The following is from a recent Showcase press release. Exciting!

Continuing to deliver on its mandate to provide viewers with compelling alternatives to the usual network fare, Showcase has commissioned three new half-hour comedy pilots from across the country. Created by this country’s top film and television comedy talent, these pilots – The Foundation, Pure Evil and Retail – promise to deliver more laughter-inducing programming to Showcase’s loyal audiences.

“We’re excited to be building on the success of our Original series such as Trailer Park Boys, Billable Hours and Rent-A-Goalie, by exploring new, distinctive voices for the network. The creative teams behind these pilots have idiosyncratic and off-kilter approaches to comedy that our loyal viewers have come to expect from Showcase,” says Tara Ellis, VP of Content for Showcase at Alliance Atlantis.

The Foundation is a darkly comedic look at the inner workings of a dysfunctional but well-funded charity and its corrupt “Executive Director for Life” Michael Valmont-Selkirk, played by Mike Wilmot (Corner Gas, It’s All Gone Pete Tong). Produced in Montreal, the pilot – in which Valmont-Selkirk unwisely accepts the “Homeless Challenge” to spend a night on the streets – is created and produced by Jennifer Wilson and Michael Dowse (FUBAR, It’s All Gone Pete Tong). Executive producer is Daniel Iron, Foundry Films (Away From Her, Manufactured Landscapes).

In Pure Evil, a suburban father named Frank Smith (played by Rick Roberts, An American in Canada) would love nothing more than to live a normal, peaceful life – except he happens to be the son of Satan. Frank tries to hide his demonic ancestry from his family, despite his evil father’s constant attempts to lure him back to the dark side and bring about the end of days. Things get complicated when Satan possesses the family’s next-door neighbour. This dark comedy pilot, written, produced and directed by Mark Sawers (Alienated, Kids in the Hall), was filmed in British Columbia. Executive producer is Jayme Pfahl of Crescent Entertainment (Terminal City, Moving Malcolm).

Retail follows the exploits of a group of friends and foes who work in a Winnipeg mall. The lead character and provocateur is Shawn (Alex Woods, Citizen Duane), an aspiring drag queen, who works at the makeup counter with his best friend and roommate Jill (Grace Lynn Kung, Slings & Arrows). When their old friend Miss Bitters – a down-on-her luck tranny – moves back to the ‘Peg from Los Angeles and moves into their apartment, their lives are turned upside down. Created by Noam Gonick (Kink, Hey Happy!), the pilot is directed by Shawn Alex Thompson (Billable Hours, Puppets Who Kill).  Executive producer is Jamie Brown of Frantic Films (‘Til Debt Do Us Part, Lucid).