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| The Demise of the Mighty Shopping Mall, German Spies in Canada and Canadian Pop Music: An Eclectic End to Summer on CBC Television's DOC ZONE |
| Posted
on Tuesday, July 21, 2009 - 11:48 AM |
The mighty mall, once the cornerstone of North America’s landscape and lifestyle, has not weathered well under the global recession. Many malls are empty, consumer confidence is at an all time low and people are simply spending less time and money buying things. How can consumers be lured back into the mall? Malls R Us follows mall developer Rubin Stall as he prepares to launch a new “green mall” in Montreal. Can he succeed where many others have failed?
While malls languish in the Western hemisphere, mega-mall developers are attempting to export the once successful model to emerging economies in Asia, with decidedly mixed results. Malls R Us travels to the mammoth malls of Dubai, where international shoppers enjoy all the luxuries that a world-class shopping mall has to offer and then to India, where the development of large shopping malls has hurt the traditional family business economy that is the backbone of the country’s middle class. Thousands of small businesses have been padlocked and demolished before the owners’ eyes, inciting the first anti-mall riot in history. The documentary also explores the threat of the mall development to India’s fragile ecosystem and how a new mall threatens a pristine water source in Delhi.
Malls R Us also looks at the psychological enticements the mall offers and the design techniques that mix consumerism with nature and spectacle. The documentary probes how our social values are affected by the mass shopping experience and ultimately how that transforms communities, and inevitably, human interaction.
The Spies Who Came from the Sea airs Thursday, Aug. 20 at 9 p.m. (9:30 NT), on CBC-TV
By the fall of 1942, in the midst of the Second World War, German U-boats (military submarines) had penetrated deep up the St. Lawrence River, sinking 21 ships and killing more than 250 people. Germany achieved its goal: to shut down the St. Lawrence River to Canadian convoys on their way to Great Britain. The worst fear of people living along the river was a German invasion of Canada. The Spies Who Came from the Sea tells the untold story of the few Germans who did land on our shores—spies secreted off U-boats in the dead of night. With exclusive interviews with German survivors and a chambermaid who unmasked a spy, the filmmakers reveal a dramatic story—and a secret that was kept for more than 35 years.
August 27
At 9 p.m. (9:30 p.m. NT), DOC ZONE airs hour one of a new two-part documentary—This Beat Goes On – Canadian Pop Music in the 1970s (Pt. 1 is ONE HOUR).
This Beat Goes On chronicles a jukebox full of Canadian classics from Gordon Lightfoot’s “Sundown” to Troopers “Raise a Little Hell”. Narrated by Jian Ghomeshi of CBC Radio’s Q, the documentary is a combination of rare archival footage and candid interview clips with artists from the time, such as Randy Bachman and Danny Marks, as well as interviews with current Canadian artists Serena Ryder and Sam Roberts. The first hour focuses on the formative years: a time of shag hair, bellbottoms and chart-topping sounds of folk singers, blues artists and heavy metal rockers like Prism and Bachman-Turner Overdrive. The decade starts out on a controversial note, with a government ruling forcing radio stations to play 30 per cent Canadian content. But the ruling soon pays dividends, laying the groundwork for the incredible rock ‘n’ roll era that was the 70s. And, the Juno Awards, launched under that name in 1971, create a star system for Canadian musicians who rock audiences and the charts from coast-to-coast.
September 3
At 9 p.m. (9:30 p.m. NT), DOC ZONE airs part two of This Beat Goes On – Canadian Pop Music in the 1970s (Pt. two is ONE HOUR).
The second hour of This Beat Goes On keeps the Canadian hit parade rocking, set to the tune of classics like Burton Cummings’ “Stand Tall” and Loverboy’s “Turn me Loose”. The program documents Canadian music’s international breakthrough in the latter half of the ’70s. Solo artists like Joni Mitchell and progressive rockers such as Rush still rule but it is also a time for punk and new wave artists to push their way into the spotlight. Music sounds from around the world, including Celtic and reggae beats work their way into the Canadian mainstream. With guaranteed airtime at home, the Canadian rock revolution impacts audiences, both here and abroad.
September 10
At 9 p.m. (9:30 p.m. NT), DOC ZONE airs hour one of a new two-part series Rise Up – Canadian Pop Music in the 1980s. (Pt. one is ONE HOUR).
Big hair, bigger shoulder pads and the arrival of the digital age all mark the 1980s Canadian music scene. Narrated by Jian Ghomeshi of CBC Radio’s Q, Rise Up documents when Canadian music explodes internationally. Mixing concert clips and interviews, the program digs up a treasure trove of hits, from Men Without Hats’ “The Safety Dance” to Bryan Adams’ “Summer of 69”. This is a revolutionary time, as CDs replace cassette tapes and synthesized sounds and music videos dominate the airwaves. The arrival of MTV in the U.S., and then MuchMusic, Musique Plus and the CBC program Video Hits in Canada, create a powerful new marketing medium. Now, musicians have to have good hair and wardrobe—and they have to play to the camera. CBC’s own Denise Donlon, one of the original MuchMusic veejays, recalls the wild frontier and openness of the broadcast landscape at the time. Meanwhile, the biggest star in the Canadian pop pantheon of the ’80s is Bryan Adams, a hit-making machine.
September 17
At 9 p.m. (9:30 p.m. NT), DOC ZONE airs part two of Rise Up – Canadian Pop Music in the 1980s (Pt. two is ONE HOUR).
By the mid-1980s Canadian musicians—from synth-pop groups and singer-songwriters to hard rock bands—are topping charts around the world. Music videos are the fast track to international fame, with artists like Robbie Robertson and Alannah Myles producing multiple chart-topping hits. The late ’80s also sees the rise of some diverse new sounds, including the alt-country of Blue Rodeo and Cowboy Junkies and the hip-hop beats of Maestro and Michie Mee. Rise Up explores how Canadian music in the 1980s grows to unprecedented heights. Never before has Canada produced as many international stars, from Leonard Cohen, Daniel Lanois and Neil Young, to Chilliwack, Red Rider and Glass Tiger.
About DOC ZONE on CBC Television
Each Thursday night, CBC Television’s critically acclaimed documentary series, DOC ZONE, brings Canadians compelling documentaries that take viewers to extraordinary places and delivers timely stories that affect our everyday lives. Around the corner, around the world, DOC ZONE offers a sweeping panoramic view of what matters most to Canadians.
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