Tag Archives: Omni

OMNI goes kosher with new Jewish late night talk show

From a media release:

Canada’s newest late night talk show, CANADIAN JEWISH TV (CJTV) kicks off Thursday October 1st, 2020 at 11:30 PM on OMNI 1. Hosted by Canadian poet Ieden Wall, the show will feature interviews and performances from some of Canada’s most notable Jewish figures.

In keeping with Wall’s background, CJTV will also feature a spoken-word short-film series based on new poems from Wall’s upcoming book, The Wisdom of the Wall 2. His first book of poetry, Wisdom of the Wall has sold over 30,000 copies and continues to impress.

With the loss of established Jewish media like The Canadian Jewish News, CJTV is aiming to fill the void with a “traditional” style Jewish show that avoids getting hung up on extreme sides of the political spectrum.

The guest lineup for season 1 is a “who’s who” of the Canadian media and entertainment industry, including Robert Lantos, Paul Godfrey, Mark Breslin, Dan Shulman, Libby Znaimer, Heather Reisman, and an appearance from former Prime Minister Stephen Harper.
CJTV will make its season debut on Thursday Oct 1st @ 11:30 PM on OMNI 1 across Ontario.

About Host Ieden Wall
Ieden Wall is a poet, journalist, host and media producer, living in Toronto. Wall burst onto the scene in the 90’s with his reality/comedy series called The Dream Chaser. Mayor David Miller called his show a brilliant mix of humour and humanity. Since then, he has kept busy producing docs, medical marketing videos and commercials for his own production company. In 2016, Wall self-published a book of lyrical poems entitled The Wisdom of Wall. The book sold over 30K copies and caught the attention of several luminaries, including Robert Lantos and Valerie Pringle. In 2018, he started taking poems from his book and turning them into spoken-word short films. His first collection of spoken-word films aired in Australia and The UK. Wall is set to host and produce Canadian Jewish TV for Omni TV, making its debut on October 1, 2020.

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Second Jen returns for long-awaited second season

It’s been almost two years, but Second Jen‘s second season is finally here.

The sitcom, co-created by Amanda Joy and Samantha Wan, returns Saturday at 8:30 p.m. ET/PT on Omni Television, once again telling the hilarious and heartfelt experiences of best friends Jennifer “Mo” Monteloyola (Joy) and Jennifer “Jen” Wu (Wan), two second-generation millennials who observe, reflect and react to the world around them.

Things have changed for Season 2 both in front of an behind the camera. There are new faces in Jen’s new friend, Marcus, played by Lovell Adams-Grey (Slasher); Mo’s new potential love interest, Diego (Oscar Moreno); and a whack of guest stars from Canada’s comedy elite in Mark Andrada, Jim Annan, Craig Lauzon, Patrice Goodman, Pat Thornton and Gary Rideout Jr. Second Jen‘s creative engine is run by showrunner and head writer Carly Heffernan, writer and story editor Joy and story editor and co-director Wan.

We spoke to Heffernan, Joy and Wan during a break in filming earlier this year.

How did this second season come together?
Amanda Joy: We work pretty quickly, but from the [Season 2 renewal] announcement to when we were shooting we had already done most of the writing. It just came down to polishing it, and Carly and I, we were working with the network and Sam and just trying to bring out the best elements of the scripts, and choose the best stories, and just make sure that the ones we were making were the most solid and strongest ones.

(l-r) Samantha Wan, Carly Heffernan and Amanda Joy

Carly, how did you end up being involved with the show this season?
Carly Heffernan: I was involved with the first season in a writing capacity as well as an acting capacity, so then I was brought back on for Season 2 in just a bit of an elevated writing capacity as head writer, which was great. I had a really nice time working with Sam and Amanda before, and I love getting into a writer’s room with them and hearing the stories that they want to share, and just being a part of figuring out how we’re going to tell those stories.

AJ: It’s actually amazing because Carly had worked with us in different capacities before, and then it just, there was an opening and she really felt like the right person to do the job, and everyone was in agreement with that.

Samantha Wan: Yeah, it’s exciting. It’s a full female writing room, and full female heads right now.

Does that make a difference?
CH: I think absolutely when you’re telling a female-centric story. It definitely helps to come from a female P.O.V. Not saying that someone of a different gender couldn’t tell the story, but it’s definitely made it easier. There are a lot of situations that Sam and Amanda shared that I could just relate to from my own past experiences as a woman.

The girls have moved into a new apartment, you’ve got new stuff going on in their lives. 
AJ: When we were deciding which stories would make it into the second season and which ones we were really going to work, we decided that we wanted to bring it back to the girls, and make sure that that central relationship was key, and strong in every single story, even when they are separate from each other. It needed to really be about them and how they grow, and how they grow together. The boys who were in the original first season are not in this particular season, but in doing that we have the opportunity to show Jen and Mo outside of their relationships with these two men, and to really make a female-centric story and a friendship-centric story.

SW: In Season 1 I’d say there was a lot of focus on the girls and how they related to their family, and moving away from them. And in Season 2 it’s actually a lot more like ‘OK, now we’ve moved away from our family, how do we figure out our life on our own?’ Also, a huge thing I think this season, too, is seeing when you have a best friend, how you both start changing and you don’t change the same way. So Mo’s getting a lot of success right now, and Jen’s doing a lot of introspection right now, and that puts them in a very different place. In almost opposite places where they used to be this season.

AJ: There’s a lot of irony in that, too, because when you look at the two girls and you sort of predict who is going to be having more success, who is going to really be moving forward with their life, you think it is going to be Jen. And here we see that maybe life’s not as cut and dry as they made it seem in school.

What can you say about your cast?
AJ: In adding new characters and changing up the group a little bit, I’ve found that the dynamic from the ensemble is really speaking to the second generation experience. I believe every single lead now, in our show, is a person of colour.

And you also draw on your background with sketch because you’ve got a lot of talent like Pat Thornton coming in and, can you talk a little bit about some of the guest people you’ve got involved in Season 2?
CH: Absolutely. We have some fantastic people from the world of comedy. Pat Thornton, who is just a national treasure in terms of hilarity, you know, everyone’s seen him on their TVs for years. He’s amazing. Jim Annan, who’s another staple of the comedy community, has been so funny. Nile Séguin joins us again, who’s a fantastic stand-up from the sketch comedy scene. Sorry, from the stand-up scene. Gary Rideout Jr., Craig Lauzon, Mark Andrada. Yeah, a lot of sketch performers are coming in, which is awesome. Bumping up that comedy. Sam and Amanda do such a great job of providing us with so much heart, and staying really true and real and grounded in the characters that they are, so to have a bit of that sketch flair really ups our comedy value.

Let’s talk about some of these adult storylines. Wall squirrels.
CH: Oh, man. If you’ve ever had an animal in your house, it’s the worst. I once had a pigeon in my loft in St. Lawrence Market, I was just freaking right out. We love the notion of the girls sort of dealing with maybe their first break-in, which is always scary. It’s always coming down to firsts for these girls. What is it when you go on your first double date with your best friend?

You’re tackling some serious subjects like sexism and racism.
SW: We have a whole episode on sexual harassment in the workplace, which Amanda wrote and I’m actually directing, well, co-directing with Romeo [Candido], which I think is a very exciting thing.

Second Jen airs Saturdays at 8:30 p.m. ET/PT on Omni Television.

Images courtesy of Second Jen and Omni Television.

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Second Jen returns for second season, beginning August 4 on OMNI Television

From a media release:

Second Jen, the groundbreaking original scripted comedy series following the adventures of two second-generation millennials and their friends, returns this summer with an all-new season featuring fan favourites and fresh faces, beginning Saturday, Aug. 4 at 8:30 p.m. ET/PT on OMNI Television (check local listings). Co-created, co-executive produced, and starring Filipino-Chinese-Canadian Amanda Joy as Jennifer “Mo” Monteloyola and Chinese-Canadian Samantha Wan as Jennifer “Jen” Wu, the six-part, 30-minute episode season is inspired by their real-life experiences, as they sort through commitment issues, career challenges, and the awkwardness of dating.

Older, saucier, and no longer relying on their over-protective families, Mo and Jen are now grappling with the world of ‘adulting,’ as their childhood friends begin to establish successful careers and get married. Season 2 features an all-female creative team, with Carly Heffernan (Nurse Redelle, Second City), showrunner and head writer, at the helm. Amanda Joy has written three out of six episodes this season, including “Like A Girl,” “The Book of Jenesis,” and “Wall Squirrelly,” while Samantha Wan co-directs “Like A Girl,” alongside series director Romeo Candido.

Joining Amanda Joy and Samantha Wan as season regulars are Nile Séguin (Alister, The Beaverton), Lily Gao (Karen, Blood and Water), and new cast member Lovell Adams-Gray (Marcus, Slasher). Rounding out the culturally diverse cast are Janet Lo (Bunny, Diary of the Dead), Timothy Lai (Eric, How to Be Indie, Degrassi: The Next Generation), Caroline Mangosing (Maryjun, How to Be Indie), Carly Heffernan (Nurse Redelle, Second City), Patrick Kwok-Choon (Harrison, Star Trek: Discovery, Cardinal), Ho Chow (Mr. Hsu, Bad Blood, The Strain) and new cast member Oscar Moreno (Diego,Shadowlands). Buzz-worthy headliners from Canada’s comedy scene make special guest appearances, including Mark Andrada, Jim Annan, Craig Lauzon, Gary Rideout Jr., Pat Thornton, and comedic actress Patrice Goodman.

OMNI will air the season’s previous episode at 8 p.m. ET/PT, followed by a new episode at 8:30 p.m. ET/PT. Audiences can catch-up on Season 1 on the OMNI Television website, www.OMNItv.ca, and on Rogers on Demand.

Second Jen is produced by Don Ferguson Productions (DFP) in association with Rogers Media. Executive Producers are Don Ferguson, Lucy Stewart, and Kevin Wallis. Amanda Joy and Samantha Wan are co-executive producers. Carly Heffernan and Romeo Candido are co-producers. From Rogers Media, Nataline Rodrigues is Director of Original Programming, Hayden Mindell is Vice President of Television Programming & Content, and Colette Watson is Senior Vice President of TV & Broadcast Operations.

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OMNI Regional Greenlights New Seasons of Critically Acclaimed Original Multicultural Series Blood and Water, Mangoes, and Second Jen

From a media release:

Following the successful launch of multilingual newscasts across the country, OMNI Regional is furthering its commitment to delivering premium multicultural Canadian content to communities across Canada by greenlighting brand-new seasons of original series Blood & Water, Mangoes, and Second Jen. Currently in various stages of development, the series are slated to air in 2018, with additional broadcast details to be announced at a later date.

With production scheduled to begin in November on eight new half-hour episodes, critically acclaimed and Canadian Screen Award-nominated OMNI original drama Blood & Water returns with a compelling new season. Jo Bradley (Steph Song) returns home from her dramatic departure to China at the end of Season 1 and, unable to face the reality of meeting her biological family, is back at work, living again with her former partner, and now estranged from her adopted mother, Colleen (Maria Ricossa). But it isn’t long before another murder brings Jo back into a web of lies and crime involving the Xie family dynasty.

Following an overwhelming response from South Asian audiences, the multilingual – featuring Urdu, Hindi, Punjabi, and English – digital dramedy Mangoes joins the OMNI Regional programming lineup with six new half-hour episodes. From creators, stars, and brothers Adeel Suhrwardy and Khurram Suhrwardy, Mangoes is an invigorating tale of Canadian South Asian youth, capturing the optimism and potential of the younger generation living as ‘global citizens’ and intrepid individuals. New to Canada, Sami (Adeel Suhrwardy), Asha (Maha Warsi), and Rakey (Khurram Suhrwardy) are on a journey to explore, integrate, and contribute towards the building of their new home. Writing on the series is currently underway with production scheduled to begin in January.

And back with six all-new half-hour episodes is original comedy Second Jen, slated to air on both OMNI Regional and City in 2018. A diverse, female-driven comedy from creators and stars Amanda Joy and Samantha Wan, the series follows two second-generation Chinese and Filipino-Canadian millennials as they tackle even more “firsts” while branching out on their own in Toronto. Writing is currently underway with production scheduled to begin in January.

 

 

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