Slo Pitch (web series)

Last updated
Slo Pitch
Slot Pitch.jpg
poster
GenreComedy
Created by
Written by
  • Gwenlyn Cumyn
  • Karen Knox
Starring
Country of originCanada
Original languageEnglish
Production
Executive producers
ProducerPaige Haight

Slo Pitch is a Canadian web television comedy series, co-created by J Stevens, Gwenlyn Cumyn, and Karen Knox. [1] The series centres on the Brovaries, an underachieving softball team for LGBTQ women and non-binary players; despite being perennial losers who are mostly more concerned with drinking beer and meeting women at after-game parties than they are with the sport, they unexpectedly find themselves in the league championships playing against their arch-rival Toronto Blue Gays. [1]

Contents

Slo Pitch features a fully female and/or non-binary led creative team, a key cast that is 50 percent BIPOC, 70% of the cast and crew identifying as female or non-binary, and 80% of key cast identifying as LGBTQ+. [2] The cast includes Kirsten Rasmussen, Gwenlyn Cumyn, Karen Knox, Lane Webber, K Alexander, Khadijah Roberts-Abdullah, Amanda Cordner, Aisha Evelyna, and Chelsea Muirhead.

It premiered August 3, 2020 on OUTtvgo in Canada, and aired on OutTV's linear television channel in 2021. [3] Slo Pitch was picked up by IFC (U.S. TV channel) and aired on their platform October 18, 2021. [4]

Shortly after being picked up by IFC, Season Two premiered in June, 2022. [5]

The series was produced by Shaftesbury Films (Paige Haight) and Boss & Co (Michael Schram, Cumyn, and Knox). [3] with funding from the Independent Production Fund and the Bell Fund. [6]

Co-writers Knox and Cumyn met 12 years ago at George Brown Theatre School where they started collaborating on plays. [7]

The show’s theme song is called "Play the Field", by Partner. [8]

Plot

Season 1

The show follows a queer female softball team trying to make it to the championships of their competitive beer league in Toronto, Canada. The mockumentary focuses on an overly invested coach named Joanne, played by Kirsten Rasmussen, and her attempts to take her underdog team The Brovaries all the way to championships. [9] Co-creator J Stevens says they got the idea for the show after playing many team sports, and witnessing the amount of drama that comes from the players. [10]

Characters

Awards

The series was nominated for the LGBTQ+ Spirit Award at the 2020 TOWebfest. [13]

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References

  1. 1 2 John Doyle, "A timely feast of gentle comedy to comfort you". The Globe and Mail , August 1, 2020.
  2. "Everything On Our Pop Culture Radar This August". Elle Canada. Retrieved 2020-08-30.
  3. 1 2 Kelly Townsend, "Slo Pitch EPs on opportunities in short-form LGBTQ content". Playback , August 17, 2020.
  4. 1 2 3 "Web Series Wednesday – Slo Pitch". Starry Constellation Magazine. 2020-07-22. Retrieved 2020-08-30.
  5. Mcneely, Jen (2022-06-10). "Queer Toronto series 'Slo Pitch' hits it out of the park with big US deal". Shedoesthecity. Retrieved 2024-02-05.
  6. "The Bell Fund Announces the Results of the April 8, 2019 Deadline for the Short-Form Digital Series - Fiction Program". Bell Fund. 2019-06-18. Retrieved 2020-08-30.
  7. Liz Braun, "Slo Pitch a hit right off the bat". Toronto Sun , July 19, 2020.
  8. 1 2 3 "Review: Slo Pitch, OUTtv and KindaTV". Parton and Pearl. Retrieved 2020-08-30.
  9. "4 happenings to wind you up or wind down with now". Xtra Magazine. 2020-07-16. Retrieved 2020-08-30.
  10. "Slo Pitch Director J Stevens on Telling Stories with a Diverse Cast of Characters". The TV Junkies. 2020-08-04. Retrieved 2020-08-30.
  11. "Slo Pitch Brings Queer Identities to Mainstream Media". The TV Junkies. 2020-07-29. Retrieved 2020-08-30.
  12. Kleffner, Katherine (2020-08-25). "The Bi Line: Slo Pitch Review from @kleffnotes". TheNerdyGirlExpress. Retrieved 2020-08-30.
  13. "2020 Nominations". T.O. WebFest | Toronto, Canada. Retrieved 2020-08-30.