Canadian television – News, Research and Analysis – The Conversation

Québec actor, writer and producer Florence Longpré created “Empathie,” and also stars in the series. (CANAL+ Original Creation/Youtube)

July 2, 2026

Empathie on Crave isn’t afraid of the messy power of feeling with others

Joëlle Rouleau, Université de Montréal

Beyond mere identity, ‘Empathie’ embodies a queer sensibility through its refusal to judge and its radical insistence that love takes multiple forms.

Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie in an Episode 6 (‘The Cottage’) scene of ‘Heated Rivalry.’ (Bell Media)

January 20, 2026

Heated Rivalry: How investment in Canadian content can pay off at home and abroad

Daphne Rena Idiz, University of Toronto; Claudia Sicondolfo, University of Toronto, and MaryElizabeth Luka, University of Toronto

Several key policy changes and corporate consolidations have enabled smaller, riskier and explicitly Canadian projects to come to the screen.

Canadian screenwriters who retain ownership of the IP could earn ongoing revenue through licensing deals, international sales and royalties each time a series is distributed. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Giordano Ciampini

July 2, 2025

How do we define Canadian content? Debates will shape how creatives make a living

Daphne Rena Idiz, University of Toronto and MaryElizabeth Luka, University of Toronto

What qualifies as CanCon is tied in with who profits. Current debates are centred on how intellectual property and AI will be handled, and how big streamers will be forced to pay into it.

Eugene Levy, who co-created ‘Schitt’s Creek,’ with son Dan Levy, arrives on the red carpet at the 2016 Canadian Screen Awards in Toronto in 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

June 17, 2021

‘Schitt’s Creek’: Where ‘Jews of no religion,’ facing exile, find redemption

Celia E. Rothenberg, McMaster University

Critics who ignore or simply miss the Jewishness of the ‘Schitt’s Creek’ characters fail to appreciate this key aspect of the show’s inclusive reach and appeal to diverse viewers.

The cast of ‘Schitt’s Creek’ at the Canadian Screen Awards in 2019 — that year, the show won Best Comedy Program or Series. (Shutterstock)

September 21, 2020

‘Schitt’s Creek’ and ‘Letterkenny’ are love letters to rural Canada

S. Ashleigh Weeden, PhD, University of Guelph; Laurie Brinklow, University of Prince Edward Island, and Maggie J. Whitten Henry, University of Prince Edward Island

Shows like ‘Schitt’s Creek’ and ‘Letterkenny’ upend how we imagine rural Canada to be. The small-town dynamics represented are wonderful presentations of what it means to be human.

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