Kahn does Murder on Spec

Vancouver - Front Street Productions head Harvey Kahn is back in the director's chair for the MOW Murder on Spec, starring ex-Baywatcher Brooke Burns.

The film - about a man who murders the wealthy husbands of trophy wives for a cut of the inheritance - intrigued the prolific Vancouver producer enough to assume helming duties. Kahn (Hush, The Deal) says the script by Pablo Fenjves (Bloodhounds) was compelling.

"It just kind of got me, and made me want to step up and do something more than sit back and produce it," he says. "For me directing is a way of connecting not just to the material, but also to the process. [Directing] makes me a better producer, and frankly, producing makes me a good director because I have the big picture in mind and base my decisions on what we can and should do for the money we have."

Funding comes mostly through prebuys from Global TV, Lifetime Television in the U.S., France's TF1 and Spain's Sogecable. Kahn splits producing duties with Jaye Gazeley (Safe Harbor).

The four-week shoot began on June 5, two days after Kahn wrapped Scare Tactics, another MOW thriller for Global and Lifetime, about a woman who inherits what appears to be a haunted house. Kahn produced under the banner of Thunderfront, a coventure between Front Street and Vancouver's Thunderbird Films (Zixx), with Gazeley serving as line producer. Farhad Mann (Zoe Busiek: Wild Card) directed the script by Steve Finly (Shadow Warriors), with Emma Caulfield (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) starring. Dustin Dinoff

Blueprint shooting Absolution, wrapping Noah's Arc

Toronto ­- Blueprint Entertainment is shooting the MOW Absolution in Toronto, with Samantha Mathis (Touched) as a reporter sent to cover a comatose man with miraculous healing powers. Holly Dale (Bliss) directs. Absolution will air on Lifetime and Global. Blueprint will also wrap a second run (8 x 30) of its gay-aimed Noah's Arc this month in B.C. The series airs in the U.S. on Logo and is run by Patrik-Ian Polk. Sean Davidson