TV & Film News – ETALK takes digital-first approach to 94th Oscars coverage

ETALK is gearing up for coverage of the 94th Oscars on Sunday, taking a digital-first approach, with interviews posted in real-time to Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and YouTube. ETALK Previews The Oscars airs Sunday at 5:30 p.m. ET on CTV, followed by the Oscar Red Carpet Show at 6:30 p.m. ET, and the main awards show at 8 p.m. ET, hosted by Regina Hall, Amy Schumer and Wanda Sykes. Following the Oscars, ETALK’s coverage continues with a closer look at the night’s viral moments and coverage from the after parties, including the Governors Ball, and Vanity Fair Party, Elton John’s annual post-Oscars event, and more. Denis Villeneuve’s Dune leads the Canadian-helmed productions going into the awards with nominations.

Skydance Animation has announced a multi-year agreement with Spin Master, to become the studio’s master toy licensee. The first feature property included under the pact is Apple Original Spellbound, which will debut globally on Apple TV+. With studios in Los Angeles, Silicon Valley, Spain and Canada, Skydance first launched in 2010 with feature films and has since strategically expanded to television, interactive, animation, new media and sports. Its films include The Adam Project, which recently debuted at #1 on Netflix; The Tomorrow War on Amazon Prime; as well as the The Old Guard on Netflix. The studio’s upcoming film slate includes Top Gun: Maverick, The Greatest Beer Run Ever, Ghosted, Heart of Stone, and the seventh and eighth instalments of the Mission: Impossible global franchise.

Telefilm Canada is relaunching the Marketing Program for fiscal 2022-23 with updated guidelines. The program is for Canadian distribution and production companies seeking financial support for the marketing and distribution of their feature film project(s). Canadian distribution companies seeking to be recognized as eligible distributors under other Telefilm programs may also apply. Among changes to the program, which opens April 18, are a requirement for a community engagement plan for all projects that have not been funded by Telefilm in production. The administration fees cap has also been increased to 20% (up to $30,000).

Robert Herjavec will return for Season 17 of Dragons’ Den after a decade away from the show. One of the founding Dragons, Herjavec rose to investor fame over six seasons on CBC before going on to become one of the founding Sharks on ABC’s Shark Tank. Herjavec will join fellow Dragon investors Arlene Dickinson, Michele Romanow, Manjit Minhas, Vincenzo Guzzo and Wes Hall. In addition to his work on television, Herjavec is a cybersecurity expert and has served as an advisor to the Government of Canada, participated in the White House Summit on Cybersecurity and is a member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Task Force for Cybersecurity. Production on Season 17 of Dragons’ Den will begin later this spring in Toronto. 

The Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (CARAS) and CBC have announced that Arcade Fire will perform at The 2022 JUNO Awards Broadcast. The band returns to the JUNO stage for the first time since the 2018 awards, performing material off their upcoming album, WE. The first in-person iteration of the show since 2019, this year’s event will be held at Budweiser Stage in Toronto, on Sunday, May 15, broadcast and streamed live across Canada at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on CBC TV, CBC Gem, CBC Radio One, CBC Music, CBC Listen, and globally at CBCMusic.ca/junos and CBC Music’s Facebook, YouTube and Twitter pages.

Revenge of the Black Best Friend begins streaming March 31 on CBC Gem. Co-written and produced by CBC personality Amanda Parris, the irreverent six-part satirical series stars Oluniké Adeliyi (The Porter) and Toronto spoken word/hip hop artist Motion “Wendy” Braithwaite (Akillah’s Escape, Coroner). Inspired in part by Robert Townsend’s 1987 satire Hollywood Shuffle, the series follows Dr. Toni Shakur, a self-help guru whose singular mission is to cancel the entertainment industry’s reliance on token Black characters before she gets cancelled herself. 

Cottage Life’s new original investigative series Mysteries from Above (10×60’; HD) explores remote, hard-to-reach locations via drones, looking at strange geological occurrences, unique man-made structures, curious creatures and lost civilizations. Each episode features analysis and narration from experts including George Kourounis, Explorer-in-Residence for the Royal Canadian Geographical Society. The world broadcast premiere airs March 27 on Cottage Life during the channel’s eight-week free preview event.

VisionTV has acquired Canadian broadcast rights to Servant of the People, the hit political satire series that launched the real-life political career of creator and star Volodymyr Zelensky, President of Ukraine. The sitcom about a high school teacher whose smartphone-captured rant against government corruption goes viral and unexpectedly catapults him into the public eye. Servant of the People premiered in 2015 and ran for three seasons, ending when Zelenskyy launched his run for president in 2019. VisionTV will premiere the series in April in the original Ukrainian with English subtitles.

The Toronto Blue Jays on Sportsnet season gets underway Friday, April 8 with a long-awaited Opening Night vs. Texas Rangers at Rogers Centre. Coverage begins at 5 p.m. ET / 2 p.m. PT with a special edition of Tim & Friends with host Tim Micallef from the third-base line, followed by a one-hour edition of Blue Jays Central with Jamie Campbell and Joe Siddall on Sportsnet and SN NOW. On radio, Opening Night kicks off with The FAN Drive Time with Ben Ennis and Stephen Brunt at 5 p.m. ET across the Sportsnet Radio Network, followed by live game coverage from Toronto at 7 p.m. ET. On TV and streaming platforms, Dan Shulman, Buck Martinez and Pat Tabler share play-by-play and analysis for all Sportsnet broadcasts through the regular season. Reporters Arash Madani and Hazel Mae will deliver the latest from the clubhouse and dugout. On Radio, Ben Wagner is back behind the mic to deliver the play-by-play call across the Sportsnet Radio Network. 

Sportsnet and Canada Basketball have unveiled plans to launch GLOBL JAM, a first-of-its-kind international basketball showcase in Canada. Set to take place in Toronto, July 5-10, GLOBL JAM will feature women’s and men’s teams from around the world competing in an Under-23 tournament live at Mattamy Athletic Centre and broadcast nationally on Sportsnet. It will also include festivities at Yonge-Dundas Square, as well as play host to the Canada Basketball 3×3 National Championships. Sportsnet will serve as the exclusive broadcaster with coverage details to be announced at a later date.

Crave’s roster of original stand-up specials expands this spring with the premiere of seven new comedy specials. They kick off, starting April 15, with a one-hour special from Paul Rabliauskas, the co-creator and star of upcoming CTV Comedy Channel series Acting Good. Filmed in front of a live audience during the 2021 Just For Laughs Festival in Montréal, a new special will premiere every month on Crave, including: Chris Locke: Captain Bones; Chris Robinson: Panning For Gold; Dave Merheje: I Love You Habibi; Kyle Brownrigg: Introducing Lyle; Sophie Buddle: Smile Baby; and The Deanne Smith Experience. Crave has now produced 17 original stand-up specials with Just For Laughs since 2017.

Hollywood Suite will begin airing Canneseries 2021 Dior Grand Prize and Best Screenplay winner The Allegation, starting April 7. The seven-part German legal thriller will premiere with back-to-back episodes, with new episodes airing weekly throughout April. Viewers can also catch the series on Hollywood Suite On Demand, starting April 1. Conceived by German criminal lawyer turned best-selling author Ferdinand Von Schirach, The Allegation is inspired by the true story of a child sex abuse scandal that rocked the German legal system in the 1990s. 

The Banff World Media Festival (BANFF) has announced that Bela Bajaria, Head of Global TV for Netflix and David Linde, CEO of Participant, have joined this year’s Summit Series keynotes, its premium speaker lineup featuring influential media leaders. The 43rd edition of the festival will take place in-person June 12-15, 2022 at the Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel. Find more info on this year’s programming here.

CaribbeanTales has launched the first cohort of the CaribbeanTales Black Incubator and Studio Access Project (CTBISAP). Supported by a $648,000 Government of Canada investment through the Black Entrepreneurship Program (BEP) Ecosystem Fund, the program will provide opportunities for Black Canadian filmmakers to access training and mentorship opportunities that will support their success as Black entrepreneurs in the Canadian media industry. Read more about the cohort here.