Tag Archives: Tiny Plastic Men

Future of Super Channel originals Slasher, What Would Sal Do? and Tiny Plastic Men in limbo

 

UPDATE: As per a feature in Playback magazine, New Metric Media has found a new home for What Would Sal Do? The series has been acquired by Bell Media and will air on TMN and HBO Canada.


It wasn’t the news the creators and producers of Slasher, What Would Sal Do? and Tiny Plastic Men wanted to hear. Making a television show in Canada is difficult enough, but it’s impossible when the company responsible for broadcasting your series goes into creditor protection.

That’s the sad scenario facing the trio of original Canadian productions after Super Channel’s parent company, Allarco Entertainment, was granted creditor protection for 30 days under the Companies Creditors Arrangement Act in early June. Now, two months later, things are dire. All three properties have been released back to the production companies to be shopped around to new broadcasters. Because the case is still in the courts, the series’ creators, showrunners and producers aren’t able to comment, but Super Channel did provide an official statement regarding What Would Sal Do?

“Unfortunately, we will not be moving forward with the series at this time,” Melissa Kajpust, head of creative development, said. “Due to our recent CCAA filing we have had to do some financial restructuring and unfortunately this was one of the projects affected.” That, to put it frankly, sucks. Shot in Sudbury, Ont., Sal stars Dylan Taylor as entitled underachiever, Sal, who is challenged to be a good person when he discovers he’s the Second Coming of Christ. The modern day parable also stars Jennifer Dale as Maria, Sal’s mother, a virgin and devoted catholic, Ryan McDonald as Vince, Sal’s best friend and Scott Thompson as the career driven Father Luke, Maria’s friend and confidant. TV, Eh? visited the set while cameras were rolling and we’ve seen the first couple of episodes and it’s not only damn funny and boundary-pushing, but it’s heartfelt. Taylor, in particular, is splendid as Sal.

Sal is written, created and executive produced by Andrew De Angelis alongside writers Kurt Seaton, Mark Forward, Alex Levine, Mark DeAngelis and Brandy Hewitt. Sal director Samir Rehem has been nominated for a Directors Guild of Canada Award for his work on the pilot episode, an additional kick in the crotch for a series that has eight instalments filmed, edited, in the can and ready for broadcast. And yet it has nowhere to be broadcast. New Metric Media is currently seeking a home for the series.

If there is a second season of Slasher, it won’t be on Super Channel. Created by Aaron Martin, the horror series—filmed in and around Sudbury and Parry Sound, Ont.—starred Katie McGrath as Sarah Bennett, a young woman who returns to the small town where she was born, only to find herself the centrepiece in a series of horrifying copycat murders based on the widely known, grisly killings of her parents. Slasher co-starred Brandon Jay McLaren, Wendy Crewson, Steve Byers and Dean McDermott. The series’ production company, Shaftesbury, couldn’t comment on what was happening with regard to a sophomore season.

Tiny Plastic Men, meanwhile, was in the middle of production on Season 4 when the filing shut them down. The Canadian Screen Award and Canadian Comedy Award nominee, from Mosaic Entertainment, stars writers Chris Craddock, Mark Meer and Matt Alden as Crad, October and Addison, three man-boys who test bizarre toy prototypes in their playroom of an office at the eccentric Gottfried Brothers Toy and Train Company.

Fingers crossed things are sorted out for all three.

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19-2 and Schitt’s Creek lead 2016 Canadian Screen Award TV nominations

Bravo’s gritty cop drama 19-2 and CBC’s high-profile comedy Schitt’s Creek topline the nominations for the 2016 Canadian Screen Awards. Announced Tuesday morning in Toronto at TIFF Bell Lightbox by Lyriq Bent (The Book of Negroes) and Aislinn Paul (Degrassi), 19-2 captured 12 nominations, including Best Dramatic Series and Best Performance nods for supporting cast and leads Jared Keeso and Adrian Holmes; Keeso and Holmes recorded a video to mark the occasion (check it out below).

Meanwhile, Schitt’s Creek does battle in the comedic categories, with co-stars Eugene and Dan Levy facing off for Best Performance and the Tuesday night comedy fighting off fellow CBC series Mr. D, Mohawk Girls, Young Drunk Punk and Tiny Plastic Men for Best Comedy Series.

Space’s Orphan Black did well too, snagging 13 nominations including performance acknowledgements for Ari Millen and Tatiana Maslany, though it was shut out of the Dramatic Series list. Global’s final season of Rookie Blue was recognized by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television, as Missy Peregrym and Ben Bass received nominations.

The nominees in the key television categories are listed below. Who do you think deserves to win? The two-hour Canadian Screen Awards gala airs Sunday, March 13, at 8 p.m. on CBC.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Continuing Leading Comedic Role

  • Gerry Dee, Mr. D
  • Eugene Levy, Schitt’s Creek
  • Daniel Levy, Schitt’s Creek
  • Dave Foley, Spun Out

Best Performance by an Actor in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role

  • Adrian Holmes, 19-2
  • Jared Keeso, 19-2
  • Ari Millen, Orphan Black
  • Ben Bass, Rookie Blue
  • Aaron Poole, Strange Empire

Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Comedic Role

  • Brittany LeBorgne, Mohawk Girls
  • Annie Murphy, Schitt’s Creek
  • Catherine O’Hara, Schitt’s Creek
  • Belinda Cornish, Tiny Plastic Men

Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role

  • Kristin Lehman, Motive
  • Tatiana Maslany, Orphan Black
  • Megan Follows, Reign
  • Missy Peregrym, Rookie Blue
  • Jennie Raymond, Sex & Violence

Best Dramatic Series

  • 19-2
  • Blackstone
  • Motive
  • Saving Hope
  • X Company

Best Comedy Series

  • Mr. D
  • Mohawk Girls
  • Schitt’s Creek
  • Tiny Plastic Men
  • Young Drunk Punk

Best Reality/Competition Program or Series

  • The Amazing Race Canada
  • Big Brother Canada
  • Dragons’ Den
  • Game of Homes
  • MasterChef Canada

Best Animated Program or Series

  • Endangered Species
  • Numb Chucks
  • Rocket Monkeys
  • Slugterra

Best Children’s or Youth Fiction Program or Series

  • Annedroids
  • Degrassi
  • Full Out
  • Max & Shred

Best Factual Program or Series

  • Emergency
  • Ice Pilots NWT
  • Jade Fever
  • Million Dollar Critic
  • Still Standing

Best International Drama

  • Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell
  • Vikings

Best Lifestyle Program or Series

  • Buy It, Fix It, Sell It
  • Carnival Eats
  • Income Property
  • Masters of Flip
  • Survivorman Bigfoot

Best TV Movie or Limited Series

  • The Book of Negroes
  • First Response
  • Forget and Forgive
  • Kept Woman
  • Studio Black!

The rest of the television categories can be seen here.

As previously announced, comedian Norm Macdonald will host the 2016 event. Wendy Crewson—currently starring on CTV’s Saving Hope—will receive the Earle Grey Award for acting and Martin Short will be honoured with the Lifetime Achievement Award.

The Canadian Screen Awards air Sunday, March 13, at 8 p.m. on CBC.

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Season 4 of Super Channel’s Tiny Plastic Men starts production

From a media release:

After a big year of Canadian Screen and Canadian Comedy Award nominations, Tiny Plastic Men begins production in Edmonton on a fourth season of the unique comedy series to be broadcast on Super Channel in Canada and Hulu and Hulu Plus in the United States.

Edmonton talents Chris Craddock, Mark Meer, and Matt Alden return as the writers and stars of the series playing three man-boys who test bizarre toy prototypes in their playroom of an office at the eccentric Gottfriend Brothers Toy and Train Company.  Chris Craddock will also be trying his hand at Co-Directing the series this season along with newcomer Mike Peterson.

Guest Stars on the show this season include Colin Mochrie (Whose Line is it Anyway) as fictional Canadian Astronaut Whizz Banger and Joe Flaherty (SCTV, Freaks and Geeks) as Mysterious Package Delivery Man.  Mochrie and Flaherty join a growing list of guest stars over the seasons of Tiny Plastic Men including Alan Thicke (Growing Pains, Unusually Thicke), Kevin McDonald (Kids in the Hall), Georges Laraque (NHL superstar), and the legendary Toxic Avenger creator and President of Troma Entertainment Lloyd Kaufman.  

Season four will premiere three episodes online in February 2016 before airing nationally in Canada on Super Channel and on Hulu in the USA May 2016.

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Interview: Canadian Screen Award nominee Tiny Plastic Men returns

I had never heard of Tiny Plastic Men until it was nominated for three Canadian Screen Awards this year. That’s pretty shameful, especially since the offbeat comedy series is entering Season 3 on Super Channel this Monday night. Still, showrunner, co-writer and co-star Chris Craddock understands; his show is on a network you have to pay extra to have access to.

Nominated for Best Comedy Series, Best Writing in a Comedy Program or Series for Craddock and Best Performance by an Actor in a Continuing Leading Comedic Role for Mark Meer, Tiny Plastic Men follows the antics of Crad (Craddock), October (Meer) and Addison (Matt Alden), three misfit toy testers who get into oddball mischief at Gottfried Brothers Toy and Train Company.

In Monday’s return, “Crad Van Winkle,” Crad awakens to discover that he’s lost a year of his life and nothing at Gottfried Bros Toys is the same as it was. Can he go back to the beginning and return Gottfried Bros to the beloved status quo? Upcoming guest stars include Alan Thicke, Kevin McDonald and hockey Georges Laraque who reprises his role as Gaston LeBoeuf, Canada’s openly gay linebacker.

We caught up with Craddock (right, in the picture above with Alden, left, and Meer, centre) before the Canadian Screen Awards gala.

I have to admit and I’m ashamed to say this but I hadn’t heard of the show until the Canadian Screen Award nominations came out.
Chris Craddock: I do think we’re a bit of an obscure show because we’re on Super Channel and not a lot of people subscribe to it, unfortunately. And with so many different ways to watch television I do feel like we’re lost in the shuffle a bit. It does make me sad because we’re crazy proud of the show, we work hard on it and we think it’s funny and even a little fresh. We’d love to get some eyeballs and would love to develop an audience.

Super Channel really is a hidden gem for Canadian content. Are you happy your creation is on the air somewhere?
Very happy. It’s not easy to get past the gatekeeper in this industry and being greenlit by a Canadian broadcaster is an all too rare treat for us. Super Channel has been nothing short of amazing when it comes to supporting Edmonton folks.

Super Channel is no stranger to Canadian comedy. There are you guys and Too Much Information with Norm Sousa.
Yeah, man. Norm is hilarious and I love that guy.

What’s the comedy scene like in Edmonton?
We’re improv-based like so many other people are. There is a live improv soap opera we do here called Die Nasty and all of us have done that, and there is Edmonton Fringe too. When you’re young and an up-and-comer, you’re at that festival because it’s so accessible and a big part of what makes the comedy scene here what it is.


They could have said, ‘This is not what we ordered,’ and taken it away. But they didn’t.


You guys are heading into your third season. How did Tiny Plastic Men come about in the first place?

It was a funny thing and a really rare thing in this business. Because of the success we had with Mosaic Entertainment with Caution: May Contain Nuts on APTN, Super Channel approached them about a sketch show. And maybe we were a little cheeky or dumb, but we didn’t follow orders and created this sitcom thread that runs through it. We were passionate about it and Super Channel was cool enough to say, ‘OK.’ [Laughs.] There it is. It would have been a sketch show and I think we would have done a good job at that but I like what we have now. I love narrative. I’m a playwright, so I love characters and continuity and love the challenge of putting it together over the course of multiple episodes. It’s crazy, looking back. They could have said, ‘This is not what we ordered,’ and taken it away. But they didn’t.

What’s the writing process like on Tiny Plastic Men? Is it collaborative or do you all write and come back to the table with finished scripts?
We’re super collaborative and the three leads are the writers. I’m the head writer/showrunner if you will. Very equal voices at the table. We jam out a season arc and have our episode ideas and what genres we want to focus on. Sometimes it’s a sci-fi thing, sometimes it’s a horror thing. And we have pop culture beats in there too.

Coming from a playwright background, what was the most surprising thing that you learned?
How much things cost. In the beginning I’d write, ‘They have a car and it’s a hatchback and the back half of the car looks like the Millennium Falcon and the front of the car…’ and they’d be like, ‘Yeah, we can’t afford that.’ Things you don’t think will cost a lot will cost a ton.

How important is it to have a Tiny Plastic Men website where you guys can put up clips and online extras?
It’s pretty important for us, especially since not everyone gets Super Channel.

Who are you wearing at the Canadian Screen Awards?
I’ll be wearing Simons. I’m proud to be wearing Canadian.

Have you got a speech prepared?
Nope. I don’t know what I’m going to say. I may come up with something short on a just in case basis. People say it’s just an honour to be nominated and we’re just thrilled to be nominated. We’re in a  category against shows that have 10 times our budget and just to be named among all these other shows is just an honour.

Tiny Plastic Men airs Mondays at 9:30 p.m. ET on Super Channel.

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