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

Season three of Mind Set Go returns April 1 to AMI-tv

From a media release:

New participants. New Paralympians. New mindset. AMI is proud to announce Season three of Mind Set Go returns Wednesday, April 1, at 8 p.m. Eastern to AMI-tv.

An Anaïd and AMI production in partnership with the Canadian Paralympic Committee, Mind Set Go‘s newest eight episodes feature Integrated Described Video ensuring they are accessible to viewers who are blind or partially sighted.

The third season of Mind Set Go follows eight Canadians living with a disability, debilitating injury or chronic pain as they transform their physical, mental and emotional health over a 90-day journey of body, mind and soul. As previously announced, lead expert Stephanie Dixon—a 19-time Paralympic medalist—and fellow Paralympians provide encouragement, insight and advice to help the participants face their biggest physical and emotional obstacles heads-on.

From legal blindness, obesity and high blood pressure to neurological disease, Season three of Mind Set Go delves deep into understanding how negative sociological and psychological coping behaviours impact the participants’ health.

Each one-hour episode begins with a participant’s backstory and their struggles to adopt fitness activities while also working on their spiritual well-being. Each participant is there for a reason—whether it’s a need to build strength, gain independence or overcome feelings of low self-worth, they are all uniquely positioned to make a positive change to achieve optimal health. To bookend their journey, each sets a physically demanding goal to illustrate how their lives and attitudes have progressed after three months.

The Paralympians and athletes joining Stephanie Dixon include:

  • Michael Frogley
  • Michelle Stilwell
  • Jessica Tuomela
  • Adam Purdy
  • Michelle Salt
  • Richard Peter
  • Pamela LeJean
  • Shira Stanfield

Season three of Mind Set Go premieres Wednesday, April 1, at 8 p.m. Eastern on AMI-tv. The complete first two seasons of Mind Set Go are available to stream online at AMI.ca or on the AMI-tv App.

The series is developed and produced by Anaïd Productions in association with Accessible Media Inc., with the participation of the Canadian Paralympic Committee, Canada Media Fund, Rogers Telefund, CHEK-TV and the Province of British Columbia Film Incentive BC. Assistance was also provided by the Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit.

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Featured, Transplant

Executive producer Virginia Rankin breaks down Transplant’s origin story

Virginia Rankin has executive-produced some of the most compelling series in Canadian television. From 19-2 to Bad Blood and This Life she, and the folks at Sphère Média Plus, have brought unique characters and compelling stories to primetime TV.

The latest is Transplant. Airing Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on CTV, Rankin’s newest project debuted to strong ratings in Canada. Starring Hamza Haq as Dr. Bashir “Bash” Hamed—a Syrian doctor with battle-tested skills in emergency medicine—it appears she’s got another success on her hands.

We spoke to Virginia Rankin about how Transplant was created, and how the TV market has changed for a company like Sphère Média Plus.

Take me back to the beginning. How did Transplant come about?
Virginia Rankin: I work very closely with Tara Woodbury, who’s our head of development, and Tara really wanted to do something around immigration and refugees. Her family, her extended family, sponsors a Sudanese refugee, so she has firsthand experience with it and so she wanted to do something around that. And my experience, in 20 years of television, is that it’s incredibly hard to tell those stories because mainstream networks are like, ‘Ah, it sounds like an issue. We don’t do issues.’ So, I sort of a little hesitant, but she was really passionate about it. And at first, we were bouncing around ideas like rom-coms and comedies and this kind of thing.

At the same time, we knew that [CTV] was looking for a medical show to replace Saving Hope. And we also knew that we wanted to work with Joseph Kay. I had had a great experience working with him on This Life. We sort of cornered him. We all kind of sat around and threw ideas around and then one night, in the middle of the night, they kind of all came together and the title Transplant came to me and that was some debate about whether it should be The Transplant, by the way, or Transplant. But for me, it was just Transplant and I saw the poster and on the poster was Hamza Haq.

We knew from working with him what a great guy he was and that he’s the full hero package. He’s charismatic, he’s handsome as anything, he’s got the acting chops and he’s a wonderful human being. My job was done and then it was over to Joe and Joe just took those simple elements and he went away and he did a lot of deep diving, a lot of research and he came back and he pitched us this beautiful story of Bash and his sister Amira as Syrian refugees and their new lives in Canada.

It was really all created by Joseph.

Just to clarify, Hamza was not attached. We didn’t say it has to be this guy and we hadn’t attached him in any way. We actually went through a full audition process before we attached him, but he did come on as a consultant. So he read the draft and gave Joe his thoughts.

He actually had to audition and we did audition a number of Syrian actors. We looked quite extensively at Arab actors. And when it came down to it, he was still the guy who we really thought could bring an audience to the show.

What is it about Joseph Kay that ticks the boxes when it comes to a showrunner?
VR: It’s how seriously he takes his job. It’s the research that he does. He has to really know his characters in a deep way. And he does that. He does that work. He’s a wonderful collaborator. I’ve worked on two shows with him now and I just love the creative conversation with him and how he listens and he thinks and he takes everything on board. And then he comes out with beautiful work. So, I can’t say enough good things about working with him.

As you said, Hamza is fantastic. You can’t help but cheer for this guy.
VR: He’s a leading man. He’s Omar Sharif and you don’t see that that often either. And frankly, I think we’re incredibly lucky that we kind of discovered him when we did. I mean, he already had it long CV, but certainly, this is his first major, major leading role. And I feel like a year or two from now we wouldn’t have been able to get him. So, I feel like he’s going to break out. But luckily for us, he loves the show. He’s really, really, really passionate about it and he works so hard and put so much of his heart and soul into it.

When you see NBCUniversal International Studios attached to this, I can’t help but think about the way that the market has changed and how it’s become truly international. As a producer, has there been a seismic shift in the way that you go about making television shows here in this country and how you shop them around?
VR: It’s interesting. It is quite different working with NBC than it has been working with the other international distributors we’ve worked with in the past. NBC sees itself as a studio. We don’t have a studio system in Canada. In Canada, we, the production company, sees ourselves as a studio because we own the copyright and the cashflow and we do all that stuff. But NBC does see themselves more like a studio. Their participation is on a level that they’ve earned that. And so they are much more actively involved than the experience I’ve had with other international distributors, which is great because you do want your show to sell around the world and they obviously know how to do that. So, we really appreciate their perspective and we really hope that the show does succeed in significant markets around the world.

What can you say about Bash’s journey through the first season of the show?
VR: The journey of Bash is, to a certain extent, to allow himself to release some of his secrets because some of his secrets are kind of killing him. He’s carrying guilt and trauma as any refugee will have, any survivor will have. And he’s sharing those things and he perhaps needs to share them more for his own sake, for his own survival. So that is his character journey, which is to learn to let some of those secrets go.

The first episode ends with Bash sitting down with Jed Bishop and Jed saying, ‘Let’s have that job interview over again.’ Is this going to be a mentor-mentee type of relationship, a father-son relationship between these two?
VR: Yes, yes, absolutely. There’s the father-son dynamic there and like any father-son or parental relationship, it’s not always nice. It’s not always pretty. So on both sides, there’s rebellion from the son figure and there are disappointments from the father figure, it’s all of those variations of the father-son relationship.

Transplant airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on CTV.

Images courtesy of Bell Media.

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Featured, Murdoch Mysteries

Murdoch Mysteries showrunner Peter Mitchell looks back on Season 13

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Spoiler alert! Do not continue reading until you have watched the Season 13 finale of Murdoch Mysteries, “The Future is Unwritten.” 

Well, Murdoch fans, what did you think? After a week filled with comments about Julia’s smooch with Dr. Dixon, George’s kidnapping by Amelia and thoughts on Ms. Hart, it all came together quickly on Monday night. By the time the dust had settled, George had talked his way out of a calamity (I honestly thought he might meet a grisly end), Dixon revealed himself to be a silly boy looking to add notches to his bedpost, and we understood a lot more about Violet Hart.

We also saw William and Julia reconcile and reveal some true honesty. That’s something that has been missing a tad with our favourite couple and just one of several questions I asked of showrunner Peter Mitchell.

Before we get to that, here’s what he had to say about the title of the episode: “The title of the episode, ‘The Future is Unwritten,’ comes from a documentary about Joe Strummer. Because Joe was such a positive life force, I always think of it as meaning the world in front of you has limitless possibilities.”

Congratulations on 13 seasons.
Peter Mitchell: Oh, thank you.

Violet Hart’s storyline has evolved from this somewhat wide-eyed person that was brought into the morgue by Julia. Has this evolution been organic?
PM: Well I mean we had Rebecca, who was super sweet like Mouna Traoré. But when Shanice comes in, I think the very first thing she says to Julia is, ‘I don’t expect to be working for you for very long.’ She comes in as a vitamin salesman, and sort of off the very top says, ‘You ain’t the boss of me.’ A character who you could never really nail down. I mean she shows up, she tells Ogden she doesn’t believe in God, she tells Murdoch she does, and then she shows up at the funeral of a strange baby, and is either crying or pretending to cry. We’ve always tried to keep her a bit elusive.

You must love it when you’re reading people that absolutely hate Violet Hart, or love Shanice in her portrayal.
PM: A million years ago I worked on a show, and one of the actors was a guy called Cedric Smith, who’s a well-known older Canadian actor. And he was always like, ‘It’s more fun to be the bad guy.’ It’s often more fun to write for the bad guy.

OK, let’s talk about Watts. His storyline this season has been fantastic. He’s gay. Again, was that an organic storyline? Was that feedback from Daniel? 
PM: That was probably a bit more organic. And I think that the way that Daniel portrayed the character, it was with the writers easy for us to go, ‘Yeah, that wouldn’t be a surprise.’ I don’t think we plotted out a three-year arc that would uncover a secret, other than it seemed like although some of the fans had a hard time accepting that this could indeed be possible, it never seemed to us that it was a huge leap. And Dan was super pumped to do it, sort of like off to the races.

Why the decision to have Julia kiss Dixon? It felt as though she was instigating it.
PM: I think it’s incredibly attractive to have somebody attracted to you. And at certain times in your life, I think you just feel like you need that. Her views about lust versus love might be completely different than William’s. This might be water off a duck’s back to her. Or it might be something she’d never would have gone through with. I think, probably in my heart of hearts, that if it had have progressed much further, she probably would have said, ‘I can’t do this.’ But I don’t think she was opposed to a little first base action. I don’t think it makes her cruel. I mean I’ve already stated my case that I don’t think it makes her evil or unredeemable.

And I think if the fans were honest with themselves, I think they would admit to certain urges in their lives they may have had.

William hasn’t been the most attentive this season.
PM: I would also argue if I had to, it wouldn’t have mattered how well or poorly William had treated her. I don’t think it’s like a deficit on William’s character because Julia got momentarily interested in another guy. I don’t think it’s punishment, I don’t think it’s any of that stuff.

Regarding the 200th episode, was there a special kind of pressure that you felt as a showrunner and as a writer when you’re reached that landmark number?
PM: Oh yeah. Yeah, 200 was an opportunity to get some kind of oomph. And I think 200 was also significantly long enough to celebrate the show in its totality. So that’s why we wanted to have guest stars that spanned all the way back to the first season. We wanted to have shout-outs hidden in the script that referenced the balloon ride from like eight-gazillion years ago, the bellman from the honeymoon on the heels of the 100th episode.

We wanted to populate it with Easter eggs, and we wanted to sort of, as opposed to being sombre, or serious, or any of that shit, we just wanted to celebrate kind of the zaniness that Paul Aitken and the rest of the writers bring to the show, so we had a fucking death-ray. There was a lot of hat-tipping going on. And we just wanted to populate it with that other aspect of the Murdoch thing, the historical guest stars. Allow Murdoch to be surrounded by his peers, i.e. the smartest people in the world, which he is one.

Season 14 has not been announced. Anything you can tease in case it happens?
PM: The little tramp might make an appearance. Not Julia, but Charlie Chaplin. Hopefully the same as last year, and hopefully we’ll do it a little bit better.

 

What did you think of the Season 3 finale? Which storyline was your favourite of the whole season? Let me know in the comments section below!

Images courtesy of CBC.

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Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

CTV Life Channel whips up reboot of classic culinary series Cook Like a Chef

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From a media release:

This March, the masterclass is in session as CTV Life Channel enrolls Canada in the ultimate culinary emersion: the reboot of iconic series COOK LIKE A CHEF, Fridays at 8 p.m. ET, beginning March 6. Produced in partnership with Gusto Worldwide Media, the 20-episode, half-hour CTV Life Channel original shows viewers tricks of the trade from some of Canada’s best and brighest chefs.

The award-winning series that ran for 165 episodes from 2001-05 stays true to the original with modern updates including cutting-edge innovations, diverse cultural influences, and an all-new cast.

Bringing their varied culinary backgrounds to the table, COOK LIKE A CHEF’s four new hosts includes former personal chef to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and executive chef for the Beckta restaurant group, Chef Katie Ardington, and head chef of Montréal’s Maison Publique and former protégé of Jamie Oliver, Chef Derek Dammann. As well, Argentinian ONE WORLD KITCHEN host, Chef Natalia Machado, brings her unique flavour to the series, along with owner of Asian-Caribbean Toronto restaurant Patois, Chef Craig Wong. 

In each episode of COOK LIKE A CHEF, the expert chefs focus on a single ingredient and dive deep into cooking techniques, tips, and tricks that give any home cook confidence in the kitchen.

In the series premiere, “Duck ”, (Friday March 6 at 8 p.m. ET), Chef Craig Wong demonstrates techniques for preparing the perfect duck. Chef Wong first prepares the classic Peking Duck using unique techniques including blanching, basting, roasting, and frying. Other creations in this episode include a simple pan-seared Maple Duck Breast with Rosemary and a Jerked Duck Confit.

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Awards

And the Judy goes to … the full list of CAFTCAD 2020 Award winners

From a media release:

CAFTCAD is proud to announce the winners of the 2020 CAFTCAD Awards in Toronto.

Excellence in Crafts- Illustration
WINNER: Lemony Snicket: A Series of Unfortunate Events,
Season Three
Illustrator: Keith Lau

Excellence in Crafts- Textiles
WINNER: See, Season One
Key Breakdown Artist: Lanny Campbell, Key Assistant Breakdown Artists: Ellie Schultz, Samantha Stroman, Breakdown Artists: Carolyn Bentley, Ciara Brady, & Gaye (GG) Gardiner

Excellence in Building, Eastern Canada – Sponsored by NABET 700 Unifor
WINNER: Murdoch Mysteries Season 13
Cutter: Erika Fulop, Cutter & Sewer for Julia Ogden: Nona Prilipko, Stitchers: Mary Furlong & Sam Crossley, Milliner: Charlene Seniuk

Excellence in Crafts, Western Canada- Building
WINNER: See, Season One
Cutters: Kieu Nguyen, Tannis Hegan, Seamstresses: Ying Quan, Roma Wnuk, Renee Hope Twaddle

Costume Design in Short Film
WINNER: Liam and May
Costume Designer: Lara Berry
On Set Assistant: Yuliana Rubio

Costume Design in Web Series
WINNER: Devouring Dungeon: A One Hit Die Adventure, 303, Bag of Farts
Costume Designer: Odessa Bennett, Costume Designer: Ralamy Kneeshaw
Armourer: Andy Guba, Cutter: Ronda Borneman, Cutter: Ana Simões Marquer, Cutter: Jolane Houle, Set Supervisor: Hilary Boterman

Styling in Commercials & Music Videos – Sponsored by Berman & Co.
WINNER: Anthem “Conviction”
Costume Designer: Kristin Thurber
Assistant Designer: Magdalena Shenher, Coordinator: Sabina Bullard. Head Cutter: Devon Halfnight Lefluffy, Cutter: Gina Hopkins, Stitchers: Vanessa Palmer, Charlotte Chang, Andrea Macdonald & Ashandra Soleil Block, Hero Builder: Salem Taylor, Scar Builders: Jessica Pantella & Dylan Gilbert Lad, Breakdown Key: Christina Simpkin, Breakdown Assist: Veronica Lepik, Leather Worker Key: Richard Wasnock, Work Room Assistant: Rebecca Phillip

Costume Design in Indie Feature – Sponsored by IATSE 891
WINNER: The Incredible 25th Year of Mitzi Bearclaw
Costume Designer: Adriana Fulop
Costume Assistant/Set Supervisor: Vanessa Young, Set Supervisor: Alisha Robinson, Costume Daily: Morgan Penney

Costume Design in TV – Contemporary- Sponsored by IATSE 873
WINNER: Baroness Von Sketch, 401, Humanity is in an Awkward Stage
Costume Designer: Nicole Manek
Assistant Designer: Elise Taylor, Set Supervisor: Delaney Hicock, Truck Supervisor: Aleksia Pavlovic, Buyer/Set Assistant: Gwyneth Barton, Seamstress: Melinda Dempster

Costume Design in TV – Period – Sponsored by IATSE 873
WINNER: The Terror, 206, Taizo
Costume Designer: Tish Monaghan
Assistant Designers: Kenichi Tanaka, Jaida Hay & Takashi (Ash) Bernhardt, Costume Supervisor: Janice Swaze, Costume Coordinator: Kyla Nesbitt, BG Costume Coordinator: Debbie Geaghan, Set Supervisor: Denise Barrett, Truck Costumer: Christina Petford, Key Breakdown Artist: Sharon Fauvel, Breakdown Artists: Katy Johnson & Jim Campbell,Cutters: Rosalie Lee & Elizabeth Raap-Walski, Shoppers/Prep Costumers: Colette Storey & Suzette Soloman, BG Set Supervisor: Katie Johnson, BG Truck Costumer: Maxine Siperko, Prep Costumers: Stephanie Nolan, Sheila Bingham & Emily Laing, Seamstresses: Patrice Yapp, Anna Postawski, Petra Wright, Jillian Little, 7 Sula Salampassis, Kimono Tech: Fumiko Horan

Costume Design in TV- Sci-Fi/Fantasy – Sponsored by IATSE 873
WINNER: Lemony Snicket: A Series of Unfortunate Events, 306,
The Penultimate Peril
Costume Designer: Cynthia Summers
Assistant Designers: Phoebe Parsons & Kelsey Chobotar, Costume Coordinator: Courtney Mckenzie & Lorelei Burk, BG Coordinator: Deanna Palkowski, Illustrator: Keith Lau, Prep Costumer: Madeleine Mckibbon, Natalie Mason, Eli Finley, Marcia Mior, Natasha DeFazio & Miel Nicholson, Background Costumer: Natalina Sabathil, Key Breakdown Artist: Sage Lovett, Breakdown Artists: Chance Lovett, Brittany Morrow, Shelby Page & Alissa Luxford, Head Cutter: Devon Halfnight LeFluffy, Assistant Head Cutter: Norma Bowen, Seamstresses: Lisa Truong, Vina Guigcangco, Anna Postawski, Helena Prentice, Chelsea Murray, Sahar Eslami & Alina Babii, Set Supervisor: Steve Holloway, Truck Costumer: Sanchia Wong, Set Costumer: Steve Oben, BG Set Supervisor: Deanna Palkowski, Costumer: Carmen Bonzelius, BG Truck Costumer: Chloe Sonnenfeld, 2nd Unit Set Supervisor: Magdalena Shenher

Costume Design in Film – Contemporary – Sponsored by IATSE 891
WINNER: Ready or Not
Costume Designer: Avery Plewes
Assistant Costume Designer: Heather Crepp, Set Supervisor: Joey Watson, Truck Supervisor: Anita Schspansky, Breakdown Artist: Alex Kavanagh

Costume Design in Film – Period – Sponsored by IATSE 891
WINNER: The Lighthouse
Costume Designer: Linda Muir,
Managing Director, Seamless Costumes: Kelly Sullivan
Tailor: Marvin Schlichting, Tailor’s Assistant: Stefan Dean Stitchers: Nancy Allen, Lori Bond, Angela Colburne, Monique MacNeill, Leanne Reimer, Lynette Schlichting & Raelene Worthington, Milner: Julie Munson, Bootmaker: Jitterbug Boy, Aging/ Breakdown: Sue Willis, Alima Meyboom, Knitter: Laurie Krempien-Hall, Set Supervisor: Bethana Briffett, Truck Supervisor: Rachael Grant

Nobis Industry Icon
Juul Haalmeyer

Costume Design in Film – International
WINNER: The Song of Names
Costume Designer: Anne Dixon
Assistant Designers: Anna Dal Farra & Clarke Stanley,
Costume Supervisors: Heather Leat, Sosa Juristovszky & Madeleine Tremblay

Costume Design in TV International
WINNER: Daybreak, 107, Canta Tu Vida
Costume Designer: Michael Ground, Assistant Costume Designers: Maria Tortu & Suzanne Barnes, Costume Supervisor: Danny Vick, Head Ager Dyer: Wynema Chavez, Head Cutter: Aura Sperling.

The show was directed by Liz Whitmere and written by Cynthia Amsden. Music composed by Gary Grant, lyrics by Cynthia Amsden. The hosts were Aurora Browne and Jennifer Whalen. Presenters were CBC’s Angeline Tetteh-Wayoe, Toronto Life Fashion’s Odessa Paloma Parker, actors Helene Joy, Lauren Lee Smith, Dewshane Williams, Shanice Banton, Steven McCarthy, Rachel Ancheril, and Salvatore Antonio, fashion bloggers Cailli & Sam Beckerman, and Drag Queens Priyanka Love and Helena Poison. DJ Salazar Solomon performed during the party.

The 2020 CAFTCAD Awards is sponsored by DIAMOND: IATSE 873; IATSE 891. LEGACY Sponsor: Nobis. RUBY: NABET 700-M UNIFOR; Berman & Company. SAPPHIRE: City of Toronto. JADE: Grand Costumier; Canada Life; Sync On Set; IATSE 856. OPAL: Platis Drycleaners; Mokuba; Cactus Sewing Studio; IATSE 634; William F White; Sassoon Salon.

ABOUT CAFTCAD and the CAFTCAD Awards
For over a decade, the Canadian Alliance of Film and Television Costume Arts and Design (CAFTCAD) has brought together Canadian costume professionals from all corners of the industry, regardless of union affiliation. The founders of this Alliance understood that Canadian costumers would be stronger together than individually. The CAFTCAD Awards, which held its inaugural event in 2019, was the culmination of these efforts to bring the costuming community together, recognize and reward talent, and usher CAFTCAD onto the world stage.

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