Mihkel Harilaid
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Mihkel Harilaid, also known as Mike Harilaid, is the
CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
and
executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the making of a commercial entertainment product. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights o ...
of
Black Walk Black Walk is a Canadian film and television production company located in Whitby, Ontario, Canada. The former music video production company is now known for producing films, television programs, and the ''Dark Rising'' series. History Black Wa ...
, a Canadian feature film and television production company.


Career

Harilaid began his career in real estate development and management and in 1992 founded Black Walk Corporation, a Canadian film and television production company, with David Fowler and Stephen Scott. He became and remains the CEO and Executive Producer for the company. Starting his production career in music videos, Harilaid produced over 500 clips. Harilaid and Black Walk worked with
Alanis Morissette Alanis Nadine Morissette ( ; born June 1, 1974) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her emotive mezzo-soprano voice and confessional songwriting, Morissette began her career in Canada in the early 1990s with tw ...
, Hootie & the Blowfish, and
Shaggy Shaggy may refer to: People *Shaggy (musician) (born 1968), Jamaican American reggae rapper and singer *Shaggy 2 Dope, half of the hip hop, horrorcore band Insane Clown Posse *Shaggy Flores (born 1973), Nuyorican poet, writer and African diaspora ...
. Harilaid decided to shift the focus of Black Walk to feature films. In 2002 he released his second feature film ''
Ham & Cheese ''Ham & Cheese'' is a 2004 Canadian comedy film directed by Warren P. Sonoda.Doug Foley, "High hopes for Ham & Cheese". ''Hamilton Spectator'', November 17, 2004. The film stars Mike Beaver and Jason Jones. Both of them also wrote and produced ...
''. This was followed with ''
Phil the Alien ''Phil the Alien'' is a 2004 Canadian comedy film. It was written and directed by Rob Stefaniuk, who also starred as the titular Phil."'When a spaceship crashes in Northern Ontario, it's funny'". '' Sudbury Star'', September 24, 2004. The film's ...
'', premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival. Harilaid executive produced ''Two Hands to Mouth'', his second feature with Director Michael DeCarlo, which premiered at the Madrid International Film Festival. ''Dark Rising: Warrior of Worlds'', a continuation of the ''
Dark Rising ''Dark Rising'' is a sword and sorcery adult-oriented franchise of two made-for-television films, a twelve-episode television miniseries and another five-episode television miniseries, from the husband and wife team of Andrew Cymek and Brigitte Kin ...
'' franchise, was aired on Super Channel in the summer of 2014. Written by Harilaid and
Andrew Cymek Andrew is the English form of a given name common in many countries. In the 1990s, it was among the top ten most popular names given to boys in English-speaking countries. "Andrew" is frequently shortened to "Andy" or "Drew". The word is derive ...
, the project was produced by
Craig Fleming Craig Fleming (born 6 October 1971) is an English former professional footballer who played as a defender. Fleming was first team assistant Coach at Premier League club Southampton, a position he held since 2018 until his departure in 2022. Pl ...
and stars
Brigitte Kingsley Brigitte is a feminine given name. Notable people with the name include: * Brigitte Amm, German rower * Brigitte Bardot (born 1934), a French actress and singer * Brigitte Becue (born 1972), a Belgian breaststroke swimmer * Brigitte Bierlein (bo ...
and Jacob Blair. In recent years, Mihkel has expanded Black Walk's production slate to include lifestyle television. This includes a destination fishing series, ''Hookin’ Up with Nick and Mariko'' and ''Reflections'', a long-standing Christian television series.


Credits

Harilaid 's producer credits include: *Over 500 Music Videos *''Reflections'' A Christian series for the DayStar Network featuring the Work of God. *''
Dark Rising ''Dark Rising'' is a sword and sorcery adult-oriented franchise of two made-for-television films, a twelve-episode television miniseries and another five-episode television miniseries, from the husband and wife team of Andrew Cymek and Brigitte Kin ...
: Warrior of Worlds'' Written by Mihkel Harilaid and Andrew Cymek, Directed by Andrew Cymek, and featuring Brigitte Kingsley, Nug Nahrgang, and Jacob Blair. *''Hookin' Up with Nick and Mariko'' A World Fishing Network series following Nick Honachefsky and Mariko Izumi as they travel on a mission for fishin' and a ton of fun. *''Two Hands to Mouth'' Written and Directed by Michael DeCarlo and featuring Art Hindle,
Richard Zeppieri Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Old Frankish and is a compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'str ...
,
Vincent Walsh Vincent ( la, Vincentius) is a male given name derived from the Roman name Vincentius, which is derived from the Latin word (''to conquer''). People with the given name Artists *Vincent Apap (1909–2003), Maltese sculptor *Vincent van Gogh ...
, and
Kate Trotter Kate Trotter (born February 5, 1953) is a Canadian film, television and stage actress. Career Her television roles have included appearances in '' Wild Roses'', ''Covert Affairs'', ''Lost Girl'', '' The Newsroom'', ''Paradise Falls'', '' Earth: F ...
. *''Medium Raw: Night of the Wolf'' Directed by Andrew Cymek and featuring John Rhys-Davies,
Mercedes McNab Mercedes Alicia McNab (born March 14, 1980) is a Canadian former actress. She is known for her role as Harmony Kendall on ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' (1997–2001) and its spinoff ''Angel'' (2001–2004). She additionally is known for her role a ...
and
William B. Davis William Bruce Davis (born January 13, 1938) is a Canadian actor, best known for his role as the Cigarette Smoking Man on ''The X-Files''. Besides appearing in many TV programs and movies, he founded his own acting school, the William Davis Ce ...
*'' Suck'' Directed by
Rob Stefaniuk Robert Stefaniuk is a Canadian comedian, actor and writer who has worked in numerous television shows and films as both guest actor and series regular. His feature-film acting credits include the ''Saturday Night Live''-inspired ''Superstar'' (19 ...
and featuring Jessica Paré,
Moby Richard Melville Hall (born September 11, 1965), known professionally as Moby, is an American musician, songwriter, singer, producer, and animal rights activist. He has sold 20 million records worldwide. AllMusic considers him to be "among the ...
, Alice Cooper,
Iggy Pop James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter and actor. Called the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godfather of Punk", he was the vocalist and lyricist of ...
, Dave Foley and Malcolm McDowell. *''
Dark Rising ''Dark Rising'' is a sword and sorcery adult-oriented franchise of two made-for-television films, a twelve-episode television miniseries and another five-episode television miniseries, from the husband and wife team of Andrew Cymek and Brigitte Kin ...
'', ''Summer Strikes Back'' and ''The Savage Tales of Summer Vale'' starring Brigitte Kingsley and Jay Reso *''
Ham & Cheese ''Ham & Cheese'' is a 2004 Canadian comedy film directed by Warren P. Sonoda.Doug Foley, "High hopes for Ham & Cheese". ''Hamilton Spectator'', November 17, 2004. The film stars Mike Beaver and Jason Jones. Both of them also wrote and produced ...
'' Directed by
Warren P. Sonoda Warren P. Sonoda is a Canadian film and television director,Libaan Osman"Toronto filmmaker taps into Japanese-Canadian roots with crime movie" '' Toronto.com'', August 11, 2020. and the current president of the Directors Guild of Canada. Biograp ...
and starring Mike Beaver, Jason Jones and Samantha Bee. *''
Phil the Alien ''Phil the Alien'' is a 2004 Canadian comedy film. It was written and directed by Rob Stefaniuk, who also starred as the titular Phil."'When a spaceship crashes in Northern Ontario, it's funny'". '' Sudbury Star'', September 24, 2004. The film's ...
'' Directed by
Rob Stefaniuk Robert Stefaniuk is a Canadian comedian, actor and writer who has worked in numerous television shows and films as both guest actor and series regular. His feature-film acting credits include the ''Saturday Night Live''-inspired ''Superstar'' (19 ...
', with Oscar-nominated Graham Greene and winner of the 2005 Toronto International Film Festival Independent Spirit Award winner. *''
Last Hour ''Last Hour'' is a 2008 straight-to-DVD American crime drama film starring DMX, Michael Madsen, David Carradine and Paul Sorvino. Plot The film follows five characters who are lured to an abandoned house in China by letters they all received ...
'' directed by Pascal Caubet and starring
DMX Earl Simmons (December 18, 1970 – April 9, 2021), known professionally as DMX, was an American rapper and actor. He began rapping in the early 1990s and released his debut album ''It's Dark and Hell Is Hot'' in 1998, to both critical acclaim ...
, Michael Madsen, David Carradine, and Paul Sorvino.


Personal life

Harilaid's surname is derived from his family's ancestral home in
Harilaid Harilaid Peninsula is a peninsula on the northwest coast of the island of Saaremaa in Estonia. It should not be confused with the islet of Harilaid which lies between the islands of Vormsi and Hiiumaa. Harilaid covers an area of and is low l ...
, Estonia. Mihkel lives in Pickering, Ontario with his children and Cat, Big Tuna Harilaid Harilaid started his education at Trinity College School, where he graduated in 1985. He served as chairman of the TCS Alumni Association. He then went to
Trinity College Trinity College may refer to: Australia * Trinity Anglican College, an Anglican coeducational primary and secondary school in , New South Wales * Trinity Catholic College, Auburn, a coeducational school in the inner-western suburbs of Sydney, New ...
at the University of Toronto where he received a BA in History in 1989. He later became a
Certified Property Manager Certified Property Manager (CPM) is a real estate Real estate is property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in t ...
with the
Institute of Real Estate Management An institute is an organisational body created for a certain purpose. They are often research organisations (research institutes) created to do research on specific topics, or can also be a professional body. In some countries, institutes can ...
and his FPI and CRF from the Real Estate Institute of Canada (REIC).


References


External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Harilaid, Mihkel 1966 births Living people Film producers from Ontario University of Toronto alumni Trinity College (Canada) alumni Canadian people of Estonian descent