t know. It’s number of at bats. And we won’t see more hits unless we produce more shows. And we won’t produce more shows as long as we can buy high quality US programming cheaply.

Bottom line – if you make 10 shows, you have a much better chance of a hit than if you make 2. So the math suggests that in Canada we’ll get a hit every 5 to 10 years.

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Canadian Screen Award nominations announced

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From CBC:

See all television Canadian Screen Award nominations here. Selected nominations:

Best animated TV show:

Almost Naked Animals
Jack
Producing Parker
Rated A for Awesome

Best comedy:

Good God
Kenny Hotz: Triumph of the Will
Less Than Kind
Michael: Tuesdays and Thursdays
Mr. D

Best dramatic miniseries:

Cyberbully
Magic Beyond Words: The J.K. Rowling Story
Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town
Wrath of Grapes: The Don Cherry Story 2

Best drama:

Arctic Air
Bomb Girls
Continuum
Flashpoint
King

Best international drama:

The Borgias
The Crimson Petal and the White
Titanic

Best music, variety or sketch comedy:

2012 MuchMusic Video Awards
Battle of the Blades
Canada Sings
The JUNO Awards 2012
Rick Mercer Report

Best Children’s or Youth Fiction Program or Series:

Degrassi
The Haunting Hour
Mudpit
That’s So Weird
What’s Up Warthogs

Best Reality/Competition Program or Series:

Canada’s Greatest Know-It-All
Canada’s Handyman Challenge
Dragons’ Den
The Real Housewives of Vancouver
Redemption Inc.

Best Writing in a Comedy Program or Series:

Less Than Kind, “Reparations and Renewal” – Jenn Engels
Less Than Kind, “March Fourth” – Mark McKinney, Garry Campbell
Less Than Kind, “Play it Again, Sam” – Mark McKinney
Todd and the Book of Pure Evil, “Two Girls, One Tongue” – Charles Picco
Michael: Tuesdays & Thursdays, “Bridges” – Matt Watts

Best Writing in a Dramatic Series:

Lost Girl, “Into the Dark” – Emily Andras
Continuum, “A Stitch in Time” – Simon Barry
Flashpoint, “Day Game” – Aubrey Nealon
Rookie Blue, “A Good Shoot” – Greg Nelson
Being Erica, “Dr. Erica” – Jana Sinyor, Aaron Martin

Best Performance by an Actor in a Continuing Leading Comedic Role:

Almost Heroes – “Terry and Peter vs. Season Finale” – Ryan Belleville
Mr. D, “The Basketball Diaries” – Gerry Dee
This Hour Has 22 Minutes, “X mas Special” – Shaun Majumder
Michael: Tuesdays & Thursdays, “Sleeping with People” – Bob Martin
I, Martin Short, Goes Home – Martin Short

Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Comedic Role:

Michael: Tuesdays & Thursdays, “Heights” – Jennifer Irwin
This Hour Has 22 Minutes, “X mas Special” – Cathy Jones
InSecurity, “Agent Ex” – Natalie Lisinska
Less Than Kind, “The Fwomp” – Wendel Meldrum
Michael: Tuesdays & Thursdays, “Endings” – Tommie-Amber Pirie

Best Performance by an Actor in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role:

Flashpoint, “Day Game” – Enrico Colantoni
The L.A. Complex 2, “Don’t Say Goodbye” – Andra Fuller
Combat Hospital, “Triage” – Elias Koteas
Combat Hospital, “Reason to Believe” – Luke Mably
Blackstone, “Hitchin” – Steven Cree Molison

Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role:

Saving Hope, “Heartsick” – Erica Durance
Being Erica, “Please, Please Tell Me How” – Erin Karpluk
King, “Lori Gilbert” – Amy Price-Francis
Haven, “Audrey Parker’s Day Off” – Emily Rose
Bomb Girls, “Armistice” – Meg Tilly

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New tonight: InSecurity and Being Erica finales on CBC

InSecurity

“I Spy Peter” – Alex’s loyalty is tested when she is forced to investigate her boss, Peter. A case of corporate espionage puts Claude and JoJo together as an unlikely undercover couple.

Being Erica

“Dr. Erica” – Four years ago Erica Strange was single, barely making enough money to get by, and had a long list of regrets. Thanks to her time-travel therapist Dr. Tom, Erica has turned her life around, but nothing can prepare her for her most difficult challenge yet – saying goodbye.

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