Are you tired of flipping around the dial every night, looking for something a little different? Something that doesn’t include reality contestants stabbing each other in the back for a million dollars, dramas that have gone on for too long, stale sitcoms, and other senseless drivel?

Do you crave culture for yourself and your family? Got a hankering for something that celebrates well-made films, arresting theatre performances and embraces the best in music (and by music I don’t mean music videos)?

The people at Corus felt the same way, which is why March 1 is the debut of Sundance Channel in Canada. Replacing Drive-In Classics in many markets, Sundance’s focus is to air independent feature films, flicks from the world cinema, documentaries, short films and a smattering of original programming. (Contact your cable company to find out if Sundance is available in your area.)

Sundance Canada’s primetime schedule is broken down by nights.

Like film adaptations of stage plays? Mondays are for you, led off by the Gemini Award-winning Slings & Arrows. If critical analysis of the film business is more up your alley, Tuesdays give you what you need, starting with In the House with Guber and Bart, in which Variety editor-in-chief Peter Bart and film producer Peter Guber interview a who’s who of celluloid talent followed by critically acclaimed movies. Original Sundance series get the spotlight on Wednesdays with The Lazy Environmentalist (self explanatory, if you ask me), Man Shops Globe (Anthropologie’s buyer travels the world shopping for items for the boutique store) and Brick City (the rebuilding of Newark, N.J.).

Music fans can get their groove on to live concerts by mega-stars and up-and-comers in Music Makers, 360 Sessions and London Live. Fridays close out the week with Theatreland, a documentary series about Theatre Royal’s staging of Waiting for Godot, starring Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart, as seen through the eyes of new artistic director Sean Mathias.

We spoke with Erica Benson, vice-president of programming for Sundance Channel, as well as Movie Central and HBO Canada, who explained why Sundance has come to Canada and what viewers can expect when they tune in this week.

TVGuide.ca: Why launch Sundance Channel in Canada now? Has this been ongoing for a year or two?
Erica Benson: It hasn’t been a long process. Jim Shaw (owner of Shaw Communications) expressed a real interest in launching new channels, and we were trying to find something that would be distinctive. Sundance is one of the most distinctive channels out there. It has an international following of some note, so we chose to bring the brand to Canada.

TVG: Was there a short list of other channels that you thought about launching?
EB: It was pretty clear from the beginning that this would be our choice. It’s a great complement to HBO Canada.

TVG: Other than Bravo!, there is really nothing like Sundance on the air in Canada. This is an untapped market.
EB: It certainly is. It gives us the opportunity to bring to the Canadian viewer a very specific viewing experience. It’s very much targeted to people who love the arts, and theatre and who are concerned about the environment. They are going to see something on Sundance that meets all of that.

TVG: Sundance is taking the place of which channel in some markets?
EB: We’re re-branding Drive-In Classics. We acquired Drive-In Classics not long ago, with the intention of re-branding it.

TVG: Will you be producing in-house Canadian series for Sundance?
EB: We have a number of different options. Slings & Arrows is a perfect (Canadian) show to launch with in so many ways. The content is fitting. It’s such a quality Canadian series and one of the first — if not the first — that Sundance Channel in the U.S. airs. It’s a lovely fit. Going forward I see Sundance as being a second window to some of the pay-programming we air on the original side because it is of a similar taste, and we plan to work with Rainbow Media (who owns the Sundance brand in the U.S.) on some co-productions. Additionally, when Rainbow is purchasing series for Sundance in the U.S., they will be purchasing the international rights so that we can air it as well.

TVG: Name one or two shows that you think new viewers to Sundance shouldn’t miss.
EB: There are a lot of great films that will be on Sundance, and since you’re limiting me … one of the ones I’m fond of is Theatreland. Theatreland is a documentary reality show that follows Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellan as they mount Waiting for Godot, which bowed in London to rave reviews. That’s a lot of fun, they are such great characters, and it is a great fit.

My second pick is Guber and Bart. They are fantastic. They are hugely entertaining. So, In the House with Guber and Bart, as well.

Will you give Sundance Channel a chance? greg@tvguide.ca

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Greg has been a fan of TV since he was five years old, eating dry cereal in front of the TV with his sisters watching Sesame Street, and scrambling downstairs after dinner to watch Polka Dot Door. His influential teen years were taken up by equal parts of The A-Team, The Greatest American Hero, The Incredible Hulk, The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries, Magnum P.I. and Friday Night Videos as well as daily doses of Toronto Rocks and the Power Hour on MuchMusic.

He is continually fascinated with the television process from idea to pilot episode and network pickup, development and casting right through to air, and likes all genres of TV.

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