TV, eh? | What's up in Canadian television | Page 44
TV,eh? What's up in Canadian television
Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

CBC competition series Best in Miniature returns for Season 3 on December 26

From a media release:

BEST IN MINIATURE (8×60) is back with 10 exceptionally talented miniaturists from Canada and abroad, promising a season of unrivaled creativity and innovation. Season 3 premieres Tuesday, December 26, with all episodes available to stream at 9 am ET on CBC Gem, followed by daily back-to-back episodes on CBC TV beginning Tuesday, December 26 through Friday, December 29 at 8 pm (8:30 NT) and 9 pm (9:30 NT).

This season, the 10 miniaturists will unleash their creative superpowers, crafting petite wonders in 1/12 scale, as time ticks away. In each episode, the judges will decide whose delicate dreams have come to an end, and who’s got what it takes to move forward for the chance to claim a prestigious residency and $10,000. The miniaturists better not get worked up over the minor details because if they survive the chopping block, they’ll score the ultimate prize.

Actor and stand-up comedian Aba Amuquandoh returns as host, alongside judges, UK miniature expert Emma Waddell, and esteemed Canadian interior designer and entrepreneur Micheal Lambie.

Meet the Season 3 competitors vying to be crowned Best in Miniature, including five Canadians:

Shelley Acker from Kentville, Nova Scotia has been making miniatures for almost 25 years and is the owner of Freedom Miniatures, a full-service miniatures and hobbies store. Shelley’s skills in miniatures were showcased as one of two Art Directors on the 2022 multi-award-winning documentary feature film Bernie Langille Wants to Know what Happened to Bernie Langille.

Jen Arnold from Winnipeg, Manitoba is a full-time social worker, who finds her strength in the time she spends building hand-held memories, and considers her art as her own form of self-care. Her work has been featured in The Winnipeg Free Press, Global News Morning Winnipeg, Winnipeg radio station 680 CJOB, CBC Radio Information Morning, as well as in the Lac Du Bonnet and Manitoba Clipper.

Lance Cardinal from Bigstone Cree Nation in Alberta is a First Nations 2-Spirit artist, designer and television personality, who has quickly become one of the province’s leading First Nation artists and entrepreneurs. His 30-year journey has allowed him to work with world-class organizations all over Canada, including The Edmonton Oilers, IKEA Edmonton, Kunitz Shoes, Rugby Canada, Unbelts, Telus World of Science, Rogers Place, Fort Edmonton Park, and Re/Max Field.

Tiffany Monk is originally from England and now lives in Sutton, Quebec. Tiffany is a versatile multidisciplinary artist with a background in prop making, sculpting and model making for film. She has worked on a number of diverse film and TV projects in both England and Canada including John Carter, The 100 and a number of independent stop-motion animation films and projects.

Arline Smith is from the UK and now lives in Port Hope, Ontario. She is a many-faceted artist and has spent the past fifty years creating everything from a pea to an elephant. After graduating from Liverpool College of Art, she joined The Royal Shakespeare Company as a costumier and worked alongside Sir Ben Kingsley and Dames Helen Mirren and Judy Dench.

In the lead up to the Season 3 premiere, Miniature enthusiasts can catch up on Seasons 1 & 2 on CBC Gem.

BEST IN MINIATURE is produced by marblemedia, a Blue Ant Media company, in association with CBC. Matt Hornburg, Mark Bishop, Diane Rankin and Donna Luke are executive producers; Erica Lenczner is series producer; the series is created by development producer Kelsey Espensen. 

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Featured, The Squeaky Wheel: Canada

AMI and Hitsby Entertainment announce casting, writing and producing teams for The Squeaky Wheel: Canada

From a media release:

Be Loud. Be Disabled. Be Squeaky. AMI is pleased to announce the cast, writing and producing teams for The Squeaky Wheel: Canada.

Based on Steven Verdile’s popular web publication The Squeaky Wheel and produced by Hitsby Entertainment, The Squeaky Wheel: Canada is a satirical, half-hour news format which pokes fun at the ableist society people with disabilities face every day.

Presented by Canada’s top writers and performers from the disability community, The Squeaky Wheel: Canada‘s irreverent perspective flips tropes and clichés upside down by showcasing disability in a humorous way. Its clever blend of social commentary and provocative humour will leave audiences laughing hysterically and feeling pleasurably guilty about it.

The eight-episode series introduces a fresh perspective to the entertainment landscape with its disability-led creative team, fronted by series producer Michelle Asgarali.

Directed by Lucy Belgum and Tobi Abdul, production is slated to begin filming in Hamilton, Ontario, in December. The series stars Graham Kent and Gaitrie Persaud as its lead anchors, and an ensemble cast featuring Margaret Rose, Samantha Wyss, Sivert Gorachand Das, Wesley Magee-Saxton and Yousef Abdullah Kadoura. The writing team includes D. Cole, Daniel Barra-Berger, Jenny Lee-Gilmore and Sierra Haynes, and many story contributors with diverse perspectives across the disability community.

“I am honoured that AMI and Hitsby Entertainment are taking The Squeaky Wheel in this exciting new direction,” says Steven Verdile. “I look forward to seeing where this talented group of performers, writers and producers from the disability community takes us.”

“I look forward to bringing my directing skills to this unique show,” says director Lucy Belgum. “It’s rare to get such a well-written comedy about disabilities, and I am proud to be one of the first trans women to direct Canadian TV.” 

“Being on a disabled-led project is a dream,” says director Tobi Abdul. “I’m thrilled to bring a disruptive internet publication to life and shake up the media landscape.”

The first season of The Squeaky Wheel: Canada will be broadcast on AMI-tv in 2024 and available for streaming on AMI+.

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Industry News

Paramount+ in Canada and The Shine Network Institute announce the Indigenous Producers Budgeting Intensive

From a media release:

Today, Paramount+ in Canada and The Shine Network Institute (TSNI) announce the Indigenous Producers Budgeting Intensive, an online course and new resource to support the professional development and mentorship of Indigenous women in film, television and media. This first virtual course will be geared toward budgeting for film. It will be accessible on TSNI’s @Learnatshine platform and will launch on National Indigenous Peoples Day – Friday, June 21, 2024.

Geared toward emerging and mid-level Indigenous female producers, this first intensive course of 10 x one-hour modules offer students hands-on learning accompanied by Indigenous-framed tutorials designed to empower students as they prepare to produce their first feature film. The course will also include candid conversations with Indigenous female producers to inspire and motivate students by giving them access to industry veterans who can dispel myths and misconceptions about producing.

“Working with The Shine Network Institute on this course is truly the first step in our partnership,” said Doug Smith, SVP Streaming & Content Licensing Paramount Global, Canada. “After listening and consulting with Jennifer Podemski and her team over the past few months we are proud to collaborate on this online course which will provide tangible skills to those interested in line producing, one of the most important jobs on any set. It is also a project we can build on in the months and years to come to support even more of TSNI’s membership and the next generation of Indigenous producers.”

“I am thrilled to be partnering with Paramount + Canada for this course,” said Jennifer Podemski, President & CEO, The Shine Network Institute. “Partnerships like this allow TSNI to offer the highest level of training and mentorship while building capacity for Indigenous people within the screen sector. Although our mission at TSNI is to foster the careers of Indigenous women who are the least represented across the sector and experience the most disproportionate outcomes, this course, which will be offered on our @Learnatshine platform, is open to all Indigenous professionals working within Canada’s film, television and digital media space.”

This initiative is the third partnership Paramount+ in Canada has announced that reinforces its long-standing commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Earlier this fall, the company announced a collaboration with the Black Screen Office for the Black Creators Festival Initiative; a joint venture with BIPOC TV & Film, and the National Screen Institute Partner for the new ELEVATE program; and now TSNI’s Budget Online Intensive.

These programs are intricately connected to the mission of Paramount Global’s Content for Change initiative, which seeks to counteract narratives that enable bias, stereotypes and hate using the power of our content, the creative supply chain that powers it, and the culture that underpins everything we do.

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Featured, Industry News

Paramount+ in Canada adds two projects to its development slate from Boat Rocker

From a media release:

Paramount+ announced today two new, Canadian original comedy titles to their expanding development slate from Boat Rocker. BENSEN, created and written by Clara Altimas, and ELECTED, created and written by Michael McGowan, have been added to the growing list of Canadian content backed by the global streaming service. In June, Paramount+ in Canada revealed its first set of projects in the development stage consisting of Paramount+ Original documentary, 500 DAYS IN THE WILD from Dianne Whelan and four other projects from a variety of Canadian creatives.

New Titles in Development

BENSEN
A scripted dramedy about a struggling limo driver who tries to maintain fun dad status after the death of his wife and with the help of his dysfunctional family. BENSEN is a story about the impossibility of grieving the right way. Created and Written by Clara Altimas. For Boat Rocker Executive Producers are: Clara Altimas, David Fortier (Slip, Beacon 23), Ivan Schneeberg (Slip, Beacon 23), and Kerry Appleyard (Orphan Black: Echoes, Robyn Hood).

ELECTED
When an A-list actor unexpectedly has an opportunity to become the Prime Minister of Canada, he accepts what could turn out to be the worst decision he’s ever made or, improbably, the role of a lifetime. A premium comedy series created by Michael McGowan (All My Puny Sorrows, Still Mine), Creative consultant is Sherry White (Pretty Hard Cases, Rookie Blue). For Boat Rocker Executive Producers are: Michael McGowan, David Fortier, Ivan Schneeberg and Kerry Appleyard.

Additionally, Paramount+’s first Original documentary, 500 DAYS IN THE WILD will premiere at the Whistler International Film Festival this Friday, December 1. The project will have a limited theatrical run in early 2024, followed by its premiere on Paramount+. 500 DAYS IN THE WILD is produced by Betsy Carson with Executive Producers Christine Haebler and Dianne Whelan for Rebel Sisters Productions and distributed in Canada by Elevation Pictures.

Previously announced Series in Development with Paramount+ in Canada include; HATE THE PLAYER: THE BEN JOHNSON STORY from writer Anthony Q Farrell (The Office U.S.) and award-winning producers New Metric Media (Letterkenny), LEN & CUB from writer Lynne Kamm and producers Muse Entertainment and Elliot Page’s Page Boy Productions, CARPE DEMON from award-winning showrunner Emily Andras (Wynonna Earp, Lost Girl) and producers December Films, Cineflix Studios, Gina Marcheschi and Jon Brown and THEY DRIVE AT NIGHT written by Emmy Award winner Craig Wallace (Murdoch Mysteries, Todd & The Book of Pure Evil) and producers Black Birds Entertainment.

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