The talent is here to make a good show, but no ones commissioning them. For example, I dont really see the point of a Canadian making a cop show. How is that going to illuminate the Canadian culture?-- Jeremy Podeswa Try sharing this thought if you havent a shit show or two under your belt... One of the saddest (d)evolutions in Canadian television stems from the same, age-old, systemic cultural impediments-- dont take risks and dont discover talent. Although the internationally recognized criteria for considering a writers craft may be that a true writer can hop genres, can cross over from one medium to another, can bring a rich full life experience to a writers room, here-- if you dont get whats supposedly hot right now and have not always already been involved-- you are labelled inexperienced. Those inherent qualifications honoured almost everywhere else on this globe are muted here or, simply-- and quite stubbornly--, ignored. Indeed, I have even known a few prose writers who have needed to apply to our Canadian Film Centre to learn the craft! Hell, can someone who has written many books (or even one) not be trained on the job? I think they can write. Send them home with a few scripts, the shows bible and a ripped DVD. But it isnt that television shows here want, as part of their production team, writers per se; instead, in an unbelievably insecure relationship with the broadcasters, producers actually want--well, what do they want?-- they want a room filled with sort of copywriters, who might pretend along with everyone else in the room about the potential products *possible* niche. It is a cowardly plug n play environment perpetually stuck in mediocrity and far too timid to take risks with creative beginnings. (And I know they all work very hard. See below) We now have this implicit, shameful agreement between funders, broadcasters and production houses that what shows received money last year must be replicated. If the tone of this sounds familiar, namely in this last sentence-- it is because it rings familiar as cronyism, a natural consequence of the same safe players owning the field. And dont think this is just part of English-Canadian television writing and development: this is a repressive marvel in so much of the arts (look to your English-Canadian TV shows to see the same actors hired over and over again, for example, or the same group of visual artists in the same galleries etc.). And, most pointedly-- and very protestant Canadian is this last consideration-- the most honoured quality of any participant in Canadian TV *and* film is encapsulated in the adage that experience is the only and best gauge of truth. We live in a cold (metaphor, people) and, perhaps consequently, weirdly solid culture here in English-Canada (see Atwoods Survival and Fryes The Bush Garden-- Im sure as Canadian writers, you have read both) that depends far more on antiquated, egalitarian ideas about work ethic than any creative risk-taking. The latter throws truth and tradition to the wind. Were good little workers, folks, and thats what is honoured. If you havent had your break its only because you havent worked hard enough. No one will say it, but I know: Ive lived it firsthand. Its your resume, like any other job. But its just not the way with every creative enterprise. Its just not. I have been pitched fabulous scripts through the years and my heart sinks. They cant get made. Theres no room for the new. And nothing can change until risk-taking is funded. Sadly, we just dont do that here. We pretend we do. You want new, exciting television-- go south. (And now, like a true hoser, my apologetic list of English-Canadian exceptions (and I dont even watch some of these): Orphan Black Call Me Fitz Heartland Murdoch Mysteries (ugh) Motive (Gavin Crawfords Wild West)-- ya just gotta read about this limbo project! It may get reconsidered in 2014. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gavin_Crawfords_Wild_West) And again: The talent is here to make a good show, but no ones commissioning them. Okay, my fellow #WGC scribes, lemme have it...its the Canadian way.
Posted on: Mon, 24 Mar 2014 18:32:17 +0000
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