Carlton Television (itv) has announced that an award-winning Canadian writer will redevelop Peak Practice, Britain’s highest rated drama series. Laura Phillips, who won a Gemini for Fraggle Rock and an Emmy nomination for the abc special The Christmas Story, will commute…

Western Canadian producers (including b.c.) received $10.5 million from Telefilm Canada and $5.5 million from the cbc’s exclusive Telefilm kitty in the most recent round of equity investment….

Canadian specialty channels increased their audience share by a whopping 27% this season over last, according to bbm’s spring numbers….

Montreal: Productions La Fete has launched a non-fiction and documentary production unit, Explo Vision, slated to start taping a 13-hour series on fly fishing this month. The series has been presold to French digital satellite channel Seasons and to Reseau des…

Alliance Communications has $90 million worth of motion picture production on its fiscal ’99 slate….

Cannes: Don McKellar’s Last Night was the sole Canadian feature to take a prize – the Prix de la Jeunesse – at the 51st annual Cannes film festival, but that didn’t stop Canadian companies from doing business at the fest’s market…

Due to an editing error, in ‘Baton: Atlantic hit hardest’ in the previous issue, Playback incorrectly stated that 105 personnel were laid off in Toronto, 123 from operations east of Toronto through to the Atlantic coast and 106 west of Toronto…

Food for thought…

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In a deal that appears to please all the players involved, including culture watchdog Industry Canada, the former Cineplex Odeon Films will now operate as a separate entity to its new 75% owner Alliance Communications, while a triumvirate of film training…

While there is no doubt that the Canadian television industry will heed the Banff cattle call and flock west in droves June 7-13, flooding the gates with overseas delegates has been top of mind for the 19th annual event….

A&E Networks has teamed with Toronto’s Microtainment Plus International, Mansion Productions, High Road Productions and Montreal’s Verseau International to produce in Canada a handful of docs set to run on the network beginning later this year….