Following a U.S. pick-up of its Million Dollar Neighbourhood series, Force Four Entertainment has named Dana Johl as its head of production and Deborah Wainwright as its head of creative, overseeing the Vancouver-based indie’s slate of factual entertainment titles.

The news comes after the company last month received a greenlight from Corus Entertainment for a second season of Million Dollar Neighbourhood, which airs on OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network in Canada, and was yesterday picked up by the U.S. OWN network.

“They are both talented multi-taskers and this is a recognition of those facts. In addition to working with our broadcasters, their mandate is to continue to build our relationships with key creatives and help develop new talent,” said Force Four executive producer and partner John Ritchie.

Beginning with the second season of Million Dollar Neighbourhood, Johl will manage start-up, hiring and production, and Wainwright will oversee the creative vision and story teams on all Force Four projects. They will work closely with the company’s head of development Nicole Lawson and head of post production Jackie Sidoni.

Johl joined the company three years ago as producer of the Gemini Award-winning series The Cupcake Girls.  She is also a producer on Urban Suburban for HGTV, now in production on its second season; and Murder She Solved: True Crime, in production on its third season for OWN Canada.

Wainwright, meanwhile, joined the company two years ago, and has worked on many of its series, including the first season of Million Dollar Neighbourhood, Family Cook Off for Food Network, The Cupcake Girls, Urban Suburban, and the upcoming Border Security for Shaw Media.

U.K.-based distributor DRG yesterday sold the rights to the first season of Million Dollar Neighbourhood to Oprah Winfrey Network in the U.S.

DRG, as part of a first-look agreement with Vancouver-based Force Four, is launching both the finished program along with the format at MIPTV.

“Million Dollar Neighbourhood is the perfect program at the perfect time,” said Diane Rankin, SVP of acquisitions for DRG. “This is a financial format that takes viewers on an amazing emotional journey and it successfully hits the co-viewing sweet spot for broadcasters as the theme is so universal and both men and women can identify with it.”

This story has been expanded to include files from Barry Walsh.