Mayerthorpe (film)

Last updated
Mayerthorpe
GenreDrama
Written by Andrew Wreggitt
Directed by Ken Girotti
Starring Henry Czerny
Brian Markinson
Theme music composer Jonathan Goldsmith
Country of originCanada
Original languageEnglish
Production
ProducersTom Cox
Tim Gamble
Jordy Randall
Michael Shepard
Jon Slan
CinematographyMichael Storey
EditorMichele Conroy
Running time90 minutes
Production companies SEVEN24 Films
Slanted Wheel Entertainment
Original release
Network CTV
ReleaseFebruary 10, 2008 (2008-02-10)

Mayerthorpe, also known as Menace or To Serve and Protect: Tragedy at Mayerthorpe, is a Canadian dramatic television film which was directed by Ken Girotti and broadcast by CTV in 2008. [1] The film is a dramatization of the Mayerthorpe tragedy of 2005, in which four Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers were shot and killed while executing a search warrant against an illegal marijuana growing operation on the Mayerthorpe, Alberta, farm of James Roszko. [2]

Contents

The film stars Brian Markinson as Roszko, and Henry Czerny as Cpl. Alex Stanton, a fictional character who was inserted into the story to provide a narrative centre. [3] Its dramatic focus laid the blame squarely on Canada's justice system for inadequacies in dealing with repeat criminal offenders due to Roszko's prior criminal record. [4]

The cast also included Ben Cotton, Ty Olsson, Adam MacDonald and Gord Rand as the murdered officers Leo Johnston, Brock Myrol, Peter Schiemann and Anthony Gordon, Diane Ladd as Roszko's mother, and Waneta Storms, Landon Liboiron, Shaun Johnston, Peter MacNeill and Dan Petronijevic in supporting roles.

It was shot in Alberta, in and around the towns of Cochrane and Irricana. [4] The families of the slain officers were given a private advance screening of the film. [5]

The film was broadcast by CTV on February 10, 2008. [2]

Awards

AwardDate of CeremonyCategoryNomineesResultReference
Gemini Awards November 28, 2008 Best Television Movie Jordy Randall, Tom Cox, Jon SlanWon [6]
Best Actor in a Dramatic Program or Miniseries Henry Czerny Nominated [7]
Brian Markinson Nominated
Best Direction in a Dramatic Program or Mini-Series Ken Girotti Nominated
Best Writing in a Dramatic Program or Miniseries Andrew Wreggitt Won [6]
Best Production Design or Art Direction in a Fiction Program or SeriesJohn BlackieNominated [7]
Best Achievement in CastingRhonda Fisekci, Susan ForrestNominated
Alberta Film and Television Awards 2008Best Made-for-TV Movie or MiniseriesMayerthorpeWon [8]
Best Performance by an Alberta Actor Landon Liboiron Won
Best Screenwriter, DramaAndrew WreggittWon
Directors Guild of Canada 2008Best Direction in a Television Movie or MiniseriesKen GirottiWon [9]
Best Picture Editing in a Television Movie or Mini-SeriesMichele ConroyNominated [10]
Best Production Design in a Television Movie or Mini-SeriesJohn BlackieNominated
Writers Guild of Canada 2009 WGC Screenwriting Award Andrew WreggittWon [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Citytv</span> Canadian television network owned by Rogers Communications

Citytv is a Canadian television network owned by the Rogers Sports & Media subsidiary of Rogers Communications. The network consists of six owned-and-operated (O&O) television stations located in the metropolitan areas of Toronto, Montreal, Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton, and Vancouver, a cable-only service that serves the province of Saskatchewan, and three independently owned affiliates serving smaller cities in Alberta and British Columbia. There is also one station using the brand name serving Bogotá, Colombia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">CKAL-DT</span> Citytv station in Calgary

CKAL-DT is a television station in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, part of the Citytv network. It is owned and operated by Rogers Sports & Media alongside Omni Television station CJCO-DT. The two stations share studios at 7 Avenue and 5 Street Southwest in Downtown Calgary; CKAL-DT's transmitter is located near Old Banff Coach Road/Highway 563.

CHCA-TV was a television station in Red Deer, Alberta, Canada. It was owned by Canwest, and was part of the E! television system. The station was seen on VHF channel 6 and cable channel 11 in Red Deer. The station was previously Red Deer's CBC affiliate. CHCA had its studios on Bremner Avenue in Downtown Red Deer and transmitter off Range Road 265 in Red Deer County.

CFCN-DT is a television station in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, part of the CTV Television Network. It is owned and operated by network parent Bell Media alongside cable-exclusive CTV 2 Alberta. CFCN-DT's studios are located on Patina Rise Southwest, near Calgary's Coach Hill neighbourhood, and its transmitter is located near Old Banff Coach Road/Highway 563.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rochfort Bridge</span> Hamlet in Alberta, Canada

Rochfort Bridge is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada within Lac Ste. Anne County. It is located approximately 105 kilometres (65 mi) northwest of Edmonton and 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) east of Mayerthorpe. Rochfort Bridge is named for Cooper (Cowper) Rochfort, who with his associate, Percy Michaelson, homesteaded on the Paddle River at the point where the old trail from Lac Ste. Anne to the MacLeod River crossed the Paddle River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Madden, Alberta</span> Hamlet in Alberta, Canada

Madden is a hamlet in southern Alberta, Canada, under the jurisdiction of Rocky View County.

CTV 2 Alberta is a Canadian English language entertainment and former educational television channel in the province of Alberta. Owned by the Bell Media subsidiary of BCE Inc., it operates as a de facto owned-and-operated station of its secondary CTV 2 television system.

Ken Girotti is a Canadian television director who was nominated for a 2006 Gemini Award in the category "Best Direction in a Dramatic Series" for the TV series ReGenesis.

The Mayerthorpe tragedy occurred on March 3, 2005, on the farm of James Roszko, approximately 11 km (6.8 mi) north of Rochfort Bridge near the town of Mayerthorpe in the Canadian province of Alberta.

The Canadian Screen Award for Best Actor in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role is an annual Canadian television award, presented by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best leading performance by an actor in a Canadian television series. Previously presented as part of the Gemini Awards, since 2013 it has been presented as part of the Canadian Screen Awards.

The Canadian Screen Award for Best Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role is an annual Canadian television award, presented by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television to the best leading performance by an actress in a Canadian television series. Previously presented as part of the Gemini Awards, since 2013 it has been presented as part of the Canadian Screen Awards.

Milgaard, also sometimes known as Hard Time: The David Milgaard Story, is a Canadian dramatic television film, which was broadcast by the CTV Television Network in 1999. The film centres on David Milgaard, a Canadian man who was wrongfully convicted in the 1969 rape and murder of Gail Miller, and his 22-year quest for justice until being released from prison in 1992.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shaun Johnston</span> Canadian actor (born 1958)

Shaun Johnston is a Canadian movie and theater actor best known for his role as Jack Bartlett on the CBC drama Heartland, which debuted in October 2007. He co-founded the Shadow Theatre in Edmonton and made his first professional forays in Alberta's thriving theatre scene.

<i>Chicks with Sticks</i> 2004 Canadian hockey film

Chicks with Sticks is a 2004 Canadian independent hockey comedy-drama television movie. It was written by Don Truckey and directed by Kari Skogland, and stars Jessalyn Gilsig, Margot Kidder, Jason Priestley, Juliette Marquis, Michie Mee and Peter Outerbridge.

The Canadian Screen Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series or Program is an annual Canadian television award, presented by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best supporting performance by an actor in a Canadian dramatic television series or television film. Previously presented as part of the Gemini Awards, since 2013 it has been presented as part of the Canadian Screen Awards.

The Canadian Screen Award for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series or Program is an annual Canadian television award, presented by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best supporting performance by an actress in a Canadian dramatic television series or television film. Previously presented as part of the Gemini Awards, since 2013 it has been presented as part of the Canadian Screen Awards.

Victor is a Canadian television film, directed by Jerry Ciccoritti and broadcast by CBC Television in 2008. Written by and starring Mark Lutz, the film is a biographical drama about the life and career of Victor Davis, a Canadian Olympic swimmer who was killed in a hit and run accident just months after his retirement from competitive swimming.

Jake and the Kid is a Canadian television drama series, which aired on the CanWest Global system of stations in the 1990s. The second television adaptation of W. O. Mitchell's 1961 short story collection Jake and the Kid, the series is set in the small town of Crocus, Saskatchewan, and centres on the friendship between Ben "the Kid" Osborne, a young boy growing up on a farm with his widowed mother Julia, and Jake Trumper, a farmhand who becomes Ben's surrogate father figure.

Andrew Wreggitt is a Canadian television writer and producer from Calgary, Alberta.

SEVEN24 Films is a Canadian film and television production company based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1989, SEVEN24 have produced and co-produced a number of television series, TV movies as well as feature films.

References

  1. ↑ Dawn Walton, "Mayerthorpe movie heartbreaking for relatives". The Globe and Mail , February 6, 2008.
  2. 1 2 Ryan Cormier, "Mayerthorpe massacre comes to small screen". Saskatoon Star-Phoenix , February 9, 2008.
  3. ↑ Bill Harris, "'Huge sense of loss'". Ottawa Sun , February 10, 2008.
  4. 1 2 Andrew Chung, "Taking aim at the courts; Tonight's CTV film about Mayerthorpe gives Mounties a pass". Toronto Star , February 10, 2008.
  5. ↑ Alexandra Burroughs, "Emotions drove Mayerthorpe; Filmmakers, families shared tears". Calgary Herald , February 9, 2008.
  6. 1 2 Alex Strachan, "Mayerthorpe among Calgary's TV winners". Calgary Herald , October 23, 2008.
  7. 1 2 Alex Strachan, "Mayerthorpe gets seven Gemini nods; CTV's retelling of RCMP tragedy up for best TV movie". Edmonton Journal , August 27, 2008.
  8. ↑ Elizabeth Withey, "Mayerthorpe docudrama takes three Rosies at award show; Edmonton's NFB office wins four, including two for The Dogwalker". Edmonton Journal , April 27, 2008.
  9. ↑ "Directors Guild honours Cronenberg". Victoria Times-Colonist , November 9, 2008.
  10. ↑ Etan Vlessing, "Cronenberg, Podeswa lead DGC noms". Playback , August 18, 2008.
  11. ↑ "Screenwriters honoured at annual ceremony". Nanaimo Daily News , April 23, 2009.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.