Yearly Archives: 2016

Michael: Tuesdays and Thursdays

Production begins on Michael: Every Day

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From a media release:

PRODUCTION BEGINS IN OTTAWA ON THE RETURN OF
MICHAEL: TUESDAYS & THURSDAYS

  • SEASON 2 TITLED MICHAEL: EVERY DAY

Rhombus Media is pleased to announce that production has commenced in Ottawa, Ontario for the long anticipated return of the Canadian Screen Award nominated comedy series, Michael: Tuesdays & Thursdays. Picking up five years after the first season, Season 2 will be titled Michael: Every Day.

Directed by Genie and Tony Award® winner Don McKellar (Sensitive Skin, The Grand Seduction), the series began shooting its second season for the CBC last week. Returning to the series are Canadian Screen Award nominee Matt Watts (The Grand Seduction) as Michael and multiple Gemini Award winner and Tony Award® winner Bob Martin (Sensitive Skin, Slings & Arrows) as Dr. David Storper. The second season is set to air in Canada on CBC in early 2017.

The new season picks up five years after the first, with Michael (Matt Watts) well established in his new city, and David (Bob Martin) struggling to continue his practice without the comfort of his twice weekly sessions with Michael. When Michael suffers a surprising and devastating panic attack at the airport on his departure for a business trip, he returns to Ottawa for help, only to find that David is in worse shape than he is. Michael depends on David to help him get over his fear of flying and David depends on Michael to help him get his mojo back.

“I’m excited to return to Ottawa,” explains Don McKellar. “We have excellent scripts, funny and complex. This season is more of a psychiatric detective story, replete with mysteries, revelations and a whole new spate of diverting and perplexing dysfunctionalities. Very much looking forward to getting Michael and David into treatment.”

“It’s wonderful to be able to revisit Dr. David Storper and his patient Michael after five years have passed,” says Bob Martin. “Both have changed, for better and worse, but they still remain dependent on each other. Season 2 is hilarious and touching and even shocking at times. And Ottawa has never looked better!”

Also returning to the series are Gemini and Canadian Screen Award nominee Jennifer Irwin (Eastbound & Down) as Sammy, Canadian Screen Award and Canadian Comedy Award nominee Tommie-Amber Pirie (Bitten) as Claire, and Golden Globe® and Emmy® Award winner Ed Asner (The Mary Tyler Moore Show) as Dr. Wasserman. The series was created by Bob Martin and based on the real life neuroses of Matt Watts. Michael: Every Day is produced by Niv Fichman and Sari Friedland and executive produced by Bob Martin and Don McKellar. The series is directed by Don McKellar, and written by Bob Martin, Matt Watts and Lynn Coady. Michael: Every Day is produced by Rhombus Media, with the participation of the Canada Media Fund (CMF). The series is distributed by Tricon Films & Television.

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Murdoch Mysteries

Link: Production begins on Season 10 of Murdoch Mysteries

From Debra Yeo of the Toronto Star:

Production begins on Season 10 of Murdoch Mysteries
Another former Downton Abbey cast member will guest star on Canada’s Murdoch Mysteries. Samantha Bond played Lady Rosamund on the popular British period drama. She’ll join guest actors including Peter Keleghan, Peter Stebbings, Alex Paxton-Beesley, Daniel Maslany and Bea Santos in Season 10 of Murdoch, which has begun production in Ontario. Continue reading.

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Wynonna Earp

Link: Wynonna Earp’s Natalie Krill on hiding that major reveal

From Bridget Liszewski of the TV Junkies:

Wynonna Earp’s Natalie Krill on hiding that major reveal
If you’re still in shock over that major reveal from last week’s Wynonna Earp episode then you’re not alone. Not many fans were expecting to find out that Eve (Natalie Krill), the young woman helping Wynonna (Melanie Scrofano) to escape the cult in the woods, was actually her long lost sister Willa who had been kidnapped by revenants years earlier. “I think they did it really well because you don’t see it coming in that way,” Krill told The TV Junkies of her character’s big reveal. Continue reading.

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Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Working it Out Together recap: Birthing on her own terms

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The second episode of Working it Out Together explores the positive ripple effect that childbirth creates via a woman within her community. It is about empowerment. It also critically examines, from the perspective of colonization, the effect that western medicine has had on the process of birthing in Indigenous communities across Canada.

We begin with the idea that women’s bodies are designed for childbirth. But the process of childbirth also acts to connect  women of a community together.  Historically, one woman within the community held a position of great distinction: the midwife.  It was the function of traditional midwifery to attend to the emotional, spiritual, physical, and mental health needs of expectant mothers, their newborns, and the families welcoming their newborns. However, with the invasion of western medicine came the belief that birthing was dangerous and thus required powerful people–educated physicians–to control the procedure. Governmental control* of women’s reproduction persisted and midwifery as a whole, across Canada, was outlawed. This disconnected women from their bodies and fathers/families from the process as well.

Traditionally, the cyclical process of birth is seen as a means of renewal and hope,  restoring balance to the community at large. The western practice of removing childbirth from the community to the sterile environment of the hospital, isolates women during the procedure, necessarily severing the initial ties between mother, child, and community. This in turn has created yet another social fracture among the people of the community and has disrupted the emotional and social balance in people’s lives for generations.

We are also reminded that historically, midwives attended successful births in very challenging environments, with limited resources, when compared to the living conditions that are more common today.  In this context then, trained midwives are able to recognise possible complications that could threaten the health of both mother and child. If  suitable medical instrumentation is also available, midwives can make these diagnoses well in advance, thus ensuring proper care for their patients.

The entire scenario further complicates birthing for women who live in the north. Communities that lack birthing centres are forced to fly expectant mothers south to the nearest hospital weeks in advance of their due dates. This removes them from family and friends for weeks at a time. Children are left missing their mothers; fathers and families are left struggling to care for distraught children. This is done because of the “what if” scenario, a plausible argument. However,  the added emotional stress this places on a community and/or family, coupled with the financial stress caused by extended hospital stays, could be eased simply by placing trained midwives, with appropriate equipment,  in  communities.

Episode two follows the journey of Shillene McNaughtan, a mother of three, pregnant with her fourth child. It is Shillene’s belief that the birthing centre at Six Nations is the more suitable location for a natural act of life, rather than attending a hospital for a procedure.  In Shillene’s case, we are also reminded of the complications gestational diabetes causes . Gestational diabetes in Indigenous women occurs at a rate five times the national average.

***Spoiler Alert*** Shillene gave birth to a healthy baby boy!

*This episode also touches on the government management of Indigenous reproduction with the forced sterilization of Indigenous women during the 1970’s. I wish we dug deeper into this very dark aspect of colonization in Canada.

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Uncategorized

Bell Media confirms 2016/17 original production slate

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From a media release:

Bell Media confirms 2016/17 original production slate

  • Bell Media introduces eight new original series as 14 original productions return
  • New series for 2016/17 include RUSSELL PETERS IS THE INDIAN DETECTIVE, THE DISAPPEARANCE, THE BEAVERTON, CARDINAL, and FRONTIER, plus new original programming for Bell Media’s new food and lifestyle channel, Gusto, among others
  • CTV announces Season 4 of hit culinary competition MASTERCHEF CANADA, joining impressive slate of returning original hit series
  • Two-hour event special CANADA IN A DAY headlines 2016/17 specials slate
  • Bell Media Production lineup ETALK, THE MARILYN DENIS SHOW, THE SOCIAL, INNERSPACE, DAILY PLANET return, along with new daytime series YOUR MORNING –

Bell Media confirmed today its leading slate of new and returning original entertainment programming for the 2016/17 broadcast year in advance of the #CTVUpfront presentation in Toronto. With Canada’s most-watched and most-acclaimed original programs, Bell Media reinforces its industry leadership with original productions, including its recently announced commitment to produce all new original scripted series in 4K.

More Canadians make Bell Media their choice for homegrown programs than any other media company. CTV’s SAVING HOPE is the most-watched Canadian drama among all key adult demos, while the network is home to the country’s top two Canadian series among total viewers, THE AMAZING RACE CANADA and MASTERCHEF CANADA; the top Canadian programs in daytime, Bell Media Production’s THE MARILYN DENIS SHOW and THE SOCIAL; the most-viewed entertainment news program, ETALK; and the most-watched original series on entertainment specialty for all key adult demos, Discovery’s CANADA’S WORST DRIVER.

New Bell Media Original Series for 2016/17:

Drama

  • Discovery’s first-ever scripted original series FRONTIER, with its exclusive world debut in Canada this November, starring Jason Momoa (Discovery)
  • Based on bestselling crime novels, the murder-mystery CARDINAL starring Billy Campbell and Karinne Vanasse (CTV)
  • New serialized mystery drama THE DISAPPEARANCE about the vanishing of a 10-year-old boy (CTV)

Comedy

  • Based on the enormously popular website, the satirical news series THE BEAVERTON (The Comedy Network)
  • Following its debut on CraveTV, the fish-out-of-water dramedy RUSSELL PETERS IS THE INDIAN DETECTIVE (CTV)

Factual

  • From the producers of HIGHWAY THRU HELL, spin-off HEAVY RESCUE: 401 (Winter 2017) (Discovery)
  • The next in the “MIGHTY” series, MIGHTY TRAINS (Fall 2016), hosted by INNERSPACE’s Teddy Wilson (Discovery)
  • Featuring Andrew Younghusband, the star of the top original entertainment specialty program in Canada among key adult demos, CANADA’S WORST DRIVER, the new series TOUGHER THAN IT LOOKS (Fall 2016)
  • As previously announced, original Canadian programming on Bell Media’s new food and lifestyle channel Gusto will include A IS FOR APPLE, ONE WORLD KITCHEN, and FISH THE DISH. Bell Media has entered into a production arrangement with industry veteran Chris Knight to supply exclusive Canadian programming for the network through Gusto Worldwide Media. The production commitment will allow Bell Media to grow Gusto’s roster of hit series with new original Canadian programming, all in 4K.

Returning Bell Media Original Series for 2016/17:

Reality

  • Ahead of its Season 3 finale airing Sunday, June 19 at 7 p.m. ET/PT on CTV, the network announced today that original culinary competition series MASTERCHEF CANADA will return for a fourth season in 2017. The hit series will be back with a new batch of home cooks competing for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity as they pursue their culinary dream and battle to become Canada’s next MasterChef. Casting opens this Sunday, June 12 at 7 p.m. ET and aspiring home cooks will have until 11:59 p.m. ET on Saturday, August 6 to apply
  • Priming the 2016/17 Fall Season is summer’s most-watched television series, Season 4 of THE AMAZING RACE CANADA, when it returns June 28 (CTV)

Drama

  • Canadian Screen Award-winner for Best Dramatic Series, Montréal cop drama 19-2 returns for Season 3 (June 20), in advance of its already announced fourth season (Bravo)
  • Award-winning medical drama SAVING HOPE returns for a fifth season (CTV)
  • Space’s most-watched original series of all time, the sci-fi adventure series KILLJOYS returns for a second season (Space)
  • Season 2 of critically acclaimed drama SENSITIVE SKIN is currently airing on HBO Canada, while Season 4 of the internationally renowned genre darling, ORPHAN BLACK and its companion after-show AFTER THE BLACK (produced by INNERSPACE) are currently continuing on Space

Comedy

  • JUST FOR LAUGHS: ALL ACCESS returns with a fourth season of all-star laughs from the famed Montréal comedy festival (Comedy)
  • New cult favourite and breakout hit LETTERKENNY returns for a second season (CraveTV)

Factual

  • The most-watched original series on entertainment specialty among key adult demos, CANADA’S WORST DRIVER, enters its 12th season (Discovery)
  • Newfoundland’s COLDWATER COWBOYS is back for more high seas adventure in Season 4 (Discovery)
  • Entertaining and educational hit series, HIGHWAY THRU HELL, returns for Season 5 (Discovery)
  • Long-time international favourite, HOW IT’S MADE, returns for an incredible 28th season (Discovery), along with:
  • JADE FEVER (Discovery, Season 3)
  • MAYDAY (Discovery, Season 16)
  • MIGHTY CRUISE SHIPS (Discovery, Season 2)
  • VEGAS RAT RODS (Discovery, Season 3)

Events & Specials

The ground-breaking, crowd-sourced broadcast event CANADA IN A DAY, in celebration of Canada’s upcoming 150th anniversary, headlines Bell Media’s slate of new original movies, documentaries, and specials for the 2016/17 broadcast year. The slate also includes:

  • THE 2017 JUNO AWARDS (CTV)
  • BUILDING STAR TREK (Discovery)
  • DEATH OF A COMET (Discovery)
  • IHEARTRADIO MUCH MUSIC VIDEO AWARDS (Much)
  • JUPITER: CLOSE ENCOUNTER (Discovery)
  • WE DAY 2016 (MTV)

Returning Bell Media Production Original Series for 2016/17

Complementing this fulsome slate of original Canadian independent productions is a robust lineup of top-rated in-house entertainment productions from Bell Media Production renewed for new seasons in 2016/17:

  • Canada’s most-watched entertainment news program, ETALK
  • The country’s #1 and #2 Canadian daytime series, THE MARILYN DENIS SHOW and THE SOCIAL
  • As announced Monday, new daytime series YOUR MORNING
  • Flagship science and technology program, DAILY PLANET (Discovery)
  • Genre entertainment series, INNERSPACE (Space) and its series of after-shows

Source : Numeris, Sep 21, 2015 – May 22, 2016. Entertainment specialty ranking based on Aug 31, 2015 – May 8, 2016. Local news ranking based on Spring 2016 diary survey, A25-54.

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