The first is an author and humorist with a degree in media arts and technologies, the second is also an author, and holder of a diploma from the National School of Humor. They were between 8 and 12 years old respectively when Canal Famille gave way to Vrak in January 2001. Like many young people, they were initially rather worried about what the torchbearer would offer.
At first it was pretty much the same content, it’s just that the less good shows on Canal Famille had been replaced by better shows.
recalls Simon. It was really late in the day that we got bored of Canal Famille because Vrak started making less Quebec content.
Indeed, Canal Famille will remain in the collective imagination as a major provider of Quebec content, to an extent rarely seen since.Quebec productions that were broadcast on Canal Famille over a period of twelve years, with some acquisitions from other channels, but very few”,”text”:”52Quebec productions were broadcast on Canal Famille over a period of twelve years, with some acquisitions from other channels, but very few”}}”>52 Quebec productions were broadcast on Canal Famille over a period of twelve years, with a few acquisitions from other channels, but very fewhe summarizes.
The false starts of Radio Nursing et A galaxy near you
The preface of Family Channel Generation is signed by Élyse Marquis, a recurring face on the youth channel since it first aired in 1988, when she had just left theater school. She is also the person who has participated in the greatest number of productions broadcast on Canal Famille: Enfanforme, Chaboum, Pin-Pon, Télé-Pirate, Generation W.
Several other memorable programs are mentioned in the book, including the essential Radio-Nursing (1995-2001) et In a galaxy near you (1999-2001), which may never have survived in today’s television industry, according to the book’s authors. Indeed, the first episodes of these somewhat offbeat series had not really convinced the heads of Canal Famille.
1, you are done. At the time, what was fantastic was that the shows had time to take shape, to blossom”,”text”:”Now everything has to be done in preproduction and the day it goes on the air, if it’s not good at episode 1, you’re done. At the time, what was fantastic was that the shows had time to take shape, to bloom””>Now, everything has to be done in pre-production and the day it goes on the air, if it’s not good in episode 1, you’re done. At the time, what was fantastic was that the shows had time to take shape, to blossom
explique Guy A. St Cyr.
With its mix of sci-fi and absurd humour, the first season of In a galaxy near you had left the director of Astral, then parent company of Canal Famille, cold. He had sent authors Claude Legault and Pierre-Yves Bernard back to the writing table on several occasions.
season saying “it’s better to be better””,”text”:”It almost got unplugged, it’s just that there were no other shows to fill the hole and the sets were already paid for. They ordered a 2nd season saying “it’s better to be better”””>It almost got unplugged, it’s just that there were no other shows to fill the hole and the sets were already paid for. They ordered a 2nd season saying “it’s better to be better”
explains Simon Portelance.
An initiative that snowballed
Simon Portelance and Guy A. St Cyr had the idea of writing a book on the Canal Famille in the mid-2010s, surprised at the enthusiasm that the memories of the channel still aroused in those around them. They admit that they could never have imagined the magnitude that their project would take.
When we got into it, we saw something much smaller, with maybe fifty interviews, or wanted to cover the highlights
recalls Simon.
As soon as they started interviewing, they soon realized that their plan was going to catch on and that several personalities were ready to jump back into the golden age of the channel. We were with Claude Legault and he alone unlocked five or six interviews for us.
illustre Guy A. St Cyr.
Captain Patenaude and his crew in the movie “In a galaxy near you 2”.
Photo : TVA Films
The two colleagues then found themselves with hundreds of interviews, some particularly long – such as the four hours spent with Guy Jodoin –, in which the former faces of Canal Famille have often revealed themselves in depth. Among the other personalities who participated in the work, we find Vincent Bolduc, Jessika Barker, Didier Lucien, Lorànt Deutsch, Micheline Bernard and Bruno Blanchet.
The duo was also able to take advantage of the generosity of several producers who sent them free photos to document their work. We couldn’t have made this book if everyone had charged for each of the photos.
The future of children’s television
Looking at the future of children’s television today, both Élyse Marquis and the authors of Family Channel Generation think that we must forget the idea of bringing young people back to cable and traditional television, and invest in platforms like TikTok.
You have to go and join them where they are and offer them bold content […] Stuff that may displease parents, but that will make children feel a little rebellious to listen to something
croit Guy A. St Cyr.
who doesn’t have a lot of money and eats Sidekicks. If he has 10$ of budget, he will subscribe to a platform like Netflix, because there is better value for money”,”text”:”There is also a lack of promotion of Quebec content. Young people do not have the reflex to go to Tou.tv. I put myself in the shoes of a 17-year-old teenager who doesn’t have a lot of money and who eats Sidekicks. If he has a $10 budget, he will subscribe to a platform like Netflix, because there is better value for money””>There is also a lack of promotion of Quebec content. Young people do not have the reflex to go to Tou.tv. I put myself in the shoes of a 17-year-old teenager who doesn’t have a lot of money and who eats Sidekicks. If he has a budget of $10, he will subscribe to a platform like Netflix, because there is better value for money
concludes Simon Portelance.
This text was written frominterviews conducted by Pénélope McQuade for the show Penelope. Comments may have been edited for clarity or conciseness.