Everything about Industry News, eh?

Link: Hey Nova Scotia, way to kill a cultural achievement!

From John Doyle of The Globe & Mail:

Hey Nova Scotia, way to kill a cultural achievement!
First, they came for the comedians and storytellers. Well, okay, actually, first they dismantled the system that allowed them to work and the culture to flourish.

In Nova Scotia, there is a hell-uva fuss going on. As there should be. The provincial government, strapped for cash, has slashed the film industry tax credit to 25-per-cent refundable, from 100 per cent. This is an act of madness. Continue reading.

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Keith Pelley to leave Rogers for golf’s The European Tour

From a media release:

Rogers Communications today announced that Keith Pelley, President, Rogers Media, will leave the company to become the new Commissioner and CEO of The European Tour – a global golf tour featuring 48 events in 26 countries. He will remain President of Rogers Media until his departure this summer.

During his tenure, Pelley repositioned the media business to address the changing media landscape. He reorganized the media division, breaking down silos to function in an integrated manner across the diverse portfolio of assets; he led the push to digital across the publishing brands; launched shomi and Next Issue in Canada; launched Sportsnet magazine to make Sportsnet the only five-platform sports media brand in the country; and expanded the reach of the company’s TV assets to deliver world-class content to more Canadians. He joined the company in August 2010.

A search for Pelley’s successor will begin and details on his exact departure date will be announced later.

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Discovery Canada Orders First Original Scripted Series

From Broadcaster Magazine:

Discovery Canada announced today from MIPTV  that it has ordered its first original scripted series, Frontier, from leading Canadian independent producer Take the Shot Productions (Republic of Doyle). Created by Rob Blackie and Peter Blackie, Frontier is an action-packed adventure drama following the chaotic and violent struggle to control wealth and power in the North American fur trade in the late 18th century. Told from multiple perspectives, Frontier takes place in a world where business negotiations might be resolved with close-quarter hatchet fights, and where delicate relations between Native tribes and Europeans can spark bloody conflicts.

Executive produced by Alex Patrick, John Vatcher, and Perry Chafe, the six-episode, hour-long series will begin principal photography in St. John’s, N.L. in July 2015.

 

 

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YTV’s Game On Gives Play-By-Play of Teen’s life

From a media release:

Corus Entertainment’s YTV is set to premiere, Game On, an innovative new live-action comedy that shows what it’s like when two enthusiastic sports announcers provide running commentary on every awkward, cringe-worthy moment of 14-year-old Toby Martin’s life. The 20 x half hour series premieres Monday, May 4 at 7 p.m. ET/PT on YTV. Visit the YTV blog for a sneak peek: http://www.ytv.com/blog/check-out-game-on.

Toby (Grayson Gurnsey) is just an average teen dealing with typical growing pains like zits, a changing voice, an annoying little sister, over-eager parents, some mild social awkwardness and an unrequited crush on classmate Jessica (Alice Morel-Michaud). However, his attempts to get through the day without too many disasters are closely examined by two announcers, Geri (Samantha Bee) and Bob (Jonathan Torrens), who give a play-by-play analysis on his daily life throughout each episode. Every move Toby, along with his best friend Seth (Jamie Mayers) makes is a potential fumble, interception or goal from Bob and Geri’s perspective at the anchor desk.

Game On’s half hour premiere includes two episodes. In the first, Toby winds up at the movies with Jessica—score!—but after offering to buy her a pop, discovers he’s 80 cents short—a total fumble. In the second episode, Toby’s parents unexpectedly fill in as chaperones at his school dance and his first priority is to keep them from dancing—showing that sometimes interference can turn into an unexpected victory.

Providing an extra layer of funny colour commentary is sideline reporter Wilf (Jonathan Langdon), who creates additional online videos for viewers called “The Wilf Diaries.” The hilarious webisodes include Wilf’s interviews with the director and a celebrity dog, a behind-the-scenes tour of the wardrobe department, and some insight into Wilf’s own “stylin” secrets. The webisodes are slated to roll out on YTV.com, in the weeks following the broadcast premiere.

About AD LIB FILMS
AD LIB FILMS is a Montreal, Québec-based production company of English- and French-language content, founded by Lorraine Richard in May 2013. The company is currently in post-production on Game On, a 20 x 30-minute youth series for Corus Entertainment’s YTV, produced by Greg Dummett (Thorne, Station X & Dragon) with head writer Steve Westren (Almost Naked Animals, Station X, Dragon) and directed by Jacob Tierney (Mr D, Trotsky). Projects currently in development include The Tenderness of Wolves, a dramatic series based on Stef Penney’s award winning novel and Le Grand Verglas, a feature film based on the 1998 ice storm in Québec. In February 2015, the company produced a seven-part miniseries for Attraction Image entitled Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell, after the novel of the same name, which was a UK/Canada co-production commissioned by Bell Media and BBC.

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Link: Katee Sackhoff To Star In & Create Futuristic TV Series For Reunion Pictures

From Nellie Andreeva of Deadline:

Katee Sackhoff To Star In & Create Futuristic TV Series For Reunion Pictures
Battlestar Galactica alumna Katee Sackhoff is set to topline another drama set in the future, this one her own creation. Sackhoff has teamed with Continuum producer Reunion Pictures for the project, Rain, which she wrote and is executive producing though her Fly Free Productions.

Rain is described as an evolutionary parable that gives us a look into our possible future as a species viewed through the eyes of a soldier named Rain (Sackhoff). It explores how the long-term effects of global warming, the burning of fossil fuels and the scientific manipulation of nature’s balance rot the world and contribute to its decline. Continue reading.

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