In a bid to draw more 18-34 viewers to its March 13 Genie Awards coverage, CHUM is ditching the format of its previous two outings as broadcaster of Canada’s annual film fete. This year’s show will veer far from CHUM’s earlier sit-down dinner approach à la Golden Globes, not to mention the traditional theatrical awards show template employed for many years by CBC.

In its place will be a live one-hour schmooze-fest held at a post-awards-show party, in the spirit of CHUM’s annual broadcast bash during the Toronto International Film Festival. Gone are the celebrity hosts of yore; instead, Live! At the Genies will be hosted by entertainment newsmag Star! Daily’s Larysa Harapyn, Husein Madhavji, Dina Pugliese and Danielle McGimsie. Live comedy, a staple of the past, is also out. What CHUM viewers from coast to coast will instead see are ‘at the party’ interviews and commentary, sprinkled with cutaways to highlights from the awards presentation and movie clips.

Quebec’s MusiMax (a specialty half-owned by CHUM), will air an exclusive French-language version, no doubt emphasizing the Genies’ many French nominees. This edition will be produced out of Montreal and feature material from the Toronto shindig.

‘Given that even the major U.S. awards shows are losing ratings, we knew we had to do something different,’ explains Marcia Martin, exec producer of CHUM’s Genies coverage. The English-language special is to be produced by Dan Hughes and directed by Bob Haller, vets whose credits include Citytv’s New Year’s Eve specials. Mia Parang is producing the MusiMax portion.

Looking to inject some classic glitz to the proceedings, CHUM and the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television are taking the awards presentation uptown from the cavernous Metro Toronto Convention Centre, its home of many years, to renovated event theater The Carlu.

‘Taking the Genies out of the auditorium and into a party venue where people are more relaxed and likely to be more interesting just made sense,’ says Martin. ‘With its 1930s art deco interior, The Carlu has a real old-Hollywood feel to it. It’s perfect for the showbiz glamour that we are creating.’

Citytv Toronto and CHUM specialties Star! and Bravo! will air Live! At the Genies at 9 p.m. ET, while Citytv in Winnipeg, Calgary, and Edmonton will carry it at 10 p.m. CT/MT, and Citytv Vancouver at 9 p.m. PT. MusiMax will air its version at 10 p.m. ET. It all adds up to a frantic production and post-production turnaround for CHUM staffers.

‘This kind of live programming is what we do well, even with having to grab the awards footage on scene, then edit it fast, and mix it with live coverage at The Carlu,’ says Martin. ‘We’re even accustomed to doing it all in the street using our mobile production truck. It’s just what we do.’

CHUM’s second Genies revamp in three years does not change the fact that in a country where only 5% of movie box office is generated by domestic productions, many Canadians have never heard of multiple 2006 Genie nominees C.R.A.Z.Y., Water and It’s All Gone Pete Tong.

‘I would be a fool to be Pollyanna-ish and pretend that everything is hunky-dory,’ says Paul Gratton, chair of the Academy and CHUM exec. ‘It’s always been a challenge to get people to tune in to the annual Genies, even with a TV-friendly host like [last year’s] Andrea Martin at the helm.’

While CHUM remains committed to promoting the best in Canadian film, the annual Genies broadcast ‘is a TV show first and foremost,’ says Martin.

Ratings count, especially among the 18-34 demo, which is the key ticket-buying group at the box office. CHUM reports that its 2005 Genies program saw viewership in this demo jump 325% over 2004, with the total tune-in of viewers 18+ peaking at 1.5 million. This still isn’t enough for the broadcaster, which is looking to make the Genies a must-see for the Canadian public, even if viewers don’t necessarily recognize all the nominees.

Given CHUM’s track record, it’s hardly doubtful that the broadcaster will put together a glitzy, irreverent, fast-paced Genies package. However, doesn’t its ‘at the party’ approach relegate the Genie Awards themselves to the background, diminishing the event’s importance?

Not at all, says Gratton. ‘The notion of getting as many viewers as possible for our Genies show is of great importance to the Academy, because it gives us the best chance of driving ticket sales,’ he says. ‘Viewers will still see summary clips of the nominees, which will tell them what these films are all about. That’s what we need to do to promote Canadian cinema, and why attracting as many of the 18-34 ticket-buying demo [as possible] to this broadcast matters so much.’

CHUM will promote the show internally through its channels, and has produced a 30-second promotional trailer that was to hit movie theaters across the country on Feb. 10.

www.chumlimited.com