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Featured, Hudson & Rex

Hudson & Rex’s Kevin Hanchard: “This guy felt different, and it felt right”

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Kevin Hanchard has played a lot of authority figures, including doctors, lawyers and police officers. Many police officers, on such shows as, most recently, Orphan Black, Cardinal and Cavendish.

Hanchard can currently be seen on Hudson & Rex, Citytv’s human-canine cop drama, portraying Superintendent Donovan. But unlike the officers he has played in the past, Hanchard describes Donovan as “different.” We spoke to him to find out exactly why, and we get a sneak peek into an upcoming episode where viewers learn more about Donovan.

How did you come to be on Hudson & Rex in the first place?
Kevin Hanchard: It was providence. I was offered the role of Superintendent Donovan. We thought about it and it made sense. I’m sort of at a place in my life, where I’m a little bit older, and I play a lot of doctors, lawyers and cops. And I have played a few cops in the last few years, but this guy felt different, and it felt right. It felt like there was a maturity and gravitas and weight to this guy than other cops I’ve played. It made sense for me to do this. I had been to Newfoundland before to shoot Republic of Doyle, I think going on eight years now, and I remember having a great time out there, loving the people, loving the landscape, the vistas and the sights, the restaurants and all of that. I was thinking, this is just a great opportunity to spend some time in a part of the country I don’t know if I’m going to get a chance to visit.

I’m impressed at how much Hudson & Rex is about the team investigating these crimes. I love the interaction not just between Rex and Charlie, but the team dynamic too.
KH: I really do think it’s an ensemble. Charlie and Rex are the heart of the series, but the four of us really seem to work together as actors and the characters seem to work well together. I think that’s good and bodes well for the future of the show. It just feels right, you know? The balance is where it should be. Even though I’m the superintendent, I’m not there with an iron fist like the guy from Beverly Hills Cop going, ‘Foley!’ That’s not his nature. He’s a little more like a mentor, which allows for some comedic moments and levity in the face of, you know, a murder each week. I think those are the things that allow for the audience to care for the characters and give the show some legs. I don’t think there could be three better people for me to work with than Mayko, Johnny and Justin. They’re super-talented actors and they’re good people. We genuinely enjoy spending time together. They may tell you something different about me, but I’ll at least take the high road. [Laughs.]

How do you feel about Diesel?
KH: Diesel is the only one of us to consistently hit his mark and never forgets his lines. He’s so smart and intelligent and has such a great spirit about him. You can see it in his eyes; there is a wisdom and a depth there that allows him to be the heartbeat of the show. Even though he is a dog and most people are watching for the dog, it’s not exploitive. It’s not a dog getting dressed up in a tutu and going undercover. He’s fantastic. And, for someone who has wanted to own a dog his entire life, this is a great consolation prize.

Looking forward to the episode entitled, ‘Haunted by the Past,’ we’re going to get a bit of a peek into Donovan’s personal life.
KH: We get to find out about his family situation and the fact that he has a teenage daughter. I’m the father of a child that has just gone through his teens and another about to go into his teens and these are every dad’s worst nightmare. Is my child doing drugs or, even worse, is my child hiding something from me? Donovan is human. He isn’t just a cop who is detached from his kid and is all about the work. He truly has an interest in her well-being. All of those fears and hopes and dreams that every parent has is delivered in this guy as well. It’s a wonderful little side story in that episode.

Hudson & Rex airs Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on Citytv.

Images courtesy of Rogers Media.

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Featured, Heartland

Comments and queries for the week of April 5

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Love the Heartland series. Happy there is a Season 12 with all the great cast members. Can hardly wait until it airs. —Sue

I am really enjoying The Murders and really like the look Carter has given to the show. Well done! —John

I can’t believe that Anne with an E received Best Drama over the incomparable Cardinal and/or Murdoch Mysteries [at the Canadian Screen Awards]. Harrumph. The other winners were quite worthy, though. :) —D Mac

My family and I have enjoyed Murdoch Mysteries for years. It’s clever how the writers weave (past) real-life characters into the shows. In the next season, we’d like to see William and Julia realize their dream of having a child … because of Julia’s inability to conceive, it could be through adoption. There could be a young woman who was widowed when her husband died in a farming accident. Tragedy strikes, she contracts a rare disease and dies suddenly. Unbeknownst to Julia and William, the mother had named them as guardians of her infant child, because she had no living relatives and she knew that Julia and William would make good parents for her child. And how about a permanent love interest for George? He’s had enough heartache and is looking for love. Thanks for a great show! —Edith

 

Got a question or comment about Canadian TV? Email greg.david@tv-eh.com or via Twitter @tv_eh.

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Featured, Jann

Jann: Deborah Grover on Nora’s journey and the “universal story” of Alzheimer’s disease

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“Just breathe.”

That was the advice Deborah Grover gave Jann Arden when they began filming CTV’s Jann in Calgary last fall.

Singer-songwriter Arden is an experienced stage performer with enviable comedic ability, but toplining a TV series—and all the line memorization and mark-hitting that goes with it—is new to her. Grover, who plays Arden’s mother Nora in the series, is a veteran actress with a long list of credits, including films Agnes of God and Where the Truth Lies and TV shows Night Heat and Anne with an E, so she knows exactly what to do when someone has acting jitters.

“When you start to panic and go, ‘I don’t remember a single thing, I don’t even remember my first line,’ it’s like, breathe,” Grover says during an on-set interview last October. “Because it’s all sitting inside of you. You’ve done all your work, so just breathe. So [Jann and I] would start a scene, and just breathe, and boom, it’s there. And if it isn’t there, then we start again. Not a big deal.”

Of course, that approach only saves actors who have done their work, and according to Grover, no one arrived on set more prepared or more committed each day than Arden did.

“She came prepared to work, and every day she’s working on her lines and her scenes and her nuance of the scene,” Grover says. “She’s come at it with everything she’s got, and it’s been fascinating to watch. You know, she’s a Canadian icon, so you want this to succeed for her, because man, what we have to give in this journey is personal, but it’s a universal story. It’s so human.”

In the series, Arden plays a mostly fictional version of herself, a version who is on the declining side of fame and struggling to get back on top—which leads to lots of hilariously unflattering scenarios. However, the show also deftly mixes in Nora’s struggles with dementia, which are based on Arden’s real-life experiences caring for mother Joan Richards, who suffered from Alzheimer’s before passing away in December.  

Grover read Arden’s 2017 memoir, Feeding My Mother: Comfort and Laughter in the Kitchen as a Daughter Lives with her Mom’s Memory Loss, before auditioning for the part.

“I read the book, and during my screen test with Jann, I think she felt I had the right feeling, a certain sensibility, and that seemed to work for her vision of her mom,” says Grover.

The connection between them is evident onscreen, counterbalancing the show’s spot-on bits of entertainment industry satire with moments of emotional depth and familial tenderness.

“It is a fictionalized version, there’s no question,” says Grover. “And I think the more we explore the scenes, the more I discover about her mother.”

Grover’s family was also touched by Alzheimer’s when her mother-in-law was diagnosed with the disease. 

“I got to experience that on a first-hand basis,” she says. “But it’s totally different with every individual, and people have been very open about sharing their stories with me, going, ‘Well, my mom was this,’ or ‘My grandmom was that,’ so you receive it all, and it all adds to the mix.”

It isn’t a spoiler to say that Nora moves from simply being forgetful—as in a scene from Wednesday’s new episode, “Weeknd at Charley’s,” when Jann loses her patience with her mom for misplacing her phone—to suspecting something more serious is going on as the season progresses.

“As the journey gets more pronounced, you’re seeing a little bit of forgetfulness, the dementia is there, and then there will be the diagnosis at the end of the six-part series,” Grover says. “Hopefully, if there is a second season, there will be an exploration of the journey with mom and what that means and how the family deals with it through humour, through the heartbreak of it all. But you’ll hopefully get all those colours because Jann wrote about it all in her book.”

While a second season of Jann seems like a good bet, thanks to strong early ratings, Grover is also thankful for her recurring role as Aunt Josephine on the CBC/Netflix series Anne with an E, which started filming its third season in March.

“What a lucky actor I am,” Grover says. “I’ve got two amazingly different things on the go, and hopefully, other things that will fill in the cracks. I feel extremely blessed in these character years when you go, ‘Well, isn’t it over?’ No, it’s just beginning. Man, it’s just beginning. I’m having more fun than I’ve had.”  

Jann airs Wednesdays at 8:30 p.m. ET/PT on CTV.

Images courtesy of Bell Media.

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Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Preview: Paramedics: Life on the Line champions B.C.’s paramedics and dispatchers

In the spring of 2017, I recommended folks check out CBC’s web series Save Me. Season 2 of that project is on the way and looks at the types of people paramedics run into on the job. But while Save Me is scripted, Paramedics: Life on the Line is not.

From Lark Productions—the same folks behind Emergency Room: Life and Death at VGH—Paramedics: Life on the Line, debuting Tuesday at 9 p.m. PT on Knowledge Network (and online for those not living in B.C.), follows real-life paramedics and dispatchers at British Columbia’s Emergency Health Services.

“Building on our rewarding relationship with Knowledge Network, we are privileged to now work with BC Emergency Health Services and share their stories,” executive producer Erin Haskett said back when the project was announced. “This is a unique opportunity to provide viewers with an inside look at the work of the paramedics and dispatchers, share their daily experiences and directly see the impact they have on our community.”

And what a look it is. The opening credits—featuring sirens and a babble of dispatcher voices asking clarifying questions and dispensing advice—Paramedics instantly drops viewers into the whirlwind that is this career. It’s not easy. The aging population in the Vancouver area means more visits to seniors. And, with a stagnant number of ambulances on the road, that means stressful, jam-packed shifts.

Over at Ambulance Station 246, we meet Marco and Chris as they visit an elderly woman suffering from pain in her left arm following a fall. Donning their detective hats, the pair ask about the situation surrounding the incident—how did it happen, where did it happen—before assessing a suspected broken arm and shuttling her to the hospital. But aside from tending to his patient, Marco shows incredible patience and asks personal questions. That builds an almost instant relationship and trust. As Marco explains, he likes to help people regardless of the reason he is there.

Meanwhile, it’s chaos at the Dispatch Operations Centre. Where Marco and Chris can only answer one incident at a time, dispatchers juggle a flood of emergency calls, assess what type of service should be sent, and order them. In my mind, this has got to be the toughest job. I can’t imagine anything worse than attempting to get information from the concerned patient, family or friend in distress on the line. Footage of call taker Yehia on the line with the mother of an infant (“Is he awake? Is he breathing?”) is harrowing and horrible.

But Paramedics: Life on the Line isn’t just about the job; the 10-episode series also shines a light on the lives and relationships of those who do it. From Adam and Carol-lyn discussing Game of Thrones to questionable food choices and drivers who simply do not know what to do when a vehicle with flashing lights and a siren is trying to get somewhere quickly, the series is an incredible peek at the people who are truly putting others before themselves every day.

Paramedics: Life on the Line airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. PT on Knowledge Network. It can also be streamed on the Knowledge website.

Images courtesy of Talk Shop Media.

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Featured, The Murders

The Murders’ Jill Carter: “The highlight of my career so far”

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It’s been almost two years since I spoke to Jill Carter. Back then, it was a podcast to discuss her directing work on Spiral, a creepy web series. We also talked about her experiences directing episodes of Murdoch Mysteries and how she got into the Canadian television industry in the first place.

I caught up with Carter last week for her latest project, The Murders. Created by Damon Vignale, the series stars Jessica Lucas as Kate Jameson, a rookie homicide detective whose mistake on Day 1 leads to tragedy. And, unlike directing on an established series like Murdoch, Carter was on the ground level for The Murders, meaning she collaborated with Vignale on how Citytv’s Monday night drama would look and feel for four episodes, starting with the pilot. It is, as she says, “the highlight of my career so far.”

How did you get involved in The Murders? Had you worked with Damon Vignale before? 
Jill Carter: I’d actually never met Damon. My agent was dogged about pursuing this for me. The producers and Damon and Rogers were interested in discussing the show with me, and so they sent me the bible and the pilot episode, and I read it a couple of times, and did some homework in terms of what kind of police homicide detective shows I thought were interesting and maybe kind of relevant to the type of show that they were discussing. Damon had mentioned the show Marcella to me. So, I looked at that and then I looked at a couple of others that I also liked. Actually, they were all British shows.

And then, I let my imagination run wild and had a good conversation with the Muse producers and Damon and they, in the end, obviously, we’re happy with how that conversation went and were interested in hiring me and then they asked me to do one more thing before it could become official. They wanted me to do a look book, which was to basically create a document that represented what my thoughts and visual ideas would be in terms of how I would approach the show.

What was in your look book? 
JC: I pulled some reference stills from the shows that I was inspired by, and also the show that Damon had talked about, and ones that I liked the framing of or the colour palette of. We had also talked about wanting to have a very different take on a police station. I’m really pleased because I think we ended up achieving that. I had pulled some references for police stations, but not specific to that. I actually found, in Dwell magazine, an old post office that this digital company had repurposed, that looked really cool. I thought could be an interesting space or reference for a space for a police station. And then just shots of Vancouver and the diversity in culture and the diversity in landscape, and sort of the beautiful, soft colours of the west coast. But also the sort of darkness and rich colours of the mountains and when you get those rainy grey days, that kind of colour palette.

I basically pooled all of that and then hired a graphic designer to work with me on creating a pleasing book that would represent the show’s feeling. At the end of the day, you want to create something that people can really get a sense of the feeling and the tone and the style that you want to embody.

Is this the project where you had the most input?
JC: I never had that much input on a show before. And obviously, every show that you direct, they’re hiring you for a reason, so you try, within the sandbox that you’re given, to infuse your own taste and style and artistic value to that show. But you’re dealing with, as the director that followed me on The Murders, was they had to sort of follow what we had set out to be the tone and the style of the show. Which is fun, and it’s you trying to find a way in on something that already kind of exists, so it’s a different sort of challenge.

But, obviously, the most fun is when you can really have a hand in creating something and having the most ability to weigh in on what the sets are gonna look like, what locations you have. You always have that when you’re directing, but if you’re directing a show that’s already in place, you haven’t picked any of the original locations, you’re just handed whatever doctor’s office or police station you’ve been given.

I really got to, with Damon, go and decide. We saw a bunch, and there was a couple that we saw that was already dressed as police stations, and I’d look at him immediately and be like, ‘Nope,’ and he would agree. The two of us were very much on the same page about it. And we’re excited to find something different that we hadn’t seen before. And I think we really did that.

One of the things that I loved about our police station is that it’s right at street-level, and you see traffic passing by. I think it adds a real authenticity to the fact that they’re working in a location that they’re also servicing for their job. You feel like they’re in the thick of it, and it just adds another layer and sort of nuance to the scenes that are in the bullpen, and also give a buzz almost, like an extra something to every scene that’s there, and just life that you don’t often get a chance to see when you’re in those type of sets. I loved that element.

What are some of the unique challenges of filming in a city, on location, at night?
JC: The biggest challenge is time because you have restrictions in terms of the hours that you can be shooting. So that, I’d say, is kind of the biggest factor, because how you’re shooting or where you’re shooting really kind of remains the same in terms of like whatever situation you’re gonna have to deal with. It’s really just the restriction on how long you can shoot in that location.

A question about Jessica Lucas. People know her as an actress, but she’s also a producer on The Murders. What was it like working with her? 
JC: As an actress, she’s incredible. She really carries the show. Her character is quite stoic and very internal. Everything’s sort of kept close to her chest, and you know she’s very protective and very serious about what she’s doing. And Jessica is very expressive as an actress, and her face says a lot. Her style and ability as an actress really lends itself well to this character and was wonderful and really killed it, I think.

As a producer, she was open and collaborative and really, I think for her, was an opportunity to get her feet wet in an area that she’s interested in and would probably like to do more of. It was starting out in a space that she’s comfortable, meaning a show that she was working on as an actress as well, I think helps pave the way.

It was an opportunity to have a larger voice in terms of weighing in, especially on the script and in the story in terms of in pre-production and production, on what she felt was working or needed to be maybe adjusted for her character. But, also, the script as a whole, and wanting to make sure that we were all moving forward in the same direction, in the right direction, and having discussions about wardrobe and things like that. Getting more into the nuts and bolts of stuff that you maybe don’t normally get a chance to do as an actor for hire, when you’re not producing as well.

What can viewers expect as they get into the second episode and the meat of the season?
JC: If you saw the first episode and the preview of Episode 2 coming on Monday night, you’ll know that it’s a bank heist, and I had a ton of fun directing that. I’d never done one before, and that was super fun to do. All of my episodes have been different and fun. We learn more about Kate’s past and her family relationship.

And also you start to understand the dynamic of the group of detectives that are working together. If you’ve seen Episode 1, you know that we don’t shy away from presenting images that are difficult or challenging. That stays through the entire season, so I think people can be looking to be gripped and excited and presented with entrusting ideas and also just get to know our characters a little better.

The Murders airs Mondays at 9 p.m. ET on Citytv.

Images courtesy of Taro PR.

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