Arrow and Cantina go behind the scenes at Toronto airport for Nat Geo, Corus

Toronto Airport Uncovered explores Toronto Pearson International

National Geographic and Corus Entertainment have commissioned a 10×60’ factual series going inside one of North America’s busiest airports, Toronto Pearson International.

Produced by UK-based Arrow Media and Cantina Media, which sits inside Toronto-based Serial Maven Studios, Toronto Airport Uncovered is structured as a UK/Canada treaty coproduction.

The project was commissioned by National Geographic in the US and Europe, Middle East and Africa and Corus Entertainment in Canada, with SBS in Australia boarding as a pre-sale partner.

Serial Maven Studios, which is led by CEO Solange Attwood, is handling all international licensing and distribution for the show.

This marks the first time that Toronto Pearson International Airport has granted a documentary unit full access to film its 24/7 operation, according to the team behind the series.

“Shot across two seasons, the production captures rare access to over 30 operational zones, including airside coordination, emergency response teams, command centres, winter operations, security intelligence and the complex logistics that support tens of millions of passengers each year,” reads the logline for the series.

The executive producers are Michael Kot and Betty Orr for Cantina Media and Tom Brisley for Arrow Media, with Nick Metcalfe serving as showrunner. For National Geographic, the project is overseen by commissioning executive producer Sarah Peat. For Corus Entertainment, Lynne Carter is the director of original programming and Rachel Nelson is VP of original programming and head of Corus Studios.

Toronto Airport Uncovered illustrates today’s challenging unscripted content climate, where larger-scale projects often require multiple partners and innovative financing models to come to fruition.

Arrow Media CEO Brisley said the show is a “brilliant example of how our industry can come together to deliver big, bold storytelling,” while Cantina Media president Michael Kot called it an “unscripted look at a place the public rarely gets to see.”

Serial Maven’s Attwood added: “Our partnership with Arrow Media taps into the best of UK/Canada treaty coproduction and reflects our commitment to delivering premium, high-access series for major international buyers.”