From Canada’s beloved kids show, Polka Dot Door, to fame on Y&R as Dr. Olivia Winters, Tonya Williams has had a ground-breaking and award-winning career as an actor. In 2000 she founded the Reel World Film Festival, to combat the lack of racially diverse and indigenous talent in mainstream media. She’s a classically-trained pianist, a ballet dancer and an activist. What can’t she do? Grab your java and settle in as we catch up on all the latest, including “Access Reelworld”.
Meet Elan Mastai who was named one of Variety’s 10 Screenwriters to Watch. Mastai wrote the hit Canadian romantic comedy “The F Word” (known in the US as “What If”), directed by Michael Dowse and starring Daniel Radcliffe, Zoe Kazan, and Adam Driver. He is currently a writer and producer on the Emmy-winning TV series “This Is Us” and has written movies for major studios including Fox, Sony, Warner Brothers, Lionsgate, and Paramount. We chat with him all about his writing experience and approach towards the craft.
You know him for his breakout hit, CUBE, still a cult phenomenon to this day. A renowned genre filmmaker he’s been able to traverse between his own films, working with Netflix, and directing episodes for shows like Westworld, Orphan Black and Lost in Space. Take a listen as Vincenzo Natali talks about moving from storyboard artist to director, and from film to tv.
Bonus – Episode: 4 – Jeremy LaLonde and Jonas Chernick
It’s Priya’s first three-way, and who better to do it with than the sex-comedy duo of Jeremy Lalonde and Jonas Chernick? We’re all stuck in COVID-19 hibernation and no one’s going out to the theatre but films are still being released and we talked to Jeremy and Jonas about the process of co-writing their new film, James Vs His Future Self (now available on VOD), when to know whether to push through or give up, and finding the funny.
It may seem like she came out of nowhere but Jess Salgueiro put in a lot of years as a struggling actress. The old saying about luck being the meeting of preparation and opportunity comes to mind and this super-talented young woman is certainly very lucky these days. From roles in series including The Boys, The Expanse, Workin’ Moms and Letterkenny, to her lead role in the Canadian feature, Canadian Strain, she is on all screens big and small and we can’t get enough! Plus she’s my first female guest so settle in for some female bonding right here, right now.
After 12 years in the feature documentary world, Charles Officer marks his return to fiction with his new project, Akilla’s Escape. His doc Unarmed Verses, produced with the NFB won Best Canadian Feature at Hot Docs ’19. His first feature, Nurse.Fighter.Boy ponied up 10 Genie nominations and his latest documentary, Invisible Essence: The Little Prince, is up for 2 CSAs including the Ted Rogers Best Feature Length Documentary. We sat down with the actor-turned-writer/director at the NFB offices in downtown Toronto for a chat that went all the way back to his beginnings as a pro hockey player.
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EPISODE 1: Warren P. Sonoda
There is no bigger champion of the Canadian film industry than Warren P. Sonoda so it’s right that he’s the first guest in our monthly podcast. From his first feature, cult hit “Ham & Cheese” to his latest, crime-caper “The Things I Do For Money” Warren has had one of the most prolific careers, spanning tv, music videos and feature films. What’s his secret? What’s his process? And most importantly, what does the “P” stand for in his name??
FWC’s new monthly podcast features the brightest stars in the Canadian film world. Each in-depth interview will focus on the career and experiences of a filmmaker, actor, writer, or other industry insiders with the goal being to inspire and inform emerging film talent. Join us here each month, on Podbean, or wherever you listen to your fave podcasts as we get the good, the bad, and all the in-between on making it in the Canadian film world.
If you could chat with your favourite Canadian talent, who would that be and what would you ask them? Let us know by tagging us on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram! You can tune in and listen to audio-only or watch on YouTube!
