Lea Thompson and Stacey Farber cast as dynamic mother and daughter duo in CTV original series, The Spencer Sisters

July 24, 2022 Greg David

From a media release:

CTV and Entertainment One (eOne), together with Buffalo Gal Pictures, today announced that award-winning television and film actress, director, and producer Lea Thompson (Back To The Future, CAROLINE IN THE CITY) and acclaimed Canadian actress Stacey Farber (VIRGIN RIVER, SCHITT’S CREEK) will headline the upcoming CTV Original procedural series, THE SPENCER SISTERS.

Created by Alan McCullough (PRIVATE EYES, ROOKIE BLUE) and executive produced and co-showrun by McCullough and Jenn Engels (SORT OF), the lighthearted 10-episode, one-hour series centres on a hot-headed former police officer Darby Spencer (Farber) and her estranged, internationally renowned, mystery novelist mother, Victoria Spencer (Thompson). Despite opposite personalities, differing sensibilities, and a complicated history, they embark on the unlikeliest of ventures: becoming partners in a private detective agency. THE SPENCER SISTERS is set to begin production next month in Winnipeg, with broadcast slated for 2023. Additional details are to be announced at a later date.

As one of the titular characters, Victoria Spencer (Thompson) is an intelligent, charismatic, and renowned best-selling author of mystery novels, who is suffering from crippling writer’s block. When her estranged daughter Darby returns home, Victoria seizes the opportunity to reconnect with her. After the two work to solve a crime together, Victoria is inspired by the experience – and the possibility of a mended relationship with her daughter – to sit behind the keyboard once more.

Darby Spencer (Farber) is a smart, opinionated, and passionate woman who follows in her late father’s footsteps and becomes a police officer – much to Victoria’s stark disapproval. Carrying an innate intellect and the natural intuition of an experienced detective, Darby’s career aspirations come to a halt when she impetuously quits her job as a police constable after an unjust reprimand. About to turn 30 and in a dead-end relationship with a cheating boyfriend, she returns home, where to her surprise, she finds she may have more in common with her mother than she thought.

Talent biographies for the leading actresses are as follows:

Lea Thompson
Lea Thompson is actress, singer, and director, continuously honing her craft for over 40 years. She is best known for starring in the iconic Back To The Future films. Thompson has also starred in All The Right Moves with Tom Cruise, George Lucas’s Howard The Duck, John Hughes Some Kind Of Wonderful, and Red Dawn. Thompson won the People’s Choice award for the title role in the NBC sitcom CAROLINE IN THE CITY. Her acting credits are many, including Sally Bowles in Cabaret on Broadway, THE JANE DOE MYSTERIES, 102 episodes of the Peabody award-winning series SWITCHED AT BIRTH, and many telefilms and Sundance indies. Some of her directing credits include THE GOLDBERGS, Chuck Lorre’s CBS comedy MOM and YOUNG SHELDON, RESIDENT ALIEN, Greg Berlanti’s, STARGIRL, and STAR TREK: PICARD. Lea is perhaps most proud of her feature directorial debut The Year Of Spectacular Men, which her daughter Madelyn Deutch wrote, scored, and starred in, along with Lea and her other talented daughter Zoey Deutch. She has been married to their father, director Howard Deutch for 33 years. She is represented by Gilbertson Entertainment, Innovative Artists and Yorn, Levine, Barnes, Krintzman, Rubenstein, Kohner, Endlich & Gellman.

Stacey Farber
Stacey Farber is known for her compelling performances in numerous hit TV series— both dramatic and comedic. She recurs as grief-stricken Tara in the Netflix chart-topper VIRGIN RIVER and played villainous Leslie Larr in The CW’s breakout SUPERMAN & LOIS. She can also be seen in the award-winning comedies SCHITT’S CREEK (CBC/Pop TV), GRACE AND FRANKIE (Netflix), and 18 TO LIFE (CBC) as well as UnREAL (Lifetime), THE BRAVE (NBC), DIGGSTOWN (BET+), CHICAGO JUSTICE (NBC), SAVING HOPE (CTV/Ion TV), and ROOKIE BLUE (GLOBAL/ABC). For seven years, Stacey portrayed the fan-favourite character Ellie Nash in DEGRASSI: THE NEXT GENERATION (CTV). She is represented by The Characters Talent Agency, Manager Christina Gualazzi and A3 Artists Agency.

A CTV Original series, THE SPENCER SISTERS is produced by eOne together with Buffalo Gal Pictures with the participation of the Canada Media Fund and the Bell Fund, and is distributed internationally by eOne. The series is executive produced by McCullough and Jenn Engels, who are both co-showrunners. Jocelyn Hamilton serves as Executive Producer for eOne. Phyllis Laing and Jennifer Beasley are executive producers for Buffalo Gal Pictures.

Industry News

Blink49 Studios and Bell Media strike long-term pact with world-renowned entertainer Lilly Singh

July 20, 2022 Greg David

From a media release:

Blink49 Studios and Bell Media announced today they are partnering with world-renowned entertainer Lilly Singh and her company Unicorn Island Productions on a unique first-look global scripted and second-look unscripted deal.

Spearheaded by Singh and Polly Auritt, Head of Development at Unicorn Island Productions, Carolyn Newman, Executive Vice President, Global Scripted and Virginia Rankin, Executive Producer for Blink49 Studios, the deal will focus on creating and producing compelling television content that showcases underrepresented communities.

Projects developed under the pact will be executive produced by Singh, Auritt, Newman and Rankin with Blink49 Studios handling production and the worldwide distribution.

Named in Forbes’ 30 Under 30 Hollywood & Entertainment list, Fast Company’s Most Creative People and as one of the most influential people on the internet by TIME, Lilly Singh is a multi-faceted entertainer, actress, producer, writer, creator and a New York Times bestselling author. She is a leading force in the digital world having amassed a global audience of more than 38 million followers across her social media channels. This year, Singh was a judge on CityTV’s Canada’s Got Talent, was part of the star-studded cast for the DreamWorks Animation action-comedy The Bad Guys and launched her book club Lilly’s Library that spotlights South Asian stories for everyone. Up next, she will headline the new Disney+ comedy series The Muppets Mayhem alongside several Muppet stars. Singh is also a co-owner of Angel City FC in the National Women’s Soccer League.

Blink49 Studios is a content venture with Endeavor Content as its anchor investor and lead strategic partner. Focusing heavily on a creative-first approach, Blink49 Studios is dedicated to partnering with best-in-class writers, creators and producers, as well as aggressively pursuing IP in Canada and throughout the world. The indie studio is committed to applying significant resources to support new and diverse Canadian voices.

ABOUT BLINK49 STUDIOS

Co-founded in 2021 by industry veterans CEO John Morayniss, Non-Executive Vice Chair Patrice Theroux, COO Jeff Lynas and CFO Nelson Kuo-Lee, Blink49 Studios is a full-service indie studio focused on the development, production, and monetization of premium scripted and unscripted content for a global market. Headquartered in Toronto with offices in Los Angeles, Blink49 Studios was formed in partnership with its anchor investor and lead strategic partner Endeavor Content. With a combined experience of innovative deal-making and strong relationships in the creative community, Blink49 Studios takes a content-first approach by partnering with best-in-class writers, creators, producers, and talent as well as supporting new and diverse voices.

Featured, Podcast, Shelved

TV, Eh? Podcast Episode 249: Bell Media’s Upfront Announcement

July 17, 2022 Greg David

This week, Greg and Amy go through debuts and returns on the Canadian TV calendar.

Then, we cover the latest Canadian TV news, including CTV announcing the cast of its new comedy, Shelved, and AMI announcing its Accessible Writers’ Lab.

We close out the podcast by looking at CTV’s upfront announcement, which includes, literally, almost 100 titles.

This episode is brought to you by tap water through a Brita filter and Minute Maid lemonade.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Industry News, Kim's Convenience

Ins Choi to lead story room for first-ever comedy cohort of CFC’s Bell Media Prime Time TV Program

July 13, 2022 Greg David

From a media release:

The Canadian Film Centre (CFC) and Bell Media are pleased to welcome award-winning playwright, actor and Kim’s Convenience co-creator, writer and executive producer Ins Choi as Executive Producer in Residence of the first-ever comedy cohort of The Bell Media Prime Time TV Program.

The comedy cohort, which will run from October 2022 to the end of March 2023, has been designed for writers specifically looking to gain experience in comedy writing and engage in a collaborative comedy series story room. The comedy cohort is an offering for Black, Indigenous and/or racialized creators in Canada, to celebrate and amplify a diversity of underrepresented voices and stories so they can ultimately be seen and heard on screens in Canada and around the world. Throughout the first half of the program, the writer residents will work as a team with Choi to develop an original new series. The selection process for the six writers who will be invited to participate in this cohort is currently underway; their names will be announced in early August.

Ins Choi is best known for his debut play, Kim’s Convenience, which was a nominee for the Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding New Play, won the Best New Play Award and the Patron’s Pick at the 2011 Toronto Fringe Festival, and toured across Canada with Soulpepper. Choi adapted Kim’s Convenience into a TV series of the same name with Thunderbird Entertainment, where he served as a writer, executive producer and co-creator. The fan-favourite series ran for five seasons on CBC, was picked up by Netflix, and won multiple awards, including the Canadian Screen Award for Best Comedy Series in 2018.

Choi’s select theatre acting credits include Banana Boys, lady in the red dress (fu-GEN); Hamlet, The Odyssey (Stratford Festival); and Death of a Salesman, Alligator Pie (Soulpepper). He is currently developing many other creative projects, including his play, Bad Parent, which is being produced for fall 2022 by Vancouver Asian Canadian Theatre, Prairie Theatre Exchange, and Soulpepper.

The Bell Media Prime Time TV Program is recognized industry-wide for training emerging and mid-level TV writers and has played a vital role in the development of new and diverse television series. The program has attracted some of Canada’s most prolific and successful showrunners to lead the story room as Executive Producer in Residence, including Bruce Smith, Michael MacLennan, Brad Wright, Dennis Heaton and Shelley Eriksen. Learn more about the program here.

About the CFC
The Canadian Film Centre (CFC) is a charitable cultural organization that drives the future of Canadian storytelling. Our intensive, hands-on programs in film, television, and entertainment technologies empower, shape and advance opportunities for Canadian creators and entrepreneurs working in screen-based industries. Learn more at cfccreates.com.

Uncategorized

Links: SkyMed, Season 1

July 10, 2022 Greg David

From Heather M. of The Televixen:

Link: Showrunner Julie Puckrin previews CBC’s SkyMed
“There was a lot of discussion because while it is a medical show, it’s really a first responder show, more than it is like a typical hospital show.” Continue reading.

From Heather M. of The Televixen:

Link: Aaron Ashmore talks CBC’s SkyMed
“When I was doing Killjoys, I was kind of playing the fun-loving guy, but that was into my late thirties, too. So this is sort of a natural transition, I think, and the direction that my career is going to start taking now is playing more experienced characters.” Continue reading.

From Bridget Liszewski of The TV Junkies:

Link: SkyMed creator Julie Puckrin preview the ambitious new drama
The job performed by young nurses and pilots flying air ambulances in northern Manitoba makes it quite the dangerous profession set in an unforgiving setting, but that drama also makes for some pretty great television as well. Continue reading.

From Mia Jensen of The Sudbury Star:

Link: Sudbury-born actor takes to the sky
When actor Aason “Ace” Nadjiwan got the call that he’d been cast in a leading role for a new CBC original series, he was in the middle of insulating a ceiling. Continue reading.

From Eden Suh at Timmins Today:

Link: Northern Ontario-born actor takes on role in ‘steamy’ new series
“One of my favourite things (about the production process) was just honestly getting to know and spending time with my cast and crew. But as far as filming, there’s so many parts I loved about it.” Continue reading.

From Debra Yeo of the Toronto Star:

Link: In CBC’s ‘SkyMed,’ young pilots and nurses save lives and pursue love in Canada’s North
“You have this really young group of people at the beginning of their career, and they’re in the middle of the North and there’s no safety net. And they’re often experiencing things for the first time on the job, these very, very intense situations where it’s literally just you and the patient in the back of a plane.” Continue reading.

From Heather M. of The Televixen:

Link: SkyMed showrunner Julie Puckrin talks building the world of Season 1
“Hearing everything that they were doing on a daily basis and seeing their pictures, it always felt to me like something that should be a television show, because there are these incredibly high built-in stakes. It’s literally just you in the back of a plane with a patient and you have to keep them alive.” Continue reading.

From Eric Volmers of the Calgary Herald:

Link: Calgary-raised actor Praneet Akilla flying high as heroic pilot in TV drama SkyMed
“For this character, from the audition process to the last day on set, there was never a doubt in my mind about who this character was. I understood him backwards and forwards. I like to say that the universe dropped this role in my lap. For the first time, I got to be myself. Not only is he an engineer, but it is also the first time I’m playing an Indian on-screen.” Continue reading.

From Randall King of The Winnipeg Free Press:

Link: Medical drama puts local actor in perilous position
Befitting the star of the new made-in-Manitoba drama series SkyMed, Winnipeg-born actress Morgan Holmstrom is taking flight. Continue reading.

From Bridget Liszewski of The TV Junkies:

Link: SkyMed creator Julie Puckrin on building out her writing team
For SkyMed creator Julie Puckrin, the idea for the big, ambitious new medical drama came from a very real and personal place. Continue reading.

From Lora Lynn Fanning of The List:

Link: Natasha Calis is born for adventure in SkyMed
“I had the privilege of working with Vanessa Piazza and Julie Puckrin again from “Nurses.” Vanessa was an executive producer on Season 1. They’re two of my favourite people in the world. They’re the best boss ladies, incredible humans. It was such an honour to be on another one of their shows.” Continue reading.