Postcards from a Third Wheel
My experience from the "Heated Rivalry" panel in Ottawa with PM Mark Carney and the HR Team
Dear Squawkers,
Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney met Hudson Williams, one of the stars of Heated Rivalry, last week in Ottawa. ETALK was the only outlet in the world to get the interview with the two of them together, so as the reporter on assignment, I was the third wheel to what everyone subsequently started calling a “Canadian Heritage” moment.
Footage of the exchange between the Prime Minister and Hudson went viral beyond our borders and many of you here at The Squawk have asked about the experience, so here are some photos from my personal camera roll to go along with a few of my takeaways from the night. Just to manage expectations, it’s not like these pictures are all that remarkable, or anything totally different from what you may have already seen online. But they may offer another angle, both literally and in perspective, since they’re from my own phone.
I have not shared these images anywhere else, not at LaineyGossip and not yet on my social media accounts. We always promised from when we launched this community that we’d try, as often as possible, to make your generous support of The Squawk worthwhile – with our newsletters, live chats, comment sections, and, in this case, images. That said, even though these pictures aren’t necessarily special or “valuable” by conventional standards, we do hope that they can remain exclusive to The Squawk for now until I decide to post them elsewhere, and I don’t even know that I will or want to.
The Prime Minster and Hudson were at Prime Time, an annual industry conference hosted by the Canadian Media Producers Association, bringing together screen professionals, along with studio and funding executives, policy makers, and other television and film leaders and creatives. Pitch meetings are happening, regulatory discussions are happening, there are panels and presentations, and it’s become an international event. For example, while I was there, I caught up briefly with a couple of friends who are high level producers in Korea.
It was announced prior to the event that Jacob Tierney, the creator of Heated Rivalry, and his producing partner Brendan Brady, would be there for a panel. It was not announced in advance that the Prime Minister and Hudson would be there, for obvious reasons. Throughout the day on Thursday though, rumours started circulating that there would be surprise guests in attendance – which, for the inside baseball on how these things run, is how it should work. You don’t want to give people too much time, but you also want to give just enough time for the media to show up.
By the time I arrived at Prime Time, the red carpet was crammed with local and international outlets, and all the conference delegates who were at the venue were gathered around the step and repeat, buzzing about what or who they were about to see. It did not feel like we were at an industry conference, it felt like a blockbuster movie premiere. People were jacked, and this is notable because, remember, the attendees at Prime Time aren’t fangirls and fanboys. Many of them are jaded television producers, LOL, working in an industry that’s getting more and more challenging. But that wasn’t the vibe, cynicism, that was wafting through the air. Instead, it was almost giddy anticipation…
