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TV,eh? What's up in Canadian television
Industry News, Orphan Black

Marblemedia reveals primetime slate for MIPCOM

From a media release:

Award-winning content creation company marblemedia, will premiere three new development titles at MIPCOM from the company’s Primetime Scripted division, which launched last year. The projects come from their highly publicized partnerships with Cirque du Soleil Média and OutEast Entertainment and features prominent television writers Karen Walton, Jennifer Kennedy and Ian MacDonald.

marblemedia will unveil a new 13×60’ sci-fantasy thriller called Alchemy, created by the award-winning producer and writer Karen Walton (Orphan Black, Ginger Snaps). The series is the first project in marblemedia’s venture with Cirque du Soleil Média, which will see the two develop a slate of shows together. Alchemy is currently in development withShowcase (Shaw Media) and will be executive produced by Matt Hornburg, Mark J.W. Bishop and Jacques Méthé.

marblemedia is also bringing the much anticipated Thank You, Ashley Madison, written by Jennifer Kennedy (Justified) and Ian MacDonald (Punched Up). Produced alongside LA-based company OutEast Entertainment, the series centres around a mother of two who goes on a deep personal journey when she casts aside her conventional morality to start an adultery website to avoid financial ruin. The series will be executive produced by Matt Hornburg, Mark J.W. Bishop, Steven Marrs (Rogue) and Courtney Hazlett.

Lastly, marblemedia has acquired the rights to author Edeet Ravel’s riveting novel Held. The book, which was a finalist for the Next Generation Indie Book Award, centres around a woman named Chloe who is kidnapped during her vacation and placed in total isolation for several days before coming face to face with her abductor for whom she develops deep feelings.

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Continuum, Featured

Interview: Continuum’s Roger Cross is enjoying his career ride

There’s something you should know about Roger Cross. The man exudes positive energy and loves to laugh. Far from his Continuum character of Travis, the Vancouver-raised actor is a staple of Canadian programming. If you film a TV show in this country, odds are Cross will be in it.

With Continuum‘s penultimate episode, “The Desperate Hours,” set to roll this Friday, we grabbed five minutes with Cross to talk Liber8, auditioning and filming in his favourite city.

Can you talk about the tentative relationship between Liber8 and Kiera this season? It’s foreign to die-hard fans.
Roger Cross: What I love about it is that it shows growth. I grew up very religious, Christian. That’s my belief system and my doctrine, but later on you discover there’s a lot of beauty in the Muslim religion and in Buddhism. If you expand you mind and your views … you know. With Kiera, she came in with this one mind that we’re so bad, but in the end we’re trying to help people. It’s a great growth for her and for us as well. Travis has a very militant way of doing things and he learns that maybe that’s not always the best way. It’s a coming together and learning from each other.

What are you taking from the set?
I’m going to take some gear. Or maybe a piece of a time ball. Where’s the prop department? I need to cozy up to them. [Laughs.]

The CBC did a piece on the burgeoning TV and film industry in Vancouver. What’s it like for a guy like you to be working here so much?
People think they know about it, but they really don’t know about it. I think the segment said there are 42 projects filming in Vancouver. That’s a busy city and I think that’s why Hollywood is upset too. There are a lot of major productions here.

You’ve made your career out here. Every show filming in Vancouver seems to feature you in some way.
They keep me busy. It’s a great thing.

Do you have a favourite Canadian city for filming?
They’re all so different. I do have a special place for Vancouver because where else do you get this view? You have the water, the lush greenery, the mountains, the fresh air … it’s a special place. It’s home for me. I moved here when I was 11. Yes, I live in L.A. and I love it there too, but as you know, you don’t get the lush green in L.A. Toronto has its own energy and its own way of doing things. I’ve been there for the last two years filming The Strain and now Dark Matter, and I’ve gotten to know Toronto a lot better.

How do you get gigs for The Strain and Dark Matter? Are you auditioning, or are folks writing parts with you in mind?
It happens both ways. There are times when I get a call where someone is thinking of me for a part, but yes, I still do audition by going in and earning my pay. Guillermo del Toro isn’t handing anything to anyone on The Strain. I did the auction for that and got it, which was great. For Dark Matter, I was in the Dominican Republic and recorded the audition tape down there and sent it back and got the role.

How great is technology? You’re on vacation and can film an audition on your laptop and send it off.
[Laughs.] It really is. You just use your iPhone to record it, upload it and boom!

Continuum airs Fridays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Showcase.

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This Life

Link: This Life boss balances light with the dark

From the TV Junkies:

This Life boss balances light with the dark
For a more complete look at the challenges of making a successful adaptation, balancing light moments with what could be a depressing topic and a look at what’s to come in This Life’s first season, The TV Junkies spoke with showrunner Joseph Kay (Bomb Girls). Kay talked about the challenges involved for himself as a first time showrunner, as well as writing for a large ensemble cast. Continue reading.

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Wynonna Earp

Wynonna Earp to premiere March 28 on CHCH

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From a media release:

CHCH Announced as the Canadian Broadcaster for Seven24 Films Wynonna Earp

  • 13-episode one-hour series in production in Calgary
  • Melanie Scrofano, Tim Rozon, Shamier Anderson and Dominique Provost-Chalkley cast as leads

SEVEN24 Films announced today that independent over-the-air broadcaster CHCH in Ontario has acquired Canadian broadcast rights to Wynonna Earp, the live action television series currently in production in Calgary. The 13-episode one-hour series is based on the IDW Publishing comic created by Beau Smith.

Scheduled to premiere Monday, March 28, 2016 at 10pm, Wynonna Earp is a lively, contemporary thriller that follows Wyatt Earp’s great great-granddaughter as she battles demons and other supernatural beings. A modern day gunslinger, Wynonna uses her unique abilities and a dysfunctional posse of allies to bring the paranormal to justice.

Melanie Scrofano (A Sunday Kind of Love, Gangland Undercover) stars as Wynonna Earp. Tim Rozon (Being Human, Instant Star) will play legendary con-artist Doc Holiday, Shamier Anderson (Defiance, Constantine) plays Wynonna’s ally Agent Dolls, and Dominique Provost-Chalkley (Avengers: Age of Ultron, Beautiful Devils) has been cast as Wynonna’s sister, Waverly. Emily Andras (Lost Girl) developed the series for television and serves as Executive Producer and Showrunner.

Wynonna Earp is produced in Calgary by SEVEN24 Films, and distributed by IDW Entertainment. The series will also air on Syfy in the US. Production began on September 14th. SEVEN24’s Jordy Randall and Tom Cox serve as Executive Producers and Brian Dennis is producing.

“Together with SEVEN24 Films, CHCH, and a virtual dream cast, I’m confident we have something special on our hands: a female-led supernatural series with grand themes of redemption, honour, and the struggle to define good vs. evil. Not to mention, a kickass biker babe fighting demon outlaws,” said Showrunner Emily Andras.

 

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Industry News

Omni original Blood and Water sets November debut

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From a media release:

– Filmed and set in Vancouver, this Chinese crime drama series is available in Mandarin, Cantonese and English –

– The eight-part, 30-minute series is produced by Breakthrough Entertainment, with development on Season 2 already underway –

OMNI Television today announced broadcast details for the new, original series Blood and Water – a compelling, character-driven, crime drama that delves into the secrets and lies of a tightly-knit family. This half-hour, eight-part crime drama premieres with two back-to-back episodes Nov. 8 at 10 p.m. ET/PT and 10:30 p.m. ET/PT, and will air regularly Sundays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on OMNI Television (check local listings) with episodes airing next day on www.OMNITV.ca.

Produced in Mandarin, Cantonese, and English, Blood and Water follows the story of Jo Bradley (Steph Song, Everything’s Gone Green), an ambitious young detective who overcomes her personal challenges in order to find the killer of a Vancouver billionaire’s troubled son.

In the premiere episode, after Jo is hit with an unexpected diagnosis of cancer, she is given the assignment of lead detective in a complicated homicide. The drug addicted son of a prominent family has turned up dead and ritualistically buried in the endowment lands. With everything at stake, the pressure is on for Jo to quickly solve the crime and make the department look good in this high profile case, before the clock runs out.

Directed by noted Canadian director John L’Ecuyer (Curtis’s Charm), Blood and Water stars Peter Outerbridge (Orphan Black), Elfina Luk, Fiona Fu, Simu Liu, Oscar Hsu, Loretta Yu, Osric Chau, and Russell Yuen, with special appearances by Stuart Hughes, Joel Keller, Morgan Kelly, Maria Ricossa, Victor Chiu, and Richard Chevolleau.

Executive producers are Nat Abraham, Diane Boehme, Ira Levy, Michael McGuigan, and Peter Williamson. The series is produced by Yipeng Ben Lu and Neil Bregman, written by Al Kratina and Dan Trotta, and edited by Paul Winestock and Victor C.H. Fan.  From Rogers Media, Nataline Rodrigues is Director of Original Programming, Hayden Mindell is Vice President of Television Programming & Content, and Colette Watson is Vice President of Broadcast.

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