Canadian pop culture vs American pop culture: a dilemma

[locker_monster]

Here's a silly question for the university students on my flist: I want to make a reference to the American TV shows that are filmed and produced in Canada, but are essentially American productions, in my term paper. How the heck do I prove that these shows (Battlestar Galactica, Stargate SG-1/Atlantis) have mostly Canadian cast and crew? I'm trying to say that Canadian broadcasters are getting around CanCon requirements by airing these shows and that American popular culture still manages to get into the country despite all the requirements and regulations. The only way I can work this in and back it up with research is to find a paper about American TV shows filming in Canada but at this point I'm really not in the mood to go look.

Or should I just bug my prof? Or should I not even bother, because working in some of my favourite shows into a paper is a sign of lunacy?

But I think it also raises another point. If these crews are largely Canadian does that mean a Canadian perspective is finding its way into American TV? Just look at Stargate. A majority of the crew are Canadian. Even some of the writers are Canadian. Heck, one of the executive producers is Canadian. And Atlantis has the added bonus that it has a Canadian character. I think Atlantis is the only show where a major character is Canadian and it's not a Canadian TV show.

Or is Atlantis actually a Canadian show? Canadian money is obviously going into the production. If you argue that then you can argue shows like Doctor Who and Torchwood are also Canadian since the CBC provides funding to help pay for the show. In fact, the only reason the CBC can air Doctor Who and Torchwood is because of the Canadian money going into the production.

I think I'm going to leave the reference hanging for now and maybe look for a paper or article later. My brain can only take so much at a time.

Comments

[ninamazing.livejournal.com]

How I Met Your Mother has a major character who's Canadian! She's one of the 5 leads.

[ninamazing.livejournal.com]

(Oh, and I forgot to add that both the actress AND the character are Canadian.)

[hjea.livejournal.com]

Hee, I was just about to say that! Go, Robin Sparkles.

*dances to "Let's Go to the Mall"*

[locker-monster.livejournal.com]

I can't help myself. Would you say Robin is portrayed like a true Canadian? I'm not really sure how to define "Canadian"; everything I've read says we're pessimistic and "loser figures" but we can easily laugh at ourselves. Or is there really no difference at all from the other characters? I suppose if Robin doesn't seem that different, it works for the argument that Canadian pop culture is just a reflection of American pop culture and we have no distinctions.

Gah, I'll shut up now. :-)

[locker-monster.livejournal.com]

Oh yes, I read that in an Entertainment Weekly. But it wasn't revealed right off the bat?

I can't recall who airs How I Met Your Mother in Canada but they probably use this as justification to satisfy the CanCon requirements. Thanks for pointing this out! I think, if I ever had the time or really wanted to, I would look at the American shows with Canadian characters and see if they're portrayed like the Canadian characters in Canadian books and television.

But I'm giving up on the paper for now. Staring at the computer screen is making everything blurry.

[hjea.livejournal.com]

Well, best of luck! It's sounds like a neat (albeit tricky) topic, anyway.

[locker-monster.livejournal.com]

Yeah, this prof just loves weird and different topics. Man, if I did work in a TV show I love, that would make this paper. :-D

[newnumber6.livejournal.com]

I think in some cases you can make the argument that an American TV show mostly produced in Canada is pretty much Canadian in drag, except for the main stars. Does that mean a Canadian perspective creeps in? Sometimes, but not always. I think Atlantis is a good example of where it does - McKay clearly makes Canadian references and they make complete sense. In others there's nothing clear, but at the same time... often you (or at least I) find I can tell a Canadian show by the _look_. Not just the guest stars that appear (though that's a dead giveaway), or even the scenery (but it does play a role), but a sort of production value, and even completely apart from any evidence in the show. And of course, often in Canada you can tell a Canadian show just by the fact that it somehow continues to air against all logical reasoning (for example, Andromeda, which for some reason Global still plays several times a week).

I'm not sure how you'd prove it - I'm sure you could find some references to specific shows having a Canadian crew, or you might be able to find a general reference to the fact that usually shows filming in Canada use Canadian crews, rather than importing crews from the US.

Oh, and oddly enough, I've noticed that at least in some cases, shows for Canadian tweens/teens seem to be unbashedly Canadian (in that they are set in Canadian locations, rather than just random towns) and do get exported to the states. Degrassi, of course is the classic example, but flying under the radar there seem to be a number of Family/Disney Channel shows.

And one day there will be a Great Canadian Zombie Movie, too! ;)

[locker-monster.livejournal.com]

That's the thing I appreciate about Atlantis and McKay. They don't shy away from making him Canadian. They haven't made him a gun toting American; he's still pessimistic and sometimes overwhelmed Rodney. I think it helps that Brad Wright, one of the two executive producers, is Canadian. I believe he put in a Canadian joke in one of the episodes ("McKay and Mrs. Miller" if I recall correctly). I'm not sure I really see that with other shows filmed in Canada, though that's probably because the writers are usually all American.

Reboot is the one kids show I know of that did fairly well outside of Canada and was totally Canadian. They parodied so many things on that show, which is a Canadian thing. I think teenagers are less likely to care about where a show is coming from and the values being instilled in the story lines.

You what else your Great Canadian Zombie Movie needs? A French character who wants to separate from the rest of the group. :-)