Tag Archives: Frantic Films

Production underway on new Crave & APTN Indigenous-led original comedy series, Don’t Even

From a media release:

Crave and APTN, in association with Pier 21 Films, Frantic Films Manitoba, and Sekowan Media, announced today that production is underway in Winnipeg on the all-new dramatic comedy series, DON’T EVEN. Created by Amber-Sekowan Daniels, directed by Zoe Hopkins, and starring Leenah Robinson (1923), Victoria Turko (Burden of Truth), Joel Oulette (Trickster), Gail Maurice, and Jennifer Podemski, the six-part series is an urban Indigenous, coming-of-age story.

DON’T EVEN follows two best friends in late ‘90s Winnipeg as they grapple with their uncertain futures, in the summer after their final high school year. After humiliation at her high school grad, Violet (Leenah Robinson) wants to make the most of the last summer before moving away for university, as Harley (Victoria Turko) distracts herself from a big dilemma, of what’s next. As the lifelong BFFs bask in newfound freedom, and face adult life choices, cracks begin to form in their once impenetrable bond. It’s awkward. It’s dramatic. It’s friggin’ Winnipeg.

“The show is a love letter to your childhood best friend, and your hometown. It’s about growing up and growing apart, while trying to find your place in the world,” said Amber-Sekowan Daniels, Creator and Showrunner. “We don’t often get to see Indigenous women as funny, weird, and distinct, so I hope this series shows that complexity.”

“Making DON’T EVEN has me in stitches, and I’ve cried in rehearsals,” added Director Zoe Hopkins.” I’m so stoked to be back in Winnipeg telling this nostalgic story, where laughter is medicine.”

“Amber has created a series with unpredictable comedy, and a huge surplus of heart. It will resonate with audiences because it gives all the feels,” said Nicole Butler, Executive Producer, Pier 21 Films. “We’re fortunate to have both Crave and APTN as partners sharing a vision in striving to make an incredibly original, and iconic new show.”

“We are thrilled to be co-producing this series with Pier 21 and Sekowan Media,” said Frantic CEO & Executive Producer Jamie Brown. “As a Winnipeg based company, Amber’s stories have a special resonance, and we love her voice and the authenticity of her storytelling.”

DON’T EVEN is co-produced by Pier 21 Films, Frantic Films Manitoba, and Sekowan Media, in association with Bell Media’s Crave and APTN, with the participation of the Canada Media Fund, Manitoba Film & Music, and tax credit assistance from the Government of Manitoba, the Government of Ontario, and The Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit. Amber-Sekowan Daniels is Executive Producer, Creator, and Showrunner. Zoe Hopkins is Executive Producer and Director for the series. Laszlo Barna, Nicole Butler, Karen Tsang, and Vanessa Steinmetz serve as Executive Producers for Pier 21 Films. For Frantic Films Manitoba, Jamie Brown and Stephanie Fast are Executive Producers. Lori Lozinski is Series Producer. Karen Hill is Co-Executive Producer and Meg MacKay is Co-Producer.

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Baroness Von Sketch Show c-creators announce show’s fifth and final season

From a media release:

BARONESS VON SKETCH SHOW co-creators Carolyn Taylor, Meredith MacNeill, Aurora Browne and Jennifer Whalen, today announced that their acclaimed CBC original sketch comedy series will return for its fifth and final season in Fall 2020. The series finale season (8×30) was filmed in Toronto last fall.

The Baronesses shared the following statement regarding their decision:

After five fantastic years, we have decided that Season 5 of Baroness von Sketch Show will be our last. We are so grateful to have been given the opportunity to share our deepest embarrassments, existential angst and daily observations with you, our fans. 

We hope you’ll enjoy Season 5 of Baroness von Sketch Show. 

Love, 

Carolyn, Meredith, Aurora and Jennifer.

BARONESS VON SKETCH SHOW is currently nominated for five Canadian Screen Awards including Best Sketch Comedy Show & Ensemble Performance, Best Direction and Best Writing. Winners for these categories will be announced virtually on Wednesday, May 27 beginning at 7 p.m. ET. The virtual presentation will be live-streamed on the Canadian Academy Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube channels, as well as at academy.ca.

Canadians looking to revisit Seasons 1-4 of BARONESS VON SKETCH SHOW before the premiere of the fifth and final season this fall can watch on the free CBC Gem streaming service.

Fast paced and irreverent, BARONESS VON SKETCH SHOW celebrates the absurd, mines the embarrassing and satirizes our daily lives. Shot entirely on location, this single-camera comedy series takes a fresh look at our navel-gazing, contemporary culture. From marriage equality to screen addiction, Airbnbs to ultrasounds, this satirical sketch show captures the banalities and absurdities of modern life.

A CBC original series, BARONESS VON SKETCH SHOW is developed and produced by Frantic Films. Drawing on 16 years of comedy experience and multiple collaborations, the award-winning, talented team of Carolyn Taylor, Meredith MacNeill, Aurora Browne and Jennifer Whalen are the writers, stars and executive producers. For Frantic Films, Jamie Brown is CEO & Executive Producer. For CBC, Sally Catto is General Manager of Entertainment, Factual and Sports; Trish Williams is Executive Director, Scripted Content; Michelle Daly is Senior Director, Comedy, Scripted Content; Greig Dymond and Karen Tsang are the Executives in Charge of Production.

The series is also broadcast on IFC in the U.S.

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Link: ‘Baroness Von Sketch Show’ producer buys back company from embattled Kew Media Group

From Manori Ravindran of Variety:

Link: ‘Baroness Von Sketch Show’ producer buys back company from embattled Kew Media Group
“Baroness Von Sketch Show” producer Frantic Films has bought back the company from embattled parent Kew Media Group.

Frantic Films founder Jamie Brown has personally financed the deal to reacquire 100% ownership of the firm, which was bought by Kew in March 2017. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed. Continue reading. Continue reading. Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail

Backyard Builds returns to HGTV with more impressive and attainable renovations

When I last spoke to Sarah Keenleyside and Brian McCourt, their fledgling series, Backyard Builds, was set to debut. They had joined their fellow HGTV Canada designers and builders on Home to Win but that hadn’t been broadcast yet either. They were nervous, and excited, for both projects. Now the duo is back for the sophomore go-around on their renovation series.

“To call this a family is an understatement,” Keenleyside says over the phone alongside McCourt. “The whole HGTV crew takes you under their wing. Brian and I still pinch ourselves sometimes. We’re like, ‘Dude, we’re working with Scott McGillivray and Sarah Richardson!’ These are the people we used to watch and now we’re their peers.”

Backyard Builds returns Thursday with back-to-back episodes at 10 and 10:30 p.m. ET/PT with Keenleyside and McCourt once again blowing up bad-looking backyards and turning them into something amazing. And while the transformations are truly impressive—a family full of energetic boys sees their yard turned into a basketball court—the projects add value to the home and aren’t outrageously expensive for the homeowners. Last year, I wrote that the pair are almost criminally good-looking but know their stuff, are articulate, don’t talk down to viewers and have fun. That continues in Season 2, but McCourt says the projects have changed this time around.

“The projects were fun and whimsical [in Season 1] but didn’t relate to the viewer on a practical sense,” McCourt says. “This season we’ve done a lot more practical backyards and really dove into low-maintenance ideas for homeowners.” That’s a tall order when your episode clients vary from big and small families to single guys, but they relished the challenge. In Thursday’s second episode, the pair and their renovation team descend on a small bungalow owned by a dude looking to have space in the yard to entertain. The desert-like landscape and stubborn tree stump provided a challenge for McCourt but he triumphed and, with Keenleyside’s keen design flair, the homeowner ended up with a sweet outdoor pub-themed oasis.

“We have some really strong backyards this season,” McCourt says. “We did an outdoor kitchen with an outdoor pizza oven with two structures—one is a lounge and one is a secondary prep space—and in between we actually suspended a pergola. It’s really something special.”

Backyard Builds airs Thursdays at 10 and 10:30 p.m. ET/PT on HGTV Canada.

Image courtesy of Corus Entertainment.Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail

Preview: Baroness von Sketch Show deals more hilarity in Season 3

Hot on the heels of Baroness von Sketch Show‘s well-deserved Canadian Screen Award wins and continued kudos from American attention thanks to IFC picking the program up, the funny Canadian ladies are back for Season 3 on Tuesday at 9 p.m. on CBC.

Once again, writers, stars and executive producers Carolyn Taylor, Meredith MacNeill, Aurora Browne and Jennifer Whalen simply nail it with hilarious characters and dead-funny views in sketches both timely and evergreen. While some Canadian periodicals write lazy columns decrying a lack of funny at the CBC, I say the network has never been stronger because of Baroness, Still Standing, Schitt’s Creek, Mr. D and Kim’s Convenience. (The jury is still out on 22 Minutes, thanks to behind the scenes shakeups.)

The return episode, “Is that you Karen?” bursts out of the gate with immediate laughs, as two ladies who haven’t seen each other in 20 years reconnect in the oddest and most ludicrous of ways. And that’s before the revamped opening credits roll. Then, in the rat-a-tat roll out of sketches, viewers get reflections on the rites of spring (with three of the four ladies dressed as dudes), the dangers of accepting a ride home from a co-worker, rogue cops and what could happen when the barista gets the name wrong on your coffee cup.

Whenever I speak to folks about the television shows Baroness von Sketch almost always comes up. There’s a reason for that. With tight writing, stellar performances (MacNeill’s over-the-top physical comedy is a standout) and truly relatable topics, the baronesses are hitting a comedy home run every week.

Baroness von Sketch Show airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on CBC.Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail