Friday, October 14, 2005 1:27 PM
WHO: Amy Alkon, Emmanuelle Richard, Cathy Seipp, and the L.A. Press Club invite you to:
WHAT: American Cinema Foundation presents “Finding the Future of Public Television,” sponsored by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. A series of panel discussions with audience Q&As, then and a reception with (complimentary) drinks and canapes.
ALSO: Some discussions will have live web-logging. Questions and input are being solicited on the web, as well as from the attending audience. If you would like to submit a question for the panels, email: cpbcomments@cinemafoundation.com.
WHEN: Friday, October 14 – Saturday, October 15, 2005
WHERE: Mark Goodson Screening Room, American Film Institute
2021 N. Western Avenue, Los Angeles, CA (at Los Feliz) 90027
Free parking on campus, drive to top of hill.
RSVP: Admission is free, but seating is limited, so reservations required. Please email reservations@cinemafoundation.com, or call (310) 364-2002 and include the name of the panel(s) you wish to attend, as well as your name and whether you will bring a guest. Standby seating as available.
MORE DETAILS: See cinemafoundation.com.
Participants are television creators and executives, plus media critics, including: Lionel Chetwynd, Frank Price, Harry Shearer, Mel Stuart, Rob Long, Matt Welch, Cathy Seipp, Ray Richmond, and others (see complete listing below).
SCHEDULE AND PANELISTS
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14, 8PM
Welcome addresses
Nick De Martino, Senior Vice President for Information and Technology, American Film Institute; Michael Pack, Senior Vice President, Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Program introduction: Gary McVey, Executive Director, American Cinema Foundation
Opening panel
A gaggle of imaginative producer/writers consider why they and others like them don’t produce more for public television. Why do shows that take on the hot topics of the day (from Bill Maher to Dennis Miller), and shows whose genres originated on public TV, end up on cable? What part does politics play? How can public broadcasting hold its ground?
Moderator: Rob Long (writer/producer, “Cheers,” “George and Leo;” columnist, National Review; commentator, “Martini Shot” on KCRW) Panelists: Kevin Bleyer (writer/producer, “Politically Incorrect,” “The Dennis Miller Show”), Luca Bentivoglio (executive director, Latino Public Broadcasting), Harry Shearer (writer/performer, “The Simpsons,” “This Is Spinal Tap”), Peter Robinson (presidential speechwriter; Hoover Inst. research fellow; host of public TV’s “Uncommon Knowledge”)
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2PM
Will You, Won’t You Join the Dance: The Experience of Producing for Public Television
We hear from veteran producers who feel that their programming has been marginalized because they hold viewpoints that fall outside the mainstream of current PBS culture. How should stewards of a national trust go about the business of funding and distributing programs that represent a wide spectrum of positions, while maintaining their own personal and political views?
Introduction: Michael Pack (Senior Vice President, Corporation for Public Broadcasting)
Moderator: Cathy Seipp (journalist, Independent Women’s Forum, National Review Online) Panelists: Lionel Chetwynd (writer/director/producer, “Ike: Countdown to D-Day,” “Varian’s War,” “National Desk”), Frank Price (former studio chief of Universal, Columbia; producer, “The Tuskegee Airmen” etc.), Ted Steinberg (co-executive producer, “Reverse Angle,” “National Desk”)
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 15, 4 PM
New Formats/New thinking from the AFI Digital Content Lab
PBS and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting are technological innovators, who have often led the commercial TV industry-from satellite distribution in the ’70s, to added content in the ’90s. Over seven years, the AFI Digital Content Lab, funded in part by CPB, has produced more than 50 prototypes-from wireless, to set-top boxes, to game consoles. This session showcases examples created for PBS programs, suppliers and stations, including KCET, POV and ITVS.
Host: Anna Marie Piersimoni, Director, Internet Communications, Media and Technology, American Film Institute Guest: Jackie Kain, VP, New Media, KCET
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 15, 8 PM
Public Television Confidential: A Look at Basic Premises
The question is whether publicly funded programming meets its own high standards, and whether we ask enough of the system that spends our dollars. Is “Sesame Street” still the ultimate in quality educational programming? Is it fair to ask producers to treat more of the country’s widely held values as legitimate?
Introduction: John Prizer (Vice President, Corporation for Public Broadcasting)
Moderator: Cathy Seipp (columnist, Independent Women’s Forum, National Review Online). Panelists: Ray Richmond (television critic, The Hollywood Reporter), Mel Stuart (director, “The Hobart Shakespeareans,” “American Masters: Billy Wilder,” “The Making of the President 1960”), Matt Welch (associate editor, Reason Magazine).
