Unscripted Showrunner (Short-Form Pilot Series)

darkslope; Toronto; On-site; CAD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Dark Slope is seeking an experienced Unscripted Showrunner to oversee the creative and production execution of a slate of short-form unscripted pilot projects. This is a hands-on contract role requiring someone who can efficiently guide multiple concepts from development through production and post-production while maintaining strong editorial standards, schedule discipline, and budget awareness.

Like traditional productions, these pilots will be produced in a controlled studio environment,

Qualifications

• Significant experience as a Showrunner or senior producer in unscripted television or digital content.
• Demonstrated success delivering factual, documentary, lifestyle or entertainment programming.
• Strong editorial judgment and storytelling ability.
• Experience producing studio-based programming with directors and post teams.
• Familiarity with virtual production, LED volumes, and AI-assisted tools.

Responsibilities

• Lead creative vision and editorial direction for multiple short-form pilots.
• Refine concepts, formats, and episode outlines.
• Develop production approaches for LED virtual production stages.
• Collaborate with directors, virtual production teams, and tech staff to integrate visuals and AI elements.
• Prepare productions for studio execution, including scripting and planning.
• Oversee studio production and post-production to meet creative objectives and budgets.
• Provide editorial feedback and approve cuts through final delivery.
• Maintain schedules and milestones across pilots.
• Collaborate with executives on strategy and audience positioning.

Skills

Showrunner

Executive Producer

Editorial judgment

Studio production

LED virtual production

AI-assisted workflows

Virtual production workflows

Multi-project management

Streaming & digital audiences

Tools

LED volumes

AI-assisted assets

Job description

Unscripted Showrunner (Short-Form Pilot Series)

3 Month Contract

• Location: Primarily based in our Scarborough, Ontario studio with hybrid planning meetings as required
• Flexible engagement based on production schedule
• Competitive contract fee commensurate with experience

The Role

We are seeking an experienced Unscripted Showrunner to oversee the creative and production execution of a slate of innovative short-form unscripted pilot projects. This is a hands-on contract role requiring someone who can efficiently guide multiple concepts from development through production and post-production while maintaining strong editorial standards, schedule discipline, and budget awareness. Unlike traditional unscripted productions, these pilots will be produced entirely within a controlled studio environment, leveraging our LED virtual production volume alongside archival footage and AI-generated visual assets to create compelling, visually distinctive programming. The successful candidate will work closely with the executive team, producers, directors, and post-production teams to shape commercially viable formats with strong audience appeal.

Responsibilities

• Lead the creative vision and editorial direction of multiple short-form unscripted pilots.
• Refine concepts, formats, story structure, scripts, and episode outlines.
• Develop production approaches that maximize the creative potential of an LED virtual production stage.
• Collaborate with directors, virtual production supervisors, designers, and technical teams to integrate virtual environments, archival content, graphics, and AI-generated visual elements into each production.
• Prepare productions for efficient studio execution, including scripting, talent preparation, and production planning.
• Oversee studio production, ensuring each pilot achieves its creative objectives while making effective use of virtual production technologies.
• Supervise post-production, including editorial, graphics, music, visual treatments, and final story shaping.
• Provide clear editorial feedback and approve cuts through to final delivery.
• Maintain schedules and production milestones across multiple pilots.
• Collaborate with executive producers on creative strategy, audience positioning, and platform requirements.
• Help identify opportunities to evolve successful pilots into scalable series.

Essential Experience/Qualifications

• Significant experience as a Showrunner, Executive Producer, or Senior Series Producer in unscripted television or premium digital content.
• Demonstrated success delivering factual, documentary, lifestyle, reality, competition, entertainment, or factual entertainment programming.
• Exceptional storytelling and editorial judgment.
• Experience producing studio-based programming and working closely with directors, post-production teams, and technical crews.
• Strong understanding of visual storytelling using archival media, graphics, and emerging AI-assisted creative tools.
• Familiarity with virtual production workflows, LED volumes, or technologically innovative production techniques is highly desirable.
• Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously while working within compressed schedules and budgets.
• Strong understanding of contemporary streaming and digital audiences.
• Legal authorization to work in Canada and located in Ontario

Useful Skills & Experience

• Curious and forward-thinking, with an enthusiasm for emerging production technologies.
• Collaborative leadership style with the ability to bring together creative and technical teams.
• Comfortable balancing editorial ambition with practical production realities.
• Passion for developing original formats with franchise potential.
• Interest in exploring new storytelling techniques through virtual production and AI-assisted workflows.

Deliverables

The successful candidate will oversee the successful completion of a series of short-form unscripted pilots, ensuring each project is delivered to a high creative and technical standard, on schedule and within budget, while positioning the strongest concepts for future commissioning.

Company Description

Dark Slope’s accomplished team of trailblazers use advanced spatial and virtual production technologies to bring quality television and unforgettable immersive experiences to life for clients and partners including Marblemedia, Aircraft, Insight Productions, Nickelodeon International, Dave & Busters, Hasbro, Epic Games, NBC Peacock, Wildbrain, TVOntario, WarnerMedia and more. Dark Slope is recognized as a Realscreen Trailblazer for their impact on the scripted and unscripted industries (2023), and as a North America Deloitte Technology Fast 500™ (2022) and Canadian Deloitte Technology Fast 50™ (2022).

What We Offer

Appetite for adventure? Bored of bureaucracy? Rearing for responsibility?

If this speaks to you, Dark Slope is the place for you. We offer the opportunity to work on incredible projects with great people, break out of corporate bureaucracy and take on leadership opportunities. Our employees have a voice in our work to revolutionize the workplace and consumer entertainment with spatial technologies.

Where We Work

We work together in a 75,000 sq. ft studio in Scarborough, home to our virtual production facilities. We are located just minutes away from Eglinton and Pharmacy avenue and easily accessible by public transportation.

Core Values

Our core values support teamwork and transparency that allow us to create more together than we could alone. Through ongoing learning and self managing initiative we seek to improve our skill sets, find better ways of working and ultimately deliver creative experiences that make our customers say ‘wow’!

• Find Learning
• Design for Wow
• Work for Teamwork
• Take Initiative
• Interact with Transparency

We are an employer who values diversity and inclusion. We welcome different perspectives that come from lived experiences. Interacting with transparency is important to us in every aspect of our work. We strive for an open, honest, and effective workplace because trust is the foundation of our company. We are open to thinking differently, accommodating your needs to succeed, and straying from the conventional.