TV, eh? | What's up in Canadian television
TV,eh? What's up in Canadian television
Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Chatting with notable Canadians in stunning locales, Dave Brown returns for Season 3 of Game Changers, September 24 on AMI-tv and AMI+

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From a media release:

AMI, in partnership with FRANK Digital, is thrilled to announce the 24-episode third season of Game Changers, returning Thursday, September 24, at 9 p.m. Eastern on AMI-tv and AMI+. 

Each episode of Game Changers finds host Dave Brown in his element, visiting stunning locales while spending the day chatting with notable Canadians. From disability advocates to para and pro athletes, social media influencers to artists, the conversations are thought-provoking, informative and entertaining.

Guests joining Dave in Season 3 include social media influencer and Underdog Inc. co-star Caden Teneycke; Canadian Blind Hockey coach Scarlette Dorn; Indigenous playwright, filmmaker and educator Floyd Favel; three-time para judo Paralympian Priscilla Gagné; multidisciplinary artist Sharona Franklin; para bobsled world champion Lonnie Bissonnette; and fashion designer Izzy Camilleri.

In keeping with AMI’s mandate of making accessible media for all Canadians, Game Changers utilizes Integrated Described Video (IDV) to make them accessible to individuals who are blind or partially sighted.

“Game Changers introduces viewers to fascinating Canadians they may not have met otherwise,” says Cara Nye, Director, Content Development and Production at AMI. “Season 3 continues to reflect AMI’s commitment to telling authentic Canadian stories that entertain, inform and empower while connecting the viewers to new voices and experiences from across Canada.”

“Game Changers continues to be a place for meaningful conversation with people who want to make a positive impact in the realm of disability and inclusion,” host Dave Brown says. “It’s a great honour to explore the personal stories of guests in the context of the work they are doing to make the world a better place.”

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

The Executive Producer of Game Changers is Chris McIvor. Producers are Chris McIvor and Libby Lea. The Director is Chris McIvor. For AMI, Em Williams is the Integrated Described Video Consultant; Jennifer Johnson is the Supervising Producer.

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Adapting, Featured

AMI original drama Adapting explores disability, adolescence and family dynamics with humour and heart

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From a media release:

AMI, in partnership with Big Time Decent’s Bread & Better Films, is proud to announce Season 1 of the scripted drama Adapting debuts Friday, September 11, at 9 p.m. EST/6 p.m. PST on AMI-tv, AMI+ and YouTube.

Filmed in and around Vancouver and the B.C. coast and inspired by the lived experiences of Rachael and Garner Ransom, Adapting (6×30) brings a raw, unfiltered perspective to disability—one rarely seen on Canadian television.

New town. New life. Same problems. Navigating grief, identity and small-town chaos, Adapting is a sharp, irreverent family drama about a widowed father and his twin teenage daughters as they attempt to find love, acceptance and their place in a messy, unpredictable world.

After 16-year-old Lennon Anderson (Threnody Tsai, Percy Jackson and the Olympians) loses her mother, she loses it. When she pushes her wheelchair off the roof of her high school, she’s expelled, forcing her identical twin sister, Lola (Junnicia Lagoutin, The Imperfects), and their widowed father, Mel (Kurt Long, Liv and Maddie), to leave the city behind for a fresh start in their mom’s old town of Halfway Bay.

Lennon has cerebral palsy, but she’s determined not to become “the disabled new girl.” Instead, she sets herself an ambitious goal: experience every messy teenage milestone before life passes her by—friendship, first kisses, heartbreak… maybe even sex. If she has to adapt to a new town, she’s going to do it on her own terms, even if those terms are spectacularly self-destructive.

As Lennon charges headfirst into one disastrous decision after another, she finds herself caught between two very different boys: Joey (Kiefer O’Reilly, The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers), the fiercely loyal friend who truly sees her, and Dylan (Brandon McEwan, Alter Boys), the charming rival she never expected to fall for. Torn between them, Lennon is forced to confront a question even more frightening than whether someone will love her: can she believe she’s worthy of being loved in the first place?

“Adapting is exactly the kind of story we want to tell—bold, character-driven and unapologetically human. It tackles disability, grief, first love and family with humour and honesty, while reminding us that everyone is adapting to something,” says Executive Producer Matthew Shewchuk.

“We are very proud to bring viewers a story that doesn’t treat disability as a plot twist, but as just one part of a much bigger, messier and truly universal coming-of-age story,” says Cara Nye, Director, Content Development and Production at AMI. “With the binge-worthy energy of Heated Rivalry and Off Campus, Adapting is the next great addition to the TV drama landscape. Rachael and Garner Ransom and the entire Big Time Decent team have given us something we all need more of: a story that’s honest, raw and most of all, deeply human.”

Adapting is directed by Kyle Rideout. Executive Producers are Matthew Shewchuk, René Brar, Jeffrey Kinnon, LA Smith, Juliana Wimbles and Eve Zhou. Co-Executive Producers are Rachael Ransom and Garner Ransom.

Adapting is written by LA Smith, Juliana Wimbles, Rachael Ransom and Garner Ransom.

Want to learn even more about Adapting? Check out exclusive content on AMI’s YouTube channel.

Adapting airs Fridays at 9 p.m. EST/6 p.m. PST on AMI-tv, AMI+ and YouTube. 

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Featured, Yaga

Welcome to Whittock…the Crave original series Yaga premieres October 23

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From a media release:

Something wicked this way comes. Crave announced today that its eight-episode, half-hour drama, YAGA, a spellbinding mystery thriller which re-imagines the myth of Baba Yaga, premieres on Friday, October 23.

Following a captivating kickoff at San Diego Comic Con in July, momentum for YAGA continues to build. Before its highly anticipated debut, the series is set to have its world premiere on September 17 at the 2026 Toronto International Film Festival, followed by a panel at New York Comic Con on October 9, revealing exclusive content. The first two episodes drop on Oct. 23, followed by one episode on subsequent Fridays, until the two-episode finale on Nov. 27.

Additionally, in tandem with each episode of YAGA, Crave presents an original companion podcast to the series. Hosted by Canadian content creator and podcaster Carley Thorne, YAGA: THE OFFICIAL PODCAST, unpacks each episode, providing a deeper dive into key moments, theories, behind-the-scenes exclusives, and more. The podcast is available to stream on Crave and Crave’s Official YouTube account beginning Oct. 23, as well as on iHeart and all major podcast platforms.

YAGA is based on the hit play by Kat Sandler who also serves as writer, showrunner, and executive producer. It follows Rapp (Noah Reid), a private investigator who arrives in the small coastal town of Whittock, to investigate the disappearance of a young heir to a powerful fishery, Henry Park (Hudson Williams). He finds himself at odds with an apprehensive local detective, Carson (Clark Backo), a charismatic university professor with a taste for younger men, Katherine (Carrie-Anne Moss), and a labyrinth of enigmatic suspects, secret lives, and ancient magic.

Additional cast includes Sheila McCarthy, Megan Follows, Ezra Franky, Patrick Gilmore, Katharine Isabelle, and Hiro Kanagawa, along with Emilija Baranac, Georgia Acken, Anisa Harris, and Sam Krochmal.

David Frazee and Rachel Talalay serve as co-directors. Mackenzie Donaldson, Andrew Miller, and Carrie-Anne Moss are executive producers, and Charles Cooper is producer.

YAGA is produced by Blink49 Studios and Front Street Pictures, in association with Bell Media, with the participation of the Canada Media Fund (CMF), the Rogers Series Fund, and the Bell Fund.

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Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

He who has the gold makes the rules. Red River Gold Season 2 launches September 24 on APTN

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From a media release:

3 Story Pictures producers Saxon de Cocq, Hannah Hermanson and Ell McEachern are pleased to announce the return of Red River Gold, with Season 2 of the 13 x 30-minute documentary series premiering this fall on APTN and APTN+. Season 2 hosts are Ross Pambrun, Laurie Gagne, Eric Danis, and Mimi Lamontagne 

Red River Gold premieres September 24 on APTN in English, with same-day streaming on APTN+ and the first episode available on the APTN YouTube channel. A Michif-language version will be available on APTN Languages at a later date.

In 1870, a trove of gold coins worth $1,000,000 disappeared without a trace. The coins were on their way to fund a British military force marching across Canada to stop Louis Riel and the Métis during the Red River Resistance. The gold has never been recovered and the Royal Mint of England still considers it lost or stolen. And now, a group of Métis treasure seekers want to find it!

Season One left off with the team digging though the frozen bog, thinking that they might have found a trove of gold coins or even the long-lost British canon. Although they did find a fur trade era ax, it clearly wasn’t the treasure they were after. Now, Mimi has discovered new information on the soldiers who might have stolen the gold coins, and it’s leading the team right back to the Northwest Angle. 

Red River Gold is directed by Saxon de Cocq (Treaty Road Season 1 & 2, Red River Gold Season 1, The Other Side), Berkley Brady (Dark Nature, The Secret History of: The Wild West), Sam Karney (Going Native, Nation Untamed) and Lisa Unrau (Staying Wild Seasons 1,2,3, Landing: Stories from the Cultural Divide), written by Saxon de Cocq, and is produced by Hannah Hermanson (Treaty Road Season 1 & 2, Red River Gold Season 1, Staying Wild Season 1,2 & 3, Zarqa Season 2), Ell McEachern (Treaty Road Season 1 & 2, Red River Gold Season 1, Staying Wild Season 1,2 & 3, Zarqa Season 2), Saxon de Cocq and Sam Karney. The series will be executive produced by Doug Cuthand (Guardians: Evolution, Van Life, Searchers, Big Bear).

“I have to admit by the end of our Season 1 search we were all feeling pretty discouraged. But this new twist is proof that not only does the gold exist, there were a number of people trying to cover it up. This is looking more and more like a conspiracy; and I can’t wait to get back out there,” says producer/director Saxon de Cocq.

Red River Gold is filmed in rural Manitoba for the searching (Ste Anne, Richer, Falcon Lake, Northwest Angle, Lake of the Woods), as well as the Mint in Whales and at the Tower of London. Cinematography by Sam Karney and editing by Kolby Kostyniuk (Staying Wild, Treaty Road, Dirt Farmers). 

Red River Gold is produced by 3 Story Pictures in association with APTN, with additional financial support from Canada Media Fund and Creative Saskatchewan.

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Featured, Finding Her Edge, Uncategorized

Finding Her Edge expands Season 2 cast

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From a media release:

Netflix and WildBrain, a global leader in kids’ and family entertainment, today announced new cast members joining the returning stars from Season 1 for Season 2 of Netflix’s hit global teen drama series Finding Her Edge. The series is currently filming on location in Southern Ontario through December.

Joining the returning cast as new series regulars are newcomer Nikita J Olechko (Snowpiercer) as ‘Andrej,’ Voltage Academy’s star singles skater; British actress Niamh Blackshaw (The Jetty) as ‘Freya,’ a rival ice dancer at Voltage Academy; Matthew Finlan (Sheriff Country) as ‘David,’ Freya’s partner and a rival ice dancer at the Academy; Canadian singer-songwriter Johnny Orlando (3 x MTV EMA Winner and 2 x JUNO Nominee) as charismatic local ‘Jesse,’; and Canadian Olympic medal-winning figure skater Elvis Stojko (Murdoch Mysteries, Hate the Player: The Ben Johnson Story), who returns as a series regular playing ‘Kevin,’ the owner of Voltage Academy.

New cast joining as recurring characters include Justine Nelson (Mind Fudge) as ‘Lucy Grant,’ Voltage Academy’s lead choreographer; CSA and ACTRA Award-winning actor Saara Chaudry (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Holly Hobbie) as ‘Zoie,’ Brayden’s former skating partner and ex; and Matt Wells (Who’s Yer Father?, North of North) as ‘Mason Guilbart,’ Adriana and Brayden’s new coach at Voltage Academy.

In Season 2, the Russo sisters trade their family rink for the cutthroat pressure of Voltage Academy, where every skate could make or break their National Team ambitions. As the pressure mounts on and off the ice, Adriana finds herself torn between her loyal boyfriend, Freddie, and Brayden, the former skating partner she never truly left behind.

The new cast joins returning stars Madelyn Keys (A Mother’s Life, The Exchange), Harmon Walsh (Gossip Girl, Murdoch Mysteries), Alexandra Beaton (Overcompensating, Luckiest Girl Alive), Cale Ambrozic (Hotel Cocaine, We Were Liars), Olly Atkins (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, The Casket Girls), Meredith Florenza (Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent, Blindspot), Alice Malakhov (Anne With an E, Reverse 1999), Millie Davis (The Umbrella Academy, Wonder), and Yona Epstein Roth (The Boys).

Season 2 also welcomes directors Paolo Barzman (Wynonna Earp, Sky Med), Melanie Orr (Mistletoe Murders, Hardy Boys), James Genn (Wild Cards, You’re Killing Me), and Jacqueline Pepall (Horrible Histories, Goldies Oldies), who returns after directing Season 1.

Executive Producers for WildBrain include Josh Scherba, President & CEO; Stephanie Betts, Chief Content Officer; and Angela Boudreault, Vice President, Live-Action. Award-winning Canadian author and Executive Producer Jeff Norton (Geek Girl, Crew Girl) returns as showrunner, alongside Executive Producer and Head Writer Shelley Scarrow (Wynonna Earp, Degrassi: The Next Generation). Season 2 writers also include Sabrina Sherif (The Summer I Turned Pretty, The Hardy Boys), Jeff Norton, and Jacqueline Pepall.

“It’s a true privilege to hit the ice for a second season with this incredible cast, and to further the stories of our inspirational characters in a juicy, soapy sophomore season of Finding Her Edge,” said series showrunner, executive producer and writer Jeff Norton.

Image courtesy of Ian Watson.

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