Bravo once again showcases Canadian films
Bravo is once again dedicating Sunday night programming throughout the fall to celebrating what it deems important cultural milestones in Canadian film. Starting on October 8 (8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT), the broadcaster will air ‘On Screen!,’ a six-part documentary that uses clips, interviews with cast and crew members and commentary from critics to chart the journey from set to screen for each production.
Included are: Atanarjuat: The Fast Runner (October 8); Nobody Waved Goodbye (October 15); I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing (October 22); My American Cousin (October 29); Mon Oncle Antoine (November 5); and Roadkill (November 12).
Feldman puts Cook in charge of corporate partnerships
Nathalie Cook has been hired by Toronto’s S.L. Feldman & Associates as VP of corporate partnerships. She will focus on developing corporate partnerships and properties for the entertainment marketing agency, which reps such clients as Diana Krall, Elvis Costello, Norah Jones and The Chieftains. Formerly with the Special Olympics, Cook also spent twelve years at IMG.
PMB Factoid
Participate in Billiards – Profile by Age
Naming rights on offer as Ryerson’s biz faculty moves to Bay Street
Moving Canada’s largest business faculty to the downtown Toronto street that symbolizes Canadian commerce is not only a coup, but a one-of-a-kind gambit, at least in this country, says Ryerson biz dean Ken Jones. A joint venture of Ryerson University and Cadillac Fairview, the just-opened Ryerson Business Building stands at the southeast corner of Bay and Dundas streets. It houses nearly 28,000 students and includes the university’s new MBA programs as well as four bachelor of commerce programs and eight management research centres and institutes.
Jones says interest in naming rights is intense. Still up for grabs at press time were the building itself, a 500-seat auditorium, a huge atrium, 32 classrooms and several conference suites. What’s the value proposition of slapping a corporate moniker on any of them? Jones tells Media in Canada that companies could leverage not only the faculty’s sizzling hot new location, but also ‘build on our impact on Canadian business. With more than 1,000 graduates a year, we put more students into the business marketplace than any other school in Canada. We have very strong core programs and we’re linked to industries including retail, hospitality and tourism and information systems.’
Rising young media star
This is the tenth installment of our ‘Rising Young Media Stars’ series, in which we profile the next gen media minds. Curious as to who these new thinkers were, and what they were thinking, strategy and Media in Canada canvassed the industry, asking media shops to single out their top innovative and strategic recruits. And we’re scouting for more of the same – so tell us about the hot talent in your shop.
Sarah Armstrong, media planner/buyer
Genesis Media, Toronto
Background: At Genesis for a year, after taking the advertising course at Toronto’s Sheridan College. Formerly managed a small family business in Oakville, Ont.
Claim to fame: Bringing creativity and value to big and small clients alike. To help Indigo Books target the teen market for the first time, Armstrong aligned the brand with Habbohotel. This entailed an Indigo-branded section of the virtual online hotspot and an Indigo contest. Another recent example is a radio campaign to help StarChoice recruit staff for offices in Canada. It targeted by time and mind-set with radio tags scheduled when people were on their way home from work. She worked with the client and station to write the script, positioning StarChoice as a place where people actually enjoy their work day. It was so successful that StarChoice had to ask the agency to stop running the ads.
Talk to MiC
Hey, Media in Canada readers, share your ideas with us. ‘The New Plan’ showcases your savviest media campaigns, ones that exemplify the way forward in the new mediaverse. ‘What’s on your mind?’ is for quick and pithy raves – like M2 Universal president Hugh Dow’s recent thumbs up about the Toronto Star‘s new downloadable edition, or Zenith Optimedia prexy/CEO Sunni Boot’s rant about the probable fate of serials. Got it? OK, ball’s in your court. Email our staff writer, Terry Poulton (tpoulton@brunico.com) or phone her (416.408.2300 x252).
NADbank: newspaper readership stable and showing increases in latest selected markets
Average issue readership in the Toronto and Montreal markets has not changed from the NADbank 2005 Study full-year results, but both Vancouver and Ottawa-Gatineau experienced increases. These findings are part of the NADbank (Newspaper Audience Databank) 2005/06 Readership Study for Selected Markets, which includes data from fall 2005, plus spring 2006 field work in the four most competitive markets in Canada.
The numbers also indicate that newspapers are still a force to be reckoned with. More than three-quarters of adults 18+ read a daily in the past week: 79% in Vancouver, 76% in Toronto, 79% in Ottawa, and 77% in Montreal. Those reporting that they read any paper yesterday jumped to 56% from 50% in Vancouver and grew slightly in Ottawa-Gatineau, with a tally of 53% from 52%.
SavvyMom Today expands into Vancouver market
After a year of ‘dishing advice to time-crunched mothers’ in Toronto, SavvyMom Today expanded into the Vancouver ‘mom market’ last week, says co-founder (with Minnow Hamilton) Sarah Morgenstern. Although the permission-based online newsletter launched without paid advertisers, she says that situation changed with the realization that SavvyMom Today is so ‘mom-fluential’ that over 62 percent of readers report purchasing an items they saw or learned about through the twice-weekly newsletter.
With 6,000 subscribers in the Toronto area and 1,000 already signed up in Vancouver, Morgenstern adds that high reader engagement has been achieved because ‘we’ve built the savvymom.ca brand and credibility on tried and tested solutions. Everything we endorse has been test-driven by our team members and ‘Savvy Scouts,’ who are busy mothers with a discerning eye for gimmick vs. the practical.’ The newsletter will launch in Ottawa on October 12, in Calgary at the beginning of December and in other Canadian cities in the near future.
M2 Universal wins Blockbuster account
M2 Universal has won the extensive review for Blockbuster Canada’s multi-million-dollar planning and buying account. Blockbuster Canada is the largest movie and game rental retailer in Canada with more than 430 stores in all 10 provinces and 5,000+ employees.
National Post‘s homes supplement moves from Thursday to Saturday
Publication of Post Homes, the National Post‘s weekly real estate magazine, has moved from Thursday to Saturday and expanded its content and features. Four new columnists have been added, and the new and expanded features include ‘South Central Ontario Mapping,’ ‘New Digs,’ and ‘Recent Transactions.’ To celebrate the relaunch, the newspaper is holding a contest to win one of four Whirlpool washer and dryer sets (running September 16-October 6) .
GM, Kraft, Toyota zoom, P&G stands pat – ELODA ad analysis for September 8-14, 2006
GM, Kraft and Toyota zoomed up in the top 15, while Rogers and Alliance Atlantis Vivafilm dipped and Daimler Chrysler reappeared after an absence. This info was gathered through Montreal-based ELODA’s online TV ad tracking, auditing and viewing services. All data supplied is based on the ELODA recording grid.
Canadian Tire hits top spot, CH-TV blasts upward – Media Monitors for the week of September 11-17, 2006
Check out others topping the radio charts by category and brand in the Toronto market for the week of September 11-17, 2006.
Super heroes to compete for top spot in space
Debuting on September 23, CHUM Television’s Space channel presents a new series that counts down who’s hot in genre film and television. Space Top 10 Countdown airs Saturdays at 6:30pm ET/3:30pm PT (6 x 30 min.) The show looks at the top 10 superheroes portrayed in movies, featuring interviews with journalists who critique them, the stars who’ve portrayed them and the creators of the super power wonders, and then poses the question: who should top the list? Featured in the series are such heroes, anti-heroes, villains and cyborgs as the Dark Knight, Batman, Wonder Woman, the memorable characters from X-Men, and Spiderman. The series repeats on Sundays (11:30am ET/8:30pm PT).
Cameos by sports greats to enliven new Showcase hockey comedy
Hockey legends Phil Esposito, Dave ‘Tiger’ Williams and Darryl Sittler will turn up playing themselves on Showcase’s new comedy series, Rent-A-Goalie, premiering on Sunday, October 1 at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT (8 x 30 min.) Series creator Christopher Bolton plays a hockey-crazed guy who’s now serving coffee and quips in a popular café. The show is described as ‘the perfect blend of hockey, machismo, Italian-Canadian customs and coffee.’ Produced by Georgian Inc./RAG-TV Inc. and directed by T.W. Peacocke (Gemini nominee for Canada Russia ’72).
