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Cardinal, Featured

Cardinal: Behind-the-scenes with Sienna Films’ Jennifer Kawaja

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Are you enjoying Blackfly Season, faithful Cardinal fans? Will Lise Delorme (Karine Vanasse) and John Cardinal (Billy Campbell) keep Terri (Alex Paxton-Beesley) safe Thursday at 9 p.m. ET/PT on CTV, or will Ray Northwind (Bruce Ramsay) track her down?

We’ve certainly loved the new season so far and have Julia Sereny and Jennifer Kawaja of Sienna Films to thank. The production company founders are not only responsible for executive-producing the Cardinal franchise, but the Global/CBS drama Ransom, Global’s excellent military drama Combat Hospital, web series in Riftworld Chronicles and the feature films New Waterford Girl and How She Move.

We spoke to Jennifer Kawaja last summer on the set of Blackfly Season about how the series came to be, the excitement of filming on location and working with stars Billy Campbell and Karine Vanasse.

Give me the origin story. How did Cardinal end up a Sienna Films production?
Jennifer Kawaja: CTV optioned the project and they went looking for producers to work with them. We fell in love with Giles Blunt’s books and his writing and it really felt like it was in our wheelhouse in the sense that it is Canadian, Canada playing Canada, on location—we love the specificity of the little things that happen when you’re on location shooting something—so we really tried to get the project. Once we did get it, we developed it and then [Season 1 showrunner] Aubrey Nealon came on board and wrote two scripts. That’s when CTV greenlit it.

The seasons attracted us as well. Each book is set in a different season. We love how Giles uses the physical environment in his storytelling.

Does being inside a warehouse that’s been converted into a set turn you off?
No. We did that with Combat Hospital in Etobicoke, Ont. That was fun to do. We love creating really specific worlds. Trying to get the feel of what Giles wrote and the feel of the place is important.

What are the challenges, if any, of going from Aubrey in Season 1 to Sarah Dodd as showrunner in Season 2 to Patrick Tarr in Season 3? 
It has been hard. The ice and the snow and the cold gives you a certain feeling right away. The change of season to summer, a completely different story that is much more case-heavy than the relationship between Delorme and Cardinal … but then we saw the dailies and we were excited. It’s Karine Vanasse and Billy Campbell as Delorme and Cardinal and even if the investigation into him isn’t there, there is still that chemistry. There’s simpatico between them and you just want to watch.

Is it important, as a producer, to be on-set during filming?
We’re pretty hands-on producers and always have been. We worked with [director] Podz and Aubrey very closely on Season 1. I really believe that, when you don’t have the budgets that the American shows have, every decision that you make has an effect on the show. You’re trying to create something without the money of a U.S. project so to make the right decision we feel the need to be here and be part of the team.

What can you say about Billy Campbell as John Cardinal?
CTV was very involved in that decision and was definitely encouraging in that way. We feel so lucky with Billy and Karine. Not only are they total pros and beautiful, amazing people—we’ve kept them in minus-40 weather with not enough clothing on and in the middle of bugs—they have never complained. They’ve always been game. It has been an incredible privilege. They have also connected with these characters. I think there is a part of Cardinal that is really Billy. And it’s the same with Karine and Delorme. Yes, they’re incredible actors but I feel they’ve really brought part of themselves to the roles.

Cardinal: Blackfly Season airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on CTV.

Images courtesy of Bell Media.

 

 

 

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Burden of Truth, Featured

Preview: Burden of Truth swims in “Still Waters”

I was talking to a friend the other day and he told me he was watching Burden of Truth—I had suggested he check it out—and really enjoying it. He and his wife tuned in to the first episode and found it a little slow-moving. He heeded my advice to stick with it until the end. By that time they were hooked. I love hearing stories like that, especially when it comes to shows like Burden of Truth. Let a show breathe and, quite often, you’ll be rewarded.

Last week, Joanne and Billy realized it was the school field, where the girl’s soccer team practiced almost daily, that seemed to be the culprit when it came to the girls’ neurological issues. That, of course, opens a whole new can of worms and expands the lawsuit.

What would this Wednesday’s instalment, “Still Waters,” offer? Here’s the CBC’s official synopsis:

Relying on her esteemed reputation as a partner at CTS, Joanna convinces a hydrologist to come to Millwood to test the soil. With reluctant permission from the local Mayor, Joanna and Billy narrow down their list of suspects to a handful of industrial sites in the community.

And here are more story points we picked up on after watching a screener of the episode written by Lynn Coady and directed by Jordan Canning.

Flashpoint alum guest-stars
Yes, Sergio Di Zio has been in a ton of other stuff but he’ll always be Flashpoint‘s Spike to me. He checks in to Burden of Truth as Dr. Howard Davies the hydrologist Joanna hires to drill and confirm whether the soil in the soccer field really is making people sick and more importantly where the toxin is coming from. And he sports, as you can see, a glorious moustache.

Who will be the face of the class action lawsuit?
With things ramping up and a filing imminent, Joanna and Billy must decide which girl’s name will be at the top of the documents. I wasn’t surprised by who they chose, but it wasn’t an easy decision. Will this person be able to stand up and represent the other girls successfully? We’ll see.

Girl talk
Speaking of the girls, Diane gathers them together for a meeting—a support group—so they open up and bond over the terrible sickness that’s fallen on them. It’s hard enough to fit in during high school without being stared at for twitching.

Joanna and Billy take on a new employee
This came at me out of left field and I totally love it.

Joanna gets some personal information
One of the drilling sites fails to net new information for the case but it does uncover an intriguing piece of Joanna’s past.

Burden of Truth airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on CBC.

 

 

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Featured, Workin' Moms

Workin’ Moms: Dani Kind and Ryan Belleville discuss Anne and Lionel’s Season 2 journey

If fans thought Season 2 of Workin’ Moms was going to ride on cruise control, they were in for a surprise.

Catherine Reitman and her writing team have headed into bold new directions for the show’s sophomore season on CBC, putting Kate (Reitman) through the death of her father and having her take on a new job. Frankie (Juno Rinaldi) is seeking wellness for herself and Ian (Dennis Andres) finds himself in a whole new world. Anne (Dani Kind) and Lionel (Ryan Belleville) are treading new ground as well, dealing with the after-effects of his vasectomy by having sex everywhere and anytime they can. That will, of course, be tempered by someone from Anne’s past surfacing in this week’s episode, “The Holy Hole.” We spoke to Kind and Belleville about the couple’s journey during a break in filming Season 2 late last year.

I just watched you film a pretty heavy scene in there.
Dani Kind: There are some heavy scenes this season.

I told Catherine Reitman that I sometimes feel Workin’ Moms is being erroneously billed as a comedy. There are some downright heartbreaking moments.
DK: I like that, though, because then we’re not all ‘yukka yukka yukka’ like a lot of comedies are.

I was telling Ryan Belleville that he’s usually that guy going for the laughs, but he gets to play such a sensitive character in Lionel.
DK: I think so too. He’s so great. He’s amazing. He just had a vasectomy so there is a whole bunch of sex. They’re humping everywhere and for no reason. They’re just so different after the abortion. Anne is softer. She is still hard, but they really went through something together. That couple has changed. The writers are so smart because the abortion changed them. There is an intimacy and a passion between them that wasn’t there last season.

Viewers met Anne’s ex, Brad, in the “2005” episode. Are you allowed to say whether or not Brad shows up later this season?
DK: Well … Anne is forced to get her own office …

There are more scenes with Anne and Kate this season?
DK: We go on a retreat this year. Val plans this retreat that we all go on, which is great because there are two new additions to Mommy & Me and we get paired up with different characters at the retreat which is comedy in itself.

I love that Ian is now part of the mommy group.
DK: He is so sweet, it’s literally like throwing a piece of meat into a lion’s pen.

I really like seeing this side to your acting. Lionel is a great character.
Ryan Belleville: It’s been nice to come in and bring some humanity to the comedy and not just be Mr. Punch-Up or Mr. Zany.

Did you view this as an opportunity to show another facet to your acting?
RB: There have been a few people who have given me shots to be more dramatic over the years, like Martin Gero on The L.A. Complex and Emily Andras on Wynonna Earp. I’m still learning the craft of dramatic acting but I love it. My parents are both actors. Like, real actors.

At what point in your career will you think of yourself as a real actor?
RB: I don’t think I ever will! I think I have too much respect for the craft to ever think I’ll be good at it.

I really enjoyed the honesty in Anne and Lionel’s relationship in Season 1.
RB: That’s the thing about this show. It’s not cliché. The husbands on the show are good dads, they’re not like in commercials where you have bumbling dads. In Anne and Lionel’s relationship, I’m the more sweet, docile character but it’s still a relationship and a partnership. Anne is super-angry and I’m super-soft, but when real-life stuff starts happening you see them functioning as a couple.

Lionel has had a vasectomy, and that leads to a whole new level of relationship for Lionel and Anne.
RB: It was kind of funny because I was only three or four weeks out from my own vasectomy. Most of the vasectomy scenes are very method. [Laughs.] There is a lot of doing it this season. It’s funny because in my career I’ve done far more sex scenes than a guy that looks like me should ever do on camera. [Laughs.] And the only reason I can think of is it’s because I look hilarious.

Workin’ Moms airs Tuesdays at 9:30 p.m. on CBC.

Images courtesy of CBC.

 

 

 

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Featured, Murdoch Mysteries

Murdoch Mysteries: Writer Noelle Girard discusses “Mary Wept”

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Spoiler alert! Do not read this until you have watched the “Mary Wept” episode of Murdoch Mysteries.

Murdoch Mysteries fans can thank Noelle Girard for that super-creepy visual of the Virgin Mary weeping tears of blood in the beginning moments of “Mary Wept.” The new member of the Season 11 writing room not only pitched the bloody tears but also planting a body inside the statue. That part of the story didn’t stick but the instalment was memorable nonetheless thanks to a dead infant, George Crabtree’s return and the engagement of Constable Higgins to socialite Ruth Newsome.

We spoke to Noelle Girard about “Mary Wept” and how she came to be on Murdoch Mysteries.

Before we get into this week’s episode, let’s start at the beginning: how did you get into writing for TV in the first place?
Noelle Girard: I never studied screenwriting. I have a degree in art history from the University of Toronto. But even then, I knew that I wanted to be a writer. I was writing on my own and having various jobs. It was only when I started to write TV scripts, on my own, that it really felt right. And then I got an agent. Two years ago I was on Saving Hope and last year I was on Murdoch.

What were some of the scripts you wrote before you got a TV job?
I wrote a couple of original ones, all hour-long dramas. The one I think [showrunner] Pete [Mitchell] read was a pilot for a projected six-part murder mystery, so that was a good one for him to read. I also have written one about espionage in Antarctica.

How did Murdoch Mysteries come about?
I knew Mary Pedersen—we’ve been friends for a couple of years—but I think my agent just sent my work to Pete and we had an interview. I think he’s really good at making the writer’s room full of great people. We’re all friends and it’s a really fun atmosphere. He was so great letting me and Natalia come up with our own ideas and really run with our own scripts and guiding us very well.

What do you learn in a writer’s room peopled with folks like Peter and Paul Aitken?
Paul is great because he’s Mr. Murdoch. He’s been on the show since Day 1 and knows everything. Also, it’s such a skill to write a self-contained mystery. That was a very steep learning curve for me; just how to write a murder mystery where you don’t have a lot of dead ends, or cul-de-sacs as they call them, or false leads. You keep the mystery unfolding. That’s what I tried to do with my episode.

Has your art history degree come into play on Murdoch Mysteries?
[Laughs.] I love arcane, esoteric phenomenon. That’s why I came to the room and said, ‘What about a statue that cries blood? And there is a body inside!’ Pete and Paul both said, ‘I think we can do better than that.’ [Laughs.]

So that was your idea?
Yes, the initial kernel was my idea and then everyone else just ran with it and it became this big, complex mystery. It was really fun. I’ve been really lucky, first at Saving Hope and now on Murdoch, because both rooms have been so open and inclusive and with really smart people.

What type of writer are you? Are you able to write in a room full of people, do you prefer music playing when you write?
No, I don’t like music. I do have to go away sometimes because I do love a good chat and in the Murdoch room we can just chat the day away. [Laughs.] Sometimes I have to sequester myself. But I don’t like going away for a long time from the room because you still have to stay connected to the room. Things can always change. It was a lot of writing at night and bringing it in the next day.

Let’s get in your episode. Did you get a chance to meet the director, Megan Follows, and speak to her?
Yes, we had a script meeting before she started directing and we spent a couple of hours going through the scripts. She was amazing. I mean, she’s Megan Follows!

How did the idea for having a statue cry blood come about? Were you inspired by something in particular?
When we convened before Season 11 we all came to the room with ideas. One of the original pilots I had written was about nuns, so I guess that was still fresh in my mind. I pitched a church and a statue crying blood. I think Pete really likes ideas that give him a world and when I said that, he realized we hadn’t had an episode in awhile where we had Murdoch going to church. We all seized on these ideas of Murdoch’s faith coming up against science and how he would grapple with that.

Not only did you address William’s faith, but the faith of others.
Also, things come out during the writing and we decided to have some fun with Watts, who is kind of the philosopher of the bunch. It comes out that he’s quite interested in this phenomena.

Everyone was happy to see George back. It was fun to have him be a braggart, comparing everything to the way things were in Paris.
[Laughs.] That was mostly Pete. He was like, ‘Let’s have a little bit of fun with Crabtree being obnoxious.’

I was a little surprised that Higgins and Ruth really got engaged. I kept waiting for something to stop them … like Josephine being thrown out the window. How long has it been in the works that these two would be engaged?
Early on we were wondering about their relationship and where that would go. We thought it would be fun for one of our gang to either be engaged or be married. When I was pitching it, I said, ‘And he throws her from the bell tower!’ And somebody else said, ‘Where Higgins is proposing to Ruth!’ [Laughs.] That was a great collaborative moment where we all just died laughing.

It was pretty dark to have the infant’s skeleton buried in the garden.
Because I’m new to Murdoch, when we were working on the story I said a couple of times, ‘Can we do this?’ And everyone said, ‘Let’s go for it.’ It’s really a testament to Pete and how fresh he keeps it. He loves the show and wants to push the storylines while still keeping it in the Murdoch world. He always wants the best story.

Is there a particular character you like writing for?
I do love Brackenreid because my whole family is from Yorkshire, so I love sneaking in some Yorkshire sayings. And everything you give Siobhan Murphy, who plays Ruth, will knock it out of the park. I always love when Murdoch and Julia have a nice moment together, so I love writing those moments. I love seeing them having a giggle together or play around together.

Murdoch Mysteries airs Mondays at 8 p.m. on CBC.

Images courtesy of CBC.

 

 

 

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Featured, Hard Rock Medical

Hard Rock Medical: Co-creators Smith Corindia and Derek Diorio reflect on four seasons

Sadly, the last of Hard Rock Medical is just over a week away. Yes, January 30 marks the final new instalment for TVO’s half-hour medical drama. (Thankfully you can catch up on this season and the past three via TVO’s website and the past three via APTN’s website.)

There’s a lot we’re going to miss about the series. Co-creators Smith Corindia (right in the above picture with series star Danielle Bourgon) and Derek Diorio (left) have attracted a whos-who of Canadian talent to drop by the show, like Jennifer Podemski, Marc Bendavid, Ron Lea, Michelle Thrush and, this season, Corner Gas‘ Eric Peterson alongside regulars in Andrea Menard, Tamara Duarte, Angela Asher, Jamie Spilchuk, Stephane Paquette and Pat McKenna. With dramatic storylines and humour jammed into 22-minute episodes, and Hard Rock Medical has done something very special over the past four seasons.

We spoke to Corindia and Diorio about the show’s journey and where they go from here.

OK, before we get into some more story-specific questions, let’s deal with the obvious one: whose decision was it that this be the last season of Hard Rock Medical? Was that TVO’s decision? Yours?
Derek Diorio: TVO has never been in the drama game. Over time, when we went back and when we originally pitched this, we convinced them to come in and we convinced them to bring in APTN [as a broadcaster]. It was a novel idea. From Day 1 TVO said, ‘We are not in the drama game.’ And two seasons in they said, ‘We are not in the drama game.’ I said to them, ‘You can’t just be a little bit pregnant. We are the drama.’ And they carried on because it’s a good deal for everybody. It’s certainly been a good deal for us because we got to make a TV show and in a very different way, I understand, from the way it’s done in Canada. We’ve had very few levels of broadcaster input. The commitment was always to do four seasons, we got through that and we are extremely happy about it.

Smith Corindia: Yes, and they were committed to us as well in terms of what our desires were for the show and seeing it through to the fourth season. Derek and I figured out a groove and a formula. Our budget was nowhere near those of other shows.

Four seasons of a show in any country is a triumph.
DD: It was hard. If you go to our website, that’s the one thing that comes up is ‘My god you did four seasons.’ We had a very good run and there is nothing to be displeased about.

I’ve been consistently impressed with the talent you get on the show, from Pat McKenna and Andrea Menard to guest stars like Eric Peterson. How have you been able to score this calibre of talent for four seasons?
SC: It’s almost like we had this theatre troupe mentality in terms of the actors’ commitment. And, of course, they were pleased with how we were developing their characters and the direction the series was going. I think word just got out. And, when people actually saw our show they basically wanted to be a part of it. I don’t think we had to do any real arm twisting to convince anybody.

DD: We had Ron Lea in the first season. I had never met Ron Lea. He showed up and we were having a conversation and I asked him why he chose to do it. He said, and I’m paraphrasing here, ‘When I saw the sides come across … I don’t see that kind of stuff at all.’ That’s what a lot of actors have said. They don’t get a chance to do the kinds of things we’re doing. On our set, actors get a chance to bring their own stuff to the party and they enjoy the process. And, we do our episodes in half the time that other shows do. They come in, they work and they like the environment. And, everybody got the same amount of money, which is not a lot. I wish we had the budget to pay them more because I think they’re underpaid for the most part.

Let’s get into some character story arcs. Farida’s [played by Rachelle Casseus] Season 4 story looks very interesting. She’s treating a young girl who is caught in the custody battle between her parents.
SC: We set Farida up in the first three seasons. And this season we set her up where we’re going to learn more about what she’s struggling with and the death of Erica. That’s going to trigger her past and it’s going to be a little bit of a slow unravelling of her past and what’s she’s dealing with, the grief and the moral issues that she is grappling with. And the character of Healy, who has had his own demons in the past is, appropriately, the one who puts things into perspective for her. Of course, she also got the situation with the family and the child [to deal with].

One of my favourite characters has been Charlie, played by Stephane Paquette. What can you say about what he goes through as we close out Season 4?
DD:  Most of the stuff that happens to Charlie is stuff that has happened in my life in general except I’m not going to med school. Steph Paquette is a friend of mine and I’ve been working with him for 10 years or longer, mostly on French shows. We actually mine Steph’s life a lot. He’s a musician and he tours and he’s got so much baggage … the crazy stuff that happens to Charlie is the crazy stuff that happens to him. Steph was in Dubai once and was walking around and was told to be careful where he went. He decided to go into a shopping mall, but it was a women-only mall and he wasn’t supposed to be in there. Two seconds later he’s on the ground surrounded by guards. That’s Steph Paquette’s life. So, it wasn’t hard to ask, ‘What’s happened to you this week?’ And, as writers, you can go in that crazy direction with him because stuff always happens.

SC: The first two years, we found there was more humour within the Charlie character and within the show. We found with Seasons 3 and 4, it became more mature and less humorous. I think that’s because of the stories but there are still classic Charlie scenarios that lend itself to humour. And he’s the guy we had to find humour with. We’ve always been a drama, but we’re a half-hour drama and that’s where it gets tricky because no one is really doing that except on Netflix or HBO.

So, does everyone graduate from Hard Rock U at the end of this season?
DD: That will be up to the viewer to decide, whether people graduate or not. Let’s say the bulk of them will. It’s not tied up with a nice bow but I would say the viewers will walk away satisfied.

Smith, in an email to us you hinted at Hard Rock Docs. Were you joking or will there be a spinoff? What’s next?
SC: We feel we’ve created a show that is very inclusive and diverse that has been well-reviewed with franchise possibilities. We would love to continue the journey and would be open to any broadcaster having us come in to pitch and be part of our next idea… we’re just sayin’…

Hard Rock Medical airs Tuesdays with back-to-back episodes at 9 and 9:30 p.m. ET on TVO. Episodes are available for streaming at tvo.org the day after each new broadcast.

Images courtesy of TVO.

 

 

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