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Whistler Launch Party

Senecal discusses Whistler, his genre-defying new drama
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A scene from Whistler, CTV's new drama that premieres June 25. Photo submitted

When the new one-hour drama Whistler airs later this month, creator Kelly Senecal will be pleased to see 80 per cent of his vision on the screen. In the real world 80 per cent is a mid-range "B", but in the world of Canadian TV, it’s an "A+."

This is particularly impressive in a medium known for its often-exasperating lunacy. For example, Whistler is just the latest in a long list of Canadian shows where the word "toque" proved problematic for non-Canadian co-production partners. But Senecal doesn’t get hung up on the small things.

"It’s always a mix, there’s the ideal in your head and the reality of what ended up on screen," says the Vancouver-based creator.

On Sunday, June 25, audiences across Canada will get a chance to see a good chunk of what’s been rolling around in Senecal’s head since he took on the project more than two years ago.

"Another company had pitched a Whistler show to CTV, gotten some development money and it stalled in development. It was basically about five boarders sharing a cabin and it was more of a half-hour show. CTV still had money in the development budget so they decided to switch gears and approach a writer/producer and I ended up being the one they went with."

"At that point there wasn’t even a title, just the idea of a show set in Whistler and some development money and a network that was excited to do something in Whistler."

Senecal was determined to create fully realized characters and not just stereotypes. He also wanted to make the type of edgy TV that maverick network HBO produces.

"The only character who’s a snowboarder on the show and he’s dead," he quips, referring to the murder mystery that is the spine of the series arc.

The murder of an Olympic champion local golden boy combined with the series’ strong musical soundtrack made producer Janet York, who runs the film and TV music department for Sam Feldman and Associates, describe the show as " The O.C . meets Twin Peaks ."

Senecal laughs a little when he hears the creative shorthand version of his show’s content, but concedes that Whistler is no single genre show.

"It’s a hybrid, it’s a mix of shows. There’s one part that is sort of melodrama, night time soap opera, then there’s another part that’s genuine family drama, like where they deal with the death of a family member, and then there’s the mystery element."

Up until the last couple of years, most non-news television in Canada, from preschool programming to reality TV has been producer-driven. This model meant that often people who weren’t particularly creative were developing shows designed to satisfy demographics. CTV, the network currently airs 17 of the top shows in Canada, began to change that moving towards the US model of making creator-driven projects. The success of Brent Butt’s Corner Gas and Susin Nielsen’s Robson Arms is proof that this method of making TV works.

Senecal knows intimately how TV works. He’s been writing for almost 10 years in the Canadian TV industry with its complicated international co-production agreements and equally onerous financing labyrinth. He’s also done a stint writing in LA, the memory of which makes his blood run cold.

"It sounds cliché, but it’s a lonely city," he says.

With Whistle r being sold to the teen cable network "N" (formerly Noggin) in the states, and CTV committed to a second season before the debut, Senecal seems poised for the kind of success that sends Hollywood calling. He won’t answer.

"I suppose the dream is to sell a show to the US and do the production up here," he muses.

A few years ago, that idea would have seemed ludicrous, but then so would the idea of a creator-writer-executive producer heading up a genre-defying one-hour drama. Talking to Senecal, you get the idea that with Whistler he has created the kind of show he would like to watch. With network restrictions being what they are, Whistler may not look like it would be on HBO, but it might the kind of a quirky genre-bending show that made Buffy, The Vampire Slayer creator Joss Whedon a fan favourite. Like Whedon’s seven-season hit, Senecal believes that Whistler has the potential to appeal to a vast audience.

"I hope the show has something for everyone without it being a scattershot," says Senecal. "We set out just to do a good show. I certainly wasn’t worrying about demographics – that’s somebody else’s job. As far as I’m concerned, when I was 14 I watched what my parents watched, I wasn’t sitting down watching shows that were aimed at me. I think most younger viewers do that."

Senecal attributes his parents’ good taste in TV to shaping his influences: Norman Lear comedies such as All in the Family and Maude, the Larry Gelbart years of MASH and dramas such as Hill Street Blues . By his teen years, he’d become a full-fledged TV junkie.

Today, his preferences run towards HBO fare such as Six Feet Under , Rescue Me and Deadwood .

"I believe the quality of TV is far and above that of the average movie," he says.

Senecal believes that this increased quality is a result of a more thorough exploration of character instead of relying on predictable stereotypes.

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One of the first things I insisted on is that this not be show about snowboarders. There have probably been a couple of dozen shows developed about Whistler over the past decade. I think the reason that none of them flew is that they were all focused on snowboarders."

While Senecal is incredibly thankful for the opportunity to create one of the few Canadian one-hour dramas on the schedule, he’s more than a little exhausted. As creator/writer he penned the first two episodes, the final episodes and was actively involved in the writing of the other ten scripts. His diligence appears to have paid off, CTV has already committed to a second season.

Tourism Whistler along with network officials are hosting a Whistler launch party Thursday, June 22 at the Garibaldi Lift Company, inviting news and entertainment media from Canada and the U.S. along with the Whistler cast and crew. The party aims to give guests a first-hand experience of the resort.

The public can also win tickets to the event by BLANK BLANK BANBKL.