Podcasts - The Canadian Crew

A character drama disguised as a procedural, Prodigals gives a fresh coat of paint to the proverbial return to the hometown. There are no plain heroes and villains in this story, just a group of people struggling to keep their head above water. Friendships have grown complicated by familiarity, resentment, and lies. A lot of lies. Prodigals was directed by Michelle Ouellet and written by Nicholas Carella, who also co-stars. The Canadian Crew talked at length with Michelle and Nick. We discussed the challenges of juggling multiple roles on set, how to make BC look like Northern Ontario, and how to best use screen testing to improve your film.

Interior British Columbia is having a moment. Two indie thrillers shot in sleepy communities east of Vancouver are hitting the screen this winter. Sweet Virginia, filmed in Hope, and Hollow in the Land, shot in Castelgar. The director of the latter, Scooter Corkle, grew up in the Kootenays, and used his inside knowledge to capture the milieu of the area. The setting gives the movie a realistic vibe and a degree of freshness. It's also a reminder that the BC tax credit works all the same within and outside Vancouver. The Canadian Crew talked at length with Scooter Corkle. We discussed the casting of Dianna Agron -understated and superb as the lead-, the challenges of shooting in Castelgar, and his other project, currently shaping up across the border. 

A month has passed since the Toronto International Film Festival. At least in the Canadian front, the 42nd edition of TIFF gave a fresh and diverse crop of filmmakers a chance to showcase their work. Steve Gravestock was directly involved in the selection of these movies. Alongside Magali Simard, Gravestock is the festival’s senior Canadian programmer and has been involved with TIFF for most of his professional life. We talked with Steve about trends in Canadian cinema, best practices for festival hopefuls, and the most interesting Canadian voices out there today.

A new edition of the HotDocs Film Festival is upon us. This year's affair includes 230 features from 58 countries, among them, films by Joe Berlinger, Alex Gibney and Nick Broomfield. Ahead of the event, The Canadian Crew had the opportunity to talk with the festival’s Canadian programmer, Aisha Jamal. We discussed selection criteria, common mistakes and how to capture a programmer’s attention.

The Canadian Crew talks to the director of Window Horses, Ann Marie Fleming, who discusses the story’s long road to the big screen and how Sandra Oh was crucial for the movie to materialize.

The Other Half is an intense drama starring Tom Cullen and Tatiana Maslany that follows two damaged people as they find their way to each other: One is a surly expat grief-stricken over his brother’s disappearance. The other one is a bipolar artist as compelling as troubled. Despite a number of red flags, the two embark in a codependent relationship more resilient than anybody could have anticipated. The Other Half is a ballsy film: It remains true to its characters, as difficult as they are. It nails bipolar disorder by keeping it grounded and renouncing to the hysterics American movies tend to use when depicting the condition. The Other Half is Joey Klein first feature as writer/director. Up to now Klein was better known as a character actor. You may remember him for his stint as Dr. Jonathan Lyle in the CBC series This Life. The Canadian Crew talked to Joey Klein about the film and how he convinced the very accomplished cast (including Maslany, Cullen, Henry Czerny and Suzanne Clément) to join him in this effort.

Ashley McKenzie, the director of the film festival sensation Werewolf joins us at The Canadian Crew to discuss the harrowing drama and making movies in Cape Breton.

Hannibal's food consultant, Janice Poon, joins us in this week's edition on The Canadian Crew Podcast. Poon discusses her career, her experience on set, how food presentation became a staple on the show and whether she'll pop up again in another Bryan Fuller show.

The director and the lead actor of Closet Monster visit The Canadian Crew Podcast this week. Stephen Dunn and Connor Jessup discuss the challenges of tackling a coming-of-age story with surrealistic undertones and psychological baggage. Closet Monster is now playing in Toronto, and opens on July 22nd in Vancouver, St. John and Halifax.

The director of the documentary The Missing Ingredient: What Is the Recipe for Success, Michael Sparaga joins us in a new edition of The Canadian Crew podcast. Not long ago a producer and scriptwriter of fiction (Servitude, Sidekick), Sparaga has veered into documentary filmmaking. We talk about restaurants, wallpaper and how fandom is now more powerful than ever.

The writer-director of the superb Quebecois drama Les Étres Chers (Our Loved Ones), Anne Émond, visits The Canadian Crew podcast. We discuss how to get a complex family drama off the ground, distribution woes and her upcoming film, Nelly, already in post-production.

Siren Jorgensøn considering her options in Revenge (Hevn). The director of the Canadian-Norwegian coproduction Revenge (Hevn), Kjersti Steinsbø, is the first guest of The Canadian Crew podcast. Revenge opens today at the TIFF Bell Lightbox and expands to Vancouver next June 3rd.