By Kelly Townsend
Blue Ant Media is on the hunt for sponsors and brand integrations for the 10 Canadian titles it has greenlit and renewed across its lifestyle and factual channels.
Set to debut in the fall and spring 2022 broadcast schedule, the lineup include two originals from Blue Ant Digital and co-productions with Discovery+, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. and New Zealand’s The History Channel.
The Toronto-based producer, distributor and channel operator also announced the first two commissioned original documentaries for BBC First and BBC Earth – one of which it plans to world premiere on its MobileSyrup tech news website.
The programs are airing on specialty channels T+E, Cottage Life, BBC Earth and Smithsonian, all of which will have a free national preview period in the winter and spring. Blue Ant is currently looking for sponsors for the preview, but a spokesperson told MiC that the company is also open to opportunities outside the free window, with some properties being available for custom content and brand integrations.
The slate overseen by Sam Linton, head of original content at Blue Ant, sees two new projects for the company’s Canadian specialty channel T+E. The T+E lineup includes new series Eli Roth Presents: A Ghost Ruined My Life (8 x 60 minutes) and new documentary The Lost Colony of Roanoke (90 minutes).
Eli Roth Presents: A Ghost Ruined My Life is a co-production with Discovery+ that follows the American director/producer/writer/actor as he examines real-life stories of haunting by everyday people. It will include eyewitness accounts and dramatic reconstructions “reminiscent of Roth’s vivid cinematic masterpieces.”
The Lost Colony of Roanoke follows British archaeologist Mark Horton and historian Scott Dawson as they unravel a 400-year-old mystery about what happened to the first European settlers in the Americas, and will feature exclusive access to a new excavation site.
For BBC First, the lineup includes premieres of Griff’s Great Canadian Adventure and, for BBC Earth, there are two new documentaries: The Digital Divide and Strange Creatures.
Griff’s Great Canadian Adventure follows Welsh comedian and travel adventurer Griff Rhys Jones as he explores Canadian cultures and traditions. The series is co-production with several media companies from around the world, including Channel 4, Australian Broadcasting Corp. and New Zealand’s The History Channel.
The Digital Divide – which will have it’s broadcasting premiere on MobileSyrup before airing on BBC Earth – explores the human side of technology and the growing class chasm stemming from those who have access or do not have access to digital, mobile and satellite tech. Strange Creatures, hosted by Animalogics scientific illustrator Danielle Dufault, will riff off the hit YouTube series. It will also premiere on the Animalogic YouTube Channel before airing on BBC Earth.
Both were produced by Blue Ant Media which partnered with BBC Studios in 2017, and launched a channel in partnership in March.
The Smithsonian Channel lineup includes the premiere of doc History by the Numbers and a second season of World’s Most Scenic River Journeys. Both are scheduled for spring premieres.
History by the Numbers takes a global look at the past through the lens of statistics including the growth of the fast food industry worldwide and the wealth of the world’s top crime bosses.
For its Canadian specialty channel Cottage Life, the lineup includes season two of Blue Ant’s highest-rated original Life Below Zero: Canada, co-produced with Quebecor Content and APTN, a third season of Ice Vikings and fourth season for Merchants of the Wild, also co-produced with APTN. All three will premiere next spring. Blue Ant has also acquired the first and second season of Farpoint Films produced Ice Vikings, to air on Cottage Life.
With files from Josh Kolm. Photo courtesy Blue Ant. A version of this story previously appeared on Playback.
