Furniture family has designs on TV stardom

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This article was published 30/03/2011 (5625 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Sylvia Bock and Leila Bock-Freeman have their designs on a TV career.

The mother and daughter, respectively, have co-managed Blue Moon Furniture on Corydon Avenue — the building known for its massive rooftop sculpture of a globe — for the past five years.

And now the daring duo will be entering the world of entertainment.

It was recently announced that they have formed an agreement with Winnipeg-based Merit Motion Pictures to develop a show based on the struggles and dreams of the women behind the landmark Corydon business.

Though specific production details have yet to be announced, the docu-soap will follow the pair as they strive to grow their business, work together as family and share their passion for design.

“This is just what the market is looking for,” said executive producer and industry veteran Merit Jensen Carr. “The women of Blue Moon are great characters.”

Bock, who lives in the West End, said the idea for the project was hatched at a casual breakfast meeting.

“It was really Merit’s idea,” Bock said. “We got together at the beginning of the year and built it from there. Originally, it was going to be a straight design show, but that didn’t seem that exciting.”

Instead, Bock said the show will reflect the pair’s efforts to expand their furniture empire into the international market.

“We went to a trade show in Las Vegas and Merit sent down a director and a crew and filmed some of our experiences. Basically, it’s following the life and times of Blue Moon, but it’s also about people who create furniture,” Bock said, adding the pair also hope to go with a crew to Asia and Mexico to meet artisans and crafters.

Bock said the show will follow a loose format and focus on three main concepts.

“We hope it will cover the core ideas of making a living, the creation of art and the nourishment of the soul,” she said.

“We hope it will be an informative, engaging and inspriring lifestyle show.”

Bock-Freeman feels intrigued by the docu-soap project and says it might be hard to get used being followed around by a camera crew on a regular basis.

“Ultimately, I’m hoping this experience will show Winnipeg as an interesting design hub in North America. It’s a bit of a push to put Winnipeg on the design map,” Bock-Freeman said.

And if this potential brush with stardom isn’t enough for Bock, she’s praying Blue Moon’s designs will soon make it into the home of a world famous blueblood.

“In Vegas, we met a fellow from a company called Beverly Hills Luxury Interiors. Anyway, we gave him our product list and when we followed up with him, we couldn’t get through,” Bock said.

“His phones had crashed because it had just been announced in People Magazine that he’d been awarded the interior contract for the farmhouse of Prince William and Kate Middleton,” she added.

“I can’t describe how amazing it would be if one of our designs ends up in there. If I haven’t heard in a week or so, I’ll call him.”

simon.fuller@canstarnews.com