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Front Page, Industry News
Storage Wars Canada bids for homegrown viewers
Thursday August 29th 2013Ursula Stolf had never bet on a storage unit until the day she set foot on the set of Storage Wars Canada.
Now she can’t stop.
“Basically the rule of thumb when you’re buying a (storage) locker is to see your money upfront, but that’s not necessarily the case because things are hidden,” said Stolf. “The feeling is addictive.”
Storage Wars Canada is the latest addition to the ever expanding Storage Wars universe.
It premieres Aug. 29 at 9 p.m. on the Outdoor Life Network (OLN) although Fan Expo participants were given a sneak peek on Saturday.
With established spinoffs of the original series set in both Texas and New York, Claire Freeland, Rogers Media’s director of original programming, knew that it was only a matter of time before the modern-day treasure hunt found its way north of the border.
“We knew our audience would be keen to see it and we knew it would have a broad audience” said Freeland. “It was just a matter of could we cast it?”
A carbon copy of its American counterpart, Storage Wars Canada follows five professional buyers who bid on abandoned, repossessed storage containers in the hopes of reselling their contents for a hefty profit. Along the way, they’ll uncover unique items from grand pianos and rare antiques, to sex toy and riding crops.
But while the series’ tried, tested and true format will remain intact, the show’s distinct cast should help set the Canadian version apart from its predecessors.
With no shortage of applicants for the show, Freeland said it was imperative to find a cast that not only represented the fabric of the storage auction world but that resonated with Canadian audiences and provided a fresh take on the three-year-old franchise.
“The great thing about our cast is that I think they’re just as strong as the U.S. show, but also that they have a built-in chemistry with one another because they know each other from the auction scene,” said Freeland. “We didn’t want to oversaturate the marketplace with too much of the same kind of show.”
Over the 36-episode first season of Storage Wars Canada, viewers will get to live vicariously through its seven characters as they travel to auctions across Ontario. Besides Stolf, they include self-taught auctioneer Don Reinhart; veteran bidders Cindy Hayden and Rick Coffill; father-and-son duo Paul and Bogart Kenny, and quick-witted Roy Dirnbeck.
“Whether you love them or you love hating them you still feel invested in the outcome of their journey,” said Freeland.
Aptly titled “Northern Lights. Northern Frights,” the series’ first episode takes place at a storage locker facility in Aurora and serves as more of an introduction to the lives of its characters than anything else: something crucial for a reality show whose success hinges on whether audiences build relationships with its characters.
“Our take on Storage Wars is definitely a bit more intimate in that you get to know the characters a bit more,” said Stolf. “Although (people say) the original Storage Wars is the best, I really think that we took what they did and put our Canadian twist on it.”
Storage Wars Canada may be more appropriately titled Storage Wars GTA as the entire cast comes from various parts of the Greater Toronto Area.
Freeland admits that for now all of the show’s episodes will take place within Ontario, but they could eventually travel across the country if they run out of auctions to attend.
“There’s no shortage of auctions taking place here right now,” said Freeland. “This is uncharted territory at this point.”
Despite the show’s lack of national focus, the thrills of watching characters dig through another person’s trash in the hopes of finding rare and valuable items should make Storage Wars Canada just as successful as its American counterparts.
“The thing with these formats is you don’t want to tinker for the sake of tinkering” said Freeland. “There’s no constructed element, our cameras just roll.”
Source: Toronto Star
Front Page, Industry News
Storage Wars Canada bids for homegrown viewers
Thursday August 29th 2013Ursula Stolf had never bet on a storage unit until the day she set foot on the set of Storage Wars Canada.
Now she can’t stop.
“Basically the rule of thumb when you’re buying a (storage) locker is to see your money upfront, but that’s not necessarily the case because things are hidden,” said Stolf. “The feeling is addictive.”
Storage Wars Canada is the latest addition to the ever expanding Storage Wars universe.
It premieres Aug. 29 at 9 p.m. on the Outdoor Life Network (OLN) although Fan Expo participants were given a sneak peek on Saturday.
With established spinoffs of the original series set in both Texas and New York, Claire Freeland, Rogers Media’s director of original programming, knew that it was only a matter of time before the modern-day treasure hunt found its way north of the border.
“We knew our audience would be keen to see it and we knew it would have a broad audience” said Freeland. “It was just a matter of could we cast it?”
A carbon copy of its American counterpart, Storage Wars Canada follows five professional buyers who bid on abandoned, repossessed storage containers in the hopes of reselling their contents for a hefty profit. Along the way, they’ll uncover unique items from grand pianos and rare antiques, to sex toy and riding crops.
But while the series’ tried, tested and true format will remain intact, the show’s distinct cast should help set the Canadian version apart from its predecessors.
With no shortage of applicants for the show, Freeland said it was imperative to find a cast that not only represented the fabric of the storage auction world but that resonated with Canadian audiences and provided a fresh take on the three-year-old franchise.
“The great thing about our cast is that I think they’re just as strong as the U.S. show, but also that they have a built-in chemistry with one another because they know each other from the auction scene,” said Freeland. “We didn’t want to oversaturate the marketplace with too much of the same kind of show.”
Over the 36-episode first season of Storage Wars Canada, viewers will get to live vicariously through its seven characters as they travel to auctions across Ontario. Besides Stolf, they include self-taught auctioneer Don Reinhart; veteran bidders Cindy Hayden and Rick Coffill; father-and-son duo Paul and Bogart Kenny, and quick-witted Roy Dirnbeck.
“Whether you love them or you love hating them you still feel invested in the outcome of their journey,” said Freeland.
Aptly titled “Northern Lights. Northern Frights,” the series’ first episode takes place at a storage locker facility in Aurora and serves as more of an introduction to the lives of its characters than anything else: something crucial for a reality show whose success hinges on whether audiences build relationships with its characters.
“Our take on Storage Wars is definitely a bit more intimate in that you get to know the characters a bit more,” said Stolf. “Although (people say) the original Storage Wars is the best, I really think that we took what they did and put our Canadian twist on it.”
Storage Wars Canada may be more appropriately titled Storage Wars GTA as the entire cast comes from various parts of the Greater Toronto Area.
Freeland admits that for now all of the show’s episodes will take place within Ontario, but they could eventually travel across the country if they run out of auctions to attend.
“There’s no shortage of auctions taking place here right now,” said Freeland. “This is uncharted territory at this point.”
Despite the show’s lack of national focus, the thrills of watching characters dig through another person’s trash in the hopes of finding rare and valuable items should make Storage Wars Canada just as successful as its American counterparts.
“The thing with these formats is you don’t want to tinker for the sake of tinkering” said Freeland. “There’s no constructed element, our cameras just roll.”
Source: Toronto Star
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Front Page, Industry News
Storage Wars Canada bids for homegrown viewers
Thursday August 29th 2013Ursula Stolf had never bet on a storage unit until the day she set foot on the set of Storage Wars Canada.
Now she can’t stop.
“Basically the rule of thumb when you’re buying a (storage) locker is to see your money upfront, but that’s not necessarily the case because things are hidden,” said Stolf. “The feeling is addictive.”
Storage Wars Canada is the latest addition to the ever expanding Storage Wars universe.
It premieres Aug. 29 at 9 p.m. on the Outdoor Life Network (OLN) although Fan Expo participants were given a sneak peek on Saturday.
With established spinoffs of the original series set in both Texas and New York, Claire Freeland, Rogers Media’s director of original programming, knew that it was only a matter of time before the modern-day treasure hunt found its way north of the border.
“We knew our audience would be keen to see it and we knew it would have a broad audience” said Freeland. “It was just a matter of could we cast it?”
A carbon copy of its American counterpart, Storage Wars Canada follows five professional buyers who bid on abandoned, repossessed storage containers in the hopes of reselling their contents for a hefty profit. Along the way, they’ll uncover unique items from grand pianos and rare antiques, to sex toy and riding crops.
But while the series’ tried, tested and true format will remain intact, the show’s distinct cast should help set the Canadian version apart from its predecessors.
With no shortage of applicants for the show, Freeland said it was imperative to find a cast that not only represented the fabric of the storage auction world but that resonated with Canadian audiences and provided a fresh take on the three-year-old franchise.
“The great thing about our cast is that I think they’re just as strong as the U.S. show, but also that they have a built-in chemistry with one another because they know each other from the auction scene,” said Freeland. “We didn’t want to oversaturate the marketplace with too much of the same kind of show.”
Over the 36-episode first season of Storage Wars Canada, viewers will get to live vicariously through its seven characters as they travel to auctions across Ontario. Besides Stolf, they include self-taught auctioneer Don Reinhart; veteran bidders Cindy Hayden and Rick Coffill; father-and-son duo Paul and Bogart Kenny, and quick-witted Roy Dirnbeck.
“Whether you love them or you love hating them you still feel invested in the outcome of their journey,” said Freeland.
Aptly titled “Northern Lights. Northern Frights,” the series’ first episode takes place at a storage locker facility in Aurora and serves as more of an introduction to the lives of its characters than anything else: something crucial for a reality show whose success hinges on whether audiences build relationships with its characters.
“Our take on Storage Wars is definitely a bit more intimate in that you get to know the characters a bit more,” said Stolf. “Although (people say) the original Storage Wars is the best, I really think that we took what they did and put our Canadian twist on it.”
Storage Wars Canada may be more appropriately titled Storage Wars GTA as the entire cast comes from various parts of the Greater Toronto Area.
Freeland admits that for now all of the show’s episodes will take place within Ontario, but they could eventually travel across the country if they run out of auctions to attend.
“There’s no shortage of auctions taking place here right now,” said Freeland. “This is uncharted territory at this point.”
Despite the show’s lack of national focus, the thrills of watching characters dig through another person’s trash in the hopes of finding rare and valuable items should make Storage Wars Canada just as successful as its American counterparts.
“The thing with these formats is you don’t want to tinker for the sake of tinkering” said Freeland. “There’s no constructed element, our cameras just roll.”
Source: Toronto Star
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