All posts by Greg David

Prior to becoming a television critic and owner of TV, Eh?, Greg David was a critic for TV Guide Canada, the country's most trusted source for TV news. He has interviewed television actors, actresses and behind-the-scenes folks from hundreds of television series from Canada, the U.S. and internationally. He is a podcaster, public speaker, weekly radio guest and educator, and past member of the Television Critics Association.
Industry News

CMF Announces 2015-2016 program budget, guidelines and deadlines

From a media release:

The Canada Media Fund (CMF) today announced Program Guidelines for the 2015-2016 fiscal year. It also announced the program budget for 2015-2016 set at $375.2M.

The CMF is committing $375.2M to support Canada’s television and digital media industry in 2015-2016. Underspending in some 2014-2015 programs, revenues from tangible benefits and one-time adjustments of revenues from broadcast distribution undertakings (BDU) in 2014-2015 contributed to achieving this program budget.

The program budget is also supported by revenue forecasts for the coming year based on contributions from the Government of Canada and Canada’s cable, satellite and IPTV distributors, and CMF recoupment revenues from funded productions. The program budget reflects a conservative estimate of expected BDU contributions to the CMF for the year to come and includes an expected stable contribution from the Government of Canada.

The breakdown of the 2015-2016 Program Budget can be viewed on the CMF website. Please click here.

CMF Programs
Changes and updates have been made to existing program guidelines for 2015-2016. Complete Program Guidelines, application deadlines, and a summary of changes are available on the CMF website cmf-fmc.ca.  All applications for funding will be processed through eTelefilm, a simple and secure website that provides applicants with updated information about the status of their application.

As a result of Corus Entertainment’s acquisition of Historia, Séries+ and TELETOON and in accordance with the CRTC’s Tangible Benefits Policy, the CMF and Corus Entertainment are pleased to announce the Page to Pitch Program. This program is devoted to funding creative and business activities during the development of eligible live-action and animated television projects. The 2015-2016 Page to Pitch Program budget is set at $1,163,750 and will fund eligible costs related to script development or the acquisition of pre-sale financing.  Projects will be evaluated and chosen through a selective process and successful applicants may receive amounts of up to $25,000. Guidelines for the Page to Pitch Program can be accessed on the CMF website by clicking here.  The deadline for this program is May 5, 2015.

The CMF will host webcasts on Tuesday, April 21, 2015 to provide an overview of changes to the programs and to field questions.  The French webcast will be at 11 a.m. ET, the English webcast will be at 2 p.m. ET. Details on how to join the webcasts will be communicated shortly.

Performance Envelope Program
Factor Weights for 2015-2016 remain unchanged, while changes have been made to genre allocations. This information can now be accessed on the CMF website under Performance Envelope Calculations. The CMF will be sending broadcaster agreements outlining the amounts allocated for the upcoming year to individual broadcasters in early April, 2015. Details about each broadcaster’s Performance Envelope will be posted on the CMF website in mid-April, 2015.

In 2015-2016, the CMF will continue to work on adapting its policies and programs, particularly in light of the upcoming results of the program evaluation of the CMF by Canadian Heritage, the impact of the CRTC’s Let’s Talk TV decisions, as well as a formal and inclusive consultation with industry stakeholders and funders planned for fall 2015. Details on the nationwide consultation will be made available at a later date.

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Schitt's Creek

Link: Dan Levy on why the most provocative thing about Schitt’s Creek isn’t the name

From Cassandra Szklarski of Canadian Press:

Dan Levy on why the most provocative thing about Schitt’s Creek isn’t the name
About halfway through the first season of Schitt’s Creek, it became clear that the most provocative element of the CBC sitcom had nothing to do with its name.

Instead, it was the unusual relationship quietly brewing between fashion-obsessed David, played by Dan Levy, and his snarky clad-in-plaid buddy Stevie, played by Emily Hampshire. Their quippy odd-couple banter somehow leads to an envelope-pushing friends-with-benefits fling. Continue reading.

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Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Slice’s Emergency goes behind the scenes in Vancouver’s ERs

From a media release:

A visit to the emergency department can be an emotional experience for the patient and for the loved ones that accompany them.  The new documentary series Emergency (14 x 30) gives viewers an intimate look at the lives of patients in some of Canada’s busiest emergency departments. Narrated by award-winning musician and author Jann Arden and produced by award-winning producers Force Four Entertainment, Emergency airs Thursdays at 9 & 9:30 p.m. ET/11 & 11:30 p.m. PT with back-to-back episodes beginning April 16 on Slice.

Each episode of Emergency interweaves the personal stories of three to four patients, each facing their own medical emergency, ranging from heart and respiratory ailments to broken bones and work-related accidents. With a heart-felt focus on relationships, the series focuses on the patients and their loved ones, their hopes and their fears, and just how their trip to the emergency department could impact their future. Emergency also showcases the relationships between patients and the medical staff who work tirelessly and urgently to unravel the mysterious illness or injury that brought the patient to the emergency department.

EPISODE 1
Thurs., April 16 at 9 p.m. ET/11 p.m. PT
A father and son fishing trip is reeled in by excruciating back pain. A mom convinces her young construction worker son to get treatment for a boil under his arm. A grandmother forgets to take her medication and requires a jolt to slow her racing heart.

EPISODE 2
Thurs., April 16 at 9:30 p.m. ET/11:30 p.m. PT
Doctors assist a patient with two life threatening conditions at the same time. A captivating couple seeks a solution to their ring problem. An anxious woman fears the worst when her heart rate suddenly accelerates.

Emergency departments featured in the series are all part of the Fraser Health network of hospitals.

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Industry News

Super Channel teams with New Metric Media for What Would Sal Do?

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From a media release:

Super Channel, Canada’s only national English pay television network, is pleased to announce it has commissioned a new original scripted comedy series, What Would Sal Do?, from Toronto based New Metric Media in partnership with DHX Media.

Created by Andrew De Angelis (Mr. D, Fugget About It), the eight-episode, half-hour comedy series, is a modern day parable of an entitled underachiever, Sal, who for the first time in his life, is challenged to be a good person when he discovers he’s the Second Coming of Christ.

The Super Channel original production is scheduled to begin shooting in Sudbury in August, 2015 and air on Super Channel in spring 2016. Executive Producers for New Metric Media are Mark Montefiore and Patrick O’Sullivan, with Greg Copeland as producer. Samir Rehem will direct all eight episodes.

What Would Sal Do? is produced by New Metric Media, in partnership with DHX Media in association with Super Channel, and with the participation of the Canadian Media Fund and Ontario and Federal Tax Credits.

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Schitt's Creek

Link: How Schitt’s Creek’s first season didn’t run dry

From David Berry of the National Post:

How Schitt’s Creek’s first season didn’t run dry
Schitt’s Creek settled into grooves of both character and plot — you could see where the season was going from its second episode — which dimmed some of the consistently clever writing.

Still, it had plenty of fun with it, especially when it found ways to get its main foursome into slightly new situations: O’Hara’s boisterous overacting as matriarch Moira attempts to sustain the surprise at her birthday party was a great wrinkle, and the sad, sarcastic and sweet way that whole party came together was proof that the ensemble has the ability to push and pull each other. So, too, was the enjoyable if obvious way David and Stevie’s friendship-with-benefits played out. Continue reading.

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