AI might be here, but it’s not about to develop the next big TV hit.
That was the message from UK industry execs during a panel on original IP in social video held at the TellyCast Digital Content Forum in London yesterday.
“When the AI conversation was first happening in our office, our development team spent weeks playing and plugging in various [AI tools],” said John Farrar, Chief Creative Officer at The Playboy Bunny Murders co-producer Future Studios.
“Lots of the ideas were on the surface interesting but in the end it naturally just wittered out. It just wasn’t there yet and it didn’t feel to us like AI is going to solve the problem of cracking the next big format. That’s still on us as humans. That may change but the ideas [it developed for us] felt derivative.”
“A Drake record wouldn’t be a Drake record if he hadn’t recorded it,...
That was the message from UK industry execs during a panel on original IP in social video held at the TellyCast Digital Content Forum in London yesterday.
“When the AI conversation was first happening in our office, our development team spent weeks playing and plugging in various [AI tools],” said John Farrar, Chief Creative Officer at The Playboy Bunny Murders co-producer Future Studios.
“Lots of the ideas were on the surface interesting but in the end it naturally just wittered out. It just wasn’t there yet and it didn’t feel to us like AI is going to solve the problem of cracking the next big format. That’s still on us as humans. That may change but the ideas [it developed for us] felt derivative.”
“A Drake record wouldn’t be a Drake record if he hadn’t recorded it,...
- 11/10/2023
- by Jesse Whittock
- Deadline Film + TV
Welcome to Deadline’s The Hot Ones, our guide to some of the best television being sold at Mipcom next week. Our editorial team has done extensive research in the run-up to the 2023 market and handpicked what we think are sure to be the shows that will be big talking points at this year’s event in Cannes. In between meetings and cocktail parties, you’re sure to hear whispers about the next potential global hit and The Hot Ones is here to guide you. Here’s three top docs headed for the Croisette.
The Playboy Bunny Murders
Distributor: Blue Ant International
Length: 2×60’
Producers: Soho Studios, Future Studios
The Playboy Bunny Murders is a story so pressing that its presenter Marcel Theroux was “going to do it whether there was a TV commission or not,” says executive producer John Farrar of the Itvx two-parter.
Theroux, older brother of recent MacTaggart lecture giver Louis Theroux,...
The Playboy Bunny Murders
Distributor: Blue Ant International
Length: 2×60’
Producers: Soho Studios, Future Studios
The Playboy Bunny Murders is a story so pressing that its presenter Marcel Theroux was “going to do it whether there was a TV commission or not,” says executive producer John Farrar of the Itvx two-parter.
Theroux, older brother of recent MacTaggart lecture giver Louis Theroux,...
- 10/12/2023
- by The Deadline Team
- Deadline Film + TV
Marcel Theroux To Investigate Playboy Bunny Murders
Louis Theroux’s brother Marcel Theroux is to investigate the playboy bunny murders for Itvx. In The Playboy Bunny Murders, the novelist will examine the brutal murders that shocked London in the 1970s, when Eve Stratford, a Playboy Bunny who aspired to be a famous model, Lynda Farrow, a croupier with years of experience working in nighttime London, and Lynne Weedon, a schoolgirl whose whole life lay ahead of her, were all murdered. Itvx has gained exclusive access to friends, colleagues and relatives of the victims and will provide intimate insight, as Theroux attempts to track down police files, examines new breakthroughs and travels across the world in search of answers. Soho Studios and Future Studios are producing the two-parter for the ITV streaming service. Theroux said the story has “obsessed him for years.” Executive producers are Ian Lamarra for Soho Studios and John Farrar for Future Studios.
Louis Theroux’s brother Marcel Theroux is to investigate the playboy bunny murders for Itvx. In The Playboy Bunny Murders, the novelist will examine the brutal murders that shocked London in the 1970s, when Eve Stratford, a Playboy Bunny who aspired to be a famous model, Lynda Farrow, a croupier with years of experience working in nighttime London, and Lynne Weedon, a schoolgirl whose whole life lay ahead of her, were all murdered. Itvx has gained exclusive access to friends, colleagues and relatives of the victims and will provide intimate insight, as Theroux attempts to track down police files, examines new breakthroughs and travels across the world in search of answers. Soho Studios and Future Studios are producing the two-parter for the ITV streaming service. Theroux said the story has “obsessed him for years.” Executive producers are Ian Lamarra for Soho Studios and John Farrar for Future Studios.
- 5/25/2023
- by Max Goldbart and Jesse Whittock
- Deadline Film + TV
Restructuring
Multinational cinema operator Cineworld‘s proposed restructuring now has the backing of most of its lenders, the company said on Thursday.
The restructuring, which was announced in April, “now has the support of lenders holding and controlling approximately 99% of the legacy facilities and at least 69% of the outstanding indebtedness under the debtor-in-possession facility of Cineworld and certain of its subsidiaries,” the group said in a statement.
Cineworld Group and its subsidiaries had commenced Chapter 11 cases in the United States Bankruptcy Court in September 2022. The group now expects to emerge from the Chapter 11 cases in July and will continue to operate its cinemas as usual without interruption, it said.
The lenders have also agreed to amended and restated versions of the restructuring support agreement and the backstop commitment agreement, which were filed with the United States Bankruptcy Court.
Cineworld owns the Regal cinema chain and is the second largest movie theater operator in the world.
Multinational cinema operator Cineworld‘s proposed restructuring now has the backing of most of its lenders, the company said on Thursday.
The restructuring, which was announced in April, “now has the support of lenders holding and controlling approximately 99% of the legacy facilities and at least 69% of the outstanding indebtedness under the debtor-in-possession facility of Cineworld and certain of its subsidiaries,” the group said in a statement.
Cineworld Group and its subsidiaries had commenced Chapter 11 cases in the United States Bankruptcy Court in September 2022. The group now expects to emerge from the Chapter 11 cases in July and will continue to operate its cinemas as usual without interruption, it said.
The lenders have also agreed to amended and restated versions of the restructuring support agreement and the backstop commitment agreement, which were filed with the United States Bankruptcy Court.
Cineworld owns the Regal cinema chain and is the second largest movie theater operator in the world.
- 5/25/2023
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
When John Farrar turned up to a movie set at dawn clutching a demo of his hastily written “emergency song”, he didn’t have high hopes. The call had only come in the previous day, crying out for a last-minute number to plug a hole in the musical score for when the greaser with heart gets the good girl turned bad. Farrar hadn’t exactly been inspired in scratching it together – “desperate is probably the word”, he says. The director took one listen and hated it, but the last-day-of-school shot was already set up and they were all out of options. A choreographer threw together a dance routine on the spot. The scene went in the can inside seven hours, and so wrapped this hokey teen musical presumably bound for oblivion.
Or not. The movie was the 1978 musical smash Grease. The track, “You’re the One That I Want”. A...
Or not. The movie was the 1978 musical smash Grease. The track, “You’re the One That I Want”. A...
- 4/13/2023
- by Mark Beaumont
- The Independent - Film
When John Farrar turned up to a movie set at dawn clutching a demo of his hastily written “emergency song”, he didn’t have high hopes. The call had only come in the previous day, crying out for a last-minute number to plug a hole in the musical score for when the greaser with heart gets the good girl turned bad. Farrar hadn’t exactly been inspired in scratching it together – “desperate is probably the word”, he says. The director took one listen and hated it, but the last-day-of-school shot was already set up and they were all out of options. A choreographer threw together a dance routine on the spot. The scene went in the can inside seven hours, and so wrapped this hokey teen musical presumably bound for oblivion.
Or not. The movie was the 1978 musical smash Grease. The track, “You’re the One That I Want”. A...
Or not. The movie was the 1978 musical smash Grease. The track, “You’re the One That I Want”. A...
- 4/13/2023
- by Mark Beaumont
- The Independent - Music
The original "Grease" stage musical first debuted at the Kingston Mines night club in Chicago in 1971. The book was by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey, who also wrote the music and lyrics with John Farrar. Set in the 1950s, "Grease" was a winking, somewhat bawdy anti-nostalgia piece about high school greasers and car nuts falling in love after a significant summer vacation. It banked on the images of squeaky-clean 1950s teeny-bopper movies, but inserted sexuality, a teen pregnancy, gang violence, and themes of class. The main characters were Danny the greaser and Sandy the square. They had a romantic fling in the summer, but may be too embarrassed to date one another during the school year. Their relationship is reconciled when Sandy adopts the clothes and mannerisms of the greasers. "Grease" moved to Broadway in 1972 and played all the way through 1980, making it the longest-running Broadway show at the time.
- 3/12/2023
- by Witney Seibold
- Slash Film
Exclusive: YouTuber and Strictly Come Dancing finalist Joe Sugg is among the talent signed up to appear at the TellyCast Digital Content Forum in London later this month.
Online UK star Sugg recently launched Final Straw Productions and has branched out into acting, after finding fame online, where his YouTube channels have nearly 13 million subscribers. He appeared in the 2018 season of BBC One’s Saturday night show Strictly and is headed to the UK event, which takes place on November 30.
He’ll be appearing alongside execs from Meta, Snap, Channel 4, Itvx and BBC Studios, plus new UTA Emea brand clients exec Samantha Glynne, whose move from Fremantle Deadline recently revealed, and the manager of social media stars The Sidemen at the event, which takes place at BFI Southbank, home of the London Film Festival. The conference focuses on digital-first content and is being held for the first time by...
Online UK star Sugg recently launched Final Straw Productions and has branched out into acting, after finding fame online, where his YouTube channels have nearly 13 million subscribers. He appeared in the 2018 season of BBC One’s Saturday night show Strictly and is headed to the UK event, which takes place on November 30.
He’ll be appearing alongside execs from Meta, Snap, Channel 4, Itvx and BBC Studios, plus new UTA Emea brand clients exec Samantha Glynne, whose move from Fremantle Deadline recently revealed, and the manager of social media stars The Sidemen at the event, which takes place at BFI Southbank, home of the London Film Festival. The conference focuses on digital-first content and is being held for the first time by...
- 11/14/2022
- by Jesse Whittock
- Deadline Film + TV
In 1990, years after Grease, “Physical,” and Xanadu, Olivia Newton-John made her TV movie debut as a department store mannequin brought to life — and no, this probably wasn’t the living-mannequin story you’re thinking of right now. Unpacking the masterpiece that is A Mom for Christmas might take some time, so you might want to sit down.
Live mannequins had appeared in TV and film long before 1990. Some were utterly confused and looking for a thimble (Anne Francis in a 1960 episode of The Twilight Zone), some were inhabited by ancient...
Live mannequins had appeared in TV and film long before 1990. Some were utterly confused and looking for a thimble (Anne Francis in a 1960 episode of The Twilight Zone), some were inhabited by ancient...
- 8/9/2022
- by Angie Martoccio
- Rollingstone.com
Farewell, Olivia Newton-John, the eternally beloved pop queen who died Monday at age 73. No Seventies star had a weirder pop trajectory, going from the world’s favorite Australian country singer to a brazen Eighties black-leather New Wave diva in just a few years. But Olivia could do it all: weepy ballads like “I Honestly Love You,” country twang like “Let Me Be There,” Fifties pastiche in Grease. Disco show tunes with Gene Kelly and Elo in Xanadu. Heavy-breathing rock odes to sex like “Magic” and “Make a Move On Me.
- 8/9/2022
- by Rob Sheffield
- Rollingstone.com
Click here to read the full article.
If you were raised in a house tuned to Am radio in the 1970s and early ‘80s, chances are that the crystalline vocals of Olivia Newton-John, who died Monday at age 73 at her Southern California ranch, were a big part of your childhood soundtrack.
This was especially true if you grew up in Australia, where we eagerly claimed her as our own, even if Onj was born in Britain and moved with her family to Melbourne when she was 5. I just have to think about her 1971 breakthrough hit, a wistful, soft-rock country love song by Bob Dylan called “If Not for You,” to start it playing in my head on a loop for days. “Let Me Be There,” from the same debut solo album has a similar lasting hold over me, as does “Banks of the Ohio,” a 19th-century down-home murder ballad rendered with sweet,...
If you were raised in a house tuned to Am radio in the 1970s and early ‘80s, chances are that the crystalline vocals of Olivia Newton-John, who died Monday at age 73 at her Southern California ranch, were a big part of your childhood soundtrack.
This was especially true if you grew up in Australia, where we eagerly claimed her as our own, even if Onj was born in Britain and moved with her family to Melbourne when she was 5. I just have to think about her 1971 breakthrough hit, a wistful, soft-rock country love song by Bob Dylan called “If Not for You,” to start it playing in my head on a loop for days. “Let Me Be There,” from the same debut solo album has a similar lasting hold over me, as does “Banks of the Ohio,” a 19th-century down-home murder ballad rendered with sweet,...
- 8/9/2022
- by David Rooney
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The Grease scene where Olivia Newton-John transforms into a cigarette-smoking, leather-clad badass and sings “You’re the One That I Want” is so iconic that it often overshadows the rest of her moments in the 1978 film. As new kid in town Sandy Olsson, Newton-John cheerleads, skips around the Rydell High campus with a carton of milk, and duets repeatedly with John Travolta’s Danny Zuko. But none of those highlights capture the pure, sweet, heartbroken essence of pop’s original Queen Olivia than the solo turn she takes at a Pink Ladies sleepover,...
- 8/8/2022
- by Angie Martoccio
- Rollingstone.com
Click here to read the full article.
Olivia Newton-John, the angelic Australian singer who forged a hopelessly devoted following with her chart-topping hits “Physical,” “Have You Never Been Mellow” and “You’re the One That I Want,” her Grease duet with John Travolta, has died. She was 73.
Newton-John died Monday morning at her ranch in Southern California, her husband, John Easterling, announced on Facebook.
“Olivia has been a symbol of triumphs and hope for over 30 years sharing her journey with breast cancer,” he wrote. “Her healing inspiration and pioneering experience with plant medicine continues with the Olivia Newton-John Foundation Fund, dedicated to researching plant medicine and cancer.”
Born in England and raised in Melbourne, Newton-John was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1992, and she announced in May 2017 that after 25 years in remission the disease had spread to her lower back. The singer in August 2018 canceled a two-date tour just three...
Olivia Newton-John, the angelic Australian singer who forged a hopelessly devoted following with her chart-topping hits “Physical,” “Have You Never Been Mellow” and “You’re the One That I Want,” her Grease duet with John Travolta, has died. She was 73.
Newton-John died Monday morning at her ranch in Southern California, her husband, John Easterling, announced on Facebook.
“Olivia has been a symbol of triumphs and hope for over 30 years sharing her journey with breast cancer,” he wrote. “Her healing inspiration and pioneering experience with plant medicine continues with the Olivia Newton-John Foundation Fund, dedicated to researching plant medicine and cancer.”
Born in England and raised in Melbourne, Newton-John was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1992, and she announced in May 2017 that after 25 years in remission the disease had spread to her lower back. The singer in August 2018 canceled a two-date tour just three...
- 8/8/2022
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Paramount Global/Comcast Jv SkyShowtime has snapped up an HBO Max and Walt Disney exec to lead on strategy and legal.
Roberto Soto, HBO Max Senior Vice President and Head of Growth Marketing for Emea, joins as Chief Strategy Officer for the soon-to-launch platform, which will roll out to 22 smaller territories and a potential 90M homes in Europe later this year that aren’t getting Paramount+ or Comcast-owned Peacock.
Soto led marketing, PR and strategy on HBO Max’s roll-out in Iberia, the Nordics, Netherlands, Poland, and Central and Eastern Europe, territories that HBO Max has since pulled commissioners and shows away from. Past employers include Paramount Global, Fox International Channels and Liberty Global.
Meanwhile, John Heinemann, Disney Associate Principal Counsel for Nordics, Baltics and Mena, becomes General Counsel of SkyShowtime and will serve as chief legal officer and strategic advisor to the leadership team and board. During his stint with the Mouse House,...
Roberto Soto, HBO Max Senior Vice President and Head of Growth Marketing for Emea, joins as Chief Strategy Officer for the soon-to-launch platform, which will roll out to 22 smaller territories and a potential 90M homes in Europe later this year that aren’t getting Paramount+ or Comcast-owned Peacock.
Soto led marketing, PR and strategy on HBO Max’s roll-out in Iberia, the Nordics, Netherlands, Poland, and Central and Eastern Europe, territories that HBO Max has since pulled commissioners and shows away from. Past employers include Paramount Global, Fox International Channels and Liberty Global.
Meanwhile, John Heinemann, Disney Associate Principal Counsel for Nordics, Baltics and Mena, becomes General Counsel of SkyShowtime and will serve as chief legal officer and strategic advisor to the leadership team and board. During his stint with the Mouse House,...
- 7/27/2022
- by Max Goldbart
- Deadline Film + TV
Future Studios, has appointed entertainment executive Shante’ Paige as executive producer to lead a new content production hub in Atlanta, Georgia.
Paige, formerly VP and acting senior VP of A&r for the Universal/Motown Records Group, joins from her own Atlanta-based production business She’s A Movement Media Group, where she was CEO and executive producer for shows including talk show “Don’t Cancel Me with Amara La Negra” for Fuse Media and “Black Ink Crew” for Vh-1. Paige was also showrunner for “Beyond the Pole” (We tv).
Future Studios, which has created titles including “Dating Different” and Channel 4’s “Gamemaster,” is owned by Future Publishing, which also owns brands including MarieClaire and TechRadar.
The creation of the new Atlanta office, which will now become the U.S. hub for content production, signals Future’s intention to boost production infrastructure and creative development.
One of the first titles...
Paige, formerly VP and acting senior VP of A&r for the Universal/Motown Records Group, joins from her own Atlanta-based production business She’s A Movement Media Group, where she was CEO and executive producer for shows including talk show “Don’t Cancel Me with Amara La Negra” for Fuse Media and “Black Ink Crew” for Vh-1. Paige was also showrunner for “Beyond the Pole” (We tv).
Future Studios, which has created titles including “Dating Different” and Channel 4’s “Gamemaster,” is owned by Future Publishing, which also owns brands including MarieClaire and TechRadar.
The creation of the new Atlanta office, which will now become the U.S. hub for content production, signals Future’s intention to boost production infrastructure and creative development.
One of the first titles...
- 3/7/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran and K.J. Yossman
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Ladbible Group’s production arm Ladstudios has signed the former Chief Creative Officer of Barcroft Studios to lead its production arm.
Alex Morris becomes Director of Ladstudios, which was launched earlier this year as a central part of the youth-skewing global publisher’s growth plans.
Reporting to Ladbible Group COO Arian Kalantari, Morris’ remit is to increase the size of the 100-strong department by 50% by the end of 2022 and build commercial and creative opportunities across video IP, channels, show brands and branded entertainment.
The production arm is also looking to take advantage of the UK public service broadcasters’ growing interest in short-form digital programming.
Morris will head up a growing team that includes Strategy Director Thom Gulseven, a former Channel 4 exec, Head of Creative Video Jody Smith, Head of Social Media Mike Vaughan and Head of Original Video Ben Powell-Jones.
“This is an incredibly exciting time to join...
Alex Morris becomes Director of Ladstudios, which was launched earlier this year as a central part of the youth-skewing global publisher’s growth plans.
Reporting to Ladbible Group COO Arian Kalantari, Morris’ remit is to increase the size of the 100-strong department by 50% by the end of 2022 and build commercial and creative opportunities across video IP, channels, show brands and branded entertainment.
The production arm is also looking to take advantage of the UK public service broadcasters’ growing interest in short-form digital programming.
Morris will head up a growing team that includes Strategy Director Thom Gulseven, a former Channel 4 exec, Head of Creative Video Jody Smith, Head of Social Media Mike Vaughan and Head of Original Video Ben Powell-Jones.
“This is an incredibly exciting time to join...
- 10/21/2021
- by Max Goldbart
- Deadline Film + TV
Investment
Media group Vivendi has acquired a stake in France and U.K. headquartered Pernel Media, the independent production company behind “Legends of the Pharaohs,” “The Real War of Thrones,” “Wheeler Dealers France,” “Attila’s Forbidden Tomb” and “Ancient Superstructures.
Pernel will remain an autonomous entity led by Samuel Kissous and will keep expanding the range of broadcast partners and platforms it is working with in France and internationally. The company goal aims to accelerate its international business, consolidate factual output with premium global series, and firm up its scripted projects.
As part of the financing restructure, previous shareholders Alliance Entreprendre and Odyssee Venture are exiting the company.
In July, Pernel hired former head of Arte Distribution Celine Payot Lehmann as international executive producer.
Streaming
HBO Max will stream original drama series “Kamikaze” on Nov. 14 in 46 countries and territories where the streamer is available across Europe, the U.S. and Latin America.
Media group Vivendi has acquired a stake in France and U.K. headquartered Pernel Media, the independent production company behind “Legends of the Pharaohs,” “The Real War of Thrones,” “Wheeler Dealers France,” “Attila’s Forbidden Tomb” and “Ancient Superstructures.
Pernel will remain an autonomous entity led by Samuel Kissous and will keep expanding the range of broadcast partners and platforms it is working with in France and internationally. The company goal aims to accelerate its international business, consolidate factual output with premium global series, and firm up its scripted projects.
As part of the financing restructure, previous shareholders Alliance Entreprendre and Odyssee Venture are exiting the company.
In July, Pernel hired former head of Arte Distribution Celine Payot Lehmann as international executive producer.
Streaming
HBO Max will stream original drama series “Kamikaze” on Nov. 14 in 46 countries and territories where the streamer is available across Europe, the U.S. and Latin America.
- 10/15/2021
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Snapchat’s parent company Snap has commissioned UK producer Barcroft Studios and Bipoc-owned Calico to make As I Am, an original series spotlighting the stories of Asian Americans.
Each of the six episodes follows a central character as they share their culture and history, and open up about their efforts to challenge and break down stereotypes, address ongoing discrimination, hate crimes, and terrorism.
Those featured include a stand-up comedian, a campaigner fighting to protect senior citizens from violence, and rapper and activist China Mac. Dino-Ray Ramos, host of Deadline’s New Hollywood podcast, also features.
As I Am is directed by Alice Gu, the feature documentary director behind The Donut King. Executive Producers are John Farrar for Barcroft Studios and Danny Lee for Calico. It is produced by Ellie Winstanley and Alex Mucadum for Barcroft Studios.
Lee said: “As a first-generation Asian-American who grew up in the face of racism,...
Each of the six episodes follows a central character as they share their culture and history, and open up about their efforts to challenge and break down stereotypes, address ongoing discrimination, hate crimes, and terrorism.
Those featured include a stand-up comedian, a campaigner fighting to protect senior citizens from violence, and rapper and activist China Mac. Dino-Ray Ramos, host of Deadline’s New Hollywood podcast, also features.
As I Am is directed by Alice Gu, the feature documentary director behind The Donut King. Executive Producers are John Farrar for Barcroft Studios and Danny Lee for Calico. It is produced by Ellie Winstanley and Alex Mucadum for Barcroft Studios.
Lee said: “As a first-generation Asian-American who grew up in the face of racism,...
- 5/25/2021
- by Jake Kanter
- Deadline Film + TV
John Farrar has succeeded long-time Barcroft exec Alex Morris as chief creative officer of U.K. specialist factual producers Barcroft Studios.
Farrar was formerly creative director at Barcroft, the TV and digital video division of Future plc, and will also continue to lead Future Studios. Future acquired Barcroft for $30 million in 2019.
Morris is departing Barcroft after 13 years to pursue new opportunities.
Katie O’Reilly, previously Barcroft Studios’ finance director, has been appointed operations director and will report into Future plc COO Claire MacLellan.
Barcroft specializes in producing documentary for TV and streaming platforms, and hit shows include “Extreme Love” for WEtv, “My Body My Rules” for Channel 4, “Hip Hop Vs. Trump” for BET, “24hr Party Pensioners” for Channel 5 and “Mind Yourself” for Snapchat.
Farrar joined Barcroft Studios in 2019 from Nerd TV, the production business he co-founded with Jago Lee and Charlie Parsons in 2010, and which was bought by Red Arrow Studios in 2012. Since joining Barcroft Studios,...
Farrar was formerly creative director at Barcroft, the TV and digital video division of Future plc, and will also continue to lead Future Studios. Future acquired Barcroft for $30 million in 2019.
Morris is departing Barcroft after 13 years to pursue new opportunities.
Katie O’Reilly, previously Barcroft Studios’ finance director, has been appointed operations director and will report into Future plc COO Claire MacLellan.
Barcroft specializes in producing documentary for TV and streaming platforms, and hit shows include “Extreme Love” for WEtv, “My Body My Rules” for Channel 4, “Hip Hop Vs. Trump” for BET, “24hr Party Pensioners” for Channel 5 and “Mind Yourself” for Snapchat.
Farrar joined Barcroft Studios in 2019 from Nerd TV, the production business he co-founded with Jago Lee and Charlie Parsons in 2010, and which was bought by Red Arrow Studios in 2012. Since joining Barcroft Studios,...
- 3/26/2021
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: Barcroft Studios, the production company behind Netflix’s Amazing Interiors, has hired former Vice exec Al Brown to run its forthcoming short-form strand.
Last month, the British indie secured a contract to produce more than 100 original factual projects for Channel 4’s youth strand 4Real. Brown, joining as executive producer, will oversee the content of this strand, which will be distributed online and across social media platforms. He will work closely with Barcroft Studios founder and CEO Sam Barcroft on the scheme.
This comes after Brown left youth media brand Vice last year after ten years. He was most recently vice president of programming at Vice Studios’ UK division. He was a member of the team that launched the Viceland linear channel in the UK as well as online channel Vice News and food strand Munchies. He also exec produced series including fashion docu-series State of Undress and Ellen Page’s Gaycation.
Last month, the British indie secured a contract to produce more than 100 original factual projects for Channel 4’s youth strand 4Real. Brown, joining as executive producer, will oversee the content of this strand, which will be distributed online and across social media platforms. He will work closely with Barcroft Studios founder and CEO Sam Barcroft on the scheme.
This comes after Brown left youth media brand Vice last year after ten years. He was most recently vice president of programming at Vice Studios’ UK division. He was a member of the team that launched the Viceland linear channel in the UK as well as online channel Vice News and food strand Munchies. He also exec produced series including fashion docu-series State of Undress and Ellen Page’s Gaycation.
- 7/3/2019
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
In our noisy, toxically divided, my-way-or-the-highway political culture, you’re on one side or the other, and there’s almost no middle ground left — no place where liberals and conservatives can overlap without feeling like they’re betraying their own cause. “Chappaquiddick,” the deep and gripping new docudrama about the tragic incident that took place on July 18, 1969, when Sen. Edward M. Kennedy drove his car off a bridge and his passenger, Mary Jo Kopechne, died by drowning, is a more probing drama of corruption than any movie Hollywood has released in years. As I said in my review, it’s a movie made in the spirit of open-eyed — and, yes, liberal — inquiry. Yet is it a film that liberal moviegoers are ready to embrace? The critics have mostly been kind, but the tone of the media coverage has been cautious, reserved, a tad skeptical; the movie is going after a sacred cow.
- 4/7/2018
- by Owen Gleiberman
- Variety Film + TV
It’s been nearly 40 years since John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John danced their way through high school in “Grease”. Over the weekend, the pair had a mini-reunion as G’Day USA honoured the 1978 high school musical. The annual black tie gala celebrated the 40th anniversary of “Grease”, honouring Aussie songwriter John Farrar who wrote the...
- 1/29/2018
- by Rachel West
- ET Canada
Chappaquiddick is back in the national spotlight thanks to an upcoming movie (due out in April) and recently released trailer that is centered around the scandal that badly scarred the late senator Ted Kennedy’s political career.
While what actually occurred on that night remains a mystery, we’re taking a look back at the incident and the need-to-know facts before you see the movie.
On July 18, 1969, Ted’s black Oldsmobile crashed off a small bridge on the tiny Massachusetts island of Chappaquiddick and landed in the water. The next morning the body of Mary Jo Kopechne, a young woman...
While what actually occurred on that night remains a mystery, we’re taking a look back at the incident and the need-to-know facts before you see the movie.
On July 18, 1969, Ted’s black Oldsmobile crashed off a small bridge on the tiny Massachusetts island of Chappaquiddick and landed in the water. The next morning the body of Mary Jo Kopechne, a young woman...
- 12/23/2017
- by Jennifer Lynch
- PEOPLE.com
Today in 2007, Xanadu opened at the Helen Hayes Theatre, where it ran for 512 performances. Xanadu is a musical comedy with a book by Douglas Carter Beane and music and lyrics by Jeff Lynne and John Farrar, based on the 1980 cult classic film of the same name. The story of the musical focuses on a Greek muse, Clio, who descends from Mt. Olympus to Venice Beach, California, in 1980 on a quest to inspire a struggling artist, Sonny, to achieve the greatest creation of his life - a roller disco. It earned an Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical and a Drama Desk Award for Best Book. It was also nominated for Tony Awards for Best Musical and Best Book.
- 7/10/2016
- by Stage Tube
- BroadwayWorld.com
Today in 2007, Xanadu opened at the Helen Hayes Theatre, where it ran for 512 performances. Xanadu is a musical comedy with a book by Douglas Carter Beane and music and lyrics by Jeff Lynne and John Farrar, based on the 1980 cult classic film of the same name. The story of the musical focuses on a Greek muse, Clio, who descends from Mt. Olympus to Venice Beach, California, in 1980 on a quest to inspire a struggling artist, Sonny, to achieve the greatest creation of his life - a roller disco. It earned an Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical and a Drama Desk Award for Best Book. It was also nominated for Tony Awards for Best Musical and Best Book.
- 7/10/2015
- by Stage Tube
- BroadwayWorld.com
Today in 2007, Xanadu opened at the Helen Hayes Theatre, where it ran for 512 performances. Xanadu is a musical comedy with a book by Douglas Carter Beane and music and lyrics by Jeff Lynne and John Farrar, based on the 1980 cult classic film of the same name. The story of the musical focuses on a Greek muse, Clio, who descends from Mt. Olympus to Venice Beach, California, in 1980 on a quest to inspire a struggling artist, Sonny, to achieve the greatest creation of his life - a roller disco. It earned an Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical and a Drama Desk Award for Best Book. It was also nominated for Tony Awards for Best Musical and Best Book.
- 7/10/2014
- by Stage Tube
- BroadwayWorld.com
Paper Mill Playhouse concludes its 75th Anniversary Season with America's favorite musical, Grease. With book, music and lyrics by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey, Grease will be directed by Daniel Goldstein with original choreography by JoAnn M. Hunter. Additional songs are by John Farrar, Barry Gibb, Scott Simon and Louis St. Louis. Grease plays the Millburn, New Jersey, theater through June 29, 2014. Click below to watch a fun video of audience members attempting to join in on 'We Go Together'...
- 6/10/2014
- by Stage Tube
- BroadwayWorld.com
Paper Mill Playhouse concludes its 75th Anniversary Season with America's favorite musical, Grease. With book, music and lyrics by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey, Grease will be directed by Daniel Goldstein with original choreography by JoAnn M. Hunter. Additional songs are by John Farrar, Barry Gibb, Scott Simon and Louis St. Louis. Grease plays the Millburn, New Jersey, theater through June 29, 2014. BroadwayWorld brings you photos from inside the opening night curtain call below...
- 6/2/2014
- by Genevieve Rafter Keddy
- BroadwayWorld.com
Paper Mill Playhouse concludes its 75th Anniversary Season with America's favorite musical, Grease. With book, music and lyrics by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey, Grease will be directed by Daniel Goldstein with original choreography by JoAnn M. Hunter. Additional songs are by John Farrar, Barry Gibb, Scott Simon and Louis St. Louis. Grease plays the Millburn, New Jersey, theater through June 29, 2014. The official press opening night is Sunday, June 1, at 700pm. Check out a first look at the production below...
- 5/29/2014
- by BWW News Desk
- BroadwayWorld.com
Bww TV: Tell Me More! Meet the Company of Paper Mill Playhouse's Grease- Plus a Performance Preview!
Paper Mill Playhouse concludes its 75th Anniversary Season with America's favorite musical, Grease. With book, music and lyrics by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey, Grease will be directed by Daniel Goldstein with original choreography by JoAnn M. Hunter. Additional songs are by John Farrar, Barry Gibb, Scott Simon and Louis St. Louis. Grease will play the Millburn, New Jersey, theater from May 28 through June 29, 2014. The official press opening night is Sunday, June 1, at 700pm. The cast just met the press, and BroadwayWorld's Richard Ridge was on hand to chat with the company. Below, check out interviews with the cast and watch a performance preview...
- 5/28/2014
- by BroadwayWorld TV
- BroadwayWorld.com
Paper Mill Playhouse concludes its 75th Anniversary Season with America's favorite musical, Grease. With book, music and lyrics by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey, Grease will be directed by Daniel Goldstein with original choreography by JoAnn M. Hunter. Additional songs are by John Farrar, Barry Gibb, Scott Simon and Louis St. Louis. Grease will play the Millburn, New Jersey, theater from May 28 through June 29, 2014. The official press opening night is Sunday, June 1, at 700pm. The cast just met the press, and BroadwayWorld brings you photos below...
- 5/21/2014
- by Jennifer Broski
- BroadwayWorld.com
Fyi has greenlit six one-hour episodes of new culinary series Midnight Feast and has ordered two hour-long pilots, Say It To My Face and Reverse Course. Set at New York’s Chelsea Market, Midnight Feast is hosted by chef, restaurateur and TV personality Spike Mendelsohn. Each episode will feature three chefs who are given free rein to use any ingredient found in the famous food hall to execute judged dishes. By the end of the night, the winner walks away with a cash prize – while the losers walk away paying their own tabs. Say It To My Face gives chefs and restaurant owners a chance to defend themselves before their toughest online critics, and Reverse Course”follows chef and restaurateur, Sam Talbot, as he takes the farm-to-table concept to the extreme and tells the story of food like no one else has – in reverse, It begins with the final meal and works backwards,...
- 4/30/2014
- by THE DEADLINE TEAM
- Deadline TV
Fox has jumped into the live musical business with Grease Live, a three-hour production of the popular musical to air live next year. The project, which drew interest from multiple networks, comes from Paramount Television and marks the first official network green light for the recently relaunched TV division of the movie studio that was behind the blockbuster 1978 feature adaptation of Grease starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John. Live musicals have become a hot TV commodity following the huge success of NBC’s staging of The Sound Of Music. NBC will follow it up with a live production of Peter Pan this year. The 1971 Broadway musical was written by Warren Casey and Jim Jacobs, with its feature adaptation grossing nearly $400 million worldwide, making it the highest-grossing movie musical ever. Fox’s staging will feature a young ensemble cast, the Casey/Jacobs songs “Summer Nights,” “Greased Lightnin’” and “We Go Together...
- 4/28/2014
- by NELLIE ANDREEVA
- Deadline TV
NBC is no longer the only player when it comes to live network TV productions of classic musicals. Fox announced on Monday (April 28) morning that the network is moving forward with "Grease Live," an entirely self-explanatory live production of "Grease," which will premiere in 2015. After "The Sound of Music Live!" premiered to a whopping 5.6 rating among adults 18-49 and 22 million viewers (in Live+7 figures) for NBC last December, "Grease" was considered a possible contender to be the network's second live musical. Instead, NBC went with "Peter Pan," which will air live on December 4, 2014 with a yet-to-be-announced cast. That left "Grease" for Fox and the network is mighty excited. “From Broadway to film, and across generations, ‘Grease’ is one of the most beloved musical stories ever told -- and we can't wait to bring it to our air in a spectacular live event," blurbs Shana C. Waterman, Senior Vice President of Event Series for Fox.
- 4/28/2014
- by Daniel Fienberg
- Hitfix
Paper Mill Playhouse concludes its 75th Anniversary Season with America's favorite musical, Grease. With book, music and lyrics by Jim Jacobs and Warren Casey, Grease will be directed by Daniel Goldstein with original choreography by JoAnn M. Hunter. Additional songs are by John Farrar, Barry Gibb, Scott Simon and Louis St. Louis. Grease will play the Millburn, New Jersey, theater from May 28 through June 29, 2014. The official press opening night is Sunday, June 1, at 700pm. Paper Mill Playhouse's 75th Anniversary Season is proudly sponsored by Investors Bank.
- 4/25/2014
- by BWW News Desk
- BroadwayWorld.com
Ahead of its July debut, A+E's upcoming lifestyle network Fyi has picked up a pair of pilots. The cable network -- a joint venture of Disney-abc Television Group and Hearst Corp. -- has added hourlong unscripted entries You're the One and Marry Me … Today. Story: A+E Rebrands Bio as Lifestyle Network Fyi You're the One hails from Nerd TV and Jago Lee, John Farrar and Sarah Lazenby and follows men and women as they travel the globe in search of a lost love. Through social and mass media, communities around the world are mobilized to engage in the hunt, with
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- 4/14/2014
- by Lesley Goldberg
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
A+E Networks‘ new lifestyle channel Fyi has picked up two hourlong unscripted pilots as it ramps up for its July 7 launch. You’re The One (working title), hosted by journalist and documentarian Cherry Healey, follows men and women as they embark on a mission to find a lost love. Through social and mass media, communities around the world are mobilized to engage in the hunt, leading up to the final face-to-face meeting. Marry Me … Today (working title) is described as a breakthrough wedding concept for the modern generation. The show partners with website The Knot to follow an ambitious groom-to-be as he surprises his girlfriend with a proposal, engagement and marriage all in one day, using his girlfriend’s online wish list to plan and execute her fantasy wedding. You’re The One is produced for Fyi by Nerd TV. Jago Lee, John Farrar and Sarah Lazenby are executive producing for Nerd TV.
- 4/14/2014
- by THE DEADLINE TEAM
- Deadline TV
British independent production company Nerd TV specializes in documentaries and non-scripted entertainment. Its La-based operation will open this month following commissions from Own, Discovery and A+E. The office will be managed by Nerd co-founder and creative director John Farrar and will focus on creating high-end non-scripted series for U.S. channels. Nerd is developing three pilots for three undisclosed networks, including its first factual entertainment series and a presenter-led documentary with former street boss for the New York mob, Lou Ferrante. That is a separate show to the five-part hourlong series Inside The Gangsters’ Code, which Ferrante fronted and which went out on the Discovery Channel in 217 countries this past February. Nerd is also producing 10-part series Dogfellas, which is set in a dog grooming parlor run by former notorious mobster James “Head” Giuliani. A+E also picked up Nerd’s 12 Year Old Lifer, a documentary that recently aired on UK broadcaster Channel 4,...
- 11/12/2013
- by NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor
- Deadline TV
Today in 2007, Xanadu opened at the Helen Hayes Theatre, where it ran for 512 performances. Xanadu is a musical comedy with a book by Douglas Carter Beane and music and lyrics by Jeff Lynne and John Farrar, based on the 1980 cult classic film of the same name. The story of the musical focuses on a Greek muse, Clio, who descends from Mt. Olympus to Venice Beach, California, in 1980 on a quest to inspire a struggling artist, Sonny, to achieve the greatest creation of his life - a roller disco. It earned an Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical and a Drama Desk Award for Best Book. It was also nominated for Tony Awards for Best Musical and Best Book.
- 7/10/2013
- by Stage Tube
- BroadwayWorld.com
To many, John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John will always be high school loves Danny Zuko and Sandy Olsen from the 1978 hit Grease. Now, the two have reunited for a holiday album - and a Grease-themed video. In the video for "I Think You Might Like It," Travolta flies a plane home while Newton-John drives a classic convertible full of gifts. The pair reunite in a field to perform some dance moves reminiscent of their Grease finale, "You're the One That I Want." The video - which was shot in part in Ocala, Fla., where Travolta lives - also features his wife,...
- 12/5/2012
- PEOPLE.com
Put your arteries on Defcon 1, because John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John serve up the cheese big-time in their new video "I Think You Might Like It," which hit the Internet like three metric tons of "Wtf?" on Wednesday. There are plenty of head-scratchers packed into the clip for the song, which was penned by "You're the One That I Want" tunesmith John Farrar and is included on Travolta and Newton-John's new album "This Christmas." The line-dancing. Travolta's troubling goatee. The industrial training film-grade acting. The fact that Travolta parks his...
- 12/5/2012
- by Tim Kenneally
- The Wrap
Travolta and Newton-John reunite 34 years after Summer Nights with album that includes follow-up to You're The One That I Want
Winter always brings chills, and this year they will be multiplying: John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John have announced a holiday album, This Christmas, featuring guest appearances by Cliff Richard, Chick Corea, Barbra Streisand and Kenny G.
It has been 35 years since Travolta and Newton-John appeared together in the movie Grease, scoring worldwide hits with songs such as Summer Nights and You're the One That I Want. That song's enduring success is apparently what initiated the new record: Newton-John recently texted Travolta to tell him the track had become "the bestselling duet in pop music history".
"My desire was to make This Christmas an intimate album, not something too ostentatious or showy," Newton-John said of the new album. "We want to make a lot of people smile and happy."
Most exciting...
Winter always brings chills, and this year they will be multiplying: John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John have announced a holiday album, This Christmas, featuring guest appearances by Cliff Richard, Chick Corea, Barbra Streisand and Kenny G.
It has been 35 years since Travolta and Newton-John appeared together in the movie Grease, scoring worldwide hits with songs such as Summer Nights and You're the One That I Want. That song's enduring success is apparently what initiated the new record: Newton-John recently texted Travolta to tell him the track had become "the bestselling duet in pop music history".
"My desire was to make This Christmas an intimate album, not something too ostentatious or showy," Newton-John said of the new album. "We want to make a lot of people smile and happy."
Most exciting...
- 10/3/2012
- by Sean Michaels
- The Guardian - Film News
This is probably not the way most Grease fans imagined the reunion of Danny Zuko and Sandy Olsen in their fan fiction, but 35 years after the magic at Rydell High, they'll take what they can get. John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John have come together for a new winter holiday album, This Christmas, that includes a duet called "I Think You Might Like It," by John Farrar, the man who wrote the platinum-selling tune "You're the One That I Want." The album, touted in a news release as the "audio equivalent of those classic network TV
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- 10/2/2012
- by Jordan Zakarin
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Today in 2007, Xanadu opened at the Helen Hayes Theatre, where it ran for 512 performances. Xanadu is a musical comedy with a book by Douglas Carter Beane and music and lyrics by Jeff Lynne and John Farrar, based on the 1980 cult classic film of the same name. The story of the musical focuses on a Greek muse, Clio, who descends from Mt. Olympus to Venice Beach, California, in 1980 on a quest to inspire a struggling artist, Sonny, to achieve the greatest creation of his life - a roller disco. It earned an Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical and a Drama Desk Award for Best Book. It was also nominated for Tony Awards for Best Musical and Best Book.
- 7/10/2012
- by Stage Tube
- BroadwayWorld.com
Signature Theatre closes out its 201112 season sporting funky legwarmers and wielding neon glow sticks with the Washington premiere of the musical comedy hit Xanadu. Nominated for four Tony Awards including Best Musical, the musical features a Book by Douglas Carter Beane, with Music and Lyrics by Jeff Lynne and John Farrar. Xanadu will play at Signature through July 1, 2012. Check out production shots below...
- 5/30/2012
- by BWW News Desk
- BroadwayWorld.com
Berlin – Red Arrow Entertainment Group, the production subsidiary of Euro broadcaster ProSiebenSat.1, has taken a majority stake in two independent production companies: Brit shingle Nerd TV and Israeli group July August Productions. Nerd TV was set up in 2010 by Brit TV execs Jago Lee and John Farrar with start-up capital from Survivor creator Charlie Parsons. Nerd’s focus is on factual entertainment and factual formats. The group has a major order in place with Discovery Networks and has development deals in the U.S., the U.K., Germany and France. July August, which produces both formats, scripted
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- 5/10/2012
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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