Equal parts tragedy and triumph, Ryan Larkin’s life story is the subject of the documentary film, Ryan’s Renaissance. Directed by Nicola Zavaglia and Laurie Gordon, the film retraces how the talented animator went from NFB wunderkind to panhandler on Montreal’s St. Laurent Boulevard, from 1970 Oscar nominee (for Walking) to alcoholic, from McLaren’s protégé to nobody. The film shows how Gordon finds Larkin on St. Laurent and takes him under her wing and encourages him to begin work on Spare Change, for what will turn out to be a brilliant but all too brief artistic renewal.
Producers: CTV
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Pharma Sutra
In 1999, the Journal of the American Medical Association published a report that stated that 43% of women suffered from Female Sexual Dysfunction (FSD). With FSD identified, the pharmaceutical companies have poured billions of dollars into research to come up with the winning formula that will allow women to attain sexual satisfaction. In the running for FDA approval are a nasal spray, a skin patch and a daily pill. Pharma Sutra follows a trio of women considering taking these drugs: a 50-year-old empty nester, a grandma battling a depleted libido who’s looking to maintain her youth and a mother in her 40s looking to revive her marriage.
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Gridlock
Drivers all over the world fume as they sit in traffic jams-rush hour is not an hour any more-it’s stretched to six hours in many cities and commute time has doubled for most. A quarter of us spend more than an hour and a half getting to and from work…in the winter heading out in the dark and crawling back home at night. We’re going nowhere slowly, and as we do our blood pressure rises and so does the risk of heart attacks and lung disease. Gridlock, explores new solutions to sitting in traffic jams. Could the cell phone, now a cause of accidents, be used differently-to help us navigate our way out of traffic jams? Is charging people to come into the city an effective solution? Maybe paying commuters to use roads and bridges at the least busy times? What about taking the driver out of driving-developing the ultimate cruise control? One thing we know, do nothing and it will get a whole lot worse.
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Lost Adventures of Childhood
Remember the wild, unfettered play time of childhood past? Those days are all but lost. ‘Lost Adventures of Childhood’ is a new original CTV documentary from filmmaker Scott Harper that explores how childhood on lockdown is stunting the way children learn and grow.
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Elijah
The Meech Lake Accord: a political crisis that left the country teetering on the edge. It’s a subject that might put some high school students to sleep, but not in Elijah, the spirited tale of a reluctant hero who went on to change the course of Canadian history – with a feather. The timely,CTV Original Movie takes a smart and lighthearted look at an important historical moment, digging underneath the constitutional crisis of the time to reveal a true homegrown David and Goliath story. Nominated for an astounding eight 2008 Leo Awards and winner of two 2009 Gemini Awards; Best TV Movie & Best Writing in a Dramatic Program or Mini Series.