Inside Stories is a Canadian television drama anthology series, which aired on CBC Television from 1988 to 1991. [1] The series aired half-hour short dramas telling stories written and directed by members of ethnic minority communities. [2]
The series was created by Paul de Silva. [3] It was initially produced for CBC Toronto, before being expanded into a national network series for the 1990-91 season. [4] The network cancelled the series in 1991, [5] although repeats continued to air on occasion until 1993.
Episodes
The series consisted of three 13-episode seasons; however, not all episode titles have been located. Known episodes included:
- "Cement Soul" — An Italian Canadian mother whose construction worker son is dying tries to find a way to honour his wish to have his body entombed in cement instead of being buried in a traditional coffin. [2]
- "The Twin" — Marc Gomes stars as twin brothers, one an ad executive who was raised as the adopted child of a wealthy Toronto family while the other remained in their native Jamaica and grew up to become a Rastafarian, who are reuniting for the first time. [6]
- "Looking for Nothing" — Hrant Alianak stars as the administrator of an Armenian club, who is convinced that there's a security threat when the Premier of Ontario is coming to his facility to give a speech. Directed by Atom Egoyan. [7]
- "Be My Guest" — A couple tries to help a new Polish immigrant adapt to life in Toronto. [2]
- "Gracie" — Gracie ( Rachael Crawford) is caught in the middle of a family feud between her mother ( Taborah Johnson) and grandmother ( Jackie Richardson). [8]
- "In Limbo" — Deepa Mehta stars as a Sri Lankan doctor building a new life after emigrating to Canada. [9]
- "The Comic Book Chase" — A young Chinese Canadian boy saves his mother and himself from eviction after finding a valuable rare comic book. [10]
- "Here Comes the Groom" — A Black Canadian law student who is about to get married needs to find out more information about her estranged father whom she never knew. [10]
- "Welcome Home Hero" — Two estranged indigenous Canadian brothers ( Tom Jackson, René Highway) reunite after their father's death. [11]
- "Baby Pinsky" — Two generations of a Jewish family disagree about the morality of circumcision. [12]
- "Heartbreak Hoteru" — Denis Akiyama stars as Aaron Iwata, a Japanese Canadian man working as an Elvis Presley impersonator, who enters a bowling competition to win the money to buy out his younger brother's share of the family motel after their father's death. [13]
- "Voodoo Taxi" — Two Haitian Canadian taxi drivers in Montreal exact revenge on a racist boss. [14]
- "Home on the Range" — An Indo-Canadian lawyer from Toronto ( Sugith Varughese) moves to rural Saskatchewan. [15]
- "The Peggy" [5]
- "Dayglo Warrior" [5]
Awards
| Award | Date of Ceremony | Category | Nominees | Result | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gemini Awards | 1989 | Best Short Drama | "Gracie" | Won | [16] |
| Best Leading Actress in a Dramatic Program or Miniseries | Rachael Crawford, "Gracie" | Nominated | [17] | ||
| Deepa Mehta, "In Limbo" | Nominated | ||||
| Best Direction in a Dramatic Program or Miniseries | Atom Egoyan, "Looking for Nothing" | Nominated | |||
| Best Original Music for a Program or Miniseries | Glenn Morley and Lawrence Shragge, "In Limbo" | Nominated | |||
| Multiculturalism Award | Inside Stories | Won | [16] |
References
- ^ Helen Bullock, "Insider's report". Toronto Star, September 3, 1988.
- ^ a b c "Ethnic side of city profiled". Toronto Star, September 1, 1988.
- ^ John Haslett Cuff, "Film draws engaging portrait". The Globe and Mail, July 23, 1987.
- ^ Tony Atherton, "Last year's produce in bumper CBC crop; Teen soap, three more new shows will join some old favorites for the coming season". Ottawa Citizen, June 21, 1990.
- ^ a b c Tony Atherton, "Important memo to the CBC: We don't need more Canadian news, we need more Canadian drama". Ottawa Citizen, June 24, 1991.
- ^ William Thomas, "Dinner date". Toronto Star, September 10, 1988.
- ^ Eirik Knutzen and Jane Widerman, "The sheik of Araby". Toronto Star, August 20, 1988.
- ^ Greg Quill, "Gracie shouldn't be missed". Toronto Star, May 1, 1989.
- ^ Tony Atherton, "Television: A guide to the week". Ottawa Citizen, June 18, 1989.
- ^ a b John Haslett Cuff, "Uneven start for promising series: The CBC turns the camera on Canada's visible minorities in a commendable if clumsy venture". The Globe and Mail, October 3, 1990.
- ^ John Haslett Cuff, "'Lighter moments' aren't always necessary to hold an audience Drama undermined by feeble humor". The Globe and Mail, October 17, 1990.
- ^ Elizabeth Aird, "Film clips". Vancouver Sun, September 7, 1990.
- ^ Greg Quill, "Elvis-like bowling wizard gets a strike". Toronto Star, October 31, 1990.
- ^ Brian Gorman, "Civil War returns this week". Toronto Star, March 17, 1991.
- ^ Erica Smishek, "Saskatoon-raised actor sees parallels to own life in drama". Saskatoon Star-Phoenix, January 23, 1991.
- ^ a b Greg Quill, "R.H. Thomson's Banting best Glory Enough For All the big winner at Gemini Awards". Toronto Star, December 6, 1989.
- ^ "This year's TV Gemini nominations". Toronto Star, October 26, 1989.
Inside Stories is a Canadian television drama anthology series, which aired on CBC Television from 1988 to 1991. [1] The series aired half-hour short dramas telling stories written and directed by members of ethnic minority communities. [2]
The series was created by Paul de Silva. [3] It was initially produced for CBC Toronto, before being expanded into a national network series for the 1990-91 season. [4] The network cancelled the series in 1991, [5] although repeats continued to air on occasion until 1993.
Episodes
The series consisted of three 13-episode seasons; however, not all episode titles have been located. Known episodes included:
- "Cement Soul" — An Italian Canadian mother whose construction worker son is dying tries to find a way to honour his wish to have his body entombed in cement instead of being buried in a traditional coffin. [2]
- "The Twin" — Marc Gomes stars as twin brothers, one an ad executive who was raised as the adopted child of a wealthy Toronto family while the other remained in their native Jamaica and grew up to become a Rastafarian, who are reuniting for the first time. [6]
- "Looking for Nothing" — Hrant Alianak stars as the administrator of an Armenian club, who is convinced that there's a security threat when the Premier of Ontario is coming to his facility to give a speech. Directed by Atom Egoyan. [7]
- "Be My Guest" — A couple tries to help a new Polish immigrant adapt to life in Toronto. [2]
- "Gracie" — Gracie ( Rachael Crawford) is caught in the middle of a family feud between her mother ( Taborah Johnson) and grandmother ( Jackie Richardson). [8]
- "In Limbo" — Deepa Mehta stars as a Sri Lankan doctor building a new life after emigrating to Canada. [9]
- "The Comic Book Chase" — A young Chinese Canadian boy saves his mother and himself from eviction after finding a valuable rare comic book. [10]
- "Here Comes the Groom" — A Black Canadian law student who is about to get married needs to find out more information about her estranged father whom she never knew. [10]
- "Welcome Home Hero" — Two estranged indigenous Canadian brothers ( Tom Jackson, René Highway) reunite after their father's death. [11]
- "Baby Pinsky" — Two generations of a Jewish family disagree about the morality of circumcision. [12]
- "Heartbreak Hoteru" — Denis Akiyama stars as Aaron Iwata, a Japanese Canadian man working as an Elvis Presley impersonator, who enters a bowling competition to win the money to buy out his younger brother's share of the family motel after their father's death. [13]
- "Voodoo Taxi" — Two Haitian Canadian taxi drivers in Montreal exact revenge on a racist boss. [14]
- "Home on the Range" — An Indo-Canadian lawyer from Toronto ( Sugith Varughese) moves to rural Saskatchewan. [15]
- "The Peggy" [5]
- "Dayglo Warrior" [5]
Awards
| Award | Date of Ceremony | Category | Nominees | Result | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gemini Awards | 1989 | Best Short Drama | "Gracie" | Won | [16] |
| Best Leading Actress in a Dramatic Program or Miniseries | Rachael Crawford, "Gracie" | Nominated | [17] | ||
| Deepa Mehta, "In Limbo" | Nominated | ||||
| Best Direction in a Dramatic Program or Miniseries | Atom Egoyan, "Looking for Nothing" | Nominated | |||
| Best Original Music for a Program or Miniseries | Glenn Morley and Lawrence Shragge, "In Limbo" | Nominated | |||
| Multiculturalism Award | Inside Stories | Won | [16] |
References
- ^ Helen Bullock, "Insider's report". Toronto Star, September 3, 1988.
- ^ a b c "Ethnic side of city profiled". Toronto Star, September 1, 1988.
- ^ John Haslett Cuff, "Film draws engaging portrait". The Globe and Mail, July 23, 1987.
- ^ Tony Atherton, "Last year's produce in bumper CBC crop; Teen soap, three more new shows will join some old favorites for the coming season". Ottawa Citizen, June 21, 1990.
- ^ a b c Tony Atherton, "Important memo to the CBC: We don't need more Canadian news, we need more Canadian drama". Ottawa Citizen, June 24, 1991.
- ^ William Thomas, "Dinner date". Toronto Star, September 10, 1988.
- ^ Eirik Knutzen and Jane Widerman, "The sheik of Araby". Toronto Star, August 20, 1988.
- ^ Greg Quill, "Gracie shouldn't be missed". Toronto Star, May 1, 1989.
- ^ Tony Atherton, "Television: A guide to the week". Ottawa Citizen, June 18, 1989.
- ^ a b John Haslett Cuff, "Uneven start for promising series: The CBC turns the camera on Canada's visible minorities in a commendable if clumsy venture". The Globe and Mail, October 3, 1990.
- ^ John Haslett Cuff, "'Lighter moments' aren't always necessary to hold an audience Drama undermined by feeble humor". The Globe and Mail, October 17, 1990.
- ^ Elizabeth Aird, "Film clips". Vancouver Sun, September 7, 1990.
- ^ Greg Quill, "Elvis-like bowling wizard gets a strike". Toronto Star, October 31, 1990.
- ^ Brian Gorman, "Civil War returns this week". Toronto Star, March 17, 1991.
- ^ Erica Smishek, "Saskatoon-raised actor sees parallels to own life in drama". Saskatoon Star-Phoenix, January 23, 1991.
- ^ a b Greg Quill, "R.H. Thomson's Banting best Glory Enough For All the big winner at Gemini Awards". Toronto Star, December 6, 1989.
- ^ "This year's TV Gemini nominations". Toronto Star, October 26, 1989.