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Colin McKeown, Producer of Truth Duty Valour (TDV) was kind enough to speak with me on the first ever Army.ca interview.
Truth Duty Valour is a 13 part series (first episode aired today) that focuses on a variety of CF training concepts. Where other series tend to be high level, discussing the systemic problems with the CF today, TDV focuses on the diverse training that the CF conducts in order to prepare for it‘s tasks. It follows the hard work and achievements of the soldier, which is an area typically under-represented by the media.
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">Thanks for taking time from your schedule, I know you have a lot of projects on the go. Let‘s jump right into it: How did you become involved with TDV?</font>
<img src="http://Army.ca/img/Colin_McKeown.png" align="right"> Colin: <font color="#00ff00">After I completed my 20 years of service in the military and had successfully started my fishing television show, I had a strong desire to create a series that would profile the excellent work done by the CF. I had been working on several different concepts for the Discovery Network when the fickle fingers of fate got involved. I was meeting with the VP of the Outdoor Life Network negotiating a new contract for my fishing series and she mentioned to me that the number one show on the network for 2002 was a program called "Ranger Challenge". This one-off program was all about the US Rangers annual competition to select the best Ranger team. It was hosted by the famous LCol Ollie North and was produced by OLN in the USA. The VP asked me if Canada had similar training and competitions featuring the Canadian military to which I responded positively. Six weeks later and after alot of research and sweat was born TDV. That was in July of 2003, by late August we were starting to tape. This is the first series (13 x one-hour shows) that is solely focussed on the Canadian military and the training & competitions it conducts.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">How did you select the name for the series?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">The title Truth Duty Valour comes from Royal Military College and the motto of Canadian Officers - I think it embodies all the intrinsically valued aspects of the CF.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">What other television series have you been involved with?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">In 2000 I started a fly fishing series entitled "The New Fly Fisher" which is an educational program aimed at helping people learn how to fly fish. I was frustrated with most fishing shows at that time and I thought it could be done better. The series is now in it‘s fourth year of production and is broadcast across the USA and Canada on PBS, OLN and CBC‘s Country Canada digital network. (www.thenewflyfisher.com)</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">Is this the first military related project you‘ve worked on?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">No, the first series I was involved in was called "Forbidden Places" which aired on the Discovery Network. In 1996 I was the Exercise Planner for the east coast Navy and the Discovery Network had approached the Public Affairs people about covering the major exercise I was planning & coordinating known as MARCOT. Getting involved in this production, even though it was very limited in exposure, really peaked my interest in television production. From there I began to take television production courses at Algonquin College in Ottawa under SCAN.
In 2002 I did work on a one-off show dealing with the Naval Reserves deploying to the Canadian Arctic. Entitled "Op Narwahl - HMCS Goose Bay Arctic Deployment" this show followed the crew of this MCDV as it went north to the Arctic and made stops in places such as Resolution Island and Iqualuit. This show should be airing on the History Channel in 2004.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">As producer, what was your biggest challenge in the series?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">There were several major challenges to producing TDV. The first was trying to figure out how to tape 13 one-hour shows in approximately three and a half months. Sometimes we had three production teams deployed at the same time all over Canada and parts of the USA - the logistics for my small production company was incredibly tough (remembering we were still taping fishing shows as well in BC, Manitoba, and Idaho during the same time frame).
The second issue was the most important - winning the confidence of the military people we were working with. Unfortunately the general "media" have not done a great job of bonding with the military and compounding this has been dark media events such as Somalia and Bosnia where there was some serious mis- representation of the military by the press.
This last statement is key in defining how we were different - we are not "the media" or "the press". Our purpose was to make a show that clearly demonstrated the unique training and dedication of Canadian Army, Navy and Air Force personnel - something that made them one of the best military‘s in the world. Basically we are doing an informative documentary series. So I had to give special instructions to each director and team on how to try and demonstrate to the soldiers, sailors and airmen we were working with that we were there to make them look good. If we could win their confidence then we would be able to make a great show. Generally we were pretty much accepted everywhere and only had a few small incidents where we did not get the interaction we desired. I was really impressed with some of the Army units that really bent over to help us - such as the R22R, Lord Strathconas and of course the PPCLI in Edmonton.
It is tough to change the mindset of people who have been instructed for years and years to maintain total silence with any aspect of the media. However, I think that in this first season we did fairly well. When people in the military get a chance to see the series and realize that we did as promised, then I think it will all work out even better in the 2nd season.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">In producing TDV, you likely had some leeway in how you wanted to represent the CF to the public. What facets did you want to focus on and what influenced your decision?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">I really wanted people to see how dedicated, selfless and proud people in the Canadian military are. There has been some really undeserved bad press for the Canadian military in general and I want to change that by being a positive influence. Canadians need to see the effort and professionalism demonstrated by units such as the soldiers going to Afghanistan, sailors who do boardings in the Persian Gulf or pilots who have to learn escape & evade tactics should they be shot down in a hostile environment, such as Kosovo in 1999. The CF does incredible work considering how small it is and how poor their budget. I want Canadians too really see, hear and feel what our soldiers, sailors and air force personnel go through.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">Are there any areas of TDV that you would have liked to focus on more?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">It is really hard to cram into one hour all that you want and at the same time I would love to send a production team for three weeks to follow a particular unit as they go through training. However, tight budgets and limited resources prevent us from doing it all. In the future I want to do more with the Army as they have some of the most interesting tasks in the military - including aid to the civil power tasks. If we had been prepared, I would have loved to cover the military as it helped the people in BC deal with the fires they experienced last fall.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">Is there a moment in the series that sticks out as being particularly significant to you?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">There are a bunch but my favourites are:
- riding on the top of Leopard tank at speed as it raced into firing position in the desert of Idaho, then having it firing it‘s weapon at a distant target. Very, very cool.
- taping a show with the Vandoos in Fort Drum (NY) as they prepared for deployment to Afghanistan. I ran with them through the obstacle course (I was sore for three days - they barely broke a sweat) and then taped some awesome footage of everything from C9s firing to house-to-house combat. Really neat and alot of fun.
- following the Mountain Man competition in Edmonton. I was amazed at the stamina and endurance of some of the competitors - gender and age didn‘t seem to be a barrier to many. I was really impressed with these people.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">Do you have any regrets in making the series?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">A low point was when I realized that taping television shows around the military can be expensive - we have had over $8000 in damage done to our equipment! Wet mud, fine desert dust and having a $1500 matte box blow off a camera when we were taping a show from a Griffon helicopter (at 600 feet) - it was all so very costly! But I think the end result was worth it - we have some incredible footage.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">What is your next project?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">We have two other series in the works. One is for CBC and it is a new nature series which will hopefully have Severn Suzuki as the host. It is called The Canadian Naturalist. The other series is about the modern military and is being produced for Discovery. This is very much a strategic and technological series, similar to one produced by the BBC in the early 1990s called "Soldier". Essentially this series will breakdown the modern battlefield based on capabilities, an example would be artillery or armour. In this one-hour episode, we would first off examine the strategic and tactical purposes for artillery. Contained within this examination would be looking at history and the role of artillery. Of course we will examine high points from history where it made a defining difference on the battlefield - such as the Russians overwhelming use of artillery in World War II. Then we would examine today‘s modern artillery by comparing the different capabilities - such as British, Canadian and American firepower versus Russian, Chinese and South African. The we would take a quick look at what is in development and what the future holds for artillery on the battlefield of tomorrow. Very neat show for people who are interested in the military.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">Are there any planned follow-ups to TDV?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">The military is already keen to begin planning for series Two. If Truth Duty Valour does as well as we think it will, then I expect it will get renewed and we can expect to start examining different parts of the Army, Navy and Air Force for new episodes. Of course I would welcome any thoughts from the people who frequent your website to let me know of unique or interesting training or competitions within the Army (both regular and reserve) that we could make shows on. The key for us is to do programs that will help profile the excellent work done by the CF to Canadians.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">Well, that about wraps it up. We appreciate your time and the great work you‘ve done on TDV, and will be looking forward to seeing the episodes as they air.</font>
Thanks Colin!
P.S. I‘d like to make this a regular feature here if I can find enough willing interviewees, please feel free to make suggestions.
Truth Duty Valour is a 13 part series (first episode aired today) that focuses on a variety of CF training concepts. Where other series tend to be high level, discussing the systemic problems with the CF today, TDV focuses on the diverse training that the CF conducts in order to prepare for it‘s tasks. It follows the hard work and achievements of the soldier, which is an area typically under-represented by the media.
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">Thanks for taking time from your schedule, I know you have a lot of projects on the go. Let‘s jump right into it: How did you become involved with TDV?</font>
<img src="http://Army.ca/img/Colin_McKeown.png" align="right"> Colin: <font color="#00ff00">After I completed my 20 years of service in the military and had successfully started my fishing television show, I had a strong desire to create a series that would profile the excellent work done by the CF. I had been working on several different concepts for the Discovery Network when the fickle fingers of fate got involved. I was meeting with the VP of the Outdoor Life Network negotiating a new contract for my fishing series and she mentioned to me that the number one show on the network for 2002 was a program called "Ranger Challenge". This one-off program was all about the US Rangers annual competition to select the best Ranger team. It was hosted by the famous LCol Ollie North and was produced by OLN in the USA. The VP asked me if Canada had similar training and competitions featuring the Canadian military to which I responded positively. Six weeks later and after alot of research and sweat was born TDV. That was in July of 2003, by late August we were starting to tape. This is the first series (13 x one-hour shows) that is solely focussed on the Canadian military and the training & competitions it conducts.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">How did you select the name for the series?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">The title Truth Duty Valour comes from Royal Military College and the motto of Canadian Officers - I think it embodies all the intrinsically valued aspects of the CF.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">What other television series have you been involved with?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">In 2000 I started a fly fishing series entitled "The New Fly Fisher" which is an educational program aimed at helping people learn how to fly fish. I was frustrated with most fishing shows at that time and I thought it could be done better. The series is now in it‘s fourth year of production and is broadcast across the USA and Canada on PBS, OLN and CBC‘s Country Canada digital network. (www.thenewflyfisher.com)</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">Is this the first military related project you‘ve worked on?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">No, the first series I was involved in was called "Forbidden Places" which aired on the Discovery Network. In 1996 I was the Exercise Planner for the east coast Navy and the Discovery Network had approached the Public Affairs people about covering the major exercise I was planning & coordinating known as MARCOT. Getting involved in this production, even though it was very limited in exposure, really peaked my interest in television production. From there I began to take television production courses at Algonquin College in Ottawa under SCAN.
In 2002 I did work on a one-off show dealing with the Naval Reserves deploying to the Canadian Arctic. Entitled "Op Narwahl - HMCS Goose Bay Arctic Deployment" this show followed the crew of this MCDV as it went north to the Arctic and made stops in places such as Resolution Island and Iqualuit. This show should be airing on the History Channel in 2004.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">As producer, what was your biggest challenge in the series?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">There were several major challenges to producing TDV. The first was trying to figure out how to tape 13 one-hour shows in approximately three and a half months. Sometimes we had three production teams deployed at the same time all over Canada and parts of the USA - the logistics for my small production company was incredibly tough (remembering we were still taping fishing shows as well in BC, Manitoba, and Idaho during the same time frame).
The second issue was the most important - winning the confidence of the military people we were working with. Unfortunately the general "media" have not done a great job of bonding with the military and compounding this has been dark media events such as Somalia and Bosnia where there was some serious mis- representation of the military by the press.
This last statement is key in defining how we were different - we are not "the media" or "the press". Our purpose was to make a show that clearly demonstrated the unique training and dedication of Canadian Army, Navy and Air Force personnel - something that made them one of the best military‘s in the world. Basically we are doing an informative documentary series. So I had to give special instructions to each director and team on how to try and demonstrate to the soldiers, sailors and airmen we were working with that we were there to make them look good. If we could win their confidence then we would be able to make a great show. Generally we were pretty much accepted everywhere and only had a few small incidents where we did not get the interaction we desired. I was really impressed with some of the Army units that really bent over to help us - such as the R22R, Lord Strathconas and of course the PPCLI in Edmonton.
It is tough to change the mindset of people who have been instructed for years and years to maintain total silence with any aspect of the media. However, I think that in this first season we did fairly well. When people in the military get a chance to see the series and realize that we did as promised, then I think it will all work out even better in the 2nd season.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">In producing TDV, you likely had some leeway in how you wanted to represent the CF to the public. What facets did you want to focus on and what influenced your decision?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">I really wanted people to see how dedicated, selfless and proud people in the Canadian military are. There has been some really undeserved bad press for the Canadian military in general and I want to change that by being a positive influence. Canadians need to see the effort and professionalism demonstrated by units such as the soldiers going to Afghanistan, sailors who do boardings in the Persian Gulf or pilots who have to learn escape & evade tactics should they be shot down in a hostile environment, such as Kosovo in 1999. The CF does incredible work considering how small it is and how poor their budget. I want Canadians too really see, hear and feel what our soldiers, sailors and air force personnel go through.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">Are there any areas of TDV that you would have liked to focus on more?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">It is really hard to cram into one hour all that you want and at the same time I would love to send a production team for three weeks to follow a particular unit as they go through training. However, tight budgets and limited resources prevent us from doing it all. In the future I want to do more with the Army as they have some of the most interesting tasks in the military - including aid to the civil power tasks. If we had been prepared, I would have loved to cover the military as it helped the people in BC deal with the fires they experienced last fall.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">Is there a moment in the series that sticks out as being particularly significant to you?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">There are a bunch but my favourites are:
- riding on the top of Leopard tank at speed as it raced into firing position in the desert of Idaho, then having it firing it‘s weapon at a distant target. Very, very cool.
- taping a show with the Vandoos in Fort Drum (NY) as they prepared for deployment to Afghanistan. I ran with them through the obstacle course (I was sore for three days - they barely broke a sweat) and then taped some awesome footage of everything from C9s firing to house-to-house combat. Really neat and alot of fun.
- following the Mountain Man competition in Edmonton. I was amazed at the stamina and endurance of some of the competitors - gender and age didn‘t seem to be a barrier to many. I was really impressed with these people.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">Do you have any regrets in making the series?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">A low point was when I realized that taping television shows around the military can be expensive - we have had over $8000 in damage done to our equipment! Wet mud, fine desert dust and having a $1500 matte box blow off a camera when we were taping a show from a Griffon helicopter (at 600 feet) - it was all so very costly! But I think the end result was worth it - we have some incredible footage.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">What is your next project?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">We have two other series in the works. One is for CBC and it is a new nature series which will hopefully have Severn Suzuki as the host. It is called The Canadian Naturalist. The other series is about the modern military and is being produced for Discovery. This is very much a strategic and technological series, similar to one produced by the BBC in the early 1990s called "Soldier". Essentially this series will breakdown the modern battlefield based on capabilities, an example would be artillery or armour. In this one-hour episode, we would first off examine the strategic and tactical purposes for artillery. Contained within this examination would be looking at history and the role of artillery. Of course we will examine high points from history where it made a defining difference on the battlefield - such as the Russians overwhelming use of artillery in World War II. Then we would examine today‘s modern artillery by comparing the different capabilities - such as British, Canadian and American firepower versus Russian, Chinese and South African. The we would take a quick look at what is in development and what the future holds for artillery on the battlefield of tomorrow. Very neat show for people who are interested in the military.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">Are there any planned follow-ups to TDV?</font>
Colin: <font color="#00ff00">The military is already keen to begin planning for series Two. If Truth Duty Valour does as well as we think it will, then I expect it will get renewed and we can expect to start examining different parts of the Army, Navy and Air Force for new episodes. Of course I would welcome any thoughts from the people who frequent your website to let me know of unique or interesting training or competitions within the Army (both regular and reserve) that we could make shows on. The key for us is to do programs that will help profile the excellent work done by the CF to Canadians.</font>
Mike: <font color="#6B8E23">Well, that about wraps it up. We appreciate your time and the great work you‘ve done on TDV, and will be looking forward to seeing the episodes as they air.</font>
Thanks Colin!
P.S. I‘d like to make this a regular feature here if I can find enough willing interviewees, please feel free to make suggestions.
TDV is my new show I never miss an episode
