Mercer and Ignatieff Moving In

I was kind of bummed that I missed the Rick Mercer Report on TV last night. Fortunately, Michael Ignatieff tweeted the link today. Here it is: Rick Mercer helps Michael Ignatieff move into Stornoway. And here's a link to Rick's website and blog. Now maybe he can help Stephen Harper with the budget.

Being Erica.

I have about 3 seconds to write this blog post as I am on my way to further punish my body pilates, but I thought it worth mentioning, mainly because it's brand new so you can still get in at the beginning, that I really like the CBC's Being Erica. Maybe it's just that I relate. But I actually think it's one of the more interesting ideas I've seen recently. And I like her. There's also a blog, which I have not yet had a chance to read. It's on CBC at 9 on Mondays. Let me know what you think!

Not only is it my generation, but apparently my classmates...

I may have, at some point, mentioned my distaste for reality television and how I think it is destroying our culture and our minds. I'm sure I could go on about it ad nauseum but, frankly, I have more important things to do today. I will, however, note that MTV has begun their onslaught of "reality" fodder, premiering both The City and Bromance. Neither of which I will be watching. The reason I am even bringing this up is that it came up somewhere in my Google Reader this morning and I realized that I actually know one of the girls on The City, Erin. She lived down the hall from me my first year at university and I was friends with her roommate. Small world, I suppose. And sad world. I don't know her well at all and I haven't seen her in a few years, but she was always nice enough to me and she seemed reasonably intelligent. At least, intelligent enough to get that this is probably not a great idea. I am sick to death of people who are famous for nothing. What happened to the time when we admired people with talent, courage, charisma, perseverance, or any other redeeming quality?

On a more positive note, welcome to my new (and first) blog follower! Nice to have you...

Why Won't "Reality" Television Die?

MTV has just announced that they have 16 new reality shows in the works. 16?! Apparently ratings have slipped (or tumbled) causing them to rethink their programming choices to hold on to that coveted youth demographic.


But, here's the thing, I am not an effing demographic. And I, frankly, cannot deal with anymore mindless MTV drivel being paraded around like content. Nor do we need anymore Speidis or Hiltons, people with no real talents who are famous for nothing. We're not talking about the competition shows, either, like American Idol or So You Think You Can Dance? or Top Chef or whatever else where the contestants actually have to do something (not that those are all good shows, but at least they have to do something other than shop and party). We're talking about The Hills or Real Housewives or any other show that follows random people around with cameras and attempts to sell it as "reality" after editing it down to 22 episodes that resemble poorly scripted melodramas. And it isn't a documentary even if it has the production values of one; very little of it, if any, nowadays is at all enlightening or insightful. Newsflash: this kind of programming is no more "reality" than scripted television, this just means they don't have to pay writers. Which is why it continues to exist: "Reality" television is cheaper to produce. Plain and simple. Rebel, I say!

And, meanwhile, it is contributing to the dumbing down of my generation. Plus, it takes away jobs from our creative classes--writers. directors, actors, etc. Is mindlessness really what we need in the world right now? Or couldn't we argue that this is the kind of thing that helped get us to where we are now (big, messy, undeclared war, global recession, tanking economy, bickering politicians, etc)? We need some intelligence on our screens and some responsibility from those giant corporate networks. Or we need to turn the TVs off, which is still not the right route to go because there is some interesting work being done there. Maybe we all need to take a step back and reassess our values.

And this is my rant for today.

Wouldn't this kind of turn-around be nice?

The former star of the recently canceled, critically acclaimed Pushing Daisies, the lovely Kristen Chenoweth, has already signed on to another project! That took all of about 2.5 seconds. Chenoweth is set to star in Legally Mad, David E. Kelley's new legal drama. It is being produced by Warner Bros. Set in a Chicago law firm, it follows Skippy (Chenoweth) "a cheerful and brilliant attorney who nonetheless exhibits flashes of psychosis -- and enjoys being mistaken for a teenager." While it sounds like the perfect part for her, a) do we really need another primetime legal drama? and b) isn't this a little Ally McBeal-ish? I'm sure KC will be brilliant, though...hopefully she'll sing too...do we suppose they could work that in??

Keeping it real, community-style.

This morning’s encounter combined with my daily internet reading list has me thinking about community. Community being a fairly constant theme in my musings, it’s something I have a lot of ideas about—unfortunately more than I currently have time to express. But, suffice to say for now, I think we all have a longing to belong somewhere and I think that part of the key to both surviving and thriving as a starving artist is to feel that you do belong somewhere. The creative community is a powerful place…and the best way to belong is by participating, however you see fit. Here are some suggestions on how to participate from today’s web surf:

Mike Sheerin, a documentary filmmaker in Toronto, set out to make a film about what kids say to Santa Claus. What Mike Sheerin got was a film about the lives of three local Mall Santas. These three men don the red and white suit for the last month and a half of each year and engage the imagination of every wee one to sit on their knee. For them, this is a calling; it is the highlight of their year. And the end comes abruptly each December 25th, bringing a bittersweet break until next year. Chronicling this, Mall Santa, airs tomorrow night, Thursday, December 18, at 8:00 EST on Global. You can also bring joy to your own local Mall Santa by visiting between now and Christmas Eve!

Check out your local independent bookstore! I know, I have a huge love of Indigo, but I am always on the prowl for a good independent specialty bookstore—on which note, does anyone know of a good drama bookstore in Toronto? Chances are that the staff at a local bookstore are doing it because they love it and because they know their stuff, while Indigo can be great, the case may not be the same. And it turns out that the service they can offer is part of what is keeping them in the game—their connection to the community. So if you have a local bookstore, go see what they have to offer!

And finally (for now), there is a great profile on a Toronto singer/songwriter, Simone Fornow. In addition to her accomplishments thus far just being very neat, I appreciate the locality of her songwriting. It’s immediateness to a specific community, as well as her commitment to community. I won’t write more about her here, you have to go to BlogTO to check out their profile/interview. It’s definitely worth it.

Politics Before Noon.

It's getting to be a theme, I know. But the fact of the matter is that the world is very politically-charged at the moment. "Beautiful systems dying, old fixed orders spiraling apart..." And change is in the air. And art is, or should be, on the cutting edge of it all...

I had complaints on Friday, when three of our soldiers in Afghanistan were killed, about the lack of that war's presence on our stages. And, perhaps, its absence there is one reason why it is absent (or at least not as present as it should be) in our politics. All that aside, though, this makes me so proud to be a Canadian. Even if our government and our artists haven't said or done as much as they should, 'ordinary' Canadians are doing what they can. Hundreds lined the road home for our fallen heroes yesterday; one of the greatest grassroots traditions we have come up with in recent history, I think.

Then I saw this on BlogTO this morning. It is a video from quite a clever campaign by War Child Canada to raise awareness and "support" for child soldiers in Darfur, the Congo, and Sierra Leone. Apparently there are going to be more videos in the future. I, for one, think it's a really intelligent way of making their point and getting the message across. For some reason, things like this tend to have a greater impact than the hundreds of words generated in the press. Both are important, without a doubt, but there is just something about the "viral video" that catches...which is great for artists with opinions and ideas out there.

A couple of guys I had some classes with in university started their own series of web videos, which I will link to as soon as I can remember what both their names were--one was Joey. The one who dated a girl on my floor in first year. I really didn't know them well--a friends of friends kind of thing. Anyway, my point is, their videos did really well on the web. They were self-written, self-produced, and garnered some pretty big attention. So it's a really great way of getting yourself out there as an emerging artist...more on this later, perhaps.

Last but not least, some of my favourite political art: The Daily Show. Jon Stewart is a genius. Essentially. And, for all its ridiculous antics, the show is quite intelligent (but do I really need to defend it to a country that has embraced Rick Mercer? I think not). Mr. Stewart did quite the send up of Canadian politics last night...Clips available here. It was also talked about in the Star and the Globe and Mail. As well as on cable morning shows. Politics is serious business. It kills people. But sometimes you have to laugh at it, too.

The End of An Era.

Last night marked the final "episode" of the cult/going mainstream hit Trailer Park Boys on Showcase. I happen to think these guys are brilliant, if a bit off colour. There is an interview with them in the Star and, judging by the comments, clearly people either love them or hate them. Whatever your personal feelings, you have to admire the fact that these guys and Mike Clattenburg had a crazy idea, went with it, and wound up with a hit series, a few specials, a movie, and a sequel due out in February, I believe. And, as a bonus, they have had the chance to work with some incredible artists in different mediums throughout their careers as the Boys, including touring with Guns 'n Roses and an ongoing relationship with The Tragically Hip. Gordon Downie was in last night's final episode. And I think I spotted Rob Baker buying weed from Julian. Bonus, if you've never seen it, here is The Tragically Hip video for The Darkest One. Check it out! And so long, Trailer Park Boys, it's been a good ride. Can't wait to see what the future brings from you...

Turns out, Canada can dance. And better.

Ok, I have to admit that I'm totally addicted to So You Think You Can Dance in all its incarnations, the latest being So You Think You Can Dance Canada. As a rule, I have no use for reality TV, but I can appreciate shows like Dance or like Project Runway where it's more of a competition and you have to be some kind of talented in order to be on the air. No, MTV, binge drinking is not a talent.

Anyway, turns out, So You Think You Can Dance Canada is a hit. A big hit. And, according to this article in the Toronto Star, a better hit than its American predecessor. The Star cites several reasons for this but I think the most important one to recognize here is the incredible wealth of talented dancers here in the Great White North. I've watched the American version and I've seen some amazing things, but the Canadian dancers are phenomenal. And innovative. I have seen far more interesting things on the Canadian version.

I also like that this show is crowning Canada's favourite dancer, not its best. I think that's an important distinction. Winning a reality TV show where the audience gets to vote doesn't make you the best at anything, except for maybe reality TV and popularity contests.

The epic finale is airing tonight on CTV starting at 8. All of the final four are incredibly talented dancers and it is going to come down to personality and popularity, not skill. So tune in, it may be TV worth watching.