Tag Archives: Family Channel

Children's Programming

Production on Season 5 of The Next Step begins

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From a media release:

DHX Television’s Family Channel and Radical Sheep Productions, a division of Boat Rocker Studios, announced today that principal photography has begun on the fifth season of the award-winning global tween series, The Next Step. The fan-favourite series, which follows the lives of an elite group of dancers that train at the Next Step studio, has become a worldwide phenomenon, sparking three Canadian tours, international tours through Europe, the UK and Australia, a feature film, and spin-off series. Production on the 20-episode order begins this summer in Toronto, with the fifth season slated to premiere on Family Channel in 2017.

Season five opens a new chapter for The Next Step dance studio. The studio is expanding and attracting a lot of fresh faces and the dancers are looking to step up their game. The dance world is a tight family, but competition will put old friendships and new relationships to the test, as the dancers try to strike a balance between individual talent and dedicated teamwork. This season asks the question: How far would you go to make it to the top?

In addition to returning fan-favourites from previous seasons of the show, season five of The Next Step will introduce fans to a new group of talented young dancers including: Dylan Ratzlaff as Jacquie; Jessica Lord as Lola; Milaina Robinson as Zara; Julian Lombardi as Ozzy; Hanna Miller as Heather; Noah Zulfikar as Kingston; Dawson Handy as Josh; and Julian Elia as Elliot.

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Children's Programming

Family Channel Celebrates girl power with the premiere of We Are Savvy, July 1

From a media release:

This summer, Family Channel dives into the world of pop culture with the brand new series We Are Savvy, debuting July 1 at 6:30 p.m. ET/PT. Hosted by three girls who are setting out to empower their generation, the magazine-style show features a variety of segments including inspiring peer profiles, crafty DIYs and interviews with pop culture leaders from the world of music, technology, sports and fashion. Plus, fans will be treated to special appearances by popular celebrities including Bailee Madison (The Fosters, Good Witch), Lennon & Maisy (Nashville), international recording artists Tegan and Sara, Alessia Cara, plus more.

Hosts Tehya, Sarah and Spencer are BIG fans of the internet and while they may differ in just about everything from music tastes to celebrity crushes, the three girls combine their unique talents to create a YouTube-inspired pop culture series that offers tweens a refreshing spin on the world around them. The cheeky (and stylish) magazine-style show is set in each of the hosts’ bedrooms and sews together feature stories with recurring segments. Each episode sees two of the hosts hanging out, while the third hits the road to entertain viewers with a unique look at the coolest venues and most coveted events including ComiCon, LUSH Cosmetics Factory, GoKart World and more. Together, the three girls aspire to create empowering content that caters to an audience who is fluent in “Emoji” and crazy for viral cat videos, but who also has an active life offline.

In the premiere episode, Sarah and Tehya share their Savvy tips for taking the perfect cell phone photos, while Spencer experiences the TIFF Bell Lightbox Digi Playspace Exhibit. Later, the girls play ‘kitten or cat?’ on the weekly Cat Chat segment, and design a DIY jean pocket organizer. The episode also features a special appearance and performance by Nashville stars Lennon and Maisy. Following the series’ Canada Day debut, new episodes will air regularly Fridays at 6:30 p.m. ET.

In addition to the aforementioned celebrity appearances, special guest stars include: Amy Sedaris (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt); Eden Sher (The Middle); Luna Blaise (Fresh Off the Boat); Simon Cadel (Raising Expectations); Sloane Siegel (Gortimer Gibbon’s Life on Normal Street); Sixx Orange (The Kicks);  Canadian fashion expert Jeanne Beker; Canadian singer/songwriters Shane Harte (Lost & Found Music Studios), Buffy Sainte-Marie and Tyler Shaw; Australian singer Betty Who and classical crossover singer Jackie Evancho.

The girl power continues at Family.ca where kids can take the fun new quiz “What’s Your Savvy Style?” to find out which host they share the most similarities with. The dedicated show page also features more information about the series and its hosts. For a first look at exclusive video content including inventive DIYs and fun interview segments, fans can check out We Are Savvy‘s YouTube page. New episodes of We Are Savvy will also be offered on Family OnDemand and through the Family Channel App as they become available weekly.

Commissioned by DHX Television, and with international distribution handled by DHX Media, Savvy is executive produced by Sam Dunn and Scot McFadyen for Banger Films’ kids division, B-Minors (Gaming Show (In My Parents’ Garage), Big Ticket Summer Concert) and is led by series producers Jeni Besworth (Grizzly Cup, Big Ticket) and Adrienne Reid (Fashion Television). Banger Films is an award-winning film and television production company based in Toronto. In its first 10 years, Banger has produced feature documentaries, TV series, live concerts and kids’ programs, which have been broadcast worldwide.

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Children's Programming, Industry News

DHX Television orders second season of hit original drama Backstage

From a media release:

DHX Television confirmed today that Fresh TV will deliver a 30-episode sophomore season of the hit original series Backstage for Family Channel’s 2017 broadcast season. The popular tween drama, which debuted in March 2016, has gained international acclaim and a devoted fan- following for its layered portrayal of daily life at an elite fine arts high school. The commissioning decision comes on the heels of Family’s Big Ticket Summer Concert announcement, revealing three of the series stars – Josh Bogert, Aviva Mongillo and Mckenzie Small – will make their touring debuts as performers on this year’s concert tour, accompanied by additional performers from the show. Production is set to being this summer in Toronto.

Backstage follows a group of immensely talented teenagers as they live through the highs and lows that come with attending the prestigious Keaton School of the Arts. From the angst and disappointments to the new friendships and crowning achievements, being a student at Keaton sets you on the path to becoming a star. Lifting the curtain on how these young musicians, dancers and artists see the world, their confessions and dreams are highlighted as they sing, dance and carve out the destiny they see for themselves – making it big.

The series’ stars: Josh Bogert as Miles; Aviva Mongillo as Alya; Mckenzie Small as Scarlett; Devyn Nekoda as Vanessa; Alyssa Trask as Carly; Julia Tomasone as Bianca; Matthew Isen as Jax; Colin Petierre as Sasha; Romy Weltman as Kit; Kyal Legend as Julie; and Adrianna Di Liello as Jenna.

Commissioned by DHX Television, and with international distribution handled by DHX Media, Backstage was created and developed by Fresh TV. Executive Producers are Brian Irving, who also serves as producer; Jennifer Pertsch, also the co-creator and a writer; Lara Azzopardi, the series’ co-creator, show runner, writer and director; Tom McGillis and George Elliott. Directors for the series include top music video directors RT! (Snoop Dogg, Sean Paul, Shane Harte), Director X (Iggy Azalea, T.I., Drake), Wendy Morgan (Dragonette, Janelle Monáe) and Warren Sonoda (Johnny Reid, George Canyon), as well as Mario Azzopardi (Stargate SG-1, The Outer Limits, Degrassi) and Lara Azzopardi (I Am an Apartment Building, Rewind).

 

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Children's Programming

Links: Raising Expectations

From Victoria Ahearn of The Canadian Press:

As a young star she fled fame for France, but Ringwald at 48 is comfortable now
The first episode of actress Molly Ringwald’s new Canadian family series “Raising Expectations” touches on an issue she’s deftly handled throughout her career: the perils of fame.

Airing Sunday on Family Channel, the comedy series première sees her character — a high-profile child psychologist and author and mother of five — recounting one of her husband’s tall tales at a conference. When the talk is posted online, it draws a flurry of accusations that the father (played by Jason Priestley) is lying and that the family isn’t as perfect as it seems. Continue reading.

From Tim Kelly of the Vaughan Citizen:

Vaughan’s Luke Bilyk sets sights on Raising Expectations
You may well know Vaughan’s Luke Bilyk as Drew Torres from Degrassi: The Next Generation where he starred for five years, but now the 21-year-old is hitting the small screen in a brand new show.
Debuting Sunday at 7:30 p.m. on Family Channel, Raising Expectations tells the story of a pair of “multi-exceptional parents” raising four “multi-exceptional children” and one not-so-exceptional child. Laughs and some life lessons ensue. Continue reading.

From Wendy Goldman Getzler of Kidscreen.com:

In Raising Expectations, DHX broadens reach
“We wanted to–within the regular Family Channel block–also think about [reaching] more people who frankly may not turn on Family Channel, who may not know about the channel or watch the channel. So we were thinking about a single-camera comedy that is age-appropriate for the core audience.” Continue reading.

From Jeremy Dixon of Kidscreen.com

Family quirks: A Q&A with Raising Expectations’ creator
“I wanted to tell a story that was very loosely based on a portion of my family, which is a family of nine. In other pilots that I’ve written, I like to dabble and draw from my family because we’re such a diverse bunch of characters. With Raising Expectations, I wasn’t thinking that I wanted to make a kids show. I wanted to make a show for a family, or a show that my family would want to watch.” Continue reading.

From Cynthia Reason of the Etobicoke Guardian:

Etobicoke School of the Arts’ Matthew Tissi stars in Raising Expectations
Matthew Tissi wasn’t even born when the Brat Pack had teens flocking to theatres in the ’80s and Beverly Hills 90210 had them glued to their TVs in the early ’90s, but he’s making up for lost time now by acting alongside two of that generation’s biggest stars. Continue reading. 

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Children's Programming, Featured

Jason Priestley shows his comic chops in Family’s Raising Expectations

I’ve seen Jason Priestley guest-star on Spun Out, so I knew he could do comedy. But would he be able to headline a comic project on Family Channel? Indeed he can. As a matter of fact, he’s one of many reasons to tune in to Raising Expectations.

Debuting Sunday at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT on Family Channel, Priestley’s Wayne Wayney plays a somewhat out-of-touch dad alongside wife Paige (Molly Ringwald) and their four “multi-exceptional” children. The fifth kid? Well, not so much. Emmett (Simon Cadel) lacks the academic and physical prowess of his siblings, but has the street smarts to keep everyone grounded. And though the emphasis in the press releases surrounding Raising Expectations plays up Emmett a lot, he doesn’t really come off that much different from his brothers and sister. What does, however, is Priestley’s Wayne. After seeing him play a teen for so long on Beverly Hills 90210, it’s definitely a shock to see him playing a father. Thanks to the writing, he’s a blast.

Created by the same folks behind Todd and the Book of Pure Evil—Episode 2 features Emmett wearing a Crowley High t-shirt—Raising Expectations is a showcase for Priestley’s comic chops (he’s directing some episodes too). Whether he’s wallowing on a couch, feeling badly for lying to his family and drowning his guilt in bags of chips and tubs of ice cream, mistaking Internet trolls for gnomes or doing battle with a sap-filled tree, Wayne is the focus. Taking nothing away from Ringwald or the young cast—who are great too—but the series would be hard to watch with anyone else acting opposite them.

Another mark in Raising Expectations‘ favour? No laugh track. There’s simply no reason to have it when the writing is sharp and the performances are well done.

Raising Expectations airs Sundays at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT on Family Channel.

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