Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

He’s back! AMI’s Dave Brown returns with a brand-new series, Game Changers, debuting May 15 on AMI-tv and AMI+

May 8, 2025 Greg David

From a media release:

Dave Brown is back! Accessible Media Inc. (AMI), in partnership with FRANK Digital, is thrilled to announce the debut of the 16-episode Game Changers, Thursday, May 15, at 9 p.m. Eastern on AMI-tv and AMI+.

Each episode of Game Changers finds Dave in his element, visiting stunning locales while spending the day chatting with notable Canadians.

Guests joining Dave in Season 1 include wheelchair basketball star Tara Llanes, sportswear designer Lucy Wild, The Honourable Carla Qualtrough, award-winning music producer/recording artist Mattmac, PGA golfer Kyle Miller, playwright Ashley King, actor Bruce Horak and punk rock icon Bif Naked.

“Dave has a genuine curiosity about how others view the world,” says John Melville, Vice-President of Content Development and Operations, AMI-tv and AMI-audio. “His engagement with his interview subjects is second-to-none. We invite Canadians to join Dave and his guests as the third chair in their engaging conversation.”

“It’s important to have meaningful conversations with people who want to make a difference,” host Dave Brown says. “These are people putting words into action. It’s a privilege to learn about them and give them a platform to share their perspective. It’s an added bonus that I’ve been able to make my way across the country to have these conversations.”

The first five episodes of Game Changers include:

Tara Llanes – Thursday, May 15, at 9 p.m. Eastern
Dave Brown shoots hoops with Tara Llanes, former pro mountain biker turned wheelchair basketball star. Along the way, Tara shares her journey of resilience, reinvention and athletic excellence.

Maggie Manning – Thursday, May 22, at 9 p.m. Eastern
Dave Brown sits down with para hockey goaltender Maggie Manning to hear her story of sport, advocacy and resilience. Then it’s game on as Dave hits the ice to see if he can score on Maggie!

Lucy Wild – Thursday, May 29, at 9 p.m. Eastern
Dave Brown hits the slopes with technical sportswear designer Lucy Wild to talk innovation, inclusion and high-performance gear. From Paralympic design to skiing in Whistler, this episode is all about pushing limits in style.

Jaimie Borisoff – Thursday, June 5, at 9 p.m. Eastern
Dave Brown chats with Paralympic champion and rehab engineer Jaimie Borisoff about innovation, mobility and life after elite sport. Then the pair explore the future of accessibility tech, including a playful encounter with the British Columbia Institute of Technology’s robotic dog, MACO!

Carla Qualtrough – Thursday, June 12, at 9 p.m. Eastern
Dave Brown meets Member of Parliament Carla Qualtrough—Paralympian and trailblazing politician—to talk sports, leadership and disability advocacy. Then Dave takes on a new challenge: learning to walk with a guide dog!

Game Changers airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. Eastern on AMI-tv. Stream episodes anytime, for free, on AMI+.

Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

AMI hits the road for new, immersive, accessible Canadian adventures on Season 6 of Postcards From

May 6, 2025 Greg David

From a media release:

Accessible Media Inc. (AMI), in partnership with award-winning filmmakers Ryan Mah and Danny Berish of Black Rhino Creative, invites audiences to reimagine travel through the five senses—smell, touch, sight, taste and sound—with a brand-new season of the Golden Sheaf Award-nominated Postcards From.

Returning on Wednesday, May 14, at 8 p.m. Eastern on AMI-tv and AMI+, join host Christa Couture as she journeys across the country to meet up with “in-the-know” local guides as they explore eight unique Canadian locations: Frelighsburg, Calgary, Gros Morne, Victoria, Ottawa, Prince Edward County, Osoyoos and Saskatoon.

“Postcards From is the kind of show that makes you want to pack your bags and rethink how we all travel,” say filmmakers Ryan Mah and Danny Berish. “With our host Christa leading the way, this is an invitation to see, taste and feel the world in new ways.”

“Season 6 is even more adventurous than last season,” Christa Couture says. “I try more things for the first time, share more of my past and experience more transformation in the present. I have so many unforgettable encounters exploring Canada with Postcards From. The people! The food! The being strapped into race cars! I can’t wait for audiences to feel as transformed and inspired as I do.”

The eight Season 6 episodes of Postcards From include:

Postcards from Frelighsburg – Wednesday, May 14 at 8 p.m. ET
What do you get when you mix two best friends, an alpaca, molten glass and an ATV? A perfect day in Frelighsburg, obviously. Host Christa Couture kicks off her travel adventures in Quebec’s Eastern townships by hitting the road with her ride-or-die Susan, her best friend of 40 years. From cuddling fuzzy alpacas to crashing a pop-up concert, the duo dives headfirst into the region’s small-town charm as they reflect on their lifetime of friendship.

Postcards from Calgary – Wednesday, May 21 at 8 p.m. ET
Edmonton-born Christa Couture heads into the “enemy” territory of Calgary to explore the rivalry between Alberta’s two biggest cities. From a DIY Caesar showdown in a cowboy bar (complete with mechanical bull) to roping lessons with comedy legend Bud Edgar, Christa gets into Calgary’s western spirit. She tours the city on an adaptive bike, tries her hand at goalball and remixes city sounds into a surprising tribute song at Studio Bell. Even an Edmontonian can admit it: Calgary’s kind of cool.

Postcards from Gros Morne – Wednesday, May 28 at 8 p.m. ET
Cod tongues, underwater robots, and screech—it’s a wild welcome to Newfoundland. Host Christa Couture explores what it really means to “own it” in Gros Morne, a small town on the edge of the Atlantic brimming with big pride and bigger personality. Christa connects with a local 10-year-old amputee and her family who are finding their own way in a landscape that isn’t built for access. From shed jams to Mi’kmaq flutes, Gros Morne sings its own song.

Postcards from Victoria – Wednesday, June 4, at 8 p.m. ET
What do bugs, queens, and aunties have in common? They all rule in Victoria, B.C., where our host Christa Couture travels to answer the question: what makes a matriarch? From queen impersonators to spider wranglers, Indigenous artists to Chinese historians, Christa gathers her strength in this coastal city shaped by feminine power.

Postcards from Ottawa – Wednesday, June 11, at 8 p.m. ET
Is Ottawa more than a government town? Host Christa Couture heads to the capital for a wintery reset in the snow-covered heart of Canada. From ice skating for the first time in 30 years to a crash course with sledge hockey champs, Christa finds a warm welcome in the world of accessible winter sports. The journey heats up with rabbit stew over an open fire, a lesson in maple syrup traditions and a joyful dance party led by a local Somali rapper Hawa Haji.

Postcards from Prince Edward County – Wednesday, June 18, at 8 p.m. ET
Who needs the city when there’s a drag show in a barn and local wine in your glass? Host Christa Couture finds a sweet escape in Prince Edward County, just a few scenic hours from Toronto. After smashing away stress in a rage room, Christa cruises to wineries in a vintage car and sets sail in the sunshine with the wind in her hair. Rustic charm never looked so fabulous.

Postcards from Osoyoos – Wednesday, June 25, at 8 p.m. ET
Host Christa Couture finally stops to explore Osoyoos, B.C., a desert town she used to drive past as a touring musician. She joins local rodeo kids for barrel racing, takes her first swing at golf, cools off with Indigenous soapberry “ice cream” and pushes her limits on an off-road truck course. With a sunset paddle on Canada’s warmest lake and laughs along the way, Christa discovers Osoyoos is more than a pit stop.

Postcards from Saskatoon – Wednesday, July 2, at 8 p.m. ET
Summer in Saskatoon doesn’t last long, but host Christa Couture is making it count. Join her to bask in the heat with stock car racing, wheelchair basketball, outdoor pottery burns, and perogies on the go. Christa soars above the prairie in a Second World War open cockpit plane at sunset. It’s the season finale, and Saskatoon says go big or wait ‘til next summer.

Postcards From airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. Eastern on AMI-tv. Stream episodes and past seasons of the show anytime, for free, on AMI+.

About Christa Couture
Christa Couture is an award-winning multi-hyphenate who talks with her hands a lot. A writer, filmmaker, singer-songwriter and broadcaster, she is also proudly Indigenous (mixed Cree and Scandinavian), queer, disabled, and a mom.

As a songwriter, Couture has released seven albums and toured across Canada and Europe; as a non-fiction writer, she’s appeared in multiple magazines and anthologies, in 2018, her CBC article and photos on disability and pregnancy went viral, and her debut memoir, How to Lose Everything, was published by Douglas & McIntyre in 2020. Inspired by her book, Christa produced an award-winning series of five short, animated films by Indigenous artists, also called “How to Lose Everything” for CBC Arts.

Raised in Alberta, formed as a young adult in B.C., she currently lives in Toronto with her daughter and cat.

About Black Rhino Creative
Black Rhino Creative (BRC) is a Canadian-based documentary film production collective that focuses on creating meaningful and engaging films. We tell stories about passionate people. Stories that connect us through our shared experiences. Interdisciplinary nomads searching for meaning, directors without ego and compelled to inspire. With a passion for finding the human spirit in every piece, we have created and screened award-winning content for broadcasters such as CBC, Telus Optik, Knowledge Network, AMI, SBS Australia, and Air Canada.

About AMI
AMI is a media company that entertains, informs and empowers Canadians with disabilities through three broadcast services—AMI-tv and AMI-audio in English and AMI-télé in French—and streaming platform AMI+. Our vision is to establish AMI as a leader in the offering of accessible content, providing a voice for Canadians with disabilities through authentic storytelling, representation and positive portrayal. To learn more visit AMI.ca and AMItele.ca.

Featured, Hell Motel, Slasher

Hollywood Suite invites you to check in to Hell Motel, from Slasher creators Aaron Martin and Ian Carpenter

May 2, 2025 Greg David 1 Comment

From a media release:

Hollywood Suite invites you to stay awhile this June with the exclusive broadcast premiere of Hell Motel, the highly anticipated new eight-episode limited horror series from Slasher creators Aaron Martin and Ian Carpenter. Featuring Emmy® Award-winner Eric McCormack (Will & Grace, Departure), Paula Brancati (Slasher), Shaun Benson (The Boys), Atticus Mitchell (The Hardy Boys), Emmanuel Kabongo (Murdoch Mysteries), Jim Watson (Slasher) and Genevieve DeGraves (Slasher), the first episode of the Shudder original series, Hell Motel, will premiere in Canada on June 13 at 9pm ET. Additional episodes will then premiere weekly on Tuesdays beginning June 17, and will be available on Hollywood Suite On Demand.

Watch the trailer!

Horror fans are also invited to attend a FREE advance screening of the first episode of Hell Motel on June 13 at Revue Cinema in Toronto, featuring scary surprises and a special Q&A with select cast and crew. Tickets are first come, first served, so follow @hollywoodsuite and @revuecinema for updates in the coming days.

The new series follows a group of 10 true crime obsessives, who are invited to the opening weekend of the newly renovated Cold River Motel. The site of a 30-year-old unsolved satanic mass murder, history soon repeats itself at the motel when the guests are stranded and start getting knocked off one by one, in increasingly gruesome ways.

“We are thrilled to be the exclusive Canadian broadcaster of Hell Motel,” said Suzanne Marshall, Hollywood Suite Senior Manager, Programming. “With a chilling new setting and story, Aaron and Ian have delivered all of the terrifying scares and gore that genre fans have come to expect. We can’t wait for viewers to discover it this June!”

“Our ongoing partnership with Hollywood Suite means that we get to keep bringing Canadian-made horror to fans who love something fresh and fearless,” said Christina Jennings, Chairman and President of Shaftesbury. “Hell Motel is another great example of what we can do together – creating bold, genre-pushing horror that builds on our past successes and takes things in exciting new directions.”

Eric McCormack leads the cast in the role of Hemmingway, a chef with a wickedly sinister flair. He’s joined by fellow motel guests Paige (Paula Brancati), a former actress and scream queen looking to revive her career; Crow (Shaun Benson), a new-age medium with an apparent connection to the massacre’s victims; Blake (Atticus Mitchell), a true crime writer; Kawayan (Emmanuel Kabongo), a talented artist with a dark focus on murder; Andy (Jim Watson), an academic at the forefront of contemporary true crime studies; and Adriana (Genevieve DeGraves), a flight attendant with several notorious serial killer notches on her bedpost.

Canadian drag superstar and winner of Canada’s Drag Race Season 2, Icesis Couture, makes a guest appearance as Magenta, a stylish real estate agent who sells the Coldwater Motel to new owners Ruby (Brynn Godenir) and Portia (Michelle Nolden).

Hell Motel is a Shudder Original Series, developed and produced by Shaftesbury, in association with Hollywood Suite, with the financial participation of the Bell Fund. The series is created and executive produced by Aaron Martin and showrunner Ian Carpenter. Additional executive producers include Christina Jennings, Scott Garvie and director Adam MacDonald. AMC Networks holds distribution rights.

Allegiance, Featured, Heartland, Murdoch Mysteries, Saint-Pierre, Wild Cards

CBC renews Allegiance, Wild Cards, Murdoch Mysteries, Heartland and Saint-Pierre

May 1, 2025 Greg David

From a media release:

CBC today announced the renewal of popular original homegrown dramas including CBC’s most-watched new series SAINT-PIERRE for a second season, as well as Canadian Screen Award-nominated series ALLEGIANCE for a third season and enduring hits HEARTLAND and MURDOCH MYSTERIES for their 19th seasons. CBC original blue sky procedural WILD CARDS has also been renewed for seasons three and four. In the past year, all five dramas were among the Top 20 Canadian programs on television, and within the Top 10 series on CBC Gem. Additional CBC renewals across all genres and content areas will be announced later this spring.

“With the renewal of these five hit dramas offering compelling characters, unique stories and a strong sense of place from different regions across Canada, CBC will continue to showcase homegrown storytelling that audiences can’t find anywhere else,” said Sally Catto, General Manager, Entertainment, Factual & Sports, CBC.

Police procedural SAINT-PIERRE (12×60 in Season 2) was CBC’s #1 most-watched new series of the year and one of the top Canadian drama series nationwide. From creators Allan Hawco, Robina Lord-Stafford and Perry Chafe, the series stars Hawco and Josephine Jobert as two seasoned officers – with very different policing skills and approaches – working together to solve unique and exciting crimes in the French territory of Saint-Pierre et Miquelon. The series is produced by Hawco Productions in association with FIFTH SEASON, which handles global distribution.

Set and filmed in Vancouver, WILD CARDS (10×60 for both Seasons 3 and 4) is a blue sky procedural with a comedic twist that follows the unlikely duo of a by-the-book, sardonic cop Cole Ellis (Giacomo Gianniotti) and a spirited, clever con woman Max Mitchell (Vanessa Morgan) who are partnered together to solve crimes. From Blink49 Studios, Front Street Pictures and Piller/Segan in association with The CW, the series is created by Michael Konyves with international distribution handled by FIFTH SEASON. Konyves recently won the 2025 WGC Screenwriting Award in the Drama Series category for his writing on WILD CARDS.

Created by Anar Ali (Transplant), ALLEGIANCE (10×60 in Season 3) is a character-driven police procedural set in Surrey, BC, about identity and belonging, policing and politics, and finding new paths to truth and justice for all. The series is nominated for eight Canadian Screen Awards including Best Drama Series and Best Lead Performer for Supinder Wraich and Best Supporting Performer for Enrico Colantoni, and is produced by Lark Productions in association with Universal International Studios, a division of Universal Studio Group.

Set against the glorious backdrop of the foothills of Alberta, HEARTLAND (10×60 in Season 19) is a multi-generational family drama that is much loved by fans of all ages in Canada and around the world. Based on the bestselling series of books by Lauren Brooke, the series follows Amy Fleming (Amber Marshall) and her family as they deal with the challenges of running the Heartland Ranch that has been with them for generations. Star Michelle Morgan is nominated for a Canadian Screen Award in the category of Best Lead Performer. The long-running series is produced by Dynamo Films and SEVEN24 Films.

Available in more than 120 countries and territories around the world, MURDOCH MYSTERIES (21×60 in Season 19) is set in Toronto in the early 1900s during the age of invention, where Detective William Murdoch (Yannick Bisson) enlists innovative forensic techniques to solve some of the city’s most perplexing murders. The much-loved series has received 10 Canadian Screen Award nominations including a Best Lead Performer nomination for Hélène Joy and Best Supporting Performer nods for Jonny Harris, Daniel Maslany and Clare McConnell, and is produced by Shaftesbury in association with ITV Studios and UKTV and distributed by Shaftesbury Sales Company and ITV Studios.

HEARTLAND, MURDOCH MYSTERIES and WILD CARDS are also nominated for the 2025 Cogeco Fund Audience Choice Award, which will be announced as part of THE 2025 CANADIAN SCREEN AWARDS. Hosted by Canadian actress and creator Lisa Gilroy, the awards show will stream live in its entirety on Sunday, June 1 beginning at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT on CBC Gem. THE 2025 CANADIAN SCREEN AWARDS is Canada’s biggest night in entertainment, with legendary icons and rising stars coming together to honour the very best in homegrown film and television.

Featured, Saint-Pierre

CBC renews original series Saint-Pierre for Season 2

May 1, 2025 Greg David

From a media release:

CBC announced today that its original police procedural SAINT-PIERRE will be renewed for a second season with filming in Newfoundland and Saint-Pierre et Miquelon beginning this spring. The series is produced by Hawco Productions for CBC and CBC GEM in association with FIFTH SEASON, which handles global distribution.

Throughout its first season, SAINT-PIERRE was CBC’s #1 most-watched new series of the year and one of the top Canadian drama series nationwide.* The first season is currently available to stream for free on CBC Gem.

SAINT-PIERRE is the creation of Allan Hawco, Robina Lord-Stafford and Perry Chafe, with Hawco and Lord-Stafford as Showrunners. French star Josephine Jobert (Death in Paradise) and Canadian star Allan Hawco (Republic of Doyle, Caught, Jack Ryan) lead the cast playing Arch and Fitz, with James Purefoy (Rome, Sex Education, The Following), Benz Antoine (Four Brothers, Get Rich or Die Tryin’), Erika Prevost (The Boys, Dare Me) and Jean-Michel Le Gal (Paris Paris, Accused) rounding out the stellar team.

After the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary Inspector, Donny “Fitz” Fitzpatrick, digs too deeply into a local politician’s nefarious activity, he is exiled to work in Saint-Pierre et Miquelon – the French Territory nestled in the Atlantic Ocean. Fitz’s arrival disrupts the life of Deputy Chief Geneviève “Arch” Archambault, a Parisian transplant who is in Saint-Pierre for her own intriguing reasons.

As if by fate, these two seasoned officers — with very different policing skills and approaches — are forced together to solve unique and exciting crimes. Although the islands seem like a quaint tourist destination, the idyllic façade conceals the worst kind of criminal activity, which tend to wash up on its beautiful shores. At first at odds and suspicious of each other, Arch and Fitz soon discover that they are better together.

“We are thrilled to continue this journey and explore even more of the world of SAINT-PIERRE and these two characters, Arch and Fitz, that we’ve grown to love so much,” says series creators Allan Hawco and Robina Lord-Stafford. “We are bursting with ideas for new storylines and can’t wait for audiences to see what’s next.”

Ava Knight, Director, Acquisitions at FIFTH SEASON, said: “We’re delighted audiences and buyers can soon return to Saint-Pierre’s shores for more fun and mystery with our brilliant leads, played by Allan Hawco and Josephine Jobert. Following season one’s formidable success, we look forward to now bringing both instalments to new homes globally.”

SAINT-PIERRE is executive produced by Janine Squires, Erin Sullivan, Robina Lord-Stafford, Perry Chafe, John Vatcher and Hawco.