Televisual articles from December 2004

Televisual archives from December 2004

China opens up to joint ventures with UK production outfits.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... China has relaxed rules blocking foreign media firms from investing in Chinese television companies, leaving the way clear for UK producers to gain a foothold in the rapidly growing market. Under the new rules, UK independents could form...

BDA brings Bob English back home to Britain.(BDA Holdings PLC)(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Creative agency BDA has hired leading broadcast designer Bob English as its design creative director. English returns to the UK in January after spending the past seven years in New York, where he worked most recently with his own agency...

D&AD awards.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... D&AD is to launch a new category for its awards, with pencils for creative excellence in interactive television. Sky Interactive is backing the award, which divides into three sub-categories: interactive advertising, enhanced television and...

New home.(Shynola)(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Directing collective Shynola has left its Oil Factory representation for a new home at RSA (and Black Dog for promo work). Best known for promos for QOTSA and others, they will use the move to concentrate more on commercials work. Shynola is...

ITN 3G services.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... ITN is expanding its multi-media operations with the launch of 3G services for Vodafone Live, one of which is an "enhanced" updating news bulletin service which builds on its 2.5G offering with high-quality news pictures. ITN's move comes...

BBC names regional fund winners.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... The first independents to benefit from a BBC Entertainment regional production fund have been named by the corporation. Plymouth's Twofour Productions (City Gardener, Accidents Can Happen), Multi Media Arts from Manchester (Reality Bites,...

C4 chosen are floating on Air.(Channel 4 Television Co.)(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Channel 4's Animators in Residence (Air) scheme has picked this year's winners. Each gets three months at the National Museum of Film, Photography and TV in Bradford to develop an original short to pitch to C4. The animators are Grigoris...

Film and TV training courses.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Media Training North West is making a last-ditch attempt to encourage the local film and TV community to enrol on training courses, claiming it could fund up to 80% of the overall cost. The initiative is below spend this year and needs to...

Clerkenwell finds life after Nesbitt with ITV drama.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Clerkenwell Films, co-owned by Rebus actor John Hannah and producer Murray Ferguson, has picked up a new series order from ITV drama team Nick Elliott and Jenny Reeks. It follows the success of the company's ITV1 adaptation of the...

CNX picks HD to shoot for "the UK's richest man".(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... CNX claims two firsts for its film to mark a name-change for Lakshmi Mittal's company from L&M to Mittal Steel: it is the first corporate video ever commissioned by what The Independent has dubbbed "the richest man in the UK," and the first...

Juniper TV wins tender.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Indie Juniper TV won a three-way tender to produce the BBC London Sunday afternoon Politics Show, fronted by Tim Donovan, from next month. Ex-BBC and now Juniper TV md Samir Shah plans to make "insightful, energetic programmes that reflect...

Commercial for Raid disinfectant.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Uli Meyer Animation is in production with a second commercial for Raid disinfectant through FCB Chicago. The live-action and animation mix was directed by Uli Meyer and produced by Matt Saxton. Uli Meyer also designed the traditionally...

Spot for Wella Balsam.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... A lot of heavy weather had to be made for this new spot for Wella Balsam hair protection. All Films' Michael Abel directed the ad (ordered through Leo Burnett) that shows hair condition up against the elements. Rushes was brought in to create...

Denham discovers Eden for BBC2.(Denham Productions)(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Denham Productions has picked up two hour-long specials for BBC2 based around Cornwall's Eden Project. The two shows will be the first produced out of Denham's Cornwall office which opened in October; the company's HQ is in Plymouth. ...

History Channel new look.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Lambie Nairn has put together the on- and off-air identity package for international affiliates of the History Channel. The new look reflects the channel's greater emphasis on contemporary history, current events and technology. The package...

Initial bags Band Aid package.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... The Endemol-owned independent Initial has bagged the contract to produce both the music promo for the new Band Aid Do They Know It's Christmas? single as well as a one-hour documentary on the making of the record for a BBC1 transmission. ...

BBC into production on 30s pub-life three-parter.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Production has begun on a BBC in-house adaptation of novelist Patrick Hamilton's trilogy 20 Thousand Streets Under the Sky. Bryan Dick (Blackpool), Zoe Tapper (Stage Beauty) and Sally Hawkins (Layer Cake) star in the 3x60-minute series...

Hampton Court interactive.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Interpretations has produced a second eight-minute reconstruction fly- through of Hampton Court Palace complete with interactive touch-screen. Some of the information for the recon was taken from pictures and archaeological surveys. Actors...

Documentary on prehistoric people.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... National Geographic Film and Television is to make a documentary on the recently-discovered tiny prehistoric people found on the Indonesian island of Flores. Hobbits (working title) will use cg to take viewers back 800k years to show the lives...

RDF commissions.(RDF Productions)(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... RDF is to look at childhood obesity for Channel 4 and is making a new dating show for BBC1. Fat Kids are two 60-minute programmes that follow five children as they try to lose weight; they were ordered by Danny Cohen. The producer on the...

Meerkat soap opera.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Oxford Scientific Films has begun filming on Meerkat Manor, a 13x 30- minute series for Animal Planet International. The show is a "soap opera" following the lives of creatures in the Kalahari Desert. Executive producers are Caroline Hawkins...

Pioneer Productions commissions.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Pioneer Productions is to make HD shows for two US broadcasters, its first commissions for the channels. The History Channel's Amazon Adventures is a two-hour special using archive, reconstruction and new location footage. Producer is...

Flame TV order.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Flame TV has picked up an order from Five's head of science Justine Kershaw that challenges celebrities to show off their parenting skills. Don't Drop the Baby has celebs like Five's Justin Ryan and Colin McAllister and Caprice looking after...

Tiger Aspect commissions.(Tiger Aspect Productions)(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Tiger Aspect has picked up two new series commissions for MTV US's Sunday Stew block of programming. Damage Control is an 8x30-minute reality show ordered by Tony DiSanto through MTV NY that finds out how well parents know their kids. The...

idents for betfairpoker.com.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Th1ng's Gemma Carrington has created four sponsorship idents for betfairpoker.com through Big Al's Creative Emporium to go out on the Racing UK channel. Using the betfair colours and diagrammatic graphics, Carrington created 70s "how to"-...

Tenders wanted for PSP.(public service publisher)(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... A new public service publisher (PSP) could be broadcasting by 2008, says a new Ofcom document. Ofcom has asked companies to make "hypothetical" tenders to run the PSP that will feed in to discussions on the shape it will take. Ofcom...

BBC indie quota goes interactive.
December 6, 2004... The BBC is to institute a 25% independent quota for its web content by 2006. The move will see many of the corporation's in-house produced sites shut down, with about #5m a year freed up to pump into the indie sector. The move is a...

Dramatic moves.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... The game of musical chairs played out by BBC and Channel 4 drama commissioners may have come to an end with Tessa Ross taking back her old job as C4 head of drama after two years as head of film. Ross replaces John Yorke who, together with...

UKTV ups cash.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... UKTV is upping its original commissions by 100 hours next year with a similar rise expected for 2006. All UKTV channels will benefit from the rise, though the biggest focus will be on UKTV Style where top-end show budgets could double to...

For the town that has everything.
December 6, 2004... Adrian Swift, the head of Enteraction TV's creative team who oversees London TV, explains why TV is the best marketing tool for the capital It's one of the greatest brands in the world. With 1000 years of "brand equity," everyone from...

Indies look long-term.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... BBC Worldwide has struck a three-year deal with Endemol UK to distribute finished programmes, clip-sales and video-on-demand rights for new and future BBC commissions. The agreement, which includes shows Ready Steady Cook, Changing Rooms...

Creature Comforts turn Japanese.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Aardman's award-winning Creature Comforts series is to reach Japanese shores in 2005 in a deal with local producer and distributor Gaga Communications. Granada International sold all 26x10-minute episodes, the five-minute special and...

Sherlock roams.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... All3Media has acquired the new BBC Drama, The Strange Case of Sherlock Holmes and Arthur Conan Doyle. Written by David Pirie, the 90-minute production explores Doyle's life as he created the classic detective. Copyright: Centaur...

Footballers' Wives on tour.(Target Entertainment)(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Target Entertainment has scored further sales of Shed Productions' hit, Footballers' Wives. French terrestrial M6 picked up series 1 and 2, while Italian producer Einstein Fiction bought the format for a four- episode series on Canal 5. ...

Apprentice ships.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... FremantleMedia has notched up more format sales of hit US reality show The Apprentice, bringing the countries commissioning it to 14. Finnish Fremantle Entertainment Oy will produce the show for broadcaster MTV3. The UK version will...

What works for C4 International.
December 6, 2004... Christina Willoughby, head of international sales and co-pro at C4, sets out her shopping-list What type of monies can you put into a production? We can tap into our development fund or our deficit "pot" and use our international...

Row over BBC's move north.
December 6, 2004... Even before the BBC has announced any decision on which, if any, of its channels and departments it's planning to move to Manchester, there are mutterings of foul-play from independents already based in the city. Because, they say, the...

MONTH IN REVIEW.
December 6, 2004... As secretary of state for culture, media and sport, Tessa Jowell must get a lot of mail. But it's doubtful she - or her army of secretarial staff tasked with opening the post - would have been expecting a bolshie letter from Mersey TV's...

Letter: Cartoon networking.(Letter to the Editor)
December 6, 2004... Thank you so much for giving our Cartoon Network Sports Odyssey a mention in the Promax Storyboard section of your November issue. We were thrilled to be included. The thing is, though, that the credit for writing, producing and directing...

Letter: Independent name-check.(Letter to the Editor)
December 6, 2004... The details for Independent Films in Televisual's November issue were incorrect, and should have read: 7a Langley Street, London WC2H 9JA, 020 7845 7474, independ.net mds Jani Guest, Richard Packer directors Douglas Avery, Jeffery...

Letter: Working time opt-in.(Letter to the Editor)
December 6, 2004... I would disagree with UK Post's new chief executive that post- production is a special case - where "flexibility is fundamental" when it comes to requiring staff to work more than 48 hours a week. Why should it be any more fundamental in...

OPINION: Who will fund TV's future?(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... UK broadcast independents spent #31.5m on training staff in 2003, according to a report commissioned by Pact and the independent production training fund (IPTF). It's an impressive total - 3.5% of an annual combined turnover put at #900m...

INTERVIEW - HEATHER RABBATTS: Learning 4 life.(Interview)
December 6, 2004... 4Learning covers a lot more ground than just schools shows, commissioning programming across the schedule and across the genres. Jon Creamer meets its md Heather Rabbatts It's been a curious route into telly for 4Learning boss Heather...

IN PRODUCTION - CASANOVA: The great pretender.
December 6, 2004... A romantic entrepreneur who truly understood women. That's how Russell T Davies hopes Casanova will be perceived in a new drama from Red Productions and Granada for BBC3 which mixes punk with period The word bollocks seems an unlikely...

LICENSING BUSINESS: Out of the box.
December 6, 2004... Jon Creamer sees the show, buys the T-Shirt - and the DVD, the book, the game, the cuddly toy... Licensing has been a part of the TV producer's world for a long while, especially if that producer has any connection to kids' TV. But every...

MUSIC VISUALS: Sounds like visuals.
December 6, 2004... The music industry is no longer just about audio. Visuals are as much a part of a band's appeal as the sounds they make. Simon Meek looks at the potential beyond the pop promo A group of 20-somethings, wearing faded blue demin and...

DVD DESIGN: Menus a la carte.
December 6, 2004... Televisual's pick of DVD design, where form and function merge The DVD is on a roll: a neat package of prime content laced with extras, at high quality, and all tied up in interesting string. Unravelling the string gets you to the content,...

DVD DESIGN.(Directory)
December 6, 2004... Over 70 companies around the UK that offer DVD design services as well as authoring and encoding; where provided, we also give details of the types of work they specialise in, along with some recent DVD credits LONDON 10th Planet W1...

Film interest in PS2 controller.(In2Games' Gametrak, a controller that works in 3D space )(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... A new gaming device for the PS2 is causing a stir among production houses as a cost-effective way to monitor camera movements on set. The #70 Gametrak (comes with a game) is designed by In2Games as a controller that works in 3D space -...

UK Showcase a hit with sponsors.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Facilities and studios attending last month's UK Showcase in LA have declared the event a success after many left with new prospects of overseas work. The event, intended to show the US market the quality of work that is being done in...

HDV camcorder.(Sony unveils 1080i )(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Sony has unveiled its 1080i professional HDV camcorder, building on the features of the consumer model, the HDR-FX1 HDV, which is just shipping. The HDR-Z1U records HDV, DVCam and DV with scan and frame- rates including 60i, 50i, and 30, 25 or...

Ex-Hive staff join forces with M2.(M2 Television)(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... A breakaway group of senior animators from VTR Media Services have set- up on their own, funded by M2 Television co-owner, John Tadros. VTR's The Hive lost its lead animator, Nathan Laud, and two other 3D artists in a walkout last month....

BBC invoicing charge rejected by facilities body.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Facilities body UK Post is locked in discussions with the BBC over the roll-out of a new invoicing system that would cost its members #500 a year to implement. The move comes after a number of post-houses received confusing letters from...

UK's first digital screening theatre.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Ascent Media has installed the UK's first digital screening theatre, capable of digital on-screen grading in 2k. The suite is based at Soho Images film laboratory, W1. Da Vinci colour-correction panels in the theatre remotely control a...

Studio moves.(Pinewood Studios appoints Ian Osborne)(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Pinewood Studios has appointed Ian Osborne as its new head of television. Previously Osborne was head of studios at Anglia TV and senior facility manager at Teddington Studios. Pat Gale has left Oasis to join The Television Set Group as...

Video Europe sells studio arm.(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Video Europe is moving out of the studio business and is channelling cash into broadcast equipment hire. Managing director Steve Green decided to move out of studios after being offered #5m from Barclay Homes for the freehold to London...

BBC promo takes slices of light.(BBC Broadcast Ltd. used Time-Slice to capture individual trails of light in a promo)(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... BBC Broadcast used Time-Slice to capture individual trails of light in a promo for BBC4's Light Fantastic airing this month. The facility used a 12-camera rig to capture trails of light, generated by strapping light-sources - bulbs,...

Machine Room facility.(Television production company has spent #200k expanding its digital restoration services)(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... The Machine Room has spent #200k expanding its digital restoration services. The facility - part of VTR Media Services - has bought an MTI system which allows non-linear dirt-and-scratch-removal, noise- reduction and image-stabilisation. The...

Ascent looks for tie-ups.(Ascent Media Group Inc.)(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Group md Brenda Smith - formerly md of Granada Television - says the creative services side of the Ascent is looking to make alliances with regional post-houses, particularly those in Newcastle, Manchester and Liverpool. She says:...

Thomson buys UK broadcast facility.(Corinthian Television Facilities)(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Corinthian Television Facilities has been bought by Thomson as part of the company's expansion into content management and distribution services. The London-based broadcast facility has live studios, graphics, video, audio production,...

Next generation DVDs opt for DTS.(DTS Entertainment)(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... DTS has been made the mandatory audio format for the next generation DVD formats. DTS encoders will be built-in, as standard, to every HD-DVD or Blu-ray disc player. The firm's new lossless format, DTS-HD, is the only technology of this...

Profits fall for manufacturers.(broadcasting equipment industry)(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Two-thirds of broadcast equipment manufacturers have suffered a fall in profits over the past year, according to the latest Plimsoll market report The survey also found a third (34%) of manufacturers are entering 2005 in an "uncertain"...

P2 format sales.(Cox Television awards sales contract to Panasonic )(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Panasonic has scored a hit in the battle for tapeless acquisition. America's Cox Television is converting the news operations of its 15 stations to DVCPro P2 recording system. Copyright: Centaur Communications Ltd. and licensors

I'm a camerman, get me out of here.
December 6, 2004... Quality has suffered at the hands of "multi-skilling" and cheap TV, says Brian Rose, standards officer at the Guild of Television Cameramen Time was, when you declared yourself a television camerman, people would come up to you and...

D'ARTAGNAN: Watch the birdie.(hawk was brought to life feather by feather by Vania Alban-Zapata)
December 6, 2004... Creo Collective was tasked with creating a photorealistic hawk for a French production of D'Artagnan. Simon Meek finds out how the bird was brought to life feather by feather Vania Alban-Zapata has spent weeks studying birds. He has...

IN MY VIEW: What's on at 2am?(2am New Media Design)
December 6, 2004... As a mother and md of the commercials outfit 2AM Film, Amanda Martin's top TV viewing is led by great American drama series and great ads, but circumscribed by homework and a hatred of soaps How much TV do you watch? An hour and a...

Company robs Kudos in run-up to comic Christmas.(UK television comodies viewer statistics)(Brief Article)
December 6, 2004... Company celebrated after notching up 7.7m viewers, a 31.6% share, for its ITV1 Newcastle-based police drama Lawless on 8 November, taking 1m viewers away from Kudos's Spooks on BBC1. Elsewhere, comedy shows are brightening viewers' long,...