I'm quite proud of this one...
AKA the time I came up with an idea at work that got Ryan Reynolds to sing Baby Beluga.
Hi All,
I’m a TV producer and over the years, I’ve worked on some pretty cool projects and worked with some big people, but recently I’ve been really proud of the work I’m doing at my job. Due to the nature of where I work, I haven’t been able to really share much… but I can finally show you something big that I worked on.
I mentioned last week I had seen Ryan Reynolds’ new movie The Adam Project for work…. it was because we did a secret show with him two weeks ago.
I really wish I could share with you the full 30-minute show, but the five-minute highlight reel we made for social is still pretty epic. So let’s give you some context before you hit play. These shows are live, our tech isn’t the best, and my very small team is not made up of television pros. We don’t film these with an external audience in mind — our goal was to make Ryan accessible to our kids. So all that said, I think we did a great job.
As a producer, I do a lot of research into our guests and try to come up with kid connections with our questions. I hand Jazz, our therapeutic clown, a stack of questions that he can improve with about five minutes before we go live and we have to hit the ground running. So anytime you see Jazz looking up and to the left — he’s looking at the screen that I’m controlling, giving him his cues, direction, and information about the kids. I love working with Jazz because he takes whatever I can give him and always adds that extra bit of magic. Its prep meets improve for a perfect partnership.
For this show, I did have one plan I really wanted Jazz to execute… we know Ryan owns a soccer team in Wales, and on the channel, we have a favourite song about a whale: “Baby Beluga”. My goal was to see if Jazz could get him to sing it… the result was fantastic.
I really wish I could show you more of what I do at work, but when things do go live I’ll definitely share and tell you some BTS stories.
Anyways, I’m in the middle of a really heavy MBA block. I have two assignments due back to back on Sunday-Monday, and another project the following Monday. I need to get back to homework so I’m going to stop here and dive into what you’re all here for :)
Things to watch this week:
Okay, so honestly there is very little catching my eye throughout the week — most things of note come out today, so this is going to be shorter than normal.
Over on Crave today, I’m recommending checking out Beans. It’s a coming-of-age film directed and written by the incredible Tracey Deer, about a preteen from Kahnawake during the Oka Crisis. It won the Canadian Screen Award for Best Picture and everybody raves about it. If you watch one thing this week, make it this:
Also on Crave, Dune is now streaming. It was nominated for 10 Academy Awards and it has Timothée Chalamet, so I’d argue that it’s worth your time to check out. I have not yet seen it, but I’m trying my best to read the book first. I have the book… I’m just waiting for a break in my MBA schedule to find the time to actually crack it open (it’s a HUGE book). Check out the trailer here.
Streaming today on CBC Gem is a new talk show called Real Blackity Talk. Hosted by Burundian-Canadian sisters Aiza and Kamana Ntibarikure, the show dives into human interest topics with a uniquely Black lens. It’s a short format show and it seems incredibly binge-able. The promos caught my eye and I think a lot of folks are going to love this series. Watch the trailer here.
Out today on Netflix is a film called Windfall. Staring Oscar-Nominated Landry Jesse Plemons, this is a “Hitchcockian” thriller about a robbery gone… wrong? I’m not sure. It’s not really my thing, but I know a lot of you will like it. Check out the trailer here.
Also on Netflix is a ridiculous show based on a quarantine meme trend — Is It Cake? Honestly, if you know you know and if you don’t, skip this show. It’s going to be a good “put it on in the background” show. Watch the trailer here.
Finally, on Apple TV+ we’ve got WeCrashed. The story of WeWork starring Anne Hathaway and Jared Leto. There are a lot of prestige “startup” TV shows right now — Showtime’s Super Pumped about Uber, Hulu’s The Dropout about Theranos, and now this. I’m not opposed to this trend but I’m curious to see where it’s going and which project will rise to the top. With Anne and Jared, this might be it. I’d love to know what you think. Catch the trailer here.
Other things to check out:
📺 I’ve been thinking a lot about Turning Red (I loved it), and this article about The Babysitters Club getting cancelled really resonated with me. This is a topic I want to deep dive into on the blog.
🍿 All I do on my spare time is watch TikTok videos these days so here are some of my recent favs:
A cute guy, dancing in the rain to HSM.
Nurse John dancing to entertain his peds patients.
Walk Off The Earth did an open verse challenge and it was epic.
Devon Cole is one of my favs and her new song slaps.
Kyle Prue is back with ways to make men mad.
I love Max Fosh - I posted a bunch of his videos here in the spring when he was running for Mayor of London. Anyways he’s gone viral by mixing up a grapefruit and a pomegranate and I can’t get enough of this trend. Might even make my own…
Okay — that’s it for me today. As always, I love hearing from you. Email me back and let me know what you’re watching :)
Have a great weekend,
-Paula
This newsletter was written by me — Paula Sanderson — a freelance Television Producer and current MBA student based in Toronto. After years of recommending the best shows to my friends, I decided to start a newsletter so everyone could get the recommendations. If you want to learn more about what I do professionally or follow me on the various social channels click here.