The daily Post

Created by Luke Hutchie and Matthew Finlan, the eight-episode unscripted series filmed in various Ontario haunts this past summer, for streaming on CBC Gem in 2024

Creators Luke Hutchie and Matthew Finlan

October 10, 2023 – CBC has greenlit GHOSTING WITH LUKE HUTCHIE AND MATTHEW FINLAN (8×30), a new unscripted comedy series from Blue Ant Studios, that follows Hutchie (EZRA) and Finlan (Orphan: First Kill, EZRA), two actors known exclusively for their work in the horror genre, as they step off script and into their own real-life thriller on their quest to decipher if Canada’s most haunted places are truly haunted. The paranormal series filmed this summer in haunted locales around Ontario and will launch on the free CBC Gem streaming service in winter 2024.

In each episode, the amateur ghost-wrangling duo are joined by celebrity guests, to meet locals who claim to have experienced a real-life haunting. While investigating the renowned site, they see if it lives up to the local ghost lore as they work to reach a verdict of “haunted” or “not” alongside their celebrity guest.

Hutchie is most credited with creating and starring in the hit short-form series “EZRA”. Hutchie portrayed the titular role of Ezra Grey, acting alongside Zoe De Grand Maison (Orphan Black, Riverdale), Veronika Slowikowska (What We Do in the Shadows) and Finlan. EZRA recently won the Web Series Canada Honourable Mention Award at 2023 T.O Web Fest.

Finlan starred in the highly anticipated sequel to the 2009 hit film ‘Orphan’ starring Isabelle Fuhrman and Julia Stiles, Orphan: First Kill. Finlan recently acted alongside Finn Wolfhard and Billy Bryk in their slasher comedy Hell of a Summer which premiered at this year’s TIFF Midnight Madness. 

“We are excited to collaborate with CBC, along with Matt and Luke, and a surprise weekly guest star as they embark on an adventure to discover forgotten spirits in some of Canada’s most scariest haunts,” says Jennifer Harkness, SVP, Unscripted Development and Production, Blue Ant Studios. “Their fun-loving personalities and senses of humour promise to infuse a unique and entertaining twist to the paranormal genre.”

 “This is such a fun way to celebrate and explore our local communities,” says Jennifer Dettman, Executive Director, Unscripted Content, CBC. “Luke and Matt have an infectious energy that brings a unique spin to the paranormal genre. Ghosting will make audiences laugh while keeping them on the edge of their seats.”

A CBC original series, GHOSTING WITH LUKE HUTCHIE AND MATTHEW FINLAN is a Blue Ant Studios production produced in association with Luke Hutchie Productions. Luke Hutchie and Matthew Finlan are the Creators, Executive Producers and stars of the series. Executive Producers for Blue Ant Studios are Jennifer Harkness, Laura Michalchyshyn and Zachary Frank.  Two-time Canadian Screen Award winner Maureen Riley (Still Standing, I Have Nothing) will serve as the series producer. For CBC, Sally Catto is General Manager, Entertainment, Factual & Sports; Jennifer Dettman is Executive Director, Unscripted Content; and Susan Taylor is Executive in Charge of Production.

Blue Ant International holds global licensing rights. 

Hutchie is repped by Mia Theberge and Cary Liberman at The Characters Talent Agency. Finlan is repped by Christopher Oldfield at Oldfield Talent Management and Corey Menzies at Principals Talent Management. 

-30- 

New greenlights include Survival of the Beast, Wildlife ER Season 3and Bugs that Rule the World

The new programming will premiere across Love Nature’s linear and streaming platforms globally and on Sky Nature in the UK and Italy

Blue Ant Media oversees pre-sales and licensing outside of commissioning territories

(Jackson Hole, WY – September 25, 2023) – Love Nature, a wildlife and nature brand with linear and streaming channels available in countries around the world, announced today, at Jackson Wild Summit, a new slate of premium original commissions. The slate illustrates Love Nature’s ambitious commissioning strategy, elevating the brand and strengthening its reputation as a global destination for premium natural history content. The slate also demonstrates the brand’s determination to foster new talent, push the boundaries on storytelling and connect with young audiences on topics that resonate with them. The line-up of new and returning series includes Survival of the Beast (w/t), Bugs that Rule the World (w/t) and a highly anticipated returning third season of fan-favorite Wildlife ER.

These new titles will premiere on Love Nature around the world and will roll out on Sky Nature in the UK and Italy. In France and Germany, ARTE will premiere Bugs that Rule the World (w/t). The slate leverages Love Nature’s relationship with Blue Ant Media’s international distribution group, which oversees licensing opportunities for the new titles outside of commissioning territories. 

“This new slate shows the scope of Love Nature’s unique offering, created to bring viewers up close to diverse and fascinating natural history stories, from the tender moments of recovery at a wildlife rehabilitation center to exhilarating feats of survival in the animal kingdom,” says Carlyn Staudt, Global General Manager, Love Nature. “The Jackson Wild Summit is a great event to unveil the premium quality and creativity of these productions among so many of the world’s best natural history producers and platforms.”

Overseen by Alison Barrat, SVP of Production & Development, Love Nature, the new slate of original series includes:  

Survival of the Beast (working title) (6 x 60) 
Producer: Beach House Pictures
Explorer, adventurer and self-professed zoology-nut Max Djenohan has spent countless months in the world’s wildest places trying to perfect his survival skills. This series follows Max as he embeds himself alongside both the majestic superstars and the unsung heroes of the animal kingdom to tap into their survival secrets. In each episode Max learns valuable lessons from large species like lions, gorillas and crocodiles as well as smaller creatures like ants, owls and mudskippers. In survival lore, if you want to live a day in a new place, watch and learn from the animals already there. Whether he’s finding food, shelter or water, Max tracks and studies his wild teachers to adapt their skills and put their tactics into practice. 

Wildlife ER Season 3 (6 x 60’)
Producer: Wild Bear Entertainment
Wildlife ER is back for a third season, giving viewers even more heartwarming animal rescue stories they love from the heart of Australia’s busiest wildlife hospital. Throughout the six new episodes, the series continues to follow the dedicated professionals and volunteers at the RSPCA in Brisbane who save a diverse range of animals, such as koalas, kangaroos, lizards and kookaburras. Along the way, the series brings viewers up close to life-saving operations as well as tender moments with carers as the animals are restored to health.

Bugs that Rule the World (working title) (4 x 60’)
Producer: Coneflower Studios
Co-production partners: ARTE France and PBS
Bugs that Rule the World takes viewers on an unprecedented, eye-popping journey into the incredible world of insects, to unravel the mysterious lives of these tiny creatures that make up 90% of life on Earth and explore the critical roles insects play in maintaining the planet. The incredible diversity of their bodies, sex lives, societies and migrations reveal that, although insects seem to always be buzzing around us, we hardly know our fellow earthlings at all. The series sets out on a cinematic adventure to remote jungles, deserts and savannas with a crew of scientists and follows them to the lab, where they use cutting-edge science to examine the secrets of how and why insects do what they do.

Love Nature, headquartered in Washingto

Produced by Saloon Media, a Blue Ant Media production company, the new documentary premieres on CBC Gem and CBC’s The Passionate Eye on October 4 at 8 p.m. (8:30 NT)

Inside the Statue Wars delves into a fascinating, high stakes, and nationwide battle over our public memorials and statues photo credit: Michael McArthur

WATCH TRAILER  HERE 

(TORONTO, ON) September 21, 2023 – From students toppling and beheading the statue of Egerton Ryerson to protestors tearing down monuments of Queen Victoria, Queen Elizabeth and Sir John A. Macdonald, the summer of 2021 ignited an era of reckoning and re-evaluation of our past. Commissioned by the CBC and produced by Saloon Media, a Blue Ant Media production company, Inside The Statue Wars is a powerful new documentary that examines these events and offers compelling perspectives on how these statues could symbolize dreams or nightmares, depending on your point of view. The documentary premieres on The Passionate Eye,  Wednesday, October 4 on CBC Gem and CBC TV at 8 p.m. (8:30 NT)

Inside the Statue Wars hears from the key players on the front lines, many of whom are sharing their stories for the first time, including: The History Buff who is a staunch defender of John A Mcdonald; The Professor who explains people’s attachment to the monuments; The Statue-slayer who beheaded Egerton Ryerson’s statue; The Poet who posed in provocative photos with Ryerson’s head; The Artist, a renowned Cowichan/Syilx First Nations artist who is also a survivor of the Kamloops Indian Residential School; The Photographer whose work challenges the messages statues send about identity, power and belonging; The Activist, the face of a powerful Indigenous youth movement that is challenging colonial narratives; and The Land Defender a multi-hyphenate, young, Indigenous land defender, singer and award-winning actress from Tla’amin Nation. 

This documentary explores the why behind these events and gives voice to the two sides: sovereignty and equity-seeking communities who say it is a long overdue reckoning and argue that statues are relics of a racist era that must be removed before we can reach reconciliation; and those who say statue toppling is vandalism and based on a dangerous distortion of history.

For many, the statues glorified individuals who had caused enormous harm to Indigenous communities in particular. In Canada, many of the locations of former statues became make-shift memorials for Indigenous children. More than 150,000 First Nations, Inuit and Métis children from across the country were separated from their families and communities, forced to attend Indian Residential Schools, often located far from their homes, and many never returned home. 

While the issue has gone to sleep since 2021, the team of creators hope this documentary will restart the conversation.

“Few people think about statues until they come down,” says Producer and Director,  Elizabeth St. Philip. “We know what got toppled. This documentary is about who brought them down and why.”

“It’s a piece about those that feel safe in public spaces and the stories of some of the people that don’t,” says Yuma Dean Hester, Producer and DOP. “No matter where we traveled and who we spoke with, everyone had a strong opinion and personal story to tell.” 

“Like so many Canadians, I was deeply moved by events in 2020-21, when statues and monuments across the country became a focal point of protest,” says Producer Steve Gamester. “Two years later, the underlying issues have not gone away, the country is in limbo and we hope the film can contribute to the unfinished discussion.”

Inside the Statue Wars, produced and created by Saloon Media’s Elizabeth St. Philip (9/11 Kids, The Colour of Beauty),  Steve Gamester (9/11 Kids, Cheating Hitler: Surviving the Holocaust) and Yuma Dean Hester, a founding member and Creative Director with Bawaadan Collective, a group of like-minded Indigenous artisans and accomplices, who develop collaborative approaches to modern artistic storytelling and film production processes.For CBC, Sally Catto is General Manager, Entertainment, Factual, & Sports; Jennifer Dettman is Executive Director, Unscripted Content; Sandra Kleinfeld is Senior Director, Documentary; and Michelle McCree is Executive in Charge of Production, CBC Docs and The Passionate Eye.  Executive Producers for Saloon Media are Steve Gamester and Michael Kot. Inside the Statue Wars was produced with the participation of Canada Media Fund.

– Produced by Blue Ant Studios, in association with Crave and World of Wonder, the all-new series follows queens from the international DRAG RACE family on a Canadian winter-wonderland getaway –

Mark Bishop and Matthew Hornburg, reporting to Michael MacMillan, will lead the new super-charged studio, delivering world-class content to partners around the globe

Merger of these operations sees Blue Ant Media acquiring marblemedia and international sales operation Distribution360, effective today

(Toronto, Canada) August 10, 2023 – International media company, Blue Ant Media and the award-winning, production and distribution company, marblemedia, have announced today the merger of the two companies’ production and distribution operations into one unified studio and rights business. Mark Bishop and Matthew Hornburg will take the helm of this business, serving as co-Presidents and reporting into Michael MacMillan, CEO and co-founder, Blue Ant Media. With hubs in Toronto, New York, Los Angeles, Miami and London, the merger of these operations sees Blue Ant Media acquiring marblemedia and international sales operation Distribution360, effective today. Mark Bishop and Matthew Hornburg will operate from Blue Ant Media’s Toronto office.

The combined businesses, which includes production companies marblemedia, Blue Ant Studios, Saloon Media and Look Mom! Productions, in addition to distributors Distribution360 and Blue Ant International, provide an expanded scope of intellectual properties across all genres including scripted comedy and drama, unscripted entertainment, formats, factual and premium docs, live action kids/family and animation. 

The super-charged studio is positioned to create bigger creative projects at scale with renowned IP, innovative originals and the world’s best-in-class talent, while expanding its reach with new partnerships with streamers and broadcasters in North America and around the world. 

“marblemedia has long been regarded as one of the most respected production and distribution companies in the unscripted and scripted space, having created huge hits for the biggest streamers and broadcasters in the industry. With Mark and Matt leading our combined studios and rights business, Blue Ant Media is well positioned in its growth as an international media company with production, rights and an established global channels division all operating at scale,” said Michael MacMillan, CEO and co-founder, Blue Ant Media.  

“We are excited to join forces with Michael MacMillan, a trailblazer in our industry known for scaling industry-leading companies. Building this new merged production and distribution studio will bring together our talented teams who have a shared vision and belief that original content and rich IP are the greatest differentiator,”? said Mark Bishop and Matthew Hornburg, co-CEOs, marblemedia. “The appetite for premium content remains strong in the global market, and we can better serve this demand with high-quality content and by working with best-in-class collaborators.” 

marblemedia is known for delivering premium original unscripted and scripted content including Top 10 Netflix series Blown Away and Drink Masters, ?A Cut Above (Discovery), Race Against the Tide (CBC) the upcoming Hulu and Prime Video teen comedy Davey and Jonesie’s Locker and the highly anticipated documentary, Mr. Dressup: The Magic of Make-Believe (Prime Video), set to have it’s world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival. Blue Ant Media has carved out a strong position in the market with recent hits including award-winning Canada’s Drag Race (produced with World of Wonder for Bell Media/Crave), Kids in the Hall: Comedy Punks (Prime Video), the ground-breaking new documentary series?Casey Anthony: Where the Truth Lies?(Peacock), the true-crime hit series, See No Evil (produced with Arrow Media for Investigative Discovery US) and Gary and His Demons (Prime Video, Amazon FreeVee). The production businesses are each supported by Blue Ant International, a global, multi-genre distributor of high-quality, creative content, encompassing more than 5,000 hours of content across all genres; and innovative multi-genre global rights management business Distribution360 representing nearly 2,000 hours of content and formats. 

The development is part of a long term growth strategy at Blue Ant Media that includes  the recent scaling up of the company’s global channels business, including wildlife and nature brand Love Nature’s expansion into 145+ countries with its streaming and cable TV offerings; the launch of eight new FAST channels internationally; and an extensive lineup of premium cable TV offerings in Canada. 

Sam Sniderman will serve as Blue Ant Media’s Chief Commercial Officer, working closely with Michael MacMillan and CFO, Robb Chase on business development, partnerships and M&A. Laura Michalchyshyn will continue her duties as Chief Creative Officer, nurturing and attracting talent for the company’s overall business worldwide. Beach House Pictures will continue to operate independently out of Singapore.