NEW SHOW ON CBC.
Photo credit: Ian Routledge. Courtesy of: CBC Gem
The acclaimed Australian tween drama, commissioned by ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation),
will make its Canadian premiere on Wednesday, March 31 on CBC Gem.
(Hannah Bradford, played by Evie Macdonald, is alone in her lunch break. Photo credit: Ian Routledge; Courtesy of: CBC Gem).
“The most inclusive, most authentic kid’s drama since Dance Academy” - David Knox, TV Tonight.
CBC Gem will offer the Canadian premiere of groundbreaking Australian tween drama miniseries FIRST
DAY (4x30’), which will launch on the free streaming service on Wednesday, March 31. Starring
transgender actor Evie Macdonald - the first transgender actor to be cast in the lead role of an
Australian television series - FIRST DAY follows transgender teen Hannah Bradford during her first year
of high school, as she navigates the challenges of starting a new school, forming new friendships and
finding the courage to live as her most authentic self. Commissioned by Australian public broadcaster
ABC in association with Screen Australia, the South Australian Film Corporation and the Australian
Children’s Television Foundation (ACTF), FIRST DAY is written and directed by Julie Kalceff and produced by Epic Films in association with Kojo Entertainment.
Photo credit: Ian Routledge. Courtesy of: CBC Gem
FIRST DAY is a spin-off of a stand-alone episode of the same name commissioned in 2017 as part of the
Girls Film Season, an ABC and Screen Australia initiative to celebrate what it means to be a girl today.
The original First Day won the inaugural prize for Excellence in Kids’ Programming at the 2018 MIPCOM
Diversify TV Excellence Awards and the Gender Equity Prize at the prestigious Prix Jeunesse
International Children's Television Festival in Munich.
Photo credit: Ian Routledge. Courtesy of: CBC Gem
Writer Julie Kalceff says the goal for the series is to increase understanding and acceptance amongst the
target audience and the wider community. In addition to working closely with Macdonald to authentically capture what it's like to be a young girl who happens to be transgender, Kalceff also carefully crafted this dramatized story with input from GLAAD and Parents of Gender Diverse Children, two LGBTQIA2S+ community organizations, into the scripting process to ensure the series was accurately reflecting the lives of trans children and their families. Alongside the show’s premiere in Australia, the Australian Children’s Television Foundation created a Teaching Toolkit to accompany the show.
Photo credit: Ian Routledge. Courtesy of: CBC Gem
CBC Gem is Canada’s streaming service, offering more than 6500 hours of live and on-demand Canadian programming and a curated selection of acclaimed, best-in-class content from around the world, including more than 800 documentaries, 400 hours of ad-free content for kids and tweens, and a
collection of over 150 Canadian feature films. CBC Gem is available free as an app for iOS and Android
devices and online at cbcgem.ca, and on TV screens via Apple TV, Google Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV
and Android TV.
Winston Ma
CBC PR