BARRHEAD - The County of Barrhead is getting into the reality TV business — or, more accurately, it is helping one of its residents become a reality TV star.
On Feb. 4, councillors unanimously approved a request from Nature Alive Adventures and Western Directive Inc. for $5,000 to sponsor one of six episodes for the first season of what they hope will be a multi-year reality TV series, "72-hours To Survive" for Wild TV.
Wild TV is a similar Canadian network with roughly 2.2 million subscribers.
The series would feature Barrhead-area resident Dale Kiselyk and show him attempting to survive for 72 hours using items he collects from select outdoor enthusiasts.
Kiselyk asked for the funding at the Dec. 17 council meeting.
At the meeting, Kiselyk said Western Directive Inc. needed roughly $60,000 for seed money to produce the episodes.
He added that once produced, Western Directive Inc. would attempt to sell the series to Wild TV and the Outdoor Life channel in the U.S.
In addition to the County of Barrhead, Kiselyk approached other municipalities, including the Municipal District of Greenwood and Woodlands County, along with other private businesses for which he or his company has worked.
In return for sponsoring an episode, the municipality would receive a 30-second advertisement every time it aired. Each episode a municipality sponsored would be filmed within or near its borders.
Council delayed their decision to allow administration to do more research. Specifically, councillors wanted to know more about the potential viewership, i.e., the number of subscribers the networks have and whether Western Directive Inc. would return the money if the show was not picked up.
Oyarun said Western Directive Inc., owned by former Fort Assiniboine resident Tim McCort, has been in business for about 25 years and has a good track record.
Western Directive Inc., through A Little Late Films, has produced and distributed 13 films or series, including Cooking with Hot Stones, a documentary about Fort Assiniboine's 200th anniversary, which aired on Wild TV.
Oyarzun also noted that the company has worked with several municipalities, including larger urban centres such as Edmonton, Leduc and Lloydminster, as well as smaller towns and counties such as Whitecourt, Canmore, Drayton Valley Brazeau County, Woodlands County and the Municipal District of Greenview.
"Woodlands County has worked with [Western Directive Inc. on a couple of projects, and the Municipal District of Green has confirmed their sponsorship for the same project [the County of Barrhead] is being asked to sponsor," she said.
Oyarzun added the production company has raised enough money to start the project, and filming for the first episode will begin in the second week of March.
"We would be seen on Wild TV, a national broadcaster," she said, adding the series also has the potential to be seen internationally through the channel's streaming service.
Oyarzun said that Western Directive Inc. would also produce the county's 30-second "spot," adding that McCort said production of the episode and the commercial would start in the early summer.
"Knowing the region [McCort] figures that would be the best time of year to showcase the County of Barrhead," she said.
Oyarzun said the sponsorship would not come in an agreement but rather an invoice with a detailed list of services Western Directive Inc. would provide.
She added that the company, while not able to share the details, confirmed that they had reached a broadcast agreement with Wild TV.
Barry Kerton, TownandCountryToday.com
