All posts by Rachel

Rachel Langer is a TV writer based in Vancouver, BC. She is currently writing for Partners in Motion, as well as producing her first short film. She is an avid tweeter and social media junkie. Follow her on twitter: twitter.com/rachlanger

Heartland’s Leila Basen on her WGC Screenwriting Award Nomination

LeilaBasen2psThis year’s Writers Guild of Canada Screenwriting Award winners will be announced on April 22. We’ve been catching up with many of the writers nominated in the comedy and drama categories. Heartland‘s Leila Basen is nominated for her episode “Life is a Highway.”

Can you describe the episode “Life is a Highway” and how it fit into the Heartland season?

“Life as a Highway” marks the return of Chase Powers, a charismatic but incorrigible cowboy who makes an unexpected visit to Heartland and puts Amy and Ty’s relationship to the test.

What was the biggest triumph in this particular episode?

Showing the human side of a basically unredeemable character.

What does this recognition mean to you?

Heartland has been going strong for six years on the CBC, and it’s great that this year we got two WGC script nominations.

If there was one Canadian show that is no longer on the air that you could see honoured at this year’s awards, what would it be? (If you have a specific episode, even better).

My vote would be Mental Block, a tween comedy that ran two seasons, 2002 to 2004 on YTV. (Full disclosure – Mental Block was a show I co-created and wrote with David Preston.) It was a WGC Awards finalist twice in the Youth Category, but didn’t win either time because (according to one of the jurors) it was too funny for Youth and should have been in the Comedy Category. It would be great if it could win an award, even posthumously.

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Todd & The Book of Pure Evil’s Craig David Wallace on his WGC Screenwriting Award Nomination

CraigDavidWallaceThis year’s Writers Guild of Canada Screenwriting Award winners will be announced on April 22. We’ve been catching up with many of the writers nominated in the comedy and drama categories. Todd and the Book of Pure Evil‘s Craig David Wallace is nominated (along with Ian Malone and Charles Picco) for their episode “B.Y.O.B.O.P.E.”

Can you describe the episode “B.Y.O.B.O.P.E.” and how it fit into the Todd & the Book of Pure Evil season

In case you haven’t figured it out, “B.Y.O.B.O.P.E.” stands for Bring Your Own Book Of Pure Evil. For the longest time it was just called the House Party Episode, but then Ian came up with the most excellent title. We always wanted to do an episode that takes place entirely at a house party, especially since the show pretty much always took place at Crowley High. This was a pretty big episode in the mythology of the show: It’s where Todd loses his virginity, and where the gang find out that the only thing keeping Todd from becoming Pure Evil is him losing his virginity, so of course, hilarity ensues. It was also really unique in that the Book Of Pure Evil affects all these people in the background, but the gang is so caught up in their own stuff that they never even realize it, which was a real challenge to write but really satisfying. But the real memory of this episode is that it was one of the few that we shot on location – we took over a family’s house in Winnipeg, and it was a total blast for all of us to shoot.

What was the biggest triumph in this particular episode?

Oh so many things. But what I will always remember is being on set and needing a real button on the scene where Wanda is watching a dude chug down a beer and asks him “What else can you do with that mouth?” Literally, all the writers were on the back porch arguing about what it could be, and Charles kept pitching “I can suck my own dick.” He would not back down. Eventually, I said “Fine, he can say ‘I can suck my own dick’ but then the crowd has to cheer.” Charles went in to tell Warren Sonoda (the director of the episode), and he gave Charles a puzzled look and asked “Seriously?” Charles insisted, so Warren told the actor, who looked at Warren and asked “Seriously?” Warren shrugged, and they shot it, and it was AWESOME. At that moment I realized that I was working on the best show in the entire universe, and I would never have it this good ever again. So yeah, it’s bittersweet. Oh, and I get to say I was nominated for an episode where I wrote “It doesn’t count if he puts it in her bum, everyone knows that.” Now that is a once in a lifetime achievement.

What does this recognition mean to you?

Well, I won this award last year, so to be nominated again is mind-blowing. But even better this year, my co-writer on this episode Ian Malone is nominated along with me, and also Charles Picco who broke the initial story with us. And there’s so many contributions from the other writers from the show (Max and Adam Reid, and Garry Campbell), the producers, and the cast and crew that it feels like we threw a big party and somehow got nominated for an award for it. But really, overall, it just makes me really proud of the work that we did on the show as a whole. It was such a great experience and such a great show, and I really miss working with everyone involved.

If there was one Canadian show that is no longer on the air that you could see honored at this year’s awards, what would it be? (If you have a specific episode, even better).

It’s a bit of a trend that ONLY shows that are no longer on the air are nominated in the Comedy category at the WGC awards. Last year there were five shows nominated and they were all off the air, and this year only two shows (Todd & The Book Of Pure Evil and Less Than Kind) are nominated and both shows are over. But as much as I’m proud and excited to have an episode which I co-wrote be nominated this year, I really feel that our musical episode this year “Two Girls One Tongue” was unfairly passed over. It is by far the most jaw-dropping piece of crazy daring and just plain out there writing I have ever seen on television. The writer of the episode Charles Picco is sheer genius, and you put him together with Shawn Pierce, our amazing composer who wrote the music and James Genn who directed the episode, and it’s magic. MAGIC!

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Bomb Girls’ Michael MacLennan on his WGC Screenwriting Award Nomination

MichaelMacLennan

This year’s Writers Guild of Canada Screenwriting Award winners will be announced on April 22. We’ve been catching up with many of the writers nominated in the comedy and drama categories. Bomb Girls‘ Michael MacLennan was nominated for his episode “Jumping Tracks.”

Can you describe the episode “Jumping Tracks” and how it fit into the Bomb Girls season?

“Jumping Tracks” is the first episode of the series, establishing the “world” of the show, setting up the central characters and their various interconnections, and beginning the major themes, conflicts and storylines that launch the show, garner an audience, and serve as a blueprint for the episodes to come.  In other words, there’s a lot that goes into those 50 pages!

What was the biggest triumph in this particular episode?

Triumph?  Hm, I’d have to say two: when Lorna, a modestly educated, working-class woman, finds the courage to stand up to a doctor in order to protect one of her girls (Vera) and give her top-tier medical treatment reserved for soldiers.  And in a different light, I’d say the moment when Gladys decides to accept a marriage proposal from Lewis, a man she barely met, before he goes overseas, likely never to be seen again.  There’s something about how she elects to boldly give comfort and bolstering to this fellow — and in so doing, offers us — and herself — an inkling of just what she’s capable of.

What does this recognition mean to you?

It’s huge.  It’s the one opportunity for the script to be recognized AS a script, and given all the thinking and writing that’s gone into it, it means a great deal, especially since it is, as they say, a jury of one’s peers.

Bomb Girls is airing its second season on Global on Monday nights. 

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Denis McGrath on his WGC Screenwriting Award Nomination for Less Than Kind

DenisMcGrathThis year’s Writers Guild of Canada Screenwriting Award winners will be announced on April 22. We’ve been catching up with many of the writers nominated in the comedy and drama categories. Denis McGrath was nominated for his episode of Less Than Kind, “Danger, Wrestling.”

Can you describe the episode “Danger, Wrestling” and how it fit into the Less Than Kind season?

It’s actually part of the “lost” 3rd season. As most people know, our beloved Sam Blecher, the great Maury Chaykin, passed away while we were writing Season 3. I wrote the first draft of “Danger, Wrestling” with a B-Plot featuring Sam. That had to be rewritten by the room eventually — and by that point I was on another show.  I went with my draft, which had some elegiac stuff with Sam that obviously, we weren’t able to use.

Other than that there’s fun stuff of Josh auditioning talent for his acting school — and Sheldon discovers the joys of wrestling.

What was the biggest triumph in this particular episode?

Well there’s two answers to that. Obviously for the show, the fact that they rallied and got the whole season made as a tribute to Maury and wound up with a beautiful exploration of how a family moves through grief — that’s so much greater than any individual contribution, and a testimony to the talent of Mark McKinney, the creators Marvin (Kaye) & Chris (Sheasgreen), and the team they put together.

But personally? I don’t write a lot of comedy … I’m mostly a drama writer. When I was considering whether to enter the script — I have to thank Karen Hill for that — I reread it for the first time in two years and really laughed. There’s  a wonderful subplot about Sam tracing the ups and downs of a piece of stock — and him coming to terms with selling it (for the same amount he bought it for 30 years ago) — but it’s really about him coming to terms with feeling his sons will be okay without him. I’d like to think that my strength as a drama writer is a light touch, and as a comedy writer, I go for the big cry. That’s a little messed up, isn’t it?

What does this recognition mean to you?

So much. I love LTK. It’s employed some of my best friends. Working on the show brought my fiancee and I together. I came from a family that yelled, with love … so I recognize those characters. I’ve had an incredibly lucky career and after winning a WGC Award for writing a drama show, it’s humbling and exciting to get nominated for comedy. And it’s a recognition by my writer peers, and that is incredibly important to me.

If there is one Canadian show that is no longer on the air that you could see honoured at this year’s awards, what would it be? (If you have a specific episode, even better).   

For the love of God, why has CBC not done a Street Legal reunion/reboot movie? I miss Chuck and Olivia. I can’t be alone on that one. But the truth is — they ALL should be honoured. From Wojeck to DaVinci to Intelligence to the first 30 years of Citytv we have made, and continued to make, wonderful TV in Canada. I think it’s sad that we only note that when the New York Times or some American publication says so.

There are such strong nominees this year. So many great scripts. I am so jazzed to be among that talent. Maybe I can make a go of this writing thing.

Less Than Kind is entering into its fourth and final season on The Movie Network/Movie Central in 2013. 

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Esta Spalding on her WGC Screenwriting Award Nomination for Saving Hope

Esta SpaldingThis year’s Writers Guild of Canada Screenwriting Award winners will be announced on April 22. We’ve been catching up with many of the writers nominated in the comedy and drama categories. Saving Hope‘s Esta Spalding was nominated for her episode “Bea, Again”.

Can you describe the episode “Bea, Again” and how it fit into the Saving Hope season?

The episode “Bea, Again” was the episode of Saving Hope that came after the three week break the series had taken so that CTV could air the Olympics.  Right before the break, in episode 8, there was a very big cliffhanger:  Charlie (a lead character who has been in a coma since the first episode and has been walking around the hospital as a ghost) is unplugged from life support.  Alex, his fiancee, is devastated.  In my episode, Charlie has to survive this process.  The plug is pulled in episode 8, but he needs to be hanging between life and death and only declared alive at the end of episode 9.  Now, in real life, once the plug is pulled you either live or die.  So the challenge was to make that process last for a TV-hour without having it last for an actual hour.  I also knew that dramatically Alex needed to be with Charlie, at his bedside, but that the show’s mandate was for her to have a high-stakes medical case each week. How could I do both things?  It was such a strange, challenging crossword puzzle.  Maybe because of my background as a poet, I found all of the limitations really energizing and I came up with a very fun structure and story.

What does this recognition mean to you?

This recognition means so much to me.  There’s no higher honor than to be honored by your peers — your fellow writers in the trenches. I am thrilled to have been nominated.

If there was one Canadian show that is no longer on the air that you could see honored at this year’s awards, what would it be? (If you have a specific episode, even better).

I’ve been watching Aaron Sorkin’s Newsroom show on HBO and thinking how much better Semi Chellas’s Eleventh Hour was.  There was always great critical acclaim for that show, but I wish that show had found a larger audience while it was on the air.  It’s a show I’d still be happy to be writing for, all these years later.

Saving Hope season one airs Saturday nights on CTV Two. Season two is slated to air this summer.

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