Hart Hanson
“Showrunners” is the first ever feature length documentary film to explore the fascinating world of US television showrunners and the creative forces aligned around them. These are the people responsible for creating, writing and overseeing every element of production on one of the United State’s biggest exports – television drama and comedy series. Often described as the most complex job in the entertainment business, a showrunner is the chief writer / producer on a TV series and, in most instances, the show’s creator. Battling daily between art and commerce, showrunners manage every aspect of a TV show’s development and production: creative, financial and logistical.
Walter Sherman, an Iraq War veteran, has the extraordinary ability to help people find the unfindable.
Cold Squad is a Canadian police procedural television series first broadcast in 1998 that followed the investigations of a part of the Vancouver Police Department Homicide Division tasked with solving cold cases, the titular Cold Squad, as led by Sergeant Ali McCormick. The cast of Cold Squad was diverse and changing, McCormick being the only character to appear in all 7 seasons. Some notable series regulars include Detective Tony Logozzo in seasons 1-2, Sgt. Frank Coscarella in seasons 3-4, Sgt. Len Harper in seasons 5-7, Insp. Vince Schneider season 1, Insp. Simon Ross season 2, Insp. Andrew Pawlachuk seasons 3-7, Det. Mickey Kollander seasons 3-6, Det. Nicco Sevallis seasons 3-6, Christine Wren seasons 4-7, as well as Det. Samantha Walters and Const. Ray Chase in season 7. Between the second and third seasons, almost the entire on-screen cast other than Julie Stewart were replaced. This along with the new sets, a significant revamp of the credits and theme music, and even having McCormick's hair change from auburn to dirty-blonde all contributed to a considerable reworking of the series.
Poltergeist: The Legacy is a Canadian horror television series which ran from 1996 to 1999. The series tells the story of the members of a secret society known as the Legacy and their efforts to protect humankind from occult dangers. Despite bearing the Poltergeist name, there is no real connection between the show and the Poltergeist trilogy aside from the title. Poltergeist: The Legacy debuted on Showtime, and all first-run episodes of the first three seasons premiered on that network, though they were later syndicated. After the third season, Showtime cancelled the show, and the rights were purchased by Sci Fi Channel which continued the series for another season. This same pattern was followed by Stargate SG-1, which also debuted on Showtime, was also sold into syndication, and was rescued from cancellation by Sci Fi. The fourth season of Poltergeist: The Legacy featured an episode starring WWE wrestler The Undertaker as a being from Hell who collected souls, a deliberate crossover with RAW, which was also airing on the USA Network at the time and earning the network some of the highest ratings on cable TV. It was hoped that this cameo would help boost awareness of the new show, and thus generate a larger audience.
The Odyssey is a Canadian-produced half-hour adventure-fantasy television series for children, originally broadcast 1992-94 on CBC Television. It starred Illya Woloshyn as Jay Ziegler, Ashleigh Aston Moore as Donna/Alpha, Tony Sampson as Keith/Flash, Andrea Nemeth as Medea/Sierra Jones, Mark Hildreth as Finger, Ryan Reynolds as Macro, Janet Hodgkinson as Val Ziegler, and Devon Sawa as Yudo.
North of 60 is a mid-1990s Canadian television series depicting life in the sub-Arctic northern boreal forest. It first aired on CBC Television in 1992 and was syndicated around the world. It is set in the fictional community of Lynx River, a primarily Native-run town depicted as being in the Dehcho Region, Northwest Territories. Most of the characters were Dene. Some non-native characters had important roles: the restaurant/motel owner, the band manager, the nurse and the town's main RCMP officer. The show explored themes of Native poverty, alcoholism, cultural preservation and conflict over land settlements and natural resource exploitation. Originally somewhat light-hearted, it quickly became a more dramatic and ponderous series.
Fly by Night is a Canadian adventure series co-produced by France, Canada and The United States that aired for one season in 1991 and was part of CBS' Crimetime After Primetime in the United States. The show stars David James Elliott as Mack, François Guétary as Jean-Philippe Pasteur, both pilots for a small time airline "Slick Air" owned by Sally Slick.
