
The Canada Media Fund (CMF) has invested $31.7 million across 141 Canadian audiovisual projects through eight of its programs….the program saw True Dating Stories (LaRue Productions), season three of Detention Adventure (LoCo Motion Pictures/Broken Compass Films), Petrol (N5 Pictures) and Fourchette (Attraction Images) as well as season four of Bébéatrice (C’est même pas drôle) walk away with $250,000.
Mar 30, 2021 | CBCRacking up six nominations for various Web Program or Series categories is Bit Playas. The series’ stars Kris Siddiqi and Nigel Downer were both nominated for Best Lead Performance and the show was also nominated for Best Web Program or Series, Fiction, Best Writing and twice for Best Direction. Among the other nominees are The Amazing Gayl Pile: […]
Mar 30, 2021 | Global NewsThe nominees for the 9th annual Canadian Screen Awards were revealed on Tuesday morning, showcasing the broad Canuck talent on both big and small screens…. Bit Playas leads digital media nominations with six, Hey Lady! with five, and both Avocado Toast the series and Ghost BFF has four.
Mar 30, 2021 | ET CanadaThe nominations have been revealed for the ninth annual Canadian Screen Awards, with the Canadian Academy honouring the best in Canadian film and television…. Best Web Program or Series, Fiction: “The Amazing Gayl Pile: Last Resort” – (LaRue Entertainment), “Bit Playas” – (LaRue Entertainment)
Mar 24, 2021 | C21MediaFuse said each of the new and returning series will roll out across its linear and streaming channels in 2021-22…. The final returning series is season two of True Dating Stories, produced by LaRue Entertainment, which shares the real-life stories of people’s wildest dating disasters.
Jan 8, 2021 | Program InsiderFuse, which serves the Latino and multicultural millennial and Gen Z audience, is premiering its newest series, “True Dating Stories”, on Tuesday, February 9 at 11 PM ET/PT. This weekly half-hour series will tell real-life dating horror stories, re-created in hilarious fashion. No one holds back as they recount their weird and sometimes creepy predicaments, […]
Jan 8, 2021 | FuseBuckle up for real-life, real-insane stories of epic dating disasters, on True Dating Stories. There’s no holding back as we dish on people’s weird, sometimes creepy predicaments, run-ins with the law, and dates that just don’t quite pan out.
Sept 9, 2020 | NexusWhen Morgan Waters attended the Applied Communications program at Camosun College in 2001, he never imagined that, a few short years later, he would be the director, co-creator, star, and writer of a web series that would be nominated for an International Emmy, take home a couple of Canadian Screen Awards, and get picked up […]
Sept 7, 2020 | The Varsity“I want to make a show with no white people,” is how Kris Siddiqi pitched his web series Bit Playas to CBC. The show follows Ahmed (Siddiqi) and Leon (Nigel Downer) as they spend their days chasing minor roles and commercial parts across Toronto, all the while dealing with racism inside and outside of the casting room.
Sep 1, 2020 | Barrie TodayYou survived the apocalypse. Now where do you go? Orillia, naturally. That’s what happens in The Amazing Gayl Pile: Last Resort, the fifth instalment in LaRue Entertainment’s International Emmy-nominated Gayl Pile comedy web series, available on the free CBC Gem streaming service. It was filmed in Prince Edward County, but it’s set in Orillia.
August 23,2020 | County LiveSeason five of The Amazing Gayl Pile: The Last Resort was filmed last fall at Isaiah Tubbs. The season is post-apocalypic and has been streaming since Friday on CBC Gem.
Aug 21, 2020 | Le DevoirThis absurdly humorous and endlessly uneasy web series chronicles the rarely glorious adventures of a Hamilton teleshopping presenter, an unfriendly and neurotic being, as well as those of his entourage and his rivals, just as bizarre. .
July 23, 2020 | UpnewsinfoEvery month, CBC adds new titles to its Gem streaming service. Here’s what coming to CBC Gem in August: ….August 21st, The Amazing Gayl Pile: Last Resort, a comedy by LaRue Entertainment….
July 16, 2020 | PlaybackThe LaRue Entertainment-produced comedy will premiere tonight (July 16) on OUTtv in its Canadian linear debut, with three seasons landing on OUTtvGO. The Amazing Gayl Pile will also be available to stream in Canada internationally on OUTtvGO, which is available in the U.S., South Africa, Australia and New Zealand.
July 11, 2020 | NarcityA casting call is looking for people with disastrous dating experiences to be featured on CBC Gem’s True Dating Stories. You’ll even get paid for sharing your experience…..”Larue Entertainment wants to hear your dynamic, funny, elaborate, and outrageous stories from YOUR dating life for their stories”.
July 10, 2020 | MLT BlogLarue Entertainment is asking individuals or couples to share their “dynamic, funny, elaborate, and outrageous” dating stories. This will all be for a new series called True Dating Stories, which airs on CBC Gem.
June 18, 2020 | PlaybackCBC has backed 119 projects through its Creative Relief Fund, with 20 greenlit to production and a further 99 picking up development funding. Within the scripted section of the innovation stream, which called for “big, bold ideas that are innovative and take creative risks,” 24 comedies and 8 dramas received development funding. On the comedy […]
April 23, 2020 | PlaybackOf the 164 projects submitted – made up of 128 English and 36 French applications – 13 English-language and seven French-language series were approved. Among them is drama DM 4 Revenge from LaRue’s Matt King and Melinda Shankar, who serve as writers/creators.
April 21, 2020 | Playback37 Canadian titles picked up nominations in the Banff World Media Festival’s annual awards show, which will be live-streamed in place of a physical ceremony. Among the nominations, CBC Gem titles Bit Playas from LaRue Entertainment earned nominations in the Web Fiction category.
April 21, 2020 | RealscreenThe Banff World Media Festival has revealed the full list of nominees for its 2020 Rockie Awards International Program Competiton. In addition to the CA $25,000 Rogers Prize for Excellence in Canadian Content, 26 awards are presented in 5 category streams. In the social and current affairs stream, documentary nominees are…..True Dating Stories from LaRue […]
March 18, 2020 | Now MagazineSecond City alums Siddiqi and Nigel Downer play roommates Ahmed and Leon. Leon is a former child actor who now takes his craft seriously; Ahmed decides to take up acting, and finds it incredibly easy. But because of their ethnicity – Leon is Black, Ahmed is half-Pakistani – they find themselves relegated to being… bit playas, […]
January 31 2020 | Canadian Industry OnlineKris Siddiqi and Nigel Downer are two friends and comedy performers living in Toronto and the creators of new CBC Gem comedy series Bit Playas
February 26 2020 | CityNewsWhile it’s familiar territory for buddy comedies, the eight-episode series manages the tricky balance of zany humour and sharp satire by putting its leads, played by Siddiqi and fellow “Baroness” actor Nigel Downer, on the receiving end of white privilege and casual racism.
January 30 2020 | Refinery29CBC is the network with the most scripted shows featuring leads of colour, like new sketch comedy series called Tall Boyz and sitcom Bit Playas, about two actors of colour (played by Kris Siddiq and Nigel Downer) struggling to deal with the “soft racism” in the entertainment world.
January 24 2020 | PlaybackLaRue Entertainment has hired Ariella Naymark (pictured) as the Toronto prodco continues to build out its production team… LaRue, led by principals Matt King and Andrew Ferguson, has also promoted Tyler Metcalf to head of production
December 20 2029 | Le DevoirThat does not necessarily mean that it is easier for interpreters from diverse backgrounds to carve out a place for themselves. The comedic web series Bit Playas , written and interpreted by Kris Siddiqi and Nigel Downer, two Toronto comedians from visible minorities, lets glimpse in an exploded and often caricatured form the pitfalls that can confront artists […]
October 8 2019 | PlaybackLaRue Entertainment is headed to Prince Edward County as production begins on the fifth season of its CBC Gem original, The Amazing Gayl Pile. New episodes of the comedy series, created by Morgan Waters and Brooks Gray, are slated to launch in spring 2020.
Sept 17 2019 | Celeb MixOutstanding Achievement in Editing: Marianna Khoury, Best Comedy: True Dating Stories – Andy King, Matt King, Tyler Metcalf, Andrew Ferguson, Best Director – Andy King, Best Web Series: True Dating Stories – Andy King, Matt King, Tyler Metcalf, Andrew Ferguson
July 30 2019 | Just For Laughs Comedy ProThe 2019 winners are: “Beyond the Box: Playing it Short” presented by Tubefilter. James Madge and Jana Peck for Madge & Peck, a blistering sketch comedy series about grown-up life.
July 15 2019 | PlaybackLaRue Entertainment is pursuing growth on both sides of the border as it builds out its production capacity from Toronto while simultaneously growing the U.S. outpost it established last year. The past 12 months has seen an ongoing division of responsibilities between company co-founders Matt King and Andrew Ferguson, with the latter focusing on production […]
July 9 2019 | Melbourne Web FestFor Blackout (CAN) creators Kyle Power and Tanya Hoshi, the series was inspired by two ideas. “We’d like to create a story that could transition from a documentary to a found-footage film without being found-footage the entire time, and that memory loss made for a realistic reason to have the found-footage content in the first place,” says […]
JULY 4 2019 | TORONTO OUTDOOR PICTURE SHOWIn keeping with Christie Pits Film Festival tradition, on Sunday, July 14th, look forward to one evening’s programme featuring the best in veteran and emerging Canadian filmmaking… My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes is about filmmaker Charlie Tyrell’s recollections of his relationship with his father told through phone calls and found objects…
July 2 2019 | VultureA truly surreal and at times disturbing treasure, this is a comedy about one man’s descent into madness, as he is haunted by his family legacy and bullied by his co-workers. That’s the plight of Gayl Pile (Morgan Waters), who must keep afloat the low-rent home-shopping channel started by his deceased, beloved, and driven mother.
June 3 2019 | CBCMY DEAD DAD’S PORNO TAPES is as provocative an examination of life as it sounds. Prompted by his father’s death, director Charlie Tyrell pursues a deeper understanding of his emotionally-distant father in this documentary short by starting with what he left behind: a rather kitsch collection of pornography on VHS videotapes. Narrated by director David Wain (dir. WET HOT AMERICAN […]
April 23 2019 | Celebrity AccessDocumentary: Shortform: My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes
April 1 2019 | Globe and MailI began with True Dating Stories. Accompanied by tongue-in-cheek recreations, comely young people describe their worst encounters. Phelisha relates how her first date with a seemingly nice bartender nosedived when he got her name tattooed on his inner lip. Glenn, a personal trainer, disses a ‘roid rager who kicked him out of his car. Cory […]
March 31 2019 | Huffington PostCharlie Tyrell won best documentary short for “My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes,” and Genevieve Dulude-De Celles took the John Dunning best first feature film award for the coming-of-age drama “A Colony.”
March 31 2019 | PlaybackCharlie Tyrell’s My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes was awarded Best Short Documentary.
March 27 2019 | CBCThe Amazing Gayl Pile is one of Canada’s all time weirdest and most successful digital series. What seems to start as a fairly conventional comedic series satirizing home shopping channels quickly morphs into a surreal show set on a farm called Rootopia where Kangaroos are being harvested for their pouch mucus and nuclear war seems imminent.
March 27 2019 | PRESS RELEASECrime comedy Filth City premieres on Hollywood Suite on March 27th, 2019 at 9 PM ET on Hollywood Suite’s 00s Movies “An appropriately frantic satire that perfectly captures the headspace of Toronto in 2012 and 2013, when the city seemed just seconds away from exploding into total mayhem.” NOW Magazine “It nails the dark absurdity […]
February 22 2019 | CBC ComedyCreated by brothers Andy and Matt King, True Dating Stories is like This American Life as imagined by the Drunk History crew. In every seven to 10 minute segment, real life storytellers recall their most embarrassing dates, which are then recreated by comedic actors.
February 13 2019 | PlaybackThe CMF has invested a total of $10 million across 49 digital media projects, including new seasons of web series like Chateau Laurier and The Amazing Gayl Pile. All told, the funder distributed $3.9 million across 18 projects through the Web Series Pilot Program, with season two of Geneva Film Co.’s Chateau Laurier (pictured) and season five of LaRue Entertainment’s Gayl Pile […]
February 11 2019 | Cartoon BrewThere is also Charlie Tyrell’s mixed-media My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes, nominated for Best Short Documentary, which combines stop-motion, archival footage, and 2d animation. Tyrell’s short was also shortlisted for the Academy Award for documentary short subject, but didn’t make into the final five nominees.
Feb 8 2019 | CBCJust in time for Valentine’s Day, production company LaRue Entertainment and CBC have announced the highly anticipated return of digital original comedy series True Dating Stories, with eight new episodes available now on the free CBC Gem streaming service.
February 7 2019 | PlaybackCharlie Tyrell, who was recently short-listed for this year’s Academy Awards for his project My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes, is competing in the CSA’s best short documentary prize.
January 30 2019 | Indie Screen Awards12 nominations for: The Amazing Gayl Pile: Apocalypse Soonish
January 28 2019 | PlaybackMeanwhile, Wong, whose directing credits include Wexford Plaza and True Dating Stories, adapted Masculinity starring Chris Robinson and My Toronto Home, which stars actors Louise Pitre and Joe Matheso
January 24 2019 | The Hamilton SpectatorYou wouldn’t expect a short film called “My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes” to delve into the effects of intergenerational trauma and abuse. But the provocative title of the 14-minute documentary belies the profoundly personal story that Ancaster-born Charlie Tyrell shares in his film.
January 18 2019 | VarietyNominations for the 91st Academy Awards will be announced on Tuesday, Jan. 22. Below are In Contention’s final predictions in all 24 categories. Documentary (Short Subject): “My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes” – Charlie Tyrell & Julie Baldassi
January 15 2019 | Buy Why Tho?Best Costume Design in a Web Series: The Amazing Gayl Pile: Apocalypse Soonish Costume Designer: Vanessa Fischer Assistant Wardrobe: Victoria Lus & Sarah Friedlander
January 11 2019 | The New York TimesIt began as a son’s impulse to connect with a father he never really got a chance to know — by digging through the relics of his late dad’s life — and ultimately became a poignant example of overcoming generational family trauma through art.
January 10 2019 | VarietyOutstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Short Filmmaking “My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes,” Charlie Tyrell
January 7 2019 | Deadline HollywoodMy Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes, from director Charlie Tyrell, boasts the most provocative title of any of this year’s shortlisted short docs. The innovative film uses stop motion techniques to explore Tyrell’s relationship with his late father, a man who lacked the kind of emotional accessibility his son would have liked.
January 7 2019 | Short of the WeekMy favorite thing as a programmer and fan is when a film says all the things I’ve been meaning to articulate, only better. “My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes” is a deeply personal viewing experience?
January 4 2019 | SalonIf Charlie Tyrell’s short film win this year’s Academy Award, the presenter will get to announce, “and the Oscar goes to ‘My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes.’” It’s kind of irresistible, but despite the provocative title, the film is not really about a parent’s pornography collection…In September, I realized I had to enjoy these festivals. It’s […]
December 30 2018 | What We SeeWhen you hear a title like “My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes”, you’re probably not immediately thinking of a story of generations of dysfunction, tempers, and even abuse — but this short film tackles those big issues with grace and humor. Director Charlie Tyrell’s relationship with his father, Greg, is put under the microscope as he […]
December 27 2018 | CBC ArtsAs a filmmaker with a dead dad, this is a film I wish I had made. Kudos to director Charlie Tyrell for this honest and non-glorified portrayal of his late father — and for making me tear up, as the film hit far too close to home.
December 19 2018 | Star MetroOther Canadians fared better on the nine short lists on the academy announced on Monday. Toronto filmmaker Charlie Tyrell is a finalist for Best Documentary Short with My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes.
December 18 2018 | PlaybackCharlie Tyrell’s My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes is one of a number of domestic projects in contention for prizes at the 91st Academy Awards.
December 17 2018 | IndieWireThis year’s batch includes a motley crew of contenders, including Marshall Curry’s unsettling “A Night at the Garden,” the intriguingly titled Sundance debut “My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes…”
December 17 2018 | OscarsThe Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has announced shortlists in consideration for the 91st Oscars® in nine categories:Documentary Short Subject – MY DEAD DAD’S PORNO TAPES.
December 17 2018 | Hollywood ReporterTen films will advance in the Documentary Short Subject category for the 91st Academy Awards. One hundred four films had originally qualified in the category. Members of the Documentary Branch vote to determine the shortlist and the nominees. “My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes”
December 5 2018 | POV MagazineOn the shorts front, Charlie Tyrell’s festival hit My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes and Sofia Bohdanowicz’s playful hybrid Veslemøy’s Song spotlight non-fiction … My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes won several grand jury prizes at festivals including SXSW…
December 4, 2018 | Balder & DashThis month, we look at Charlie Tyrell’s “My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes,” a filmmaker’s journey through his deceased father’s belongings as he tries to piece together a narrative that would explain his father’s behavior toward his family. Tyrell uses several objects (including porno tapes) to cleverly animate a profile of a man whose struggle to […]
November 30 2018 | ARGNet InsiderEarlier this week, the horror-adjacent webseries Blackout went live. While faux documentary film has become fairly common in the horror genre, Blackout is taking a slightly more professional angle to the space, allowing their investigative team to have higher production values as they begin their investigation into an online community of sleepwalkers. If you watch the first few episodes, […]
November 9 2018 | Modern HorrorsBlackout will hit Youtube on November 27th–free of charge…Blackout is a documentary web series focusing on sleeping disorders such as sleep paralysis, insomnia, and sleepwalking.
November 8 2018 | VarietyOutstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Short Filmmaking – My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes (Nomination)
October 18 2018 | Celeb MixThe nominees have been announced for the NYC Web Fest 2018. Best Supporting Actress: Inessa Frantowski – The Amazing Gayl Pile. Best Supporting Actor: Andy King – The Amazing Gayl Pile. Best Comedy: The Amazing Gayl Pile – Brooks Gray, Morgan Waters, Andrew Ferguson, Matt King, Tyler Metcalf. Best Actor: Morgan Waters – The Amazing Gayl Pile
October 9 2018 | VarietyUp to 10 nominees in each of the feature and short documentary categories will be selected from the shortlist. My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes (New York Times Op-Docs. Director: Charlie Tyrell. Producer: Julie Baldassi)
October 8 2018 | Shorts of the WeekLurid title aside, Charlie Tyrell’s short documentary My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes achieves a remarkable balance between lightness and sincerity, in which the hook of his late-father’s old VHS porno tapes serves as an opportunity to dive into a larger and more meaningful examination of his father’s passing and family history.
October 2 2018 | No Film SchoolDirector Charlie Tyrell dug deeper than many of us ever would. We first caught wind of director Charlie Tyrell earlier this year at SXSW, where he participated in a roundtable discussion for the No Film School Podcast on making documentary short films. His film, which features a title that will stick out to just about any festivalgoer, later went […]
October 2 2018 | The InquirerAnimated and Live Action Shorts: My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes, Director Charlie Tyrell. 2018, Canada.
October 1 2018 | Northern StarsThe Canadian film, My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes by Charlie Tyrell took two awards including Best Canadian Animation and the Vimeo Award. The film was written by Josef Beeby and Charlie Tyrell. The awards were presented on September 29.
September 29 2018 | Cartoon BrewBEST CANADIAN ANIMATION + VIMEO AWARD Winner: My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes by Charlie Tyrell Jury Comment: Honest, funny, nostalgic and incredibly inventive, it tells the story of a young man sifting through his late father’s belongings in an attempt to uncover the intimate details of his life. A perfectly arranged menagerie of old film footage, audio recordings […]
September 7 2018 | New York TimesThe actor and comedian Paul Scheer’s engaging, gaptoothed grin has popped up on shows from “30 Rock” and “Veep” to, currently, “The Amazing Gayl Pile,” for which he also serves as executive producer.
September 06, 2018 | In The SeatsSometimes a film works best when it leaves the audience to do all the heavy lifting. Such is the case with Zachary Russell’s short film 7A. Very little is explained, we never even learn the characters names, however, that does not make it any less captivating. What we do know is that a woman (Kayla Lorette) […]
September 6 2018 | Space7A will screen alongside six other shorts with a bend towards the creepy and unsettling. It’s also a great film to catch if you’re an ultra-modern minimalist that needs help decorating a new loft. 7A’s art direction is on point, right down to the ‘millennial pink’ surprise.
September 5 2018 | The GateFilmmaker, writer, and stage veteran Zack Russell didn’t exactly know that he was creating a dystopian film when he set out to make his latest short, 7A, which premieres at the Toronto International Film Festival this week. It began as a specific idea about the sometimes bad or difficult choices that human beings make every day […]
September 5 2018 | The Weekly SpoonLorette and Rooney do an amazing job playing two characters that just happen to pass through each other’s lives, but in each sequence of events there seems to be some hidden undertone in their acting that something is going on or going to happen between the two that the viewers will never really grasp.
August 27 2018 | Now Toronto7A – Actor Kayla Lorette and director Zack Russell – who collaborated on the sexy-creepy 2015 short She Stoops To Conquer – return with this very different but no less effective tale of a woman who lets a maintenance worker (Tom Rooney) into her apartment for a service call. You may think you know happens […]
August 24 2018 | Real Clear LifeCharlie thought that maybe the things that his father, Greg, left behind would reveal more about what his dad was like when he was alive.
August 23 2018 | International Business TimesHamm is best known for his role in the “Mad Men” TV series. Some of his more recent projects include shows like “Legion,” “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt,” and “The Amazing Gayl Pile.”
August 22, 2018 | The AtlanticWhen his father died, Charlie Tyrell realized he knew next to nothing about him. Tyrell and his reticent father hadn’t been close; as a young adult, Tyrell had been waiting for “the strange distance he felt between them to close,” as he describes it in his short documentary, My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes. Now, he wouldn’t […]
August 16 2018 | PlaybackProduction is underway in Toronto on season two of LaRue Entertainment’s True Dating Stories… Season two of True Dating Stories will stream on the CBC TV app and on the pubcaster’s website on Valentine’s Day 2019.
August 8 2018 | Cartoon BrewOther notables are Charlie Tyrell’s My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes (best documentary short, SXSW)
August 10, 2018 | The WrapYes, Charlie Tyrell’s dad is dead. And yes, Charlie Tyrell’s dad had a stash of porno tapes. But you should know that there’s a lot more to “My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes” than that…
July 5 2018 | Animation MagazineThe 2018 Edition of the Ottawa Intl. Animation Festival has announced the list of projects selected for the competition. My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes | Charlie Tyrell | Canada
June 29 2018 | PlaybackOther English projects to receive financing included first seasons of LaRue Productions’ Bit Playas
June 22 2018 | PlaybackShe Said Films’ Running With Violet, LoCo Motion Pictures’ How to Buy a Baby and LaRue Entertainment’s The Amazing Gayl Pile were among the recipients.
June 21 2018 | The Hawk EyeOther compelling titles include “My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes”
April 30 2018 | Northern StarsThe only Canadian short in this program is My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes. It runs 14 minutes and its from Charlie Tyrell. Enough said.
April 29 2018 | 604 NowBest Cinematography – Filth City
April 9 2018 | Toronto StarHamm’s other latest projects include a guest role in the Canadian digital comedy series “The Amazing Gayl Pile,” which airs on NBCUniversal’s Seeso and CBC Comedy.”I read it and I was like, ‘Well, this is about as weird as it gets and I like it,’” said Hamm, who’s become as much a star in the comedy world as he has in […]
April 6 2018 | PlaybackFilth City and Out With Dad also nabbed prizes at the event, which celebrates independent web series from around the world.
April 6 2018 | Broadway WorldThe 49th Annual NASHVILLE Film Festival continues its rollout of film announcements with the short films in competition. Episodic Competition: Filth City (Southeast US Premiere) – Director: Andy King (Canada). Documentary Competition: My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes (Tennessee Premiere) – Director: Charlie Tyrell (Canada)
April 5, 2018 | Broadway WorldBest Costume Design – Vanessa Fischer, Filth City Best Supporting Actor – Comedy – Andy King, Filth City
April 5, 2018 | Post IndependentWith “My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes,” and its provocative title, you might think the film is about the “tackiest video pornography the ’80s had to offer.” But really, the film is about all the weird stuff in a single family history, generations back. It tells an engaging story about family dysfunction, abuse and forgiveness using […]
April 5, 2018 | Independent Production FundThe Independent Production Fund and its 40-member Pre-Selection Committee have selected 30 projects which are now eligible to advance to Phase 2 of the application process. The Amazing Gayl Pile is eligible to apply for season 5 financing and Bit Playas, which is currently in development, has moved into the second phase.
April 4, 2018 | PlaybackThe Bell Fund has selected 33 English- and French-language projects to split $2 million in funding…24 projects will receive funding through the Slate Development Pilot Program…The English-language projects selected hail from Toronto-based prodcos … LaRue Entertainment…
March 29 2018 | BriefTakeThe new season of the International Emmy nominated web series The Amazing Gayl Pile starts streaming on CBC Comedy on March 29th. Off-beat and unapologetic, Gayl Pile follows one man’s misguided quest to conquer the world of home shopping. The LaRue series has been nominated for multiple Canadian Screen Awards and has even won a few. The creator/ director/writer and star Morgan Waters is also […]
March 25 2018 | Toronto StarIf ever a show was a cry for help, it’s “The Amazing Gayl Pile,” which premieres its fourth full season Thursday March 29 on cbc.ca. The International Emmy Award nominated series stars Morgan Waters, Andy King, Inessa Frantowski and Brooks Gray and revolves around the seedy underworld of home shopping television.
March 22, 2018 | RealscreenMy Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes, directed by Charlie Tyrell (Canada). “Was my father’s leftover stuff the key to who he really was?”
March 21, 2018 | Entertainment WeeklyMy Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes, directed by Charlie Tyrell (Canada). Was my father’s leftover stuff the key to who he really was?
March 15, 2018 | PlaybackCharlie Tyrell’s My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes prevailed in Documentary Shorts.
March 14, 2018 | The OmegaDim the Fluorescents will keep you on the edge of your seat and have you laughing for a good majority of the runtime.
March 13, 2018 | SF GateDOCUMENTARY SHORTS Winner: “My Dead Dads Porno Tapes.”
March 13, 2018 | VarietyDOCUMENTARY SHORTS. Winner: “My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes”
March 13, 2018 | SXSWDocumentary Shorts. Jury Award Winner: My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes
March 9, 2018 | Broadway WorldFilth City leads all comedies with 12 nominations.
February 12, 2018 | PlaybackLaRue Entertainment’s True Dating Stories among the digital projects to receive funding in the latest round. The CMF has invested $3.5 million across 16 returning web series, including projects from Nelvana, LoCo Motion Pictures and LaRue Entertainment. The latest round of funding is for Canadian web series going into their second season or beyond. The […]
February 9, 2018 | PlaybackThree Canadian doc shorts and a midnight short were also selected, including Charie Tyrell’s My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes, which follows the filmmaker as he seeks to better understand his emotionally distant late father.
January 31, 2018 | Indie Series AwardsNOMINATIONS ANNOUNCED FOR 9th ANNUAL INDIE SERIES AWARDS 30 Categories Honor Social Relevance, Artistic Merit, Excellence in Craft NEW YORK, NY, January 31, 2018 – The nominations for the 9th Annual Indie Series Awards were revealed on Wednesday, January 31. The ISAs celebrate the best in independently produced entertainment created for the Web. Nominees were […]
January 24, 2018 | Vancouver Web FestFilth City has been nominated for four awards including Best Comedy, Best Actor – Pat Thornton, Best Original Score – Poor Paul, and Best Cinematography – Ian MacMillan. The Vancouver Web Fest is Canada’s Premiere International Web Fest taking place on April 19-21, 2018 at the Vancouver Convention Centre.
January 19, 2018 | NOW MagazineThat moment when your parent dies and you discover their porn collection while cleaning out their place – that’s the premise of Toronto director Charlie Tyrell’s short documentary.
January 19, 2018 | The New York TimesWas my father’s leftover stuff the key to who he really was? By Charlie Tyrell The hidden compartments of household ephemera are seldom discussed among family members. Parents hide the material relics of their individuality, in secret alcoves. And kids know exactly where to find these objects. Collections vary: It can be a hidden stash […]
January 12, 2018 | AV ClubAudrey (Claire Armstrong) and Lillian (Naomi Skwarna), the protagonists of David Warth’s offbeat Canadian indie Dim The Fluorescents, are frustrated theater artists whose sole creative outlet comes in corporate training seminars—stark, tear-stained, hilariously misdirected mini-dramas on themes of customer service and workplace safety that they stage for the faint applause of white-collar workers.
January 12, 2018 | Toronto StarMy Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes by Charlie Tyrell, about a son’s trawl through his late father’s porn stash.
January 11, 2018 | The New York TimesNot long after this scene, Daniel Warth’s “Dim the Fluorescents” evolves from a screwball roommate comedy to a melodrama about artistic frustration.
December 6, 2017 | NOW MagazineI saw Daniel Warth’s Dim The Fluorescents nearly a full year ago, before it went to the Slamdance Film Festival in January. I’ve been itching to talk about it ever since, and to tell people to go and see it.
December 5, 2017 | RealscreenCharlie Tyrell’s My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes are among the projects selected as part of Sundance’s short films program.
December 4, 2017 | PlaybackCharlie Tyrell’s My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes and Michelle Latimer’s Nuuca made the cut, as well as a trio of NFB projects. Seven Canadian short films have been added to the lineup for Sundance Film Festival, including Charlie Tyrell’s My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes and Diane Obomsawin’s I Like Girls. My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes, […]
December 4, 2017 | Press ReleaseCANADIAN SHORT MY DEAD DAD’S PORNO TAPES TO DEBUT AT THE 2018 SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL From Rising Toronto Director Charlie Tyrell Narrated by Wet Hot American Summer’s David Wain TORONTO (December 4, 2017) – It was today announced that My Dead Dad’s Porno Tapes, a short documentary directed by rising Toronto filmmaker Charlie Tyrell, has […]
November 14, 2017 | The Globe and MailWatched online Filth City is clearly anchored in the arena of Fubar and Trailer Park Boys humour – on the surface dumb as a plank but alive with real mischief under that surface.
November 9, 2017 | The Eye OpenerBecoming award-winning and Emmy-nominated producers wasn’t part of their childhood dream. Matt King and Andrew Ferguson both went into different paths after graduating high school—King took human resources at University of Western Ontario, and Ferguson went to University of Guelph for theatre. But there was one thing that sparked an interest in both of them–television […]
October 16, 2017 | RyersonianLaRue Entertainment, a production company founded by two Ryerson alumni, will debut their new digital series on YouTube called Filth City on Nov. 5. The date also marks the four-year anniversary of Rob Ford’s admitting to smoking crack.
October 12, 2017 | PlaybackLaRue Entertainment sets Canadian release date for Filth City LaRue Entertainment’s 12-part digital project Filth City (pictured) is set to premiere on YouTube in Canada on Nov. 5. The first five episodes will launch all at once, with remaining seven episodes rolling out daily. Written and directed by Andy King, the comedy/crime drama was recently […]
October 6 2017 | Exclaim!The Toronto band have unveiled a brand new video for album cut “Slicked.”
September 27, 2017 | VarietyShort-Form Series : “The Amazing Gayl Pile”, LaRue Entertainment, Canada
September 27, 2017 | PlaybackDCTV, Banger Films, LaRue Entertainment and Aetios Productions are among 44 nominees for this year’s International Emmy Awards.
August 31, 2017 | PlaybackProduction is underway on season four (10 x 10 minutes) of LaRue Entertainment’s The Amazing Gayl Pile.
August 24, 2017 | NoiseySometimes you have to burn everything to really start over. And that’s fine! Figurative “burning” works well enough but Toronto’s garage rock band Weaves take that sentiment very literally in their new video for “Walkaway.”
August 10, 2017 | PlaybackThe deal sees the dark crime thriller heading to eight territories across Europe and South America, including France, Brazil and Italy.
August 8, 2017 | C21 MediaVivendi Group’s SVoD app Studio+ has acquired a dark political/crime comedy inspired by true events from Toronto-based LaRue Entertainment.
July 19, 2017 | PlaybackMatch made in heaven? The e-commerce giant picked up the series about a home shopping channel host for its U.K., German and Japanese Prime Video service. In a fitting pairing, home-shopping giant Amazon has acquired the streaming rights to LaRue Entertainment’s The Amazing Gayl Pile for its Prime Video platform in the U.K., Japan and […]
July 18, 2017 | C21 MediaAmazon in the UK, Germany and Japan has picked up a digital series from Toronto-based LaRue Entertainment. The Amazing Gayl Pile follows a man who attempts to conquer the world of home shopping and was co-created by Brooks Gray and Morgan Waters. The show is available in Canada on CBC and in the US via […]
July 18, 2017 | TBI VisionLaRue Entertainment’s The Amazing Gayl Pile is now streaming exclusively on Amazon Prime Video in the UK, Germany and Japan. The Amazing Gayl Pile, which began life as a web series on Sarah Silverman’s online channel Jash, is billed as “one man’s misguided quest to conquer the world of home shopping”. Pile (Morgan Waters) ekes […]
July 16, 2017 | The GazetteWant an honest take on what chasing your dream job after university is like? Listen to what Matt King, president and producer of LaRue Entertainment, has to say. The Western University grad is based out of Toronto and has produced music videos alongside Feist and Kevin Drew as well as award-winning comedy series including The […]
March 24, 2017 | The Toronto StarActor Pat Thornton does what the Toronto police could never do. He nails Rob Ford, providing a chaotic and quite perfect impersonation of the late mayor of Toronto.
March 24, 2017 | Toronto SunThat’s Filth City, the so-called “Rob Ford movie” that closes the Canadian Film Fest Saturday at the Scotiabank Theatre. A first feature by director Andy King, it’s an over-the-top grindhouse crime-comedy that, between scenes, even copies the “scratched film” gimmick of the Tarantino/Rodriguez co-feature Grindhouse.
March 24, 2017 | Toronto Sun“This weekend was full of interesting death threats on Twitter,” says the comic actor who plays fictional crack-smoking mayor Tom Hogg in Filth City, the crime comedy that closes out the Canadian Film Fest at the Scotia Saturday.
March 24, 2017 | Toronto LifeFilth City, a controversial crime comedy premiering this Saturday at the Canadian Film Festival, chronicles the misadventures of Mayor Tom Hogg (Pat Thornton), the corrupt, drug-addled boss of the fictional city of York.
March 22, 2017 | PlaybackHow LaRue Entertainment built an audience for its oddball comedy before bringing NBCUniversal and CBC into the mix.
March 22, 2017 | CBC“Everyone’s congratulating me on getting threatened,” Andy King says, with a laugh. The reason behind King and comedian Pat Thornton’s onslaught of online threats is because of their latest film, Filth City.
March 21, 2017 | One Movie, Our ViewsThings will close on Saturday night with the premiere of the already hyped “Rob Ford movie” Filth City, which sold out right away.
March 20, 2017 | Now MagazineYou’ve likely heard a little about Filth City (Saturday, 8 pm) already; as soon as it was announced as part of the festival lineup, Doug Ford started whining on local television about how Andy King’s satire – conceived and produced as a 12-part web series but repackaged as a two-hour feature – mocks his late […]
March 17, 2017 | Now MagazineHot on the heels of a sold-out screening at Canadian Film Fest, we’re showing the controversial film at The Royal
March 10, 2017 | PlaybackLaRue Entertainment’s The Amazing Gayl Pile was the big winner at the Academy of Canadian Television and Cinema’s digital and immersive storytelling gala, picking up prizes for Best Original Series produced for Digital Media – Fiction and the Best Direction in a Series Produced for Digital Media.
March 10, 2017 | YahooMorgan Waters, its star, called the double-win “kinda cool.” “I feel like all the time spent in the editing room and smoking pot and laughing at our own stuff now results in this,” he said. “We were already having fun and now this is kind of, it’s a nice bonus.”
March 9, 2017 | VICE‘Filth City’ filmmaker Andy King talks about Toronto’s strange times, being called a “scumbag” by Doug Ford, and the everlasting legacy of the late mayor.
March 9, 2017 | Big 101.1Comedian, Actor and co-Writer Danny Polishchuk joined BIG Mornings with Kris & guest co-host Pete Smith to talk about his film ‘Filth City’ which is loosely based on the Rob Ford crack-video scandal. It’s created headlines recently after Doug Ford on CP24 said the ‘makers of Filth City shouldn’t cross the street when he is driving […]
March 8, 2017 | Global NewsA movie titled Filth City, closing out this year’s Canadian Film Fest, looks to be inspired by the late Toronto Mayor Rob Ford and his crack scandal. The movie poster for the film shows a Rob Ford lookalike named Mayor Hogg, played by Kingston, Ont.-born actor Pat Thornton, smoking a pipe under a banner which reads “The crime rate […]
March 8, 2017 | CP24Former city councillor Doug Ford made a veiled threat at the makers of a new film that’s loosely based on the late Rob Ford’s crack video scandal on Wednesday, suggesting that they shouldn’t cross the street when he is driving down the road.
March 8, 2017 | Yahoo NewsThe Canadian-made film Filth City is supposed to be a dramatic re-telling of the former mayor’s highly-publicized crack cocaine scandal and the media circus that surrounded it. The movie is set to be released on March 25, three days after the one year anniversary of Rob Ford’s death, and not everyone seems ready to take a walk down memory lane with […]
March 8, 2017 | The Hamilton SpectatorFormer city councillor Doug Ford said the movie loosely based on the life of his late brother Rob Ford is “hurtful” and called the people behind the film “scumbags.” Speaking to Newstalk 1010’s Rush with Ryan Doyle and Jay Michaels program Tuesday, Ford called the film Filth City “a joke.” “It’s not even accurate, even […]
March 8, 2017 | 102.1 The EdgeThe trailer for a new movie called “Filth City” was released March 1st and its generated quite the conversation in the GTA.
March 8, 2017 | 103.1 Fresh RadioA movie titled Filth City, closing out this year’s Canadian Film Fest, looks to be inspired by the late Toronto Mayor Rob Ford and his crack scandal.
March 8, 2017 | The Morning ShowA new movie based on the Rob Ford crack scandal is set to premier on March 25. But is the film in bad taste?
March 7, 2017 | 24 Hour TorontoRob Ford probably would have laughed his head off. But not everybody is laughing. The movie poster for the movie, Filth City, shows a Rob Ford look-a-like, named Mayor Hogg, smoking a pipe under a banner which says: “The crime rate is high, so is the mayor.”
March 7, 2017 | CanoeRob Ford probably would have laughed his head off. But not everybody is laughing. Inspired by the former mayor’s crack scandal, it’s a new Canadian-produced movie, which will premier March 25 at the Scotiabank Theatre. The movie trailer boasts it was “inspired by true” events and has a classic line: “There’s a video of the mayor […]
March 7, 2017 | The Toronto StarThe trailer for “Filth City” a movie about “Tom Hogg,” the drug-addicted mayor of the fictional city of York, is out now. The film is set to premiere in Toronto later this month.
March 7, 2017 | City NewsDoug Ford is the calling the makers of an outlandish dark comedy about his late brother’s crack video scandal “scumbags.”
March 7, 2017 | Newstalk 1010Doug Ford isn’t mincing words. He calls the makers of a movie, loosely based on his late brother, “scumbags.” The dark comedy, Filth City, is set to debut on the closing night of Canadian Film Fest on March 25th.
March 7, 2017 | ET CanadaAn out-of-control mayor will stop at nothing to extricate himself from scandal when when video surfaces that shows him smoking crack. Not only was that the real-life story that played out with former Toronto Mayor Rob Ford, it’s also the plot of an upcoming movie called “Filth City”.
March 7, 2017 | 680 NewsDoug Ford is the calling the makers of an outlandish dark comedy about his late brother’s crack video scandal “scumbags.” In an interview with CityNews on Tuesday night, Ford also called the timing of the film’s release — just days after the first anniversary of Rob Ford’s death — “tasteless.”
March 7, 2017 | blogTOThe putatively dark comedy directed by Andy King shows a power hungry mayor wrapped in controversy who will stop at nothing to make sure the video of him smoking crack doesn’t get into the wrong hands. Based on the trailer, the movie looks entirely outlandish, but we’ll reserve judgment until it’s actually been screened.
March 7, 2017 | Daily HiveWhile we may never know the whole story, this soon to be released dark comedy crime story from filmmaker Andy King will certainly resonate with residents in The 6ix.
March 7, 2017 | Winnipeg SunRob Ford probably would have laughed his head off. But not everybody is laughing.
March 2, 2017 | IndiewireThe festival will close with Andy King’s dark comedy crime story “Filth City,” which stars Melinda Shankar, Melanie Nicholls-King, and Siobhan Murphy.
February 27, 2017 | Canadian Film FestThe Canadian Film Fest (CFF) today announced the line up for the 2017 festival along with news that it is expanding from four days to five…The festival will close with Andy King’s dark comedy crime story FILTH CITY that stars Melinda Shankar, Melanie Nicholls-King, and Siobhan Murphy. This year’s CFF will showcase a total of […]
February 27, 2017 | VimoozDim The Fluorescents, the feature film debut of director Daniel Warth and producer Josh Clavir, and winner of the 2017 Slamdance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize will be released in Canada by Films We Like. The film will have a cross-Canada fall theatrical release, followed by a wide digital release targeting SVOD, streaming and airline […]
February 8, 2017 | Film ForwardSharp yet ultimately poignant, Dim the Fluorescents won the Grand Jury Prize for Best Narrative Feature at the recent Slamdance Film Festival.
February 3, 2017 | CBCThis year, four Canadian filmmakers — Daniel Warth (Dim The Fluorescents, which won Slamdance’s top prize), Joyce Wong (Wexford Plaza), Adrian Murray (Withdrawn) and Jordan Canning (Suck It Up) — followed in the footsteps of the likes of Christopher Nolan, Lynn Shelton and Benh Zeitlin by having their early work screen at the fest.
February 1, 2017 | TubefilterEach year, the Indie Series Awards honor exemplary digital content creators who have succeeded despite working with limited budgets and committing to independent productions. The nominees for the 8th annual Indie Series Awards have been announced, with soap opera The Bay and oddball comedy The Amazing Gayl Pile leading the way. The Amazing Gayl Pile, which began […]
February 1, 2017 | Broadway WorldThe Amazing Gayl Pile led all comedies with 13 nominations. The series is joined in the Best Web Series – Comedy field by #Adulting, Break: The Musical, Fame Dogs, Grip and Electric, High Road, Keith Broke His Leg and The Pioneers. The Bay and The Amazing Gayl Pile each broke the previous record of 13 […]
February 1, 2017 | Indie Series AwardsThe Amazing Gayl Pile led all comedies with 13 nominations. The series is joined in the Best Web Series – Comedy field by #Adulting, Break: The Musical, Fame Dogs, Grip and Electric, High Road, Keith Broke His Leg and The Pioneers. The Bay and The Amazing Gayl Pile each broke the previous record of 13 […]
January 30, 2017 | The Film StageWinner of Slamdance’s Grand Jury Prize, Dim the Fluorescents is the kind of dynamic, entertaining debut feature that hopefully puts its cast and crew on the map. Taking place in the city of Toronto – which is currently going through its own indie cinema renaissance – director Daniel Warth and co-writer Miles Barstead have put together […]
January 27, 2017 | No Film SchoolA struggling actress and an aspiring playwright reach for the sublime while performing workplace scenarios in this Slamdance 2017 Dramatic Grand Jury Prizewinner.
January 26, 2017 | Screen MagazineThe Sparky Prize for Best Narrative Feature went to DIM THE FLUORESCENTS; directed by Daniel Warth, and written by Warth and Miles Barstead. “It’s empathetic, weird and insanely funny.” said Slamdance jurors. “This film delivers its crazy script with guts & panache. It’s a delight–beautifully executed and smart as a whip.”
January 27, 2017 | PlaybackToronto-based Daniel Warth won the Grand Jury Prize for Narrative Feature at the 2017 Slamdance Film Festival for his debut feature Dim the Fluorescents.
January 27, 2017 | Vancouver SunToronto director Daniel Warth’s crowdfunded comedy “Dim the Fluorescents” has won a top Sparky Award at the Slamdance Film Festival.
January 27, 2017 | Metro NewsToronto director Daniel Warth’s crowdfunded comedy “Dim the Fluorescents” has won a top Sparky Award at the Slamdance Film Festival. Warth’s debut feature film, which made its world premiere at the fest, took the grand jury prize for narrative feature.
January 22, 2017 | Screen AnarchyIn the tradition of films that pull back the curtain on the inner workings of showbiz, writer/director Daniel Warth’s Dim The Fluorescents shows us the ins and outs of… corporate training seminars. It’s not the most exciting place to be, surely, but thankfully this movie has a bit more to say.
January 24, 2017 | Indie WireTurns out, the entertainment industry is a tough one to break into — sorry for blowing your mind right now — but Canadian filmmaker Daniel Warth takes that tired old chestnut and turns it into something very fresh and funny with his Slamdance premiere “Dim the Fluorescents.”
January 26, 2017 | VarietyDaniel Warth’s “Dim the Fluorescents” and Stefan Avalos’ documentary “Strad Style” have won the Sparky Awards for grand jury prizes at the 23rd Slamdance Film Festival.
January 17, 2017 | CBCThe National Film Board of Canada, Vice Media, content studio Secret Location and digital production company LaRue Entertainment are among the leading creators in the digital categories.
November 29, 2016 | The Toronto StarThe Slamdance Film Festival has chosen three Canadian features to compete for prizes and honours at its 23rd edition Jan. 20-26 in Park City, Utah.
October 24, 2016 | TBI VisionNewly-created distributor Limonero Films has come back from its first MIPCOM with a deal for UK rights to The Amazing Gayl Pile.
October 14, 2016 | PlaybackToronto’s LaRue Entertainment has secured a raft of deals for its short documentary I Thought I Told You to Shut Up!! … Company toppers Matt King and Andrew Ferguson will also be shopping the rights to the feature film and digital series Filth City at MIPCOM, alongside the first three seasons of The Amazing Gayl […]
October 14, 2016 | PlaybackMatt King, producer at LaRue Entertainment, also told Playback Daily one of the major talking points in his group was the need to invest more dollars, both domestically and internationally, in marketing Cancon.
September 30, 2016 | PlaybackWith MIPCOM less than a month away, Blue Ant Media’s distribution arm, Blue Ant International, has announced the acquisition of 90 hours of unscripted content, including Canadian-produced series from Muse Entertainment, LaRue Entertainment and CMJ Productions II.
September 27, 2016 | PlaybackBlue Ant International, has announced the acquisition of 90 hours of unscripted content, including Canadian-produced series from Muse Entertainment, LaRue Entertainment and CMJ Productions II
August 25, 2016 | SplitsiderDreams. Everyone has them. And that everyone includes Gayl Pile, host of the little-watched Ladies’ Power Hour on Home Shopping TV. Sure, right now he’s a depressed and underpaid pitchman for horrible beauty products. But like we said, he has dreams. Big dreams. He’s going to become the greatest television personality of all time.
August 5, 2016 | FlavorwireThere are scores of TV shows out there, with dozens of new episodes each week, not to mention everything you can find on Hulu Plus, Netflix streaming, and HBO Go. How’s a viewer to keep up?
July 27, 2016 | Star TribuneHome shopper At some point, one of the comics being showcased on NBC’s streaming service Seeso is going to break big. Could it be Morgan Waters? The Canadian comedian gives it a shot with “The Amazing Gayl Pile,” playing a man driven to become TV’s No. 1 pitchman.
July 21, 2016 | TubefilterSince its launch at the beginning of 2016, NBCUniversal’s Seeso has put together a compelling lineup of original programming.
MAY 2, 2016 | SplitsiderSeeso just announced a round of summer premiere dates for new shows, including…“The Amazing Gayl Pile” (10 episodes each) – Season 2 & 3 Premieres July 28
April 12, 2016 | the concordianIn She Stoops to Conquer by Zack Russell, a struggling actress dons a mask for a talent show, and keeps it to go clubbing. There, she meets her doppelganger, and engages in a strange dance. Her identity begins meshing with the character she portrays, and the audience is left wondering who is really calling the […]
March 31, 2016 | The FaderToronto punk band Greys have something to say. With guitar- and feedback-heavy arrangements and some shouting, Greys express their empathy through hard-hitting tunes like the ones on their upcoming record Outer Heaven, out April 22 on Carpark (in the U.S.) and Buzz Records (in CA).
March 14, 2016 | BroadcasterLaRue Entertainment’s She Stoops to Conquer won for best live action short.
February 21, 2016 | Broadway WorldSeeso, NBCUniversal Digital Enterprise’s new ad-free streaming comedy channel, has declared today, February 21 the “Day of Ha” – During “Day Of Ha,” viewers also will have the opportunity to catch the entire [first two seasons of] “The Amazing Gayl Pile,” for free.
February 9, 2016 |Sol Friedman’s Sundance-winner Bacon & God’s Wrath and Zack Russell’s She Stoops To Conquer are among the Canadian titles added to South by South West Festival’s shorts programs.
January 19, 2016 | ET CanadaThis year’s nominees for the Canadian Screen Awards have just been revealed, honouring the year’s best in Canadian film, TV and digital media. Best Live Action Short Drama – She Stoops To Conquer – Zack Russell
January 5th, 2016 | PlaybackLaRue Entertainment’s Matt King and Corvid Pictures’ Sarah Timmins are among the five participants in Bell Media’s third annual Executive Producer Accelerator Lab.
October 26, 2015 | She does the CityTrue Dating Stories: real people tell their funniest, wildest and most embarrassing dating stories that are recreated by local actors and comedians.
October 6, 2015 | CHCHThe latest production to come to the Hammer is “Filth City”. Digital Canaries is the production company behind the film. The story is about a corrupt mayor who is swept up in a controversy than includes him smoking crack… Sound familiar? Writers Andy King and Danny Polishchuck say it’s a loose satire of the Rob […]
September 28, 2015 | CBC[Andrew] Ferguson’s production company is shooting the majority of a new movie called Filth City in Hamilton, which is a fictional account of a crack-smoking mayor in a major metropolitan city.
September 9, 2015 | Now TorontoZack Russell’s remarkable She Stoops To Conquer, which stars co-writer Kayla Lorette as a disguised cabaret performer who meets her doppelganger (Julian Richings) in a club, and just sort of goes with it.
September 9, 2015 | Daily XtraThis film takes its title from an Oliver Goldsmith play about an upper class woman who poses as a maid to win the affections of a wealthy young gentleman. But theatre director Zack Russell’s first film has seemingly nothing to do with the Anglo-Irish writer’s 18th century comedy. Inspired by Toronto comedian and star Kayla […]
September 8, 2015 | Way Too IndieJulian Richings is one of Canada’s bottomless resources in Canadian film, and a classic definition of a great character actor. So it’s nice to see his distinct look and memorable presence used so well in She Stoops to Conquer, Zack Russell’s strange and beguiling short.
September 16, 2015 | BuzzfeedWhen it comes to dating, truth is stranger than fiction. [True Dating Stories] features real people who share their wildest and most embarrassing dating stories that will make you cringe and lol.
September 21, 2015 | PlaybackProduction is underway in Hamilton on Filth City, a dark comedy/crime drama produced by LaRue Entertainment in association with Super Channel. A half-hour making-of documentary, titled Blood, Net & Tears will be produced simultaneously with Filth City.
October 14, 2015 | Broken FrontierThere’s never been anything normal about Reid Fleming, the self-proclaimed world’s toughest milkman. From the time of his inception, David Boswell’s caustic, perpetually enraged working-class antihero has defied the odds, building a fierce cult following among fans and fellow creators.
June 3, 2015 | VarietyThe Palm Springs International ShortFest & Short Film Market announced its lineup Thursday, screening June 16-22 at the Camelot Theatres in Palm Springs.
June 4, 2015 | The StarComedians Andy King … and Danny Polishchuk wrote and star in Filth City, a gritty, dark and funny short film they created on their own for about $500 … Polishchuk … and King … have created is a nicely acted, tightly scripted short film called Filth City: Drug Squad, which would not look out of place on any […]
June 3, 2015 | VarietyThe Palm Springs International ShortFest & Short Film Market announced its lineup Thursday, screening June 16-22 at the Camelot Theatres in Palm Springs. Titles include Ed Asner, Jonathan Demme, Matt Groening and Kevin Pollak in the documentary short “I Thought I Told You To Shut Up!”
April 29, 2015 | Vancouver is AwesomeThis issue is [the Georgia Straight’s] 2,471st and on the cover this week is the DOXA Documentary Film Festival: Reid Fleming, World’s Toughest Milkman, crashes Vancouver; plus, films on Greenpeace, drones, and a fake Elvis.
April 4, 2015 | Steve CastellanoI’ve just seen I Thought I Told You To Shut Up and it’s delightful, funny, sad, and packed full of cameos from a surprising number of extremely famous people who are all huge fans of David Boswell, many of whom attempted, in some capacity, to help a feature-length live-action Reid Fleming film make it to the big screen.
April 3, 2015 | Palm Beach PostBest Short Film: “I Thought I Told You to Shut Up!!,” directed by Charlie Tyrell. PBIFF says: “In the late ’70s David Boswell created Reid Fleming, the World’s Toughest Milkman, a comic book anti-hero and counter culture icon.
March 18, 2015 | Bell MediaBell Media is pleased to announce that … two short films funded by BravoFACT, have been confirmed as official selections for the 22nd annual Hot Docs Festival … Includes Charlie Tyrell’s I Thought I Told You to Shut Up!!
March 3, 2015 | Culture VultureDavid Boswell … achieved cult success with his indie comic “Reid Fleming, The World’s Toughest Milkman” in the 1970s, garnering influential A-list fans like SCTV’s Dave Thomas and “Simpsons” creator Matt Groening. Unfortunately, one Hollywood executive was not amused, blocking a big-screen adaptation of the project (while also retaining the rights to the property), leaving […]
March 2, 2015 | Playback[The Amazing Gayl Pile]: A dive into the “dark world” of home shopping via the life of home shopping salesman Gayl Pile. [Objective is to] create a cinematic and dark comedy series blending melodrama with “reality” elements
October 16, 2015 | PlaybackThe Amazing Gayl Pile, a 10 x 15-minute scripted series from LaRue Entertainment, has been picked up by NBCUniversal’s new comedy streaming service SeeSo. The series, which stars and is executive produced by Morgan Waters and Brooks Gray, tells the story of a man’s journey to conquer the world of home shopping.
October 15, 2015 | Hollywood Reporter[The Amazing Gayl Pile]: A scripted series about one man’s misguided quest to conquer the world of home shopping. Starring and executive produced by Morgan Waters and Brooks Gray.
July 9, 2014 | SplitsiderWhen creators need real, they usually mine the improv set. Few have the cojones to stake their project’s success on a bunch of randos solicited on Craigslist, but The Amazing Gayl Pile creators Morgan Waters (Gayl Pile) and Brooks Gray are cut from a different cloth.
April 16, 2014 | SlateWe couldn’t begin to spoil the show’s warped twists and turns, but Waters stars as the titular Gayl Pile, who shills hair extensions and leopard-print sleep masks as the effete host of Ladies Power Hour…In short, the show is a sort of Lynchian stew of the absolutely mundane and the totally horrific.
March 20, 2014 | TubefilterThe Amazing Gayl Pile is produced by Toronto-based studio LaRue Entertainment. It centers on its titular character, who works as a salesman for a home shopping network.
March 24, 2014 | PlaybackCanadian web series The Amazing Gayl Pile has secured distribution through U.S.-based YouTube channel JASH and will premiere this April.
August 15, 2014 | Daily XtraJulian Richings just has one of those faces. Maybe you recognize him as Hard Core Logo’s Bucky Haight or as the embodiment of death on Supernatural, but chances are you just know the veteran Canadian character actor as “that guy who’s in everything.”
September 12, 2015 | Toronto Film SceneA woman (Kayla Lorette) performs as a drag king, dressed like an older man, but her performance doesn’t quite connect with her audience. She heads out to a bar where she spots a man (Julian Richings) who looks exactly like her. The two head back to the man’s house for an evening together. When the […]
September 9, 2015 | Wylie WritesTIFF’s short film programmes have always featured creative work made by gifted people. This year, Peterborough born filmmaker Zack Russell is one of those people.
September 11, 2015 | The Arts GuildTIFF is back, and with it a bucket load of films. TIFF is known for its spectacular programming line-up, each film with its own unique storytelling ability. However, to me, short films have always been my primary interest. Not because they are short, but the various things that short films accomplish that major feature films simply […]
June 5 2014 | PitchforkEvery music video could do with a bit of dancing, right? But as anyone who’s watched “Making the Band” knows, fancy footwork is tough business. So Broken Social Scene‘s Kevin Drew recruited an expert to assist in his video for the Feist-featuring Darlings cut “You in Your Were”.
June 5, 2014 | Roling StoneZach Galifianakis knows there’s only one way to score a hit record these days: Make a music video with lots and lots of dancing.
June 5, 2014 | StereogumFor a certain sort of indie-rock fan — specifically people who were in college when Broken Social Scene’s You Forgot It In People came out, people like me — the sight of Kevin Drew and Leslie Feist playfully singing together in an empty ballroom is enough to make your entire week.