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Industry News

Bell Media buys majority interest in Pinewood Toronto Studios

From a media release:

Bell Media announced today it has entered into an agreement for its Bell Media Studios division to acquire a majority stake in Pinewood Toronto Studios, in partnership with Comweb Studio Holdings, Castlepoint, and the City of Toronto. Pinewood Toronto Studios is one of the largest purpose-built production studios in Canada and the preferred choice for domestic and international producers of film and TV content in Toronto.

As a part of the transaction, Bell Media Studios Inc. will acquire a majority stake in the 33.5 acre (13.5 hectares) facility in Toronto’s Port Lands. The complex includes 11 purpose-built stages, including one of the largest sound stages in North America at 46,000 square foot (4,274 square metres), offices that can house multiple productions at a time, teaching facilities, and a variety of support services for a growing roster of domestic and international film and television clients.

Recent productions filming at Pinewood Toronto Studios include STAR TREK: DISCOVERY, Molly’s Game, Room, Suicide Squad, Spotlight, IT, Downsizing, Crimson Peak, and THE EXPANSE. It has previously been home to Bell Media original productions including ORPHAN BLACK, THE LISTENER, and KILLJOYS,

Nanci MacLean, Vice-President and Head of Bell Media Studios, will oversee operations at Pinewood Toronto Studios.

Pinewood Toronto Studios was represented by Deloitte Corporate Finance Inc. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Quotes:

“The investment that Bell Media is making in Pinewood Toronto Studios and its expansion is significant and is proof of Bell Media’s commitment to our city and of its role as a world-class content creator,” said Toronto Mayor John Tory. “Toronto is home to industry-leading talent in the television and film production industry and as a city we are committed to supporting the growth of that industry at all levels and aspects of that production.”

“Our partnership to purchase Pinewood Toronto Studios reinforces Bell Media’s role as Canada’s leading content creation company,” said Randy Lennox, President, Bell Media. “We’re excited about the synergies that Pinewood Toronto can offer and the role it will play in generating new revenue streams in an open-shop basis.”

“One of the most important things that creative communities need is space where they can take risks, pursue their creative visions, and create outstanding work,” said Alfredo Romano, President, Castlepoint Numa, and Director Pinewood Studios. “We see the enormous positive impact of television and film productions on our city every day and we look forward to continuing our city-building initiatives with Bell Media.”

“The addition of Pinewood Toronto Studios to our portfolio offers us an exciting new advantage in meeting the rising demand for original content across all media platforms,” said Bell Media Studio’s Nanci MacLean. “One of our first actions will be to add a further 170,000 square feet (51,793 square metres) of sound stages and support space, maintaining Pinewood Toronto Studios as a best-in-class film and TV studio.“

“Our Toronto studios are a film and television success story,” said Paul Bronfman, Chairman of Pinewood Toronto Studios. “We look forward to working with Randy and the Bell Media team to produce more high-calibre and innovative programming right here in Toronto and I’m sure that the ongoing sales and marketing support from Pinewood UK will continue to be a significant advantage for our business.”

“We welcome Bell Media to the Port Lands,” said Bill Bryck, a Director of Pinewood Toronto. “We’re looking forward to working with this collaborative partner – a proven international content creator – as they continue supporting our industry here in Toronto.”

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Children's Programming, Industry News

WOW Unlimited Media’s Mainframe Studios debuts new productions

From a media release:

WOW! Unlimited Media Inc. continues to make inroads in the competitive marketplace of kids and youth entertainment. Mainframe Studios, WOW’s Vancouver based animated and live-action television production studio, is about to debut projects that reach a broad demographic. While it continues to offer traditionally accessible fare, the company is embracing the new digital options that showcase its innovation and production expertise.

Mainframe Studios’ highly anticipated hybrid live-action /CG animated series ReBoot: The Guardian Code, will premiere as a Netflix original series worldwide on March 30th, followed by Canadian distribution on YTV in June. Created by Studio Head Michael Hefferon, the action comedy follows the adventures of four teenagers who discover on the first day of high school that they have been selected to become the next generation Guardians of Cyberspace with the help of Vera, an artificially intelligent bio-constructed teenage girl. ReBoot: The Guardian Code is the first television series to create visually stunning animation using the Unreal Game Engine with 4K resolution and features a mix of character-driven stories, humour, and adrenaline pumping action to captivate and engage a wide audience of viewers. ReBoot: The Guardian Code is distributed by Nelvana and produced by Mainframe Studios.

Mainframe is currently developing The Anybodies, a 6-11 animated comedy/adventure series about a 12-year-old girl who discovers her powers as a shapeshifter when reunited with her real family after being switched at birth. The series is based on the successful book trilogy by author Julianna Baggott (aka N.E. Bode), as adapted by writers David H. Steinberg & Keetgi Kogan Steinberg (Yo Kai Watch), who will be executive producers. Emmy award-winning director Mark Risley is on board to direct the series.

Mainframe Studios will also continue its longstanding relationship with Mattel and Barbie. It is in production on a 26-episode TV series entitled Barbie Dreamhouse Adventures. The studio has produced 30+ animated Barbie movies with Mattel over the past 17 years.

 

 

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Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Preview: Catwalk: Tales from the Cat Show Circuit frolics in the lives of cat fanciers

I’m a cat person, and I’ve noticed a dearth of programs devoted to the celebration of our feline friends on television and film. There are copious hours devoted to canines via Best in Show, the Puppy Bowl and—of course—the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show. Heck, there have been documentaries screened at Hot Docs spotlighting donkeys and chickens. But nary a moment really spent on cats aside from the excellent episode of The Nature of Things, “The Lion in Your Living Room,” which was more about the science of cats than the animals and those who love them.

Until now.

Cats and their owners are celebrated to great—and often comic—effect in “Catwalk: Tales from the Cat Show Circuit.” Broadcast on Sunday at 9 p.m. as part of CBC Docs POV, the hour-long episode from the folks at Markham Street Films (Celtic Soul, Fight for Justice: David & Me) is a riot of fur and the colourful characters who lug their cats around Canada to determine which is “Best Cat.” It’s a cutthroat business in the Canadian Cat Association, as evidenced by Kim Langille who sums it up thusly: “If you’re not No. 1, you’re the first loser.” Wow. Over 12 years ago Kim was bitten by the competitive bug when she adopted Clancy and he became champion. Now she hopes to do the same with Bobby, her white Turkish Angora.

Standing in Kim and Bobby’s path to fame are Shirley McCollow and Oh La La, a fluffy Red Persian who made a splash at the Canadian National Exhibition. The claws are out and the fur flies as … OK, not really. There are no literal catfights in “Catwalk,” but there is plenty of side-eye and glimpses into the truly, um, unique, world of the  Canadian Cat Association. After an introduction as to how cat competitions work from Kim, Bob and Elaine Gleason—a husband and wife cat show judging team—detail how purebred felines are led through multiple rings where each is judged on whether they tick the boxes of what a purebred should look like.

As the season rolls on, it appears to be a two cat race between Oh La La and Bobby until some young upstarts begin clawing their way into the standings. Who will take home the title of “Best Cat”? Tune in to the highly entertaining “Catwalk: Tales from the Cat Show Circuit” for the final showdown.

“Catwalk: Tales from the Cat Show Circuit” airs Sunday at 9 p.m. as part of CBC Docs POV.

Images courtesy of Markham Street Films.

 

 

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Featured, Frankie Drake Mysteries, Podcast

TV Eh B Cs podcast 78 — The Amazing Grace Lynn Kung

A Canadian Screen Award nominee for Best Lead Actress in a Comedy, Grace Lynn Kung has won the Chancellor’s Trophy (OSSD), is a two-time Award for Acting recipient (York) and holds two Certificates of Distinction for Speech and Drama from Trinity College London.

This year she has incited violence aboard Star Trek: Discovery, lobbied Washington with Jessica Chastain in Miss Sloane, risen in ranks as Congresswoman Yoshida on Designated Survivor, met her demise in Cult of Chucky and cultivated Mars on The Expanse. She has aided Corey Stoll in Guillermo del Toro’s The Strain, scarcely kept it together on Slings and Arrows, fought Amanda Schull on 12 Monkeys, and played special agent JoJo Kwan on the spy series InSecurity.

Grace directed her first short film, A False Sense of Security, which premiered and won Special Jury Mention this summer in Dallas, Texas and has received a 2017 ACTRA Award nomination for her performance in the feature The Death and Life of Carl Naardlinger.
Grace has a Doozers character modelled in her likeness, studied naturopathic medicine in England and if you’ve played Ubisoft’s Far Cry 4, she’s yelled at you. She plays Whiskey Wendy in the 1920s detective series Frankie Drake Mysteries, Charlotte Bronte in the feature Carmilla, was the guest star on the season finale of Mr. D and plays Chairman Mao in HBO’s new adaptation of Fahrenheit 451, out this May, directed by Ramin Bahrani.

She is also looking for Independent Production Fund support for her web series What Got Did.

Listen or download below, or subscribe via iTunes or any other podcast catcher with the TV, eh? podcast feed.

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download

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Children's Programming, Industry News

marblemedia series Holy Baloney greenlit by CBC Kids

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From a media release:

Leading television producer marblemedia is pleased to announce that Holy Baloney, a play-along 10 episode, three-minute series for kids, has been greenlit by CBC Kids for a spring 2018 launch at CBC Kids and on the CBC TV App.

Produced by Matt Hornburg and Mark Bishop of marblemedia, along with Jesse Shamata, creator of the hit series Gaming Show (In My Parents Garage), Holy Baloney challenges viewers to guess the answers to everyday questions. Can you pick out fact from fiction? Truth from complete baloney? This Spring, you’ll be able to find out!

Each episode features three kids who take time out of their lunch hour to answer a poignant question about everyday things – each giving a different, hilarious response! The range of questions could include where something in the world comes from, why something is the way it is, or why people do the things they do.

The questions – and sometimes the answers – will be tricky for both kids and parents. It’s up to the viewers to watch the convincing answers of all three schoolyard experts and decide which answer is right, and which two are complete baloney. This kid-friendly series is a mix of live-action and mixed media, as the imaginative answers are visually played out throughout each episode.

International rights for the series are held by marblemedia’s Distribution 360.

 

 

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