Blue Ant Studios today unveiled the trailer for The Psychic Swindle (1 x 60 HD), a documentary that reveals how a Montreal-based copywriter swindled victims out of $200 million by pretending to be a legendary psychic. The documentary will premiere in Canada as part of CBC’s The Passionate Eye on Wednesday, October 29 at 9 p.m. (9:30 NT) on CBC and CBC Gem.
The documentary unravels the intricate mail-order psychic scam that duped millions of people worldwide over 20 years. The scam in North America was led by entrepreneur and copywriter, Patrice Runner, who used the name and likeness of legendary French Psychic Maria Duval. Through meticulous investigations, exclusive archive, and intimate interviews, the film exposes how this exploitation of human hopes and fears resulted in one of the largest psychic scams in history, culminating in a global manhunt and a high-profile criminal trial.
“When I first heard about this massive scam and how it involved a Canadian man, I was immediately hooked and knew I wanted to get to the bottom of how victims were targeted and what this all said about the nature of belief and just how much deception we are willing to accept in our lives,” said Rachel Browne, Executive Producer.
“What resonates most for me is how this story exposes our deep human longing for connection, friendship, and even miracles — and how easily that need can be exploited,” said Sarah Gibson, Executive Producer, Director, and Writer.
The Psychic Swindle is based on the article, The Greatest Scam Ever, written by Rachel Browne for The Walrus. Executive Producers for Blue Ant Studios are Matthew Hornburg, Mark Bishop, and Donna Luke. Jennifer Harkness, Sarah Gibson, and Rachel Browne serve as Executive Producers for the documentary. Sarah Gibson is also the Director, and Writers are Celine Wong and Sarah Gibson. For CBC, Sally Catto is General Manager, Entertainment, Factual & Sports; Jennifer Dettman is Executive Director, Unscripted Content; Sandra Kleinfeld is Senior Director, Documentary; Alexandra Lane is Senior Director of Production, Unscripted Content; and Michelle McCree is Executive in Charge of Production. The Psychic Swindle was produced with the participation of the Canada Media Fund. Blue Ant Rights is the worldwide distributor for the documentary, and will be bringing it to MIPCOM this October.