Seven documentaries commissioned by Burnaby, B.C.’s Knowledge Network in 2023/24 are set to debut on the public broadcaster in the next few months, including the docuseries Wildfire and Joy Haskell’s The Salmon’s Call.

The pubcaster also noted in the release that 21% of B.C. docs that received funding from the Canada Media Fund in 2023/24 were triggered by first-window license fees from Knowledge.

Premiering on April 29 is Wildfire (pictured), a five-part docuseries that depicts the deadly 2023 B.C. wildfires. It comes from showrunner and director Kevin Eastwood alongside directors and former firefighters Simon Shave and Clayton Mitchell. Wildfire is produced by Eastwood’s Optic Nerve Films and Shave and Mitchell’s CK9 Studios.

Haskell’s 60-minute documentary The Salmon’s Call, debuting on June 17, explores the relationship between wild salmon and the Indigenous communities that live on B.C.’s interior and west coast. It is produced by Haskell, Andrew Williamson and Henrik Meyer and made its world premiere at L.A.’s Red Nation International Film Festival.

Five other titles set to debut this fiscal year that do not have dates at this time include Baljit Sangra’s Have You Heard Judi Singh?, produced by Brishkay Ahmed and Sangra; Clan of the Painted Lady directed and produced by Jennifer Chiu; and Up in the Clouds, Down in the Valley, directed by Carmen Pollard and produced by Jenny Rustemeyer.

Treasure of the Rice Terraces, directed by Kent Donguines and produced by Jacob Crawford and Wədzih Nəne, directed and produced by Luke Gleeson, round out the slate of commissions making their debuts.

“B.C. documentaries hold pride of place in Knowledge Network’s programming and Knowledge plays a significant role in supporting the local doc sector,” said Michelle van Beusekom, president and CEO of Knowledge Network, in a statement. “Our original commissions help B.C. producers unlock access to leveraged funds; support quality jobs in the domestic production sector and ensure that stories ‘by us and for us’ are shared with audiences in B.C. and across Canada.”

Photo by Simon Shave, courtesy Burning Films