''That's My DJ'' is a Canadian

web series A web series (also known as a web show) is a series of scripted or non-scripted online videos, generally in episodic form, released on the Internet, which first emerged in the late 1990s and became more prominent in the early 2000s. A single in ...

created by

D. W. Waterson D. W. Waterson, is a Canadian DJ, drummer, writer, director, and web series creator. They are known for their work as a performer and for creating, writing, and directing the award-winning web series ''That's My DJ'' (2014–2017). Early life ...

. The series, created in 2014, follows the lives of several people who work in the

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most pop ...

nightlife Nightlife is a collective term for entertainment that is available and generally more popular from the late evening into the early hours of the morning. It includes pubs, bars, nightclubs, parties, live music, concerts, cabarets, theatre, ...

industry. It has been funded through various Indiegogo

crowdfunding Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising money from a large number of people, typically via the internet. Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and Alternative Finance, alternative finance. In 2015, over was rais ...

campaigns. The first season originally premiered online in 2014, before being re-released in 2016, following the release of the second season on

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. A third and final season premiered online July 7, 2017. Since its release, the series has won several awards, including at the Vancouver Web Series Festival and the

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. It additionally received two

Canadian Screen Award The Canadian Screen Awards (french: link=no, Les prix Écrans canadiens) are awards given for artistic and technical merit in the film industry recognizing excellence in Canadian film, English-language television, and digital media (web series) ...

nominations.

Background

''That's My DJ'' was created by Canadian DJ

in 2014. They wanted to create the series because they felt that the stories of LGBT women and women of colour and their importance in the

industry and the electronic music scene were not being told. In an interview, Waterson discussed their intentions with the series, saying:

Being a DJ myself I found myself looking around the clubs and bars thinking there are so many interesting characters set against this colorful background, why isn’t anyone telling this story?! It was that moment that inspired me to write and create ''That’s My DJ''.

Waterson collaborated with other creatives in the Toronto arts scene to create the series and initially relied on self-financing to produce the project. The first season of the series originally premiered online in 2014, after a successful

campaign via Indiegogo; however, after it struggled to attract viewers, it was subsequently pulled from YouTube. Following the success of the second season in 2016, the first season was re-uploaded to YouTube. The second and third seasons were also funded primarily through Indiegogo campaigns. Each season consists of 8 episodes, with a total of 24 episodes over three seasons. As of 2020, the three seasons have been viewed over 3 million times cumulatively on YouTube.

Plot

The series focuses on the nightlife scene in Toronto and each season follows a different character, ranging from

DJs A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music festival), mobile D ...

(seasons 1 and 3) to event promoters (season 2). The second season deals with an LGBT relationship between two women.

Cast and characters

Main

* Emily Piggford as Meagan (season 1–3) * Jade Hassouné as Sam (season 2–3) *

Jacob Neayem '' Degrassi: The Next Generation'' is a Canadian teen drama television series created by Linda Schuyler and Yan Moore. The series is now considered the first incarnation and premiered on CTV on October 14, 2001, and then ended on MTV Canada and ...

as Simon (season 1)

Recurring

Kelly McCormack Kelly McCormack is a Canadian actor. She has worked in film, television, and on stage, and she runs her production company, Floyder Films. She is best known for her portraying Zeph in the Syfy science fiction television series ''Killjoys'' and ...

as Dee (season 2–3) * Nico Racicot as Lucas (season 2–3) * Kristian Bruun as Peter (season 2–3) * Dayle McLeod as Hannah (season 2) * Kyle Mac as Kyle (season 1)

Reception

'' NOW Magazine'' called the series "well-produced, well-acted, and well-written". ''

Flare A flare, also sometimes called a fusée, fusee, or bengala in some Latin-speaking countries, is a type of pyrotechnic that produces a bright light or intense heat without an explosion. Flares are used for distress signaling, illumination, o ...

'' dubbed the series a "must-see—even if you're not in the music scene". TalkNerdyWithUs.com described the series as "funny, exciting, inventive, occasionally maddening, always beautiful, and heavily invested in the duality of heartbreak and optimism". ''

Teen Vogue ''Teen Vogue'' is an American online publication, formerly in print, launched in January 2003, as a sister publication to '' Vogue'', targeted at teenagers. Like ''Vogue'', it included stories about fashion and celebrities. Since 2015, following ...

'' praised the series for its portrayal of LGBTQ+ women of colour.

Awards and nominations

The series has won various awards, including the Best Director award at the 2016

for Waterson, as well as Best Canadian Series and Best Director at the 2017 Vancouver Web Series Festival. The series has received two

nominations, for Emily Piggford's performance in 2016, and for Waterson's direction in 2018.

References

External links

* {{IMDb title Canadian drama web series Canadian LGBT-related web series 2010s Canadian LGBT-related drama television series