Archive for January 15th, 2008

Univision will premiere the first ever prime-time Spanish-language animated series on Sunday, Jan .20, with the debut of El Chavo Del 8 (The Kid from #8).

The half hour show, which will premiere with a one-hour episode at 7 p.m. Eastern and Pacific time and 6 p.m. Central time, is an animated version of one of the most popular shows in Mexico in the 1970s. It centers around a young orphan, El Chavo, and other inhabitants of a fictional Mexico City neighborhood.

Univision has described the series as being like Fox’s The Simpson’s and said while it is comedic, it also explores the problems that many homeless children face on a daily basis.

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One of the best parts of the year for television enthusiasts is the announcement of the many pilots given the green light by studios in anticipation of the next television season. Even though not all of the fledgling programs make it to air, the news always makes for good time-wasting as each season is met with not only some decent ideas, but also a slate of what-were-they-thinking? proposals.

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LONDON — Film4, the filmmaking arm of U.K. broadcaster Channel 4, has joined forces with investment house Ingenious and production and distribution banner Vertigo Films to set up a sales company called Protagonist Pictures, the parties said Sunday.

The venture, capitalized fully by its trio of founders…
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This isn’t a good sign at all.Yesterday, four of the major studios - CBS Paramount, 20th Century Fox Television, NBC Universal, and Warner Brothers Television - canceled the contracts of dozens of writers and put an end to over 65 development deals, which basically means that there are no new scripts to choose from to start filming pilots for next fall’s schedule. This will save the production companies millions, since they won’t have to keep paying the writers for the deals.

And that’s not the end of it. One studio exec says that if the strike lasts into February, there will be another round of contract terminations. I think this all means that in September of 2008, we’re all going to be watching American Gladiators: The Apprentice, infomercials, and whatever DVDs we have piled up on our coffee tables.

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NEW YORK - Oprah Winfrey is getting her own TV network.

Discovery Communications and Winfrey announced a deal Tuesday where the Discovery Health network will be turned over to Winfrey next year, becoming OWN — the Oprah Winfrey Network.

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The supercharged star of the new Wachowski brothers movie, “Speed Racer,” is visiting the Motor City.

The Mach 5 race car will be on display at the North American International Auto Show, which opens to the public Saturday and closes Jan. 27. The car will be on view for the first three public days.

Larry and Andy Wachowski’s live-action “Speed Racer” follows the adventures of the young race car driver Speed, played by Emile Hirsch, in his quest for glory.

The movie, which also features Christina Ricci, Matthew Fox, Susan Sarandon and John Goodman, opens May 9. The big-screen version is based on the classic animated series created by Tatsuo Yoshida.
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NEW YORK — Coca-Cola, Ford and AT&T are back again as the three main sponsors of Fox’s megahit “American Idol,” forking over roughly $35 million each for the opportunity to be featured in America’s most watched TV show, as well as air commercials during “Idol,” post online content and run off-air co-branded marketing programs.

The $35 million price tag is up slightly from the estimated $30 million the sponsors spent last season, but the advertisers are likely to get an even better return on their costly investment than they had hoped for. With the writers strike having shut down production on most original scripted programming, “Idol” — which premieres Tuesday night — is expected to be an even bigger ratings juggernaut than ever.

As far as this season’s integrations, Ford, Coca-Cola and AT&T will for the most part be repeating their in-show performances from years past, with a few new revisions in either content or products featured.

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Nike was not featured in the scene. Party On!

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German thesp Til Schweiger has riled parents and the local media by slipping a generous dose of smut, including an explicit sex scene, into his hit laffer “Keinohrhasen.”The heartthrob — who not only produced, directed and stars in the pic, but also wrote the screenplay — was able to get a general admissions rating for it, allowing children of six and above to see the film, despite the salacious dialogue.

Aided by this generous decision delivered by film ratings agency Freiwillige Selbstkontrolle der Filmwirtschaft, the pic has gone on to pull in a muscular 2.7 million admissions in its first three weeks.

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NBC has ordered a pilot for the BBC Worldwide America series Top Gear. Top Gear features super-cars, extreme stunts, time trials and road tests, and assesses the performances of some of the world’s most popular cars. It also features celebrity guests.

“We’ve had our eye on Top Gear for a while now, and think the show can really click with viewers,” said Craig Plestis, executive vp, alternative programming, development and specials, NBC Entertainment. “The concept taps into America’s obsession with cars and is unlike anything else on television.”

Ben Silverman, co-chairman, NBC Entertainment and Universal Media Studios, added, “Top Dear is a proven international hit which fits perfectly into NBC’s lineup of programming with male appeal, including Sunday Night Football and American Gladiators.”

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