Paramount+ today announced a Canadian content strategy in development, commissioned features and acquired programming. Announced at the BANFF World Media Festival, the slate includes an impressive roster of critically acclaimed Canadian series and features, including a Paramount+ Original documentary and four new development projects in partnership with some of the best and most diverse creators in the country.
“Paramount+ is known for content that is entertaining. Our strategy includes partnering with the most exciting creators in the country, like we did with this first slate of projects,” said Katrina Kowalski, Vice President, Content, Paramount+ and Pluto TV Canada. “Storytelling captures viewers’ hearts and minds, and Paramount+ in Canada is proud to be working with local partners who are just as passionate as we are.”
“We are proud of today’s announcement which is the result of thoughtful dialog with the Canadian production community. Paramount Streaming has a robust team of Canadians working directly on the business; we know this is the key to our success in the market, and we are proud to give the Canadian creative community an opportunity to shine both at home and around the world,” said Doug Smith, SVP Streaming & Content Licensing, Canada, Paramount Global.
Paramount+ Canadian Series in Development
HATE THE PLAYER: THE BEN JOHNSON STORY
A scripted comedy about the scandal behind the scandal that brought the “world’s fastest man” from hero to zero in 9.79 seconds. From writer Anthony Q Farrell (The Office U.S.) and award-winning producers New Metric Media (Letterkenny).
LEN & CUB
Based on a true story, this limited six-part series dramatizes the secret relationship of two young men in rural 20th-century New Brunswick whose story came to light when a box of photos was recently discovered in an estate sale. From writer Lynne Kamm and producers Muse Entertainment and Elliot Page’s Page Boy Productions.
CARPE DEMON
A one-hour genre series, based on the best-selling book series by Julie Kenner, about a frazzled suburban mom with a loving husband, two kids and one massive secret: she used to be a Demon Hunter. Out of practice and overwhelmed, she has no choice but to get back in the game when her supernatural past comes calling from award-winning showrunner Emily Andras (Wynonna Earp, Lost Girl) and producers December Films, Cineflix Studios, Gina Marcheschi and Jon Brown.
THEY DRIVE AT NIGHT
A dark comedy genre series about two best friends, a vampire and a werewolf, on a road trip across Canada. Written by Emmy Award winner Craig Wallace (Murdoch Mysteries, Todd & The Book of Pure Evil) and producers Black Birds Entertainment.
Paramount+ Original Documentary 500 DAYS IN THE WILD – Paramount+ Original
Fall 2023
Award-winning documentary filmmaker Dianne Whelan (This Land, 40 Days at Basecamp) recorded a solo self-recorded journey travelling across Canada in 2015. She began her trek feeling disillusioned with the state of the world, but six years and 28,000 km later she arrived back in Victoria, BC, feeling wiser, more hopeful, in love and with a passion to share her remarkable journey. Produced by Betsy Carson with Executive Producers Christine Haebler and Dianne Whelan for Rebel Sisters Productions and distributed in Canada by Elevation Pictures.
Produced in Association with Paramount+
THE BOY IN THE WOODS
The remarkable true-life survival story of a Jewish boy hiding and being hunted in the forests of Nazi-occupied Eastern Europe. Based on the memoir The Boy In The Woods by Maxwell Smart. The film is produced by Lumanity Productions and JoBro Productions and distributed by Photon Films.
Paramount+ Canadian Acquisitions
Today’s announcement comes on the heels of Paramount+’s ongoing investments in best-in-class content and promotion for its Canadian catalogue. Recently, Paramount+ invested in marketing and publicity for acquired Canadian content such as the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) Documentary Anything For Fame and the CSA nominated NEVER SEEN AGAIN from Efran Films.
Paramount+ has also acquired Canadian feature films:
2023
Midnight At The Paradise
Three couples at different stages of their relationships come to appreciate that any marriage requires equal doses of delusion, forgiveness, laughter, and sexual chemistry.
Director: Vanessa Matsui
Cast: Liane Balaban; Kenneth Welsh; Allan Hawco; Kate Trotter
Genre: Drama, Romance
Running Time: 94 mins
Studio: LevelFILM
Trailer: https://youtu.be/DGpgYUOxukc
2024
All The Lost Ones
A future civil war is sparked by government-imposed measures due to climate change. Nia, her sister Penny, and her boyfriend Ethan are hiding out when a militia leader and his followers arrive on their doorstep.
Director: Mackenzie Donaldson
Cast: Lochlyn Munro; Devon Sawa; Jasmine Mathews; Steven Ogg
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Studio: LevelFILM
Café Daughter
Based on the Kenneth T. Williams play of the same name and inspired by true events, CAFE DAUGHTER is a coming-of-age story about a young Chinese-Cree girl in Saskatchewan who begins to embrace her Cree identity after a family tragedy.
Director: Niro
Cast: Violah Beauvais; Star Slade; Tom Lim; Sera-Lys McArthur; Evan Lau; Billy Merasty; Demaris Moon Walker
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Studio: Circle Blue Entertainment
Orah
ORAH, a Nigerian immigrant taxi driver in Toronto, agrees to launder dirty money for her boss in exchange for bringing her son over from Nigeria. When the plan goes horribly wrong, Orah takes matters into her own hands to settle the score.
Director: Lonzo Nzekwe
Cast: Oyin Oladejo; Lucky Ejim; Morgan Bedard; Agape Mngomezulu
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Studio: Circle Blue Entertainment
Who’s Yer Father?
Follows a small-town private investigator as he investigates the sale of black market lobster in Prince Edward Island along with a scrappy convenience store owner.
Director: Jeremy Larter
Cast: Chris Locke; Susan Kent; Jess Salgueiro; Matt Wells
Genre: Comedy
Studio: LevelFILM
The End Of Sex
A couple feeling the pressures of parenting and adulthood, send their kids to winter camp for the first time and embark on a series of sexual adventures to reinvigorate their relationship.
Director: Sean Garrity
Cast: Emily Hampshire; Jonas Chernick; Melanie Scrofano; Gray Powell; Lily Gao
Genre: Comedy, Romance
Studio: Vortex Productions
By the end of this year, Paramount+ will have acquired hundreds of hours of Canadian content from numerous partners including those noted above as well as Elevation Pictures, Mongrel Media, Sphere Films and Blue Ant Media. A selection of those titles currently streaming on the service include Paramount+ Original series NEVER SEEN AGAIN and FBI: TRUE as well as PAW PATROL and films Away from Her (available July 1), Aline, Kayak to Klemtu and PAW PATROL: THE MOVIE.
The Paramount owned streamer’s expanded Canadian content offering complements the company’s existing expansive Canadian content lineup on its FAST service in the market, Pluto TV. Currently Pluto TV offers 45 dedicated Canadian channels spanning different genres including Home + DIY, Food, Kids, Factual and News through its ad sales and content partnership with Corus Entertainment Inc., based in Toronto. In addition, in February Pluto TV in Canada had the Worldwide premiere of Canadian FAST Channel Out TV Proud and also launched the Blue Ant Media-owned channels HauntTV, Crimetime, HistoryTime and Homeful. In March the service debuted The Weather Network’s new FAST Channel.
On July 1, three additional channels will join the Pluto TV family. Truly Canadian, which will highlight Canadian-produced scripted series such as Little Mosque on the Prairie, Edgemont and Arctic Air and Pluto TV Documentaries which will include NFB documentaries and films that have been featured at Hot Docs such as Canadian-produced When Jews Were Funny by Alan Zweig and Randy Bachman’s Vinyl Tap: Every Song Tells a Story. On July 1, Pluto TV will also launch The Red Green Show Channel.
About Paramount+
Paramount+ is a global digital subscription video streaming service from Paramount that features a mountain of premium entertainment for audiences of all ages. Internationally, the streaming service features an expansive library of original series, hit shows and popular movies across every genre from world-renowned brands and production studios, including SHOWTIME®, CBS, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures and the Smithsonian Channel™, in addition to a robust offering of premier local content. The service is currently live in the U.S., the U.K., Canada, Latin America, the Caribbean, Australia, Italy, Ireland and South Korea.
SOURCE Paramount+ (Canada)
https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/paramount-announces-first-canadian-development-slate-commissioned-canadian-documentary-and-investment-in-acquired-canadian-series-and-films-894931058.html