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Series in preparation for future public TV seasons,
as of fall 2001
Winter/spring 2002 | Summer 2002
Fall 2002 | Sometime in 2002
Winter/spring 2003 | Summer or Fall 2003 |
Sometime in 2003 | 2004 or 2005
Airdates to be determined | About the most recent surveyCurrent's 10th annual survey, originally published Oct. 22, 2001 with an addendum Dec. 3, 2001. Compiled by Geneva Collins. Airdates are only expectations. List excludes projects less than two hours long. Expected distributor is PBS unless otherwise stated. Temporary working titles are marked "w.t." A listing here should not be construed as an indication that a series will be completed by the producer or accepted by PBS or other distributors.
Produced for public TV in 2002:
The Blue Diner, a bilingual drama set
in Boston's Puerto Rican community.
(Photo: Jayanti Seiler.)Among other new series in development or production are
two examinations of Islam,
Winter/Spring 2002
The Academy's World Cuisine
Producing station: WYES, New Orleans. Expected distributor: APT. Episodes: 26 x 30. Status: postproduction. Budget: $344,000. Executive producers: Beth Utterback, Jim Moriarty. Producer: Terri Landry. Contact: Randall Feldman at rfeldman@wyes.org. • The chefs and students of the California Culinary Academy demonstrate products and techniques for creative native dishes from Asia, Africa, the Americas and Europe that viewers can recreate at home. Companion book or online component planned.Alaska Magazine Television
Producing organizations: KAKM, Anchorage; KYUK, Bethel; KTOO, Juneau; KUAC, Fairbanks, and Alaska Magazine. Presenting station: Alaska Public Television. Expected distributor: NETA. Episodes: 52 x 30, 1 x 90 pledge special. Status: production (25 shows completed). Budget: $1 million, including $100,000 for outreach. Major funders: Alaska Magazine, Holland America Lines, Westmark Hotels, Globalstar. Executive producer/producer: C. Vincent Shortt. Contact: C. Vincent Shortt, inntv@webtv.com, 907-452-3232. • The first lifestyle television series devoted entirely to Alaska and the colorful people who proudly call the last frontier their home.Allies at War
Producing organizations: 3BM Television and WNET. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: postproduction. Major funders: PBS, BBC, Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, Burns Foundation, Lemberg Foundation. Executive producers: Stephen Segaller, Simon Berthon. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • The private, turbulent relations of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Winston Churchill and Charles DeGaulle that provide a human backdrop to the epic struggles on the battlefield leading to the liberation of France during World War II. Website, companion book, home video planned.American Family
Producing organizations: El Norte Productions and KCET. Episodes: 13 x 60. Status: production. Major funders: PBS, CPB. Executive producers: Gregory Nava, Robert Greenblatt, David Janollar. Co-executive producer: Eric Gold. Series producer: Barbara Martinez-Jitner. Director: Gregory Nava. KCET production executive: Joyce Campbell. KCET Executive in charge: Mare Mazur. Contact: Joyce Campbell, jcampbell@kcet.org, 323-953-5455. • A heart-warming drama that chronicles the lives of the Gonzalez family, living in East Los Angeles. Extensive website components and outreach activities planned.America's First River: Bill Moyers on the Hudson
Producing organization: Public Affairs Television Inc. Presenting station: WNET. Episodes: 2 x 120. Status: production. Major funders: The Herb Alpert Foundation, Kohlberg Foundation Inc., Laurance S. Rockefeller Fund, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Park Foundation, Surdna Foundation, Mutual of America Life Insurance Co. Executive producer: Felice Firestone. Executive editors: Bill Moyers, Judith Davidson Moyers. Senior producers: Tom Casciato, Kathleen Hughes. Producers/directors: Tom Casciato, Kathleen Hughes, Tom Spain. Executive director of special projects: Deborah Rubenstein. Contact: Deborah Rubenstein, rubenst@thirteen.org, 212-560-6952. • Moyers takes us on a journey exploring the treasures of the Hudson and examining the environmental challenges of the present day.The Blue Diner
Producing organizations: Blue Diner Films in association with WGBH. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: Completed. Budget: $750,000. Major funders: PBS, CPB, Latino Public Broadcasting. Producers/directors/writers: Natatcha Estébanez, Jan Egleson. Editor: Jeanne Jordan. Music: Claudio Ragazzi. Contact: Natatcha Estébanez/Jan Egleson, dinerazul@aol.com, 617-923-2478. • A film about food, memory, language and caskets. A Latina mother (Miriam Colon) and daughter (Lisa Vidal) struggle to understand each other after the daughter mysteriously loses her ability to speak Spanish. Soundtrack CD available. Website: www.bluediner.com.The BookShow with Patt Morrison
Producing station: KCET. Expected distributor: APT. Episodes: 26 x 30. Status: production. Budget: $350,000. Major funder: The Kenneth T. and Eileen L. Norris Foundation. Executive producer: Bohdan Zachary. Consulting producer/host: Patt Morrison. Contact: Bohdan Zachary, bzachary@kcet.org, 323-953-5440. • Los Angeles Times columnist and NPR commentator Patt Morrison hosts this series, which spotlights two books per show, in a book club discussion and author interview. Website: www.yourbookshow.org.Children's Hospital, w.t.
Producing organizations: OPB and Lion TV. Episodes: 6 x 60. Status: production. Budget: $1.512 million. Major funders: PBS, UK Horizon. Executive producer: Nick Catliff. Contact: John Lindsay, lindsayopb@aol.com, 609-924-8686. • An observational series set inside Chicago's Memorial Hospital that brings viewers face-to-face with the latest advances in pediatric medicine. Online component planned.Collected Stories
Producing station: KCET. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: production. Major funders: PBS, CPB, Ahmanson Foundation. Producer: Dennis Doty. Director: Gil Cates. KCET production executive: Karen Hunte. Series executive producer: Mare Mazur. Contact: Karen Hunte, khunte@kcet.org, 323-953-5409 . • This offering from PBS Hollywood Presents features Linda Lavin and Samantha Mathis in contemporary dramas shot on KCET's soundstage. Website: www.pbs.org/hollywoodpresents.Commanding Heights: The Battle for the World Economy
Producing organizations: Cambridge Energy Research Associates in association with WGBH. Episodes: 3 x 120. Status: postproduction. Major funders: EDS, Enron, FedEx, Smith Richardson Foundation, PBS/CPB Program Challenge Fund. Executive producer: Sue Lena Thompson. Series producer: Bill Cran. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • Based on the book of the same name by Daniel Yergin and Joseph Stanislaw, the series chronicles great movements in the relationships of government and markets around the world, the emergence of globalization beginning in the 1990s, and far-reaching debates about the future. Online teacher's guide for high school educators planned; outreach activities will include forums nationwide.Cookalotamus
Producing organization: Scooter Hill Studios LLC. Presenting station: KCTS, Seattle. Expected distributor: APT. Episodes: 26 x 30. Status: fundraising. Budget: $1 million. Executive producers: Ken Urman, Greg Sharp, John McLean. Contact: John McLean, john@johnmcleanmedia.com. • This series seeks to engage, entertain and empower kids 3-11 and their families to experience the joys of cooking and eating together. Companion book planned. Website: www.cookalotamus.com.Cyberchase
Producing organizations: Nelvana Ltd. and WNET. Episodes: 26 x 30. Status: production. Major funders: National Science Foundation, PBS, Picower Foundation. Executive producers: Michael Hirsh, Patrick Loubert, Clive A. Smith, Sandra Sheppard, Kristin Martin. Supervising producers: Stephen Hodgins, Patricia R. Burns, Marianne Culbert. Director: Larry Jacobs. Contact: Margo Raport, margor@nelvana.com, 416-588-5571. • This animated children's series features three Earth kids who travel to virtual vistas in cyberspace on eye-popping mathematical adventures. They must use their problem-solving skills to foil the evil fiend Hacker. Magazine, teachers guide, parent workshops planned.The Desert Speaks
Producing organizations: KUAT, Tucson, Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, the Arizona Nature Conservancy. Expected distributor: PBS Plus. Episodes: 13 x 30. Status: postproduction. Budget: $500,000. Major funders: George Mason Green and Lois C. Green Foundation, Kemper and Ethel Marley Foundation, Arizona Game & Fish Department and Heritage Fund, Desert Program Partners, Arizona State Parks. Executive producer: Fran Sherlock. Producer: Tom Kleespie, Director/videographer: Dan Duncan. Host: David Yetman. Contact: Michael Serres, mserres@kuat.arizona.edu, 520-621-3354. • This series explores the unique flora, fauna, climate and culture of deserts. Website: kuat.org/ds1.html.DragonflyTV
Producing station: Twin Cities Public Television. Episodes: 13 x 30. Status: production. Budget: $2.4 million. Major funders: Best Buy Inc., National Science Foundation. Executive producer: Richard Hudson. Contact: Richard Hudson, rhudson@tpt.org. • Children in grades 4-7 present their own science investigations side by side with reports by professional scientists. The latter are laced with snapshots and home movies of when they were kids. Companion magazine will be published with Scientific American Explorations. Outreach activities with 4H Clubs and Boys and Girls Clubs of America planned. Website: dragonflytv.org.Earth Trek
Producing organization: Raven Productions, LLC. Presenting station: KOCE, Huntington Beach, Calif. Expected distributor: APT. Episodes: 8 x 30. Status: postproduction. Budget: $480,000. Major funders: Merrill Lynch, Shilo Inns, Hong Kong Tourism, Malaysia Tourism, Air Malaysia. Executive producer: Mitchell Sussman. Producers: Steve Peyton, Trevor Bottomley, Jim Ravenna. Director: Rich Oliphant. Hosts: Joni Ravenna, John Stevens. Contact: Joni Ravenna, RavenTV2@aol.com. • Ride on the back of camels, trek the Himalayas, raft the Ganges and balloon over the California desert in this environmental travel series.Egypt's Golden Empire
Producing organizations: Lion TV in association with PBS and Devillier Donegan Enterprises. Episodes: 3 x 60. Status: Complete. Executive producer: Ron Devillier and Brian Donegan for DDE. Series producer: Richard Bradley. Contact: Ken O'Keefe, DDE, 202-686-3980. • Through preserved letters and personal accounts, the series brings to life the passion and human drama of Egypt's New Kingdom. This series under the Empires umbrella reveals the hopes and dreams of the powerful pharaohs and ordinary citizens who created the first great empire in history. Website: www.pbs.org/empires.Frontier House
Producing organizations: WNET and Wall to Wall Television. Episodes: 6 x 60. Status: production. Major funders: CPB/PBS Program Challenge Fund, Sloane Foundation. Executive producer: Beth C. Hoppe. Series producer: Simon Shaw. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • Based on the format of The 1900 House, this series goes beyond the myth of the American West, sending three modern families back in time to Montana in the 1880s to experience life on the frontier as it really was. Includes extensive online component. Website: www.pbs.org/wnet/frontierhouse. [See separate article.]Global Trek
Producing organizations: Creative Visions Inc., KCET. Episodes: 13 x 30. Status: fundraising. Executive producer: Kathy Eldon. Host: Amy Eldon. KCET production executive: Joyce Campbell. Contact: Joyce Campbell, jcampbell@kcet.org, 323-953-5455. • Each week journalist Amy Eldon lands in a country facing a major cultural, political or environmental challenge and tells the stories of individuals finding solutions.Globe Trekker
Producing organizations: WETA and Pilot Film and TV Production Ltd. Expected distributor: APT. Episodes: 39 x 60. Status: production. Senior executive producer: Ian Cross. WETA executive-in-charge: Dalton Delan. Contact: DeLinda Mrowka, dmrowka@weta.com. • In this offering from the award-winning Lonely Planet series, intrepid travelers immerse themselves in the customs, culture and mores of exotic countries and regions.Great Lodges of the National Parks
Producing organizations: OPB and W.W. West. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: production. Budget: $1.1 million. Major funders: PBS, Arthur Vining Davis, Murdoch Family Foundation. Executive producer: John Grant. Producers: John Booth, Mark Mitchell. Contact: David Davis, david_davis@opb.org, 503-293-1959. • The stories tell how these wilderness landmarks were designed and built amid some of the world's most spectacular scenery, and how they have come to be loved and treasured by generations. Companion book, website and short videos for classroom use planned.Great Projects: The Building of America
Producing organization: Great Projects Film Co. Inc. Presenting station: South Carolina ETV. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: postproduction. Budget: $3.8 million. Major funders: U.S. Dept. of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, National Science Foundation, AT&T, American Society of Civil Engineers. Executive producers/producers: Kenneth Mandel, Daniel B. Polin. Producers: Seth Kramer, Daniel Miller. Narrator: Stacey Keach. Contact: Kenneth Mandel, kmandel@greatprojects.com. • This series presents stories of the creation of our nation's infrastructure and public works, from the taming of the Mississippi River to Boston's Big Dig. Companion book, online component planned.The Healthy Kitchen with Dr. Andrew Weil and Rosie Daley
Producing organization: A La Carte Communications. Expected distributor: APT. Episodes: 26 x 30. Status: production. Executive producers: Geoffrey Drummond, Nat Katzman. Contact: Hope Reed, hopereed@msn.com, 617-242-1389. • Dr. Andrew Weil and Rosie Daley, each known for their commitment to healthy food as well as tasty cooking, collaborate in this informative and fun-filled series set in the garden, market, kitchen and dining room. Companion book planned. Website: www.alacartetv.com.Hotline TV
Producing organizations: WETA and National Journal Group. Expected distributor: APT. Episodes: 46 x 30. Status: fundraising. Executive producer: Jeff Bieber. Producer: Ann Klenk. Contact: DeLinda Mrowka, dmrowka@weta.com. • Dee Dee Myers and Craig Crawford co-host this fast-paced series, based on the National Journal Group's daily political news briefing of the same name. [See separate article.]In Search of Ancient Ireland
Producing organizations: Cafe Productions Inc., WNET, Little Bird Television Ltd. Episodes: 3 x 60. Status: postproduction. Budget: $1.3 million. Major funders: PBS, WNET, RTE, D&S European Media Fund. Executive producers: William Grant, Andre Singer, James Mitchell. Series producer/writer/director: Leo Eaton. Producer: Lesley McKimm. Contact: Leo Eaton, leoftv@aol.com, 410-876-9843. • This series uses archeology and myth to tell the story of Ireland from 4000 B.C. through Celtic times and the coming of Christianity until the land came under English rule in 1170. Companion book, music CD planned.Jacques Pepin Celebrates!
Producing station: KQED. Expected distributor: APT. Episodes: 20 x 30, 6 x 60. Status: postproduction. Budget: $1 million. Major funders: Anolon, epicurious.com, OXO, Cambria, Salton. Executive producers: Danny L. McGuire, Sue Ellen McCann. Producer: Peggy Lee Scott. Contact: Elizabeth Pepin, epepin@kqed.org, 415-553-2340. • Chef and author Jacques Pepin and daughter Claudine return for a cooking series about the making of memorable meals for special occasions and annual holidays. Website: www.kqed.org/jacquespepin.Lifeblood: An Epic History of Medicine, Myth and Money
Producing organizations: WNET in association with Optomen Television. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: production. Major funders: Chiron Corp., Ortho Chemical, Channel 4, La Cinquieme, Jacob Burns Foundation, RM Associates, Rosalind Walter. Executive producers: Stephen Segaller for WNET, Simon Andreae for Optomen. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • The series traces the progress in our human and scientific understanding of blood--in the hospital and laboratory, on the battlefield, its role in saving lives and causing epidemics, and how it is exploited as a commercial resource. Companion book, website and teachers guides planned.Mark Twain
Producing organizations: Florentine Films and WETA. Episodes: 2 x 120. Status: postproduction. Major funders: General Motors Corp., Pew Charitable Trusts, PBS, Connecticut Office of Tourism, CPB, Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, Park Foundation. Producers: Dayton Duncan and Ken Burns. Director: Ken Burns. WETA executive-in-charge: Dalton Delan. Project director: David S. Thompson. Contact: Dewey Blanton, dblanton@weta.com. • Ken Burns continues his acclaimed series of American Lives with this revealing portrait of Mark Twain, the man credited with creating uniquely American literature. Website component planned. General Motors will fund extensive national outreach to junior and senior high school English teachers.On Stage
Producing station: WETA. Episodes: 5 x 120. Status: fundraising. Major funder: CPB/PBS Program Challenge Fund. Executive producers: Dalton Delan, David S. Thompson. Producer: Jackson Frost. Contact: DeLinda Mrowka, dmrowka@weta.com. • This new series of artistic performances showcases events at the White House, the John F. Kennedy Center and other major venues in the nation's capital.Presumed Guilty
Producing station: KQED. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: postproduction. Budget: $700,000. Major funder: James Irvine Foundation. Executive producer: Sue Ellen McCann. Producer: Pamela Yates. Contact: Elizabeth Pepin, epepin@kqed.org, 415-553-2340. • A documentary that follows real lawyers from the San Francisco Public Defenders Office as they take their cases from jail cell to jury.Quilt Central
Producing organization: S&W Productions. Expected distributor: National Educational Telecommunications Association (NETA). Episodes: 13 x 30. Status: postproduction. Budget: $90,000. Major funders: American Quilter's Society, Sulky of America, Bernina of America, Fairfield, Quilting Machines International, FreeSpirit Fabrics. Executive producer: Jane Donaldson. Producer: Ivy Chapman. Associate Producer: Diane Martin. Hosts: Jane Donaldson, Donna Wilder. Contact: Ivy Chapman, ivylynn@centurytel.net. • This general audience how-to program emphasizes machine quilting. Website: www.quiltcentraltv.com.The Rocky Road to Peace: Ireland 1979-2001
Producing organizations: Brook-Lapping Productions Ltd. in association with BBC, WGBH, Radio Telefis Eireann. Episodes: 2 x 120. Status: postproduction. Major funders: PBS, Stratford Foundation. Executive producer: Brian Lapping. Executive producer for WGBH: Zvi Dor-Ner. Producers: Mark Anderson, Mick Gold. Series producer: Norma Percy. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • This documentary reports on the history and progress of peace talks to end the violence in Northern Ireland. The process is constantly disrupted by twists and turns: bombings, walk-outs, murders, betrayals. Online component planned.Rough Science
Producing organizations: BBC, WETA, Open University. Episodes: 10 x 30. Status: Fundraising. Executive producers: Dalton Delan, Jeff Bieber. Contact: Dewey Blanton, dblanton@weta.com. • Acclaimed in Britain, the series tests the knowledge and ingenuity of a group of scientists who, left in a remote location, are charged with specific tasks they must complete with the resources at hand. Online component, extensive outreach to junior and senior high school instructors planned.The Secret Life of the Brain
Producing organizations: David Grubin Productions and WNET. Episodes: 5 x 60. Status: production. Major funders: National Science Foundation, Pfizer Inc., Medtronic Foundation, Park Foundation, PBS, CPB, Dana Foundation, Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives. Executive producers: David Grubin for Grubin Productions, Beth C. Hoppe for WNET. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • The series follows the normal stages of brain development from conception through advanced age. It looks at knowledge gained from dysfunctional brain activity and the ongoing revolution in neuroscience. Companion book, online component, viewers' guides, community outreach targeted at teens and adults planned.Senior Year
Producing organization: Displaced Films. Presenting station: KCET. Episodes: 12 x 30, 1 x 60. Status: postproduction. Major funders: CPB, PBS, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Latino Public Broadcasting, NAATA, NEA. Producer/director: David Zeiger. Producer: Aaron Zarrow. Editors: Susan Crutcher, Lindsay Mofford. KCET production executive: Jackie Kain. KCET executive in charge: Mare Mazur. Contact: Aaron Zarrow, displaced@mindspring.com, 323-906-9249. • During the 1999-2000 school year, six young filmmakers followed a diverse group of 15 seniors at a Los Angeles high school. Students also created video diaries. Extensive outreach is planned, targeting teens, young adults, parents and educators. Soundtrack CD, curriculum guide planned. Website: www.pbs.org/senioryear.Shackleton's Voyage of Endurance, w.t.
Producing organizations: White Mountain Films and Nova, co-producers. Presenting station: WGBH. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: postproduction. Major funder: Morgan Stanley. Key personnel: Sarah Holt and Kelly Tyler for Nova; George Butler for White Mountain Films; Paula S. Apsell, executive producer. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • In 1914, Ernest Shackleton set off on the Endurance with a team of seamen and scientists, determined to be the first to cross the Antarctic continent. But when pack ice crushed their ship, the men found themselves stranded 1,200 miles from civilization. This Nova documentary details their harrowing 14-month ordeal with spectacular footage of Antarctic locations and interviews with descendants of the original explorers. Website: www.pbs.org/wgbh/Nova.Shape of Life
Producing organizations: Sea Studios and National Geographic Television. Presenting station: KCET. Episodes: 8 x 60. Status: Completed. Executive producer: Mark Shelly. Contact: Joyce Campbell, jcampbell@kcet.org, 323-953-5455. • The series reconstructs the dramatic rise of the animal kingdom from invertebrates to mammals.Summer of Love/Days of Rage, w.t.
Producing station: OPB. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: production. Budget: $300,000. Major funder: PBS. Executive producer: David Davis. Producer: Steve Talbot. Contact: David Davis, david_davis@opb.org, 503-293-1959. • From 1967's Summer of Love through the assassinations and protests of 1968, to the days of rage that culminated in the shootings at Kent State in 1970, this special examines the music, culture and politics of the time, combining archival footage with interviews.There She Is: A History of Miss America, w.t.
Producing organization: Clio Inc./Orchard Films Inc. for WGBH/American Experience. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: production. Major funders: NEH, New Jersey Council for the Humanities. Executive producers: Lola Van Wagenen, Jeanne Houck. Producers: Lisa Ades, Lesli Klainberg. Series executive producer: Margaret Drain. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • This American Experience documentary follows the Miss America contest from its inception in 1921 as an exuberant local seaside pageant to its heyday as one of the most popular and anticipated events in the country's cultural calendar. Website: www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex.This Far By Faith
Producing organization: Blackside Inc. Presenting station: WGBH. Episodes: 6 x 60. Status: postproduction. Major funders: Annie E. Casey Foundation, Pew Charitable Trusts, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Lilly Endowment, Ford Foundation, NEH, CPB-PBS Program Challenge Fund. Producer: Dante James. Contact: Judi Hampton, 617-279-0406. • The series explores the connection between faith communities and the development of African-American cultural values and practices as it celebrates the role of religion in addressing the social, political, economic and educational ideals central to American society. Extensive outreach plans include community partnerships, training workshops in faith leadership, screenings, discussion groups, exhibits, online component. Website: www.blackside.com.Thou Shalt Honor, w.t.
Producing organizations: Willand/Bell Productions and OPB. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: production. Budget: $2.5 million, including $500,000 for website and $300,000 for outreach. Major funders: AXA Foundation, Silverman Charitable Trust, Northwest Health Foundation, Services Employees International Union. Executive producers: Dale Bell, Harry Willand. Contact: David Davis, david_davis@opb.org, 503-293-1959. • This two-part PBS primetime special examines problems associated with caring for elderly and disabled family members. The project will include extensive outreach and promotion efforts designed to provide information and resources to caregivers. Outreach targets include social services providers, government agencies, health care professionals and families.Ulysses S. Grant, w.t.
Producing organization: WGBH/American Experience. Episodes: 2 x 120. Status: postproduction. Major funder: NEH. Executive producer: Elizabeth Deane. Producers: Elizabeth Deane, Adriana Bosch. Narrator: Liev Schrieber. Series executive producer: Margaret Drain. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • An American Experience biography examines one of America's greatest soldiers and most paradoxical leaders. A hero of the Civil War, Grant was an ineffective president whose two terms in office were rocked by racial conflict and corruption scandals. Website: www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex.The Way We Live Now
Producing organizations: BBC, WGBH. Episodes: 6 x 60. Status: postproduction. Major funder: ExxonMobil. Executive producer for WGBH: Rebecca Eaton. Producer for BBC: Nigel Stafford-Clark. Writer: Andrew Davies. Contact: Steven Ashley, steven_ashley@wgbh.org. • David Suchet stars in this ExxonMobil Masterpiece Theatre presentation, which adapts Anthony Trollope's epic Victorian novel about the great financier, member of Parliament, and swindler Agustus Melmott. Website: www.pbs.org/masterpiece.Whispers of Angels
Producing organizations: Teleduction Inc. and Quaker Hill Historic Preservation Foundation. Expected distributor: APT. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: production. Budget: $900,000. Major funders: DuPont, Discover Card. Producer/director: Sharon Kelly Baker. Editor: Julie Pfeifenroth. Contact: Sharon Kelly Baker, sbaker@teleduction.com, 302-429-0303. • The documentary tells the story of the crucial Eastern Line of the Underground Railroad and its role in the 19th-century anti-slavery movement in America. Website: www.whispersofangels.com.
Summer 2002
Airstrip One
Producing organizations: Principal Films and OPB. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: R&D. Budget: $550,000. Executive producers: Richard Sattin, Rod Caird. Contact: Paula Mason, masonopb@aol.com, 609-924-4955. • In May 1945 the U.S. Air Force had 17,000 airplanes and 450,000 personnel operating from bases in England. It left an indelible mark on Britain's post-war history. This series examines that legacy. Online component planned.Aleutians: Cradle of the Storms
Producing organizations: OPB and Natural History New Zealand. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: Completed. Budget: $1 million. Major funders: PBS, Natural History New Zealand. Executive producer for OPB: John Grant. Executive producer for NHNZ: Neil Harraway. Producer/writer: Beth Harrington. Director/photographer: Mike Single. Contact: David Davis, david_davis@opb.org, 503-293-1959. • This program, which will air in both high-definition and standard digital formats, explores the natural and human history of one of the world's wildest, most beautiful, and most biologically productive archipelagos.Back to the Floor
Producing organizations: OPB, BBC Business. Episodes: 6 x 30. Status: production. Budget: $900,000. Major funders: PBS, BBC. Executive producer: Bill Grist. Contact: John Lindsay, lindsayopb@aol.com, 609-924-8686. • The observational series documents CEOs who return to the junior ranks of the companies they run and their experiences with other staff and customers. Online component planned.Forgotten
Producing organizations: London Weekend Television in association with WGBH/Mystery! Episodes: 3 x 60. Status: postproduction. Major funder: PBS. Series executive producer: Rebecca Eaton. Series host: Diana Rigg. Contact: Steven Ashley, steven_ashley@wgbh.org, 617-300-2518. • Mystery! presents a contemporary story about two child slayings separated by 20 years, starring Amanda Burton and Paul McGann. Website: www.pbs.org/mystery.The Inspector Lynley Mysteries: A Great Deliverance
Producing organizations: WGBH and BBC co-producers. Episodes: 2 x 90. Status: postproduction. Major funder: PBS. Series executive producer: Rebecca Eaton. Series host: Diana Rigg. Contact: Steven Ashley, steven_ashley@wgbh.org, 617-300-2518. • This Mystery! offering introduces the detective duo of Inspector Thomas Lynley (Nathaniel Parker) and Sgt. Barbara Havers (Sharon Small), based on the best-selling mysteries of Elizabeth George. He is suave, sophisticated and the eighth Earl of Asherton. She is rumpled, resentful and working class. Theirs is a marriage made in headquarters. Website: www.pbs.org/mystery.Luther
Producing organizations: Lion Television in association with PBS and Devillier Donegan Enterprises. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: preproduction. Executive producers: Richard Bradley for Lion Television, Ron Devillier and Brian Donegan for DDE. Producer/director: Cassian Harrison. Contact: Ken O'Keefe, DDE, 202-686-3980. • Few men have changed the course of history like Martin Luther. Filmed in Germany, at the most important sites of Luther's life, and in Rome, the center of power with which he struggled, Luther brings to life a pivotal moment in the history of Western civilization. Website: www.pbs.org/empires.The Mrs. Bradley Mysteries
Producing organizations: WGBH and BBC America, co-producers. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: postproduction. Major funder: PBS. Series executive producer: Rebecca Eaton. Series host: Diana Rigg. Contact: Steven Ashley, steven_ashley@wgbh.org, 617-300-2518. • Diana Rigg returns in new episodes of the 1920s-era crime-solving psychologist Adela Bradley in this Mystery! presentation, based on the whodunits of Gladys Mitchell. The crimes range from an eradicated educator at a fancy girls' school to slasher slayings at a circus to a ritual rubout at a seaside resort. Website: www.pbs.org/mystery.PBS Worldwide, w.t.
Producing station: WNET. Episodes: 10 x 60. Status: funding. Executive producer: Stephen Segaller. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • A weekly series of timely, international, single-subject, one-hour documentary programs hosted by Bill Moyers. [See separate article.]Rocks with Wings
Producing organizations: Shiprock Productions and OPB. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: Completed. Budget: $1.2 million, including $100,000 for outreach. Major funders: Native American Public Telecommunications, CPB, PBS, Ford Foundation. Executive producer for OPB: David Davis. Producer/director: Rick Derby. Contact: David Davis, david_davis@opb.org, 503-293-1959. • This is the story of the Lady Chieftains, a Navajo girls high school basketball team, and their charismatic African-American coach, as these perennial losers transform themselves into state champions. The documentary explores complex issues of race and culture as played out on the basketball court. Outreach targets are communities concerned with race and multiculturalism and youth. Online component in development.Young Doctor Freud
Producing organizations: David Grubin Productions in association with PBS and Devillier Donegan Enterprises. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: postproduction. Executive producers: Ron Devillier and Brian Donegan for DDE. Producer/director/writer: David Grubin. Contact: Ken O'Keefe, DDE, 202-686-3980. • Covering the years from his birth to the publication of The Interpretation of Dreams (1856-1900), Young Doctor Freud examines the early life of Sigmund Freud and his development of the revolutionary psychoanalytic ideas that became part of the fabric of 20th-century life and thought. Filmed on location in Europe, this special combines original cinematography, expert commentary, Freud's photos and words, and impressionistic recreations.
Fall 2002
Almost a Woman
Producing organizations: WGBH, ALT Films. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: postproduction. Major funders: CPB, PBS, ExxonMobil. Executive producer for ALT Films: Marian Rees. Executive producer for WGBH: Rebecca Eaton. Director: Betty Kaplan. Contact: Steven Ashley, steven_ashley@wgbh.org. • This presentation of ExxonMobil Masterpiece Theatre's American Collection is a poignant coming-of-age story based on Esmeralda Santiago's bestselling novel about her own triumphant journey into womanhood. Outreach is to educators; online teaching materials can be found at ncteamericancollection.org. Website: pbs.org/masterpiece/americancollection.Becoming American: The Chinese Experience
Producing organization: Public Affairs Television Inc. Presenting station: WNET. Episodes: 3 x 90. Status: production. Executive editors: Bill Moyers, Judith Davidson Moyers. Executive producer: Felice Firestone. Series producer: Thomas Lennon. Producers: Joseph Angier, Steve Cheng, Mi Ling Tsui. Editors: Ruby Yang, Li-Shin Yu. Executive director of special projects: Deborah Rubenstein. Contact: Deborah Rubenstein, rubenst@thirteen.org, 212-560-6952. • The series unfolds the dramatic saga of the Chinese who came to this country from its earliest settlement until the present, and how they enriched the American culture, economy and experience.Elegant Universe, w.t.
Producing organization: David Hickman Films Ltd. for WGBH/Nova. Episodes: 3 x 60. Status: production. Major funders: National Science Foundation; Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. Executive producer: Paula S. Apsell. Series producer: David Hickman. Producer: Joseph McMaster. Host: Brian Greene. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • It's the holy grail of physics--the search for ultimate law and order in the universe. And in the last few years, excitement has grown among scientists as they've pursued a revolutionary new approach to unifying nature's forces, called string theory. Physicist Brian Greene, author of the best-selling Elegant Universe, demonstrates his rare gift for conveying physics in everyday language in this Nova production. Website: www.pbs.org/wgbh/Nova.The Forsyte Saga
Producing organizations: Granada and WGBH. Episodes: 1 x 120, 4 x 60. Status: production. Major funder: ExxonMobil. Producer: Sita Williams. Executive producer for WGBH: Rebecca Eaton. Contact: Steven Ashley, steven_ashley@wgbh.org. • This all-new, all-star adaptation for ExxonMobil Masterpiece Theatre stars Damien Lewis and Ioan Gruffudd. The original series, based on the popular novels of James Galsworthy, was produced in 1967 and was the precursor to Masterpiece Theatre. Website: www.pbs.org/masterpiece. [See separate article.]Galileo's Daughter, w.t.
Producing organization: Green Umbrella Ltd. for WGBH/Nova. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: postproduction. Major funder: National Science Foundation. Executive producer: Paula S. Apsell. Producers: David Axelrod. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • This powerful story will be told in the words of both Galileo and his daughter, Marie-Celeste, interspersed with interviews from authorities on Galileo, his science and his life. The Nova production will set out his arguments that the Earth moves around the sun. Website: www.pbs.org/wgbh/Nova.George Shrinks
Producing organization: Nelvana. Episodes: 40 x 30. Status: 13 complete, 27 in production. Executive producers: William Joyce, Michael Hirsh, Patrick Loubert, Clive A. Smith, Wallace Wong. Supervising producers: Stephen Hodgins, Patricia Burns, Jocelyn Hamilton. Director: Doug Thoms. Contact: Margo Raport, margor@nelvana.com, 416-588-5571. • George may be only 3 inches tall, but he never sweats the small stuff. The animated children's series based on William Joyce's books proved so popular in PBS' Saturday Bookworm Bunch [separate article] that it's becoming a weekday series.The Harriman Alaska Expedition Retraced: A Century of Change, w.t.
Producing organizations: Florentine Films/Hott Productions Inc. in association with the Clark Science Center at Smith College. Presenting station: KTOO, Juneau, Alaska. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: postproduction. Budget: $1.5 million, including $125,000 outreach budget. Major funders: Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust, Andreas Foundation, Town Creek Foundation, Paul Allen Foundation, Mary H. Rumsey Foundation. Executive producers: Lawrence Hott, Tom Litwin. Producer: Lawrence Hott. Editor: Diane Garey. Contact: Lawrence R. Hott, hott@florentinefilms.org, 413-268-7934. • In 1899 Edward Harriman took an elite crew of scientists and artists on a two-month survey of the Alaskan coast. In 2001 this project retraced Harriman's route with a crew that paralleled the original expedition members. The series will weave together the story of the original cruise, the biographies of its most compelling characters, a comparison of Alaska today with the Alaska of 1899, and commentary by scientists on the 2001 cruise. Ancillary activities include a website, CD-ROM, study guide, and companion book. Outreach is to science, anthropology, history, and geography teachers and students. Website: www.pbs.org/harriman.The Journey Home
Producing station: WETA, Washington. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: fundraising. Executive producer: Jeff Bieber. Producers: Renee Tajima-Pena, Lourdes Portillio. Contact: Dewey Blanton, dblanton@weta.com. • Three Americans of different ethnic backgrounds examine their efforts to embrace American society while maintaining strong links with their native cultures. Online component, outreach activities planned.Kingdom of David
Producing organizations: OPB and Red Hill Productions in association with PBS and Devillier Donegan Enterprises. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: production. Budget: $2.2 million. Major funders: DDE, PBS. Executive producers: David Davis for OPB, Ron Devillier and Brian Donegan for DDE. Producer/writer/director: Carl Byker. Producer: Mitch Wilson. Contact: Ken O'Keefe, DDE, 202-686-3980. • This series tells the story of the development of the Jewish faith, and of the extraordinary men and women who shaped a new religion. Traveling to various parts of the Middle East, this Empires series reveals new research on the people and events depicted in the Bible and provides new insight into how the Jews became Jews. Companion book planned. Website: www.pbs.org/empires.Latest Word
Producing organizations: Twin Cities Public Television, Popular Front. Episodes: 21 x 30. Status: R&D. Budget: $2.5 million. Executive producer: John Schott. Contact: John Schott jschott@carleton.edu. • The series aspires to bring a national audience the latest on books and ideas in a format that breathes new life into the television book show genre. Online component planned, outreach activities will be through a network of book clubs.The Life and Adventures of Charles Dickens
Producing organizations: BBC and WNET. Episodes: 3 x 60. Status: preproduction. Executive producers: Jac Venza, Margaret Smilow. Producer: Andrea Miller. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • This series explores the complexity of Dickens' inner life--his relationships, romantic obsessions, creative drive and ambitious ego. Producers interweave contemporary location footage, skillful dramatization, visual effects and excerpts from BBC adaptations of Dickens' classic works.Martin Yan's Chinatowns
Producing organization: A La Carte Communications. Expected distributor: APT. Episodes: 26 x 30. Status: production. Executive producers: Geoffrey Drummond, Nat Katzman. Contact: Hope Reed, hopereed@msn.com, 617-242-1389. • Visiting Chinatowns around the world for inspiration, Yan presents an all-new approach to Asian cooking with a focus on simple techniques and user-friendly ingredients. Companion book planned. Website: www.alacartetv.com.Matters of Race
Producing organization: Roja Productions. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: production, postproduction. Budget: $3 million, plus $500,000 to $750,000 for outreach. Major funders: National Minority Consortia, PBS, CPB Diversity Fund, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. Executive producer: Orlando Bagwell. Series producer: Jacquie Jones. Producers: Orlando Bagwell and Camilla Haddad for show 1; John Valadez for show 2; Jacquie Jones, Sindi Gordon for show 3; Phil Bertelsen, Dustinn Craig for show 4. Contact: Michelle Materre, >michelle@rojaproductions.com, 212-426-2700.> • The series explores the complex demands of our rapidly changing multiracial, multicultural society. Race, culture, power, and identity are at the center of the films, which will explore how we envision our society in the next century. Outreach plans include a public radio and TV initiative to guide communities in developing content and forums that address their particular problems. Online, educational components planned. Website: www.roja.tv.Muhammad: In the Footsteps of a Prophet
Producing organizations: Kikim Media, Unity Productions Foundation. Presenting station: KQED. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: production. Budget: $2.5 million, plus $1 million outreach budget. Executive producer/producer/director: Michael Schwarz. Producers/creators: Michael Wolfe, Alex Kronemer. Contact: Michael Schwarz, mschwarz@kikim.com. • A portrait of a 7th-century prophet who continues to shape our world through his influence on the lives of 7 million American Muslims. Online component, extensive outreach campaign planned with mini-grants to stations to encourage community dialogue on interfaith issues. The Council on Islamic Education is helping develop curriculum-based companion materials. Website: www.kikim.com. [See separate article.]Our Genes/Our Choices, w.t.
Producing organization: of Fred Friendly Seminars Inc. Presenting station: WNET. Expected distributor: PBS Plus. Episodes: 3 x 60. Status: production. Major funders: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, Sloan Foundation, U.S. Dept. of Energy. Executive producer: Richard Kilberg. Executive in charge: Stephen Segaller. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • The series will explore privacy of personal genetic information, disease treatment, "improvement" of babies' genes, cloning, and the impact and meaning of behavior-related genes. Outreach partnerships with national organizations, national video teleconference, viewer guide, website planned.Peter and Paul
Producing organizations: Koval Films in association with PBS and Devillier Donegan Enterprises. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: preproduction. Executive producers: Ron Devillier and Brian Donegan for DDE. Producer: Patricia Asté. Writer/director: Margaret Koval. Contact: Ken O'Keefe, DDE, 202-686-3980. • Combining the words of Paul and other ancient writers with those of contemporary scholars, and using dramatic reenactments filmed in Europe and the Middle East, this Empires special explores how two men, and the followers of Christ they represented, weathered crippling disagreements and obstacles to create one of history's most astonishing religious movements. Website: www.pbs.org/empires.The Rape of Europa, w.t.
Producing organizations: Actual Films and OPB. Episodes: 3 x 60. Status: fundraising. Budget: $ 1.5 million. Major funder: NEH, for R&D. Executive producers: Bonni Cohen and Richard Berge for Actual Films, David Davis for OPB. Contact: David Davis, david_davis@opb.org, 503-293-1959. • This series recounts the story of Nazi German's looting of European art treasures and efforts to find and restore these art works to their rightful owners. Outreach component, website planned.Real Food Live! With the Two Hot Tamales
Producing organizations: KCET in association with The Big Producers. Episodes: 13 x 30. Status: fundraising. Executive producers: Nahnatchka Khan, Sue Rose. KCET executive producer: Bohdan Zachary. Contact: Bohdan Zachary, bzachary@kcet.org, 323-953-5440. • The Two Hot Tamales--hosts Mary Sue Milliken and Susan Feniger--visit a home each week where the owner has been given $100 to buy groceries. The hosts then create a fabulous meal with what they have to work with. Website, newsletter planned.The Rise and Fall of Jim Crow, w.t.
Correction: This series appeared in the October Pipeline under an incorrect release date. Producing organizations: WNET and Videoline/Quest Productions. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: production. Major funders: NEH, CPB, New York Life. Executive producer: William R. Grant. Other producers: Richard Wormser, Bill Jersey, Sam Pollard. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • The story of the African-American struggle for freedom from the end of the Civil War to the rise of the civil rights movement in the 1950s.Smithsonian's Stradivarius, w.t.
Producing organization: Smithsonian Productions. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: preproduction and scripting. Budget: $800,000. Designed for pledge. Executive producer/writer: Wesley Horner. Senior producer/writer: James Arntz. Director of photography: John Paulson. Host: Joshua Bell. Contact: Wesley Horner, 508-487-6285. • This performance documentary celebrates the most famous violin maker in history, whose instruments are some of the most valuable, beautiful objects ever made. It's based on the Smithsonian Stradivarius collection, the world's largest. Outreach targeted at high school music teachers and general education. CD, DVD, teachers' guide planned, in cooperation with the National Association for Music Education.The Toy Castle
Producing organization: Sound Ventures International Inc. Presenting station: WTVS, Detroit. Episodes: 26 x 30. Status: 13 complete, 13 in production. Budget: $80,000 per episode. Executive producer: Neil Bregman. Contact: Diane Bliss, dbliss@dptv.org, 313-876-8365. • A cast of colorful characters tells stories through mime, dance, music and narration. The series is designed to help young children increase social and learning skills and appreciate diversity. Website: www.thetoycastle.com.War Plane, w.t.
Producing station: WNET. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: R&D. Executive producer: Beth Hoppe. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • This series explores the technological developments, breakthrough inventions, personal stories and unprecedented cooperation between nations that have shaped air warfare and transformed the way battle is waged. Online component planned.What's Working, w.t.
Producing organizations: WTTW National Productions and Fast Company Magazine. Episodes: 13 x 30. Status: fundraising. Budget: $1.3 million. Executive producer: Frederick Schneider. Executive in charge, Mary Beth Hughes. Contact: Mary Beth Hughes, mbhughes@wttw.com. • Inspired by the stories and profiles in the award-winning magazine Fast Company, this series explores living and working in the new economy. It profiles the dreamers, leaders and inNovators who are changing the way life, work and business are conducted in a digital world.
Sometime in 2002
Domestic Violence
Producing organization: Zipporah Films. Presenting station: WNET. Episodes: 2 x 180. Status: postproduction. Major funders: Ford Foundation, CPB, PBS, Irene Diamond Fund, Edna M. Clark Foundation, Open Society Institute, George Gund Foundation, Joyce Foundation. Executive producer: Fred Wiseman. Executive in charge: Stephen Segaller. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • This documentary details the struggles of women who seek refuge at a Tampa, Fla., shelter and how they cope with abuse. Website, brochures and other outreach services planned.Muslims, w.t.
Producing organization: Independent Production Fund. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: production. Budget: $2.1 million, plus $750,000 for outreach. Major funders: Pew Charitable Trusts. William and Mary Greve Foundation. Executive producer: Alvin H. Perlmutter. Producers: Graham Judd, Anisa Mehdi. Associate producers: Dina Hossain, Hassan Fatah. Coordinating producer: John Schwally. Contact: Alvin H. Perlmutter, ahp@ipf45.org. • This documentary, filmed in Europe, Asia, the Mideast, Africa and the United States, will offer America's most focused look at what it means to be Muslim at the turn of the 21st century. Online component, viewers' guides, and junior and senior high school teachers guides planned; outreach activities will include community forums. [See separate article.]Notes from the Field
Producing organization: Skipping Stone Entertainment. Expected distributor: CPM. Episodes: 6 x 30. Status: preproduction, scripting, fundraising. Producer/director/writer/host: Tom Trinley. Contact: Tom Trinley, trinpic@earthlink.net. • Unlike traditional nature programs that focus on a natural world separate from a human world, this series guides viewers through multidimensional environmental issues with in-depth, provocative storytelling. It combines elements of history, science, geography and travel. Website: www.notesfromthefield.net.Season of Fire, w.t.
Producing organization: Lone Wolf Productions for WGBH/Nova. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: postproduction. Major funder: National Science Foundation. Executive producer: Paula S. Apsell. Series producer: Judith Vecchione. Director: Kurt Wolfinger. Producers: Rushmore DeNooyer, Judith Vecchione. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • Filmed during the disastrous fire season of 2000, this Nova production joins smokejumpers as they battle to contain the worst wildfire outbreaks in half a century. The show combines action scenes with a look at the long relationship between humans and fire, a relationship that is forcing us into increasingly difficult ecological and social choices. Website: www.pbs.org/wgbh/Nova.West 47th Street
Producing organization: Lichtenstein Creative Media Inc. Episodes: 1 x 108. Status: Completed, in festival release. Budget: $1.1 million, with a $400,000 outreach budget. Major funders: New York Foundation for the Arts, van Ameringen Foundation, National Institute of Mental Health, Sihler Mental Health Foundation, Constance E. Lieber, Hemmerling Foundation, Marion E. Kenworthy-Sarah H. Swift Foundation, Stocker Foundation, Dammann Fund, Penelope Johnston, Wellspring Foundation, Telecare Corp., Peterson Foundation, Brian A. Bass Memorial Fund, Janssen Pharmaceutica, Eli Lilly and Co., Zeneca Pharmaceuticals, Hoechst Marion Roussel Inc. Producers/directors: Bill Lichtenstein, June Peoples. Contact: Bill Lichtenstein, BL@LCMEDIA.com, 212-765-6600. • Set at Fountain House, a rehabilitation program in New York's Hell's Kitchen for people with serious mental illness, this film offers a window into the daily lives of four people with serious mental illness--on and off the street, in and out of hospitals and homeless shelters. Their story, compiled from 350 hours of tape shot over three years, is presented without interviews or narration. Extensive community outreach campaign is being designed in cooperation with Active Voice, a new community engagement unit of American Documentary Inc. Website: www.W47th.com.
Winter/Spring 2003
American High
Producing organization: Actual Reality Pictures in association with Twin Cities Public Television. Episodes: 13 x 30. Status: R&D, fundraising. Executive producer: R.J.Cutler. Series producer: David Van Taylor. Consulting producers: Dan Partland, Ted Skillman. Contact: Gerry Richman, grichman@tpt.org. • PBS extends its teen "reality" strand in a new series following inner-city high school students in New York. Parents guide planned. Website: www.pbs.org/americanhigh.American Repertory Television Theater
Producing organizations: KQED and AngelArk Productions. Episodes: 5 x 120. Status: R&D. Executive producers: Jason Alexander, Danny L. McGuire. Contact: Elizabeth Pepin, epepin@kqed.org, 415-553-2340. • Modeled after successful American regional theaters such as the American Conservatory Theater, ARRT will broadcast five to six theatrical events each season featuring celebrity film/television performers working in tandem with a core company of repertory actors.American Voices
Producing organizations: KTEH, San Jose, and Gigantic Pictures. Episodes: 5 x 60. Status: production, scripting, fundraising. Budget: $2 million. Major funders: CPB, NEA, Latino Public Broadcasting. Executive producers for Gigantic Pictures: Jason Orans and Brian Devine. Executive in charge: Tom Fanella. Contact: Jason Orans, Gigantic Pictures, giganticny@aol.com, 212-925-5075. • Filmed adaptations of American short stories reflect the country's unique and ethnically diverse cultural heritage. The first film, based on "The Suitor," by Julia Alvarez, is completed. Also planned are adaptations of works by Shakil Sharma, Alice Walker and Philip Roth. Online component planned.Berlin, w.t.
Producing station: WNET. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: R&D. Executive producer: William Grant. Producers: Bob Kotlowitz, Jack Sameth. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • A personal and evocative film portrait of the city by an American writer who lives there. Ten years after the fall of the Berlin Wall and a half-century after the Holocaust, this program excavates and investigates historical traces of Berlin's Jewish history.The Blues, w.t.
Producing organizations and major funders: Clear Blue Sky Productions and Roadmovies. Episodes: 6 x 60. Status: production. Budget: $6 million. Executive producers: Martin Scorsese, Jody Patton, Ulrich Felsberg, Series producer: Alex Gibney. Producer: Margaret Bodde. Co-producer: Eric Robison. Contact: Belinda Clasen, belinda@601nw.com, 212-352-3010. • Spike Lee, Charles Burnett, Wim Wenders, Mark Levin and Mike Figgis each direct an episode of this cinematic celebration of the blues. (A sixth director will be recruited.) Outreach activities targeted at high school and college audiences planned. Companion book, CD box set, DVD, website planned.Chicago: City of the Century, w.t.
Producing organizations: WGBH and WTTW, in association with the Chicago Historical Society. Episodes: 2 x 120. Status: postproduction. Budget: $2.7 million, including online component; $100,000 for outreach. Major funders: Illinois Dept. of Commerce and Community Affairs/Illinois Bureau of Tourism, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Liberty Mutual, Scotts Co., CPB. Executive producer/producer: Austin Hoyt. Co-producer: Patricia Garcia-Rios. Series executive producer: Margaret Drain. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • This American Experience documentary, based on the book by the same name by Donald L. Miller, tells the story of the men and women whose innovation, ingenuity, determination and ruthlessness created industrial empires in a marshy wasteland, transforming Chicago into one of the most vibrant, energetic and powerful cities in the United States. Online teachers guide planned, DVD, extensive outreach activities through WTTW. Website: www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex. [See separate article.]The Congregation, w.t.
Producing organizations: WETA, and Video Verité. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: preproduction. Budget: $1.6 million. Major funders: Lilly Endowment Inc., Eugene B. Casey Foundation, CPB, PBS. WETA executive producers: Dalton Delan, Richard Thomas. Producers: Alan and Susan Raymond. Contact: Richard Thomas, rthomas@weta.com, 703-998-2638. • This program profiles a mainstream Protestant congregation whose members grapple with social outreach while searching for spiritual meaning in their own lives. Outreach activities will include local discussions, online symposium; outreach targeted at clergy and lay leaders of congregations of all denominations, and college sociology and religion faculty. Discussion leaders guide, audiotape planned.Corps of Discovery II: The Lewis and Clark Trail at the Bicentennial
Producing organizations: OPB and Nebraska ETV. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: fundraising. Budget: $1 million. Executive producer for OPB: David Davis. Executive producer for NETV: David Feingold. Contact: David Davis, david_davis@opb.org, 503-293-1959. • These programs retrace the journey of Lewis and Clark, examining how the territory has changed over the last 200 years, with special attention to the rivers, wildlife, plants, and the status of Native American tribes along the route. Educational materials to include 6 x 20 educational versioning, curriculum guides, website, companion radio documentaries.The Cosmic Adventures of Billie & Miles, w.t.
Producing organizations: WTTW National Productions, Nelvana. Episodes: 26 x 30. Status: R&D. Budget: $10 million, including $1.5 million for outreach. Executive producer: Fred Schneider. Producers: Scott Dyer, Kim Cleary, Pam Lehn. Educational content adviser: Ian Saunders. Executive in charge: Mary Beth Hughes. Contact: Mary Beth Hughes, mbhughes@wttw.com. • The series combines 3-D animation with content-rich storylines to make complex science concepts understandable. A 4-minute segment concluding each episode will feature real kids involved in real experiments and discussion about that episode's subject. Outreach, to be targeted to 8-year-olds, will be anchored by a science club called The Space Dog Academy, as featured in the series. Kids can be Academy members through their schools, after-school activities or on their own. Website, quarterly newsletters planned.Dances of Life
Producing organizations: Tatge/Lasseur Productions and Pacific Islanders in Communications. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: fundraising. Budget: $1.2 million. Major funders: PIC. Executive producer: Carlyn Tani. Director/producer: Catherine Tatge. Producer: Dominque Lasseur. Contact: Dominque Lasseur, tatgeprod@tatgeprod.com, 212-222-5677. • By focusing on the remarkable dance traditions of the Pacific Islands, this show explores the cultural diversity of the region.Death Valley: An American Mirage
Producing organizations: KQED, Gold Creek Films. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: fundraising. Budget: $ 1.2 million. Executive producer: Danny L. McGuire. Producers: Ted Faye, John Fox. Contact: Elizabeth Pepin, epepin@kqed.org, 415-553-2340. • The dramatic geography and human history of Death Valley is used to explore the myth of the American West.Empire of the Cross
Producing station: OPB. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: research, fundraising. Budget: $2.2 million. Executive producer: David Davis. Contact: David Davis, david_davis@opb.org, 503-293-1959. • Through the lens of the Roman Catholic Church, this series explores 12 centuries of European history, from the Emperor Constantine to the Holy Roman Empire to the Protestant Reformation. Major outreach and educational elements planned, including educational versioning, online component.Global Aging, w.t.
Producing organizations: WNET, in association with Brook Lapping Productions. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: funding. Executive producer: Stephen Segaller. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • The documentary addresses the rapid aging of the world's population, the potential consequences, and some possible solutions to its substantial challenges. Website, viewers guide and outreach activities with partner organizations planned.Ground War, w.t.
Producing station: WNET. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: R&D. Executive producer: Beth Hoppe. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • The series surveys the greatest technological achievements of ground warfare, allowing viewers to better understand the innovations, strategies and events that have changed the way war is waged. Online component planned.The Inspired House
Producing organizations: WTTW National Productions, The Taunton Press. Episodes: 13 x 30. Status: fundraising. Budget: $1.5 million. Executive producer: Frederick Schneider. Series producer Dana Popoff. Executive in charge: Mary Beth Hughes. Contact: Mary Beth Hughes, mbhughes@wttw.com. • This "why-to" shelter-oriented series will introduce viewers to the world of authentic classic design for interiors, furniture, lighting, decorating and more. Each program is crafted to inform and inspire viewers about the value and benefit of design.Kids World Sports
Producing organizations: WETA, SFX, Breakthrough Films. Episodes: 26 x 30. Status: R&D. Executive producers: Dalton Delan, David S. Thompson. Producers: Kevin Gillis, Stephen Hecht, Ira Levy. Contact: Dewey Blanton, dblanton@weta.com. • This series travels the world to find the compelling stories of kids and their passion for sports, while highlighting the positive and enduring relationship between kids and sports.Lasso the Wind, w.t.
Producing organizations: Oxford Film Co.-U.S. and LongshotTV. Presenting station: OPB. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: fundraising. Budget: $1.3 million, plus $100,000 for outreach. Major funder: PBS. Director/executive producer: Rick Stevenson. Co-executive producer for OPB: David Davis. Writer/presenter: Timothy Egan. Producer: Lisa C. Smith. Contact: Lisa C. Smith, LassoTV@aol.com, 215-247-4721. • This documentary feature film chronicles one man's quest to uncover an American West that goes beyond the dated narrative of cowboys and conquest and remaking the land. Based on the book of the same name by New York Times correspondent Timothy Egan, it is a journey of discovery--via highway, horseback, river raft and wilderness hike. Online component planned; outreach to target high school students, teachers and the general public.The Life of James Earl Carter, w.t.
Producing organization: WGBH/American Experience. Episodes: 1 x 150. Status: production. Producer: Adriana Bosch. Co-producer: David Condon. Series executive producer: Margaret Drain. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • This documentary tracks the ambitions of a boy nicknamed Hot Shot from his childhood in rural Georgia through his turbulent years in the Oval Office to his post-presidential career as world statesman. Website: www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex.Lost in the Woods: The History of the Fairy Tale
Producing station: OPB. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: R&D. Budget: $1.6 million. Executive producer: David Davis. Contact: David Davis, david_davis@opb.org, 503-293-1959. • This series follows the most beloved fairy tales from the Middle Ages to modern times, exploring their history and their raw psychological power. From peasants' fireside tales to the moralistic yarns of the Grimms to Disney's animated escapism and beyond, these episodes explore the evolving magic of the fairy tale.The Meaning of Food
Producers: Sue McLaughlin, executive producer; Vivian Kleiman and Karin Williams, producers. Presenting station: OPB. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: fundraising. Budget: $1.6 million. Major funders: R&D funding from PBS and Pacific Islanders in Communications. Contact: David Davis, david_davis@opb.org, 503-293-1959. • An entertaining and sometimes humorous look at the role of food in the multicultural landscape of America and the intricate social and personal rituals of our lives.Metaline Falls
Producing organization: LongshotTV in association with KSPS, Spokane. Expected distributor: ITVS. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: fundraising. Budget: $200,000. Major funders: Producer/director/writer: L.C. Smith. Co-writer: Buzz Bissinger. Director of photography: Valerie Vozza. Contact: Lisa Smith, LongshotTV@aol.com, 215-247-4721. • A portrait of an isolated, economically strapped, rural community in all its complexity, beauty, joy and pathos. The story is told through the intimate video documentation of the daily lives of four or five residents who represent a cross-section of Metaline Falls, Wash., population 237.The New Americans, w.t.
Producing organization: Kartemquin Educational Films, with co-production assistance from Asian Women United. Episodes: 6 x 60. Status: Production. Budget: more than $2 million, plus $2 million outreach budget. Major funders: MacArthur Foundation, Annie E. Casey Foundation, CPB, PBS, Soros Documentary Fund, Woods Foundation, Asian Women United Fund. Executive producers/directors: Gordon Quinn, Steve James. Series producer: Gita Saedi. Directors: Susana Aikin, Carlos Aparicio, Indu Krishnan, Renee Tajima-Pena, Jerry Blumenthal. Segment co-producer: Evangeline Griego. Contact: Gita Saedi, gita@kartemquin.com. • This series tells stories of six very different immigrants and refugee groups over three years, starting before they leave their homelands and following them through their first years in the United States. An ambitious outreach campaign is being produced by Television Race Initiative/Active Voice and Outreach Extensions, including tool kits, community forums, companion book, partnerships with libraries, museums, and schools. Websites: www.pbs.org/newamericans, www.kartemquin.com.Nursing in America, w.t.
Producing organizations: OPB and Double Exposure. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: research, fundraising. Budget: $1.6 million. Executive producer for OPB: David Davis. Executive producer for Double Exposure: Andrew Bethell. Contact: Paula Mason, masonopb@aol.com, 609-924-4955. • This series of observational documentaries follows a dedicated group of nurses as they struggle to provide quality care in an era of professional crisis. In development: website, educational versioning and outreach components targeting educational and health institutions.Oil: The World over a Barrel, w.t.
Producing organizations: WNET, InVision Productions. Episodes: 3 x 60. Status: funding. Executive producer: Stephen Segaller. Producer: Bill Cran. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • The documentary looks at oil companies and their operation in the world's most difficult and dangerous areas, facing technological, political and moral barriers on a giant scale. Website, teachers, viewers guides planned.Reporting America at War
Producing organizations: WETA and Insignia Films. Episodes: 3 x 60. Status: preproduction. Major funder: NEH. Executive producers: Dalton Delan, David S. Thompson. Producer: Stephen Ives. Contact: Dewey Blanton, dblanton@weta.com. • Award-winning filmmaker Stephen Ives looks at the response of American journalism to the major conflicts of the 20th century, from the Spanish-American War through the Persian Gulf conflict.The Search for Camelot, w.t.
Producing station: OPB. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: R&D. Budget: $1 million. Executive producer: David Davis. Contact: David Davis, david_davis@opb.org, 503-293-1959. • Did King Arthur actually exist, and was there, in fact, a Camelot? If so, where was it located? This special investigates the fascinating historical and archeological evidence behind this famous legend, as historians joust over the true origins of Arthur and his Knights of the Roundtable.So You Want To Be a . . .
Producing organizations: Double Exposure and OPB. Episodes: 6 x 60. Status: Research, fundraising. Budget: $700,000. Executive producer for Double Exposure: Andrew Bethell. Executive producer for OPB: David Davis. Producer: Contact: Paula Mason, masonopb@aol.com, 609-924-4955. • These observational documentaries follow determined individuals hoping to enter some of the world's most challenging professions as they endure the rigors of training and face life as rookies. Website, educational versioning, outreach components targeting schools and career planners are in development.States of Mind
Producing organization: SCPTV Worldwide (Scott Craig Productions Television). Expected distributor: PBS Plus. Episodes: 13 x 30. Status: fundraising. Budget: $1.65 million. Executive producer: Howard Motyl. Series producer: Scott Craig. Writer: Brad Herzog. Editor: Michael O'Brien. Contact: Howard Motyl, howard_scptv@interaccess.com, 312-421-7711. • Based on the book of the same name by Brad Herzog, this series re-creates the author's road trip to find the virtues of America in small towns named for those virtues. The producers visit, among other places, Faith, S.D., Hope, Miss., and Love, Va.Switch, w.t.
Producing organizations: Center for New American Media. Presenting station: WETA. Episodes: 3 x 60. Status: R&D. Co-producers: Louis Alvarez, Andrew Kolker. Contact: Center for New American Media, mail@cnam.com, 212-630-9971. • In this documentary series, people who strongly identify with one side of a hot-button issue are sent off to live with people who strongly identify with the other side and vice-versa.To Hell and Back, w.t.
Producing station: OPB. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: R&D. Budget: $800,000. Executive producer: David Davis. Contact: David Davis, david_davis@opb.org, 503-293-1959. • This series explores humanity's darkest imaginings of eternal damnation, from Zoroaster in 2,000 B.C. to the present. Through the arts and popular culture, history and world religions, we tour the world's scariest, nastiest place. May include website and interactive elements, along with educational versioning.The Transcontinental Railroad, w.t.
Producing organization: Hiaden Hill Productions Inc. for American Experience. Presenting station: WGBH. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: production. Series executive producer: Margaret Drain. Producer: Mark Zwonitzer. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • This American Experience documentary tells the story of one of the greatest engineering feats of the 19th century: the building of the transcontinental railroad. Website: www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex.United Nations: Center of the Storm
Producing organizations: David Grubin Productions, WNET. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: funding. Major funder: Coca-Cola. Executive producers: David Grubin, Stephen Segaller. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • A contemporary portrait of the world's most influential and controversial organization, detailing its role in peacekeeping, development and human rights. Community outreach, discussion guide, website and other outreach activities planned.Washington Women
Producing stations: WNET in association with WETA. Episodes: 3 x 60. Status: funding. Executive producer: Stephen Segaller. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • This documentary series explores the lives, careers and day-to-day activities of prominent and less well-known women who have reached the top in American politics, government agencies and other Washington institutions and organizations. Website, teacher/viewer guide, community outreach planned.Weir Cooking in the City
Producing station: KQED. Episodes: 26 x 30. Status: R&D. Executive producer: DeAnne Hamilton. Contact: Elizabeth Pepin, epepin@kqed.org, 415-553-2340. • JoAnne Weir moves her popular cooking show from Wine Country to San Francisco.
Summer 2003
With Liberty for Some
Producing organizations: Video Verité in association with OPB. Episodes: 2 x 120. Status: R&D. Budget: $1 million. Directors: Alan Raymond, Susan Raymond. Writer: Scott Christianson. Contact: John Lindsay, lindsayopb@aol.com, 609-924-8686. • This film is an investigative living history of 500 years of imprisonment in the United States.Fall 2003
The Botany of Desire
Producing organizations: Kikim Media, Buffalo Gap Productions. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: R&D. Executive producer: Michael Schwarz. Producers/directors: Michael Schwarz, Sam Hurst. Reporter: Michael Pollan. Contact: Michael Schwarz, mschwarz@kikim.com. • Based on the best-selling book of the same name by Michael Pollan, this program examines the relationship between plants and people--or nature and civilization--from the plants' point of view. Online component planned.Chautauqua Encounters, w.t.
Producing station: WNED, Buffalo. Episodes: 3 x 60. Status: R&D. Executive producers: Donald K. Boswell, David C. Rotterman. Contact: David C. Rotterman, drotterman@wned.org, 716-845-7003. • Each season, the Chautauqua Institution attracts many of the leading artists to its grounds for the summer season. Produced on location at the institution in Mayville, N.Y, this series explores their encounters with this unique place and culminates with the artists' performance.Contested Ground: American Art in the 20th Century, w.t.
Producing organizations: WETA, Muse Cinema Television, PMI. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: fundraising. Executive producers: Karl Katz, Helen Whitney, Dalton Delan, David S. Thompson. Producer/director: Hart Perry. Contact: Dewey Blanton, dblanton@weta.com. • Shot in high-definition, this series documents the evolution and impact of American art in the 20th century, examining its major movements and figures.Dr. Zhivago
Producing organizations: Granada/WGBH. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: preproduction, scripting. Major funder: ExxonMobil. Producer: Anne Pivcevik. Executive producer for WGBH: Rebecca Eaton. Writer: Andrew Davies. Contact: Steven Ashley, steven_ashley@wgbh.org. • Masterpiece Theatre adapts Boris Pasternak's beloved novel, which centers on Yuri Zhivago, a young doctor during the unfolding Russian Revolution. Website: www.pbs.org/masterpiece.Exploring Time
Producing station: Twin Cities Public Television. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: R&D. Budget: $2.5 million. Major funders: National Science Foundation. Co-executive producers: Richard Hudson, Robert Hone. Contact: Richard Hudson, rhudson@tpt.org. • This series reveals the unseen world of natural change--the multitude of fascinating events that take place beyond the reach of our senses. Website: www.exploringtime.org.The Funnies: A Century of Comic Strips
Producing organizations: Alchemedia Ltd. and KQED. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: R&D. Executive producer: Danny L. McGuire. Producers: Nick and Sari Armington. Contact: Elizabeth Pepin, epepin@kqed.org, 415-553-2340. • This colorful high-definition series takes a lively, nostalgic and socially relevant look at the artists, characters and quirky history of a uniquely American art form--the daily comic strip.Guitar, w.t.
Producing station: WNED, Buffalo. Episodes: 6 x 60. Status: R&D. Executive producers: Donald K. Boswell, David C. Rotterman. Contact: David C. Rotterman, drotterman@wned.org, 716-845-7003. • This performance series features the leading guitarists of our time. Programs will focus on rock, blues and jazz and how the art of the guitar continues to evolve.Hand to Mouth, w.t.
Producing organization: Fleck.TV. Presenting station: KVPT, Fresno. Episodes: 3 x 60. Status: preproduction, fundraising. Budget: $950,000, plus $150,000 for outreach. Major funder: KVPT. Producers: Jane and Robert Fleck. KVPT executive-in-charge: Colin Dougherty. Contact: Jane Fleck, fleck@fleck.tv, 661-298-2000. • This series examines how America's multibillion-dollar market for organic food is colliding with our established chemical-based industrial agriculture, and what lies ahead for our family farms, environment and health. Outreach efforts are being coordinated with Community Alliance With Family Farmers. Educational versioning, teachers guide planned. Website: fleck.tv.My History Is America's History, w.t.
Producing organizations: Wisteria Pictures Inc. Presenting stations: Wisconsin PTV; KBYU, Provo, Utah. Episodes: 1 x 120 (plus local programs of various lengths). Status: Fundraising. Budget: $1.1 million. Major funders: PBS, BPB. Executive producers: Marcy Brown for Wisteria Pictures, Sterling VanWagenen. Contact: Marcy Brown, Wisteria Pictures, wisteriapictures@aol.com, 801-377-0200. • This national-local partnership project will select material from local programs that combine family history stories with the sweeping events of American history. Outreach/educational activities include teaching guides, interactive web materials, and programs and events designed to promote interaction between citizens and organizations, including schools, libraries, museums and historical societies. [See separate article.]Native Americans in the 21st Century, w.t.
Producing organizations: Native American Public Telecommunications, Phil Lucas Productions Inc. Episodes: 3 x 60. Status: production. Budget: $1.1 million. Major funders: R&D funding from Ford Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, CPB. Executive producers: Carol Cornsilk, Phil Lucas. Contact: Carol Cornsilk, NAPT, ccornsilk1@unl.edu, 402-472-3522. • This comprehensive communications and outreach package focuses on how Native Americans will address issues of identity, sovereignty, economic development, cultural survival and more in the new millennium. Interactive website, 13-part radio series, DVD, soundtrack CD, book, educational and community outreach planned. Website: www.na21.org.The Price of Motherhood
Producing organization: Kikim Media. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: R&D. Executive producer: Michael Schwarz. Producer: Kiki Kapany. Reporter: Ann Crittenden. Contact: Michael Schwarz, mschwarz@kikim.com. • Based on the ground-breaking book by former New York Times reporter Ann Crittenden, this program examines why the most important job in the world is still the least valued--and what can be done about it. Online component planned.The Search for Meaning: C.S. Lewis and Sigmund Freud.
Producing organizations: Tatge/Lasseur Productions. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: preproduction, scripting. Budget: $3.1 million, including $225,000 outreach budget. Major funders: PBS/CPB Challenge Fund, Fidelity Foundation, Peter Lynch Foundation, Paul Montrone Foundation, Laurance Rockefeller Foundation. Executive producer: Catherine Tatge. Contact: Dominique Lasseur, tatgeprod@tatgeprod.com, 212-222-5677. • Based on Armand Nicholi's popular Harvard University course, the series contrasts the spiritual worldview of C.S. Lewis with the materialistic philosophy of Sigmund Freud and emphasizes dramatic events in the lives of both men. Program guide, online component, ancillary videotape seminar, six-city tour planned.Seasoned with Spirit
Producing organization: Native American Public Telecommunications. Episodes: 13 x 30. Status: fundraising. Budget: $400,000. Major funders: NAPT, CPB. Executive producer: Frank Blythe. Host/co-creator: Loretta Barrett Oden. Contact: Carol Cornsilk, NAPT, ccornsilk1@unl.edu, 402-472-3522. • Loretta Barrett Oden, executive chef at the Hotel Santa Fe's Corn Dance Café, gives viewers a history-infused gourmet tour of indigenous cuisine, filmed on location. Companion cookbook planned. Website: www.nativetelecom.org.Shakespeare: The Untold Story, w.t.
Producing organization: Maya Vision International. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: production. Budget: $1.7 million. Major funders: PBS, BBC, ITEL. Executive producer: Leo Eaton. Producer: Rebecca Dobbs. Director: David Wallace. Writer/host: Michael Wood. Contact: Leo Eaton, leoftv@aol.com, 410-876-9843. • This is a detective story in which Michael Wood uncovers and illuminates the career of William Shakespeare and the dangerous times in which he lived.
Sometime in 2003
Battle of the X-Planes, w.t.
Producing organization: First Light Productions for WGBH/Nova. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: postproduction. Executive producer: Paula S. Apsell. Producer: Michael Jorgensen. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • Two aviation giants, Lockheed and Boeing, compete to build the next generation fighter jet and win the largest government contract ever awarded--estimated at $1 trillion. With unprecedented access to the development teams, Nova has followed the trials and tribulations of this design war since its inception more than four years ago. Website: www.pbs.org/wgbh/Nova.Coming of Age in Appalachia
Correction: This series was listed with incomplete funding information in the October list. Producing organizations: David Sutherland Productions in association with WGBH. Episodes: 3 x 120. Status: production. Major funders: PBS/CPB Program Challenge Fund, Independent Television Service (ITVS), Island Fund. Producer: David Sutherland. Co-producer: Nancy Sutherland. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • A long-form documentary portrait of four 16-year-old boys from one of the most troubled and least understood parts of the United States. Sutherland follows the four as they make their uncertain way through high school and out into the world.First Ascents, w.t.
Producing organization: BlueVision Productions. Presenting station: Nebraska ETV. Episodes: 6 x 60. Status: fundraising. Budget: $5 million. Executive producer: Mark H. Tuttle. Writer: Donna Tuttle. Expedition leader: Joseph Dinnan. BVP executive: Peter Vesey. Contact: Mark Tuttle, pmt5@aol.com, 610-584-5371. • With all the gritty detail of a mountain expedition, this high-definition series follows four young climbers to remote locations, where they encounter the diverse lifestyles, conflicts and struggles of the regions' people.Foto Novelas II
Producing organization: Echo Park Film Works. Episodes: 4 x 30. Status: preproduction, scripting. Budget: $2 million. Major funders: ITVS, Latino Public Broadcasting, CPB/PBS Program Challenge Fund. Executive producer: Carlos Avila. Contact: Nancy Fishman, nancy_fishman@itvs.org, 415-356-8383. • A dramatic anthology series that uses magical realism, sci-fi and fantasy to tell Latino stories with human and social themes.Mama Africa
Producing organizations: Winstar Productions and Zimmedia (Zimbabwe). Episodes: 6 x 30. Status: postproduction. Budget: $1.4 million. Major funders: M-Net, ITVS, European Union. Executive producers: Simon Bright, Julie Goldman, Letebele Masomela Jones. Contact: Nancy Fishman, nancy_fishman@itvs.org, 415-356-8383. • Six half-hour narratives by and about women in Africa, each set in a different country.The Power: The Information Revolution in our Lives, w.t.
Producing organizations: Sconset Media, WETA. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: R&D, content outline, production plan. Executive-in-charge for WETA: Dalton Delan. Executive producers for Sconset Media: Jonathan M. Conrad and Richard Thomas. Producers: Dick Barclay, Katie Carpenter, Jonathan Conrad. Lead script consultant: Katie Carpenter. Director of photography: Buddy Squires. Contact: Dewey Blanton, dblanton@weta.com. • The Internet revolution has unleashed a whirlwind of forces, some beneficial, others dangerous. This production explores the impact of the Information Age on people's lives worldwide.The Writing Project
Producing organizations: Equinox Films, Ways of Knowing Inc. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: fundraising. Budget: $1 million. Executive producer/writer: Gene Searchinger. Directors: Suzanne Bauman, Norman Berns, Miriam Lewin. Contact: Gene Searchinger, Equinox Films, Searchinger@juno.com. • A sequel to the 1995 series The Human Language, this series looks at the origins and history of systems of writing, the greatest invention of our species. Wide educational outreach to schools and colleges planned.
Winter/Spring 2004
Eugene O'Neill, w.t.
Producing organizations: Steeplechase Films Inc. for WGBH/American Experience. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: production. Producer: Ric Burns. Co-producer: Steve Rivo. Series executive producer: Margaret Drain. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • This American Experience documentary tells the tragic and disturbing story of the Nobel- and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright whose vast body of work includes the autobiographical masterpiece Long Day's Journey Into Night. Website: www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex.Innovators
Producing station: WGBH/American Experience. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: R&D. Series Executive Producer: Margaret Drain. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • This American Experience production, based on a forthcoming book by Harold Evans (The American Century), will explore the idea that America's tremendous ability to produce change is related to the idea of the nation itself--to the very ideals that have animated the country from its founding. Website: www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex.Martin Luther King, w.t.
Producing organizations: Roja Productions Inc. in association with WGBH/American Experience. Episodes: 2 x 120. Status: R&D. Executive producer: Orlando Bagwell. Series executive producer: Margaret Drain. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • This mini-series for American Experience examines the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., paying attention to his whole life, not solely his years as a public figure. What were the factors--personal, familial, and political--that made him such a great orator and leader? Website: www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex.Reconstruction, w.t.
Producing station: WGBH/American Experience. Episodes: 2 x 120. Status: preproduction. Major funder: NEH. Executive producer/producer: Elizabeth Deane. Producer: Llew Smith. Series executive producer: Margaret Drain. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • This American Experience series recounts the wrenching period of national readjustment in the after the abolition of slavery and defeat of the Confederacy in the Civil War. Website: www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex.Sometime in 2004
Asian American Dreams
Producing station: KQED. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: R&D. Executive producer: Louise Lo. Contact: Elizabeth Pepin, epepin@kqed.org, 415-553-2340. • Based on the ground-breaking book by journalist Helen Zia, this series looks at the experience of Asian-Americans through the lens of major civil rights struggles of the last few decades.Atom: A Cosmic Odyssey, w.t.
Producing organizations: Nebraska ETV and Lark International. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: R&D. Budget: $2.2 million. Producers/writers: Gary Hochman, Lawrence Krauss. Contact: Gary Hochman, ghochman1@unl.edu, 402-472-3611. • How one atom emerged from chance circumstances at the dawn of time to survive and transform our universe--and us--is told as a cosmic mystery story and personal voyage of discovery by Lawrence Krauss, physicist, science popularizer and author of The Physics of Star Trek.Beyond the Dream: California and the Rediscovery of America, w.t.
Producing organization: Beyond the Dream Documentary Group. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: R&D. Budget: $2 million, plus $500,000 for outreach. Major funders: PBS, California Council for the Humanities. Executive producers: Lyn Goldfarb, Paul Espinosa. Directors/producers: Lyn Goldfarb, Paul Espinosa, Jed Riffe, Emiko Omori. Contact: Lyn Goldfarb, lynfilm@cyberverse.com, 323-669-1106. • This work explores dynamics of culture, racial diversity and identity in the last 30 years within the nation's most multiethnic state. It is a character-driven series about California in all its complexities, revealing its pivotal role in our global future. Outreach activities, targeting major ethnic populations in California, will include online component, companion book, interactive DVD.Country Music
Producing station: WGBH. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: fundraising, development. Series producer: David Espar. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. This series, from the producers of Rock & Roll, traces country music from the hills of 1850s Appalachia to the state-of-the-art studios of 21st century Nashville.The Impressionist Vision
Producing organizations: BBC4, WNET, NHK, and ABC Australia. Episodes: 6 x 60. Status: scripting. Major funders: CPB/PBS Program Challenge Fund. Executive producers: Jac Venza, Margaret Smilow. Producer: Mischa Scorer. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • Produced in high-definition, this series provides an in-depth exploration of an extraordinary artistic revolution, documenting the historic and social conditions that provoked a radical new approach to looking at the world.In Search of Modern Ireland
Producing organizations: Cafe Productions Inc., Little Bird Television Ltd. Presenting station: WNET. Episodes: 3 x 60. Status: R&D. Budget: $1.4 million. Writer/series producer: Leo Eaton. Contact: Leo Eaton, leoftv@aol.com, 410-876-9843. • This series continues the story of Ireland after In Search of Ancient Ireland, from the Norman Invasion of 1170 to the 19th-century Great Famine and the birth of an independence movement.Latin Music
Producing station: WGBH. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: fundraising. Series producer: Adriana Bosch. Executive producer: Elizabeth Deane. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. This series, from the producers of Rock & Roll, traces Latin music and dance as it was brought to this country--from Cuba, Puerto Rico, Mexico and elsewhere--and then re-invented, helping to shape a new American culture.Outbreak: The Ecology of Infectious Disease, w.t.
Producing organization: After Image Media Productions. Episodes: 6 x 60. Status: fundraising, scripting. Budget: $5 million. Executive producer: Michael Penland. Consulting executive producer: Terry Kay Rockefeller. Writer: Sheila Curran Bernard. Contact: Michael Penland, After Image Media Productions, michpen@inch.com. • Unraveling the complex ecologies of infectious disease has been one of the great scientific endeavors of all time. This series will capture the intrigue of this scientific inquiry through both historical and contemporary disease investigations, highlighting the natural history of microbial pathogens, our versatile and vulnerable immune system, and the public health defenses we have employed. Online component, companion book, educational materials planned.Smart Travel: Pacific Rim
Producing station: KQED. Episodes: 13 x 60. Status: R&D. Executive producers: John Givens and Danny L. McGuire. Contact: Elizabeth Pepin, epepin@kqed.org, 415-553-2340. • In a follow-up to their popular Smart Travel series, producer John Givens and host Rudy Maxa take viewers on a 26-week journey through exotic continents and islands of the Pacific Rim.Sometime in 2005
The American Novel
Producing organization: WNET. Episodes: 6 x 120. Status: pilot produced, three scripts written. Major funders: NEH, NEA. Executive producer: Susan Lacy. Producer: Michael Epstein. Other producers: Susan Steinberg, Eleana Mannes. Contact: Susan Lacy, lacy@thirteen.org, 212-560-6975. • This series addresses the narrative sweep of our nation's fiction, its reflection of our changing history, and the voices and substance of our diversity--thematically presented through the American Dream, the Melting Pot, the Color Line, the Crises of Faith, Violence, and the Forbidden. Online component planned; outreach activities will be coordinated through literacy programs, community book clubs, libraries.
Airdate to be determined
Breaking the Maya Code
Producing organizations: Night Fire Films. Episodes: 2 x 60. Status: research, scripting. Budget: $1.1 million. Major funder: NEH. Project director/producer: David Lebrun. Associate producer: Rebecca Hartzell. Contact: David Lebrun, lebrun@ix.netcom.com. • This work, based on the book by Michael Coe, tells the 400-year story of deciphering the complex and beautiful Maya hieroglyphic script.Broadway: The American Musical
Producing organizations: WNET and Ghost Light Films. Episodes: 6 x 60. Status: scripts completed, fundraising. Major funders: CPB, NEA, NEH, the LuEsther T. Mertz Charitable Trust, Cornelius V. Starr Fund for Arts Programming at WNET, Ira and Leonore Gershwin Philanthropic Fund, Shubert Foundation. Executive producers: Jac Venza, Martin Starger. Producer: Michael Kantor. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • The series chronicles the history of the American musical theater from the turn of the century to today's multimillion-dollar, high-tech extravaganzas.The Decalogue Project
Producing organizations: Sandra M. Itkoff Productions in association with WGBH. Episodes: 5 x 60. Status: funding. Major funder: CPB/PBS Program Challenge Fund. Executive producer: Sandra M. Itkoff. Executive producer for WGBH: Elizabeth Deane. Producers: Jon Else, Rob Epstein, Jeffrey Friedman, Deborah Hoffmann, Albert Maysles, Susan Froemke. Contact: Marcia Storkerson, marcia_storkerson@wgbh.org, 617-300-2420. • The documentary series uses the Ten Commandments as a framework to take a provocative look at modern life. Each film tells a contemporary story of real people confronting questions with which every culture struggles. The films (two per one-hour episode) will be directed by 10 acclaimed documentary filmmakers.For the Love of Liberty
Producing organizations: Eleventh Day Entertainment, Logo Entertainment. Presenting station: KCET. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: R&D. Producer: Frank Martin. Host: Louis Gossett Jr. Contact: Karen Hunte, khunte@kcet.org, 323-953-5409. • African-American soldiers' letters and memoirs tell their experience of war, from the American Revolution through the Gulf War. Online component, teachers guide planned.The Great Land: The Story of Alaska
Producing organizations: Cafe Productions Inc./Eaton Creative. Episodes: 3 x 60. Status: fundraising. Budget: $1.25 million. Series producer: Leo Eaton. Contact: Leo Eaton, leoftv@aol.com, 410-876-9843. • This work tells the history of Alaska from the arrival of the first Americans through Russian colonial times to America's purchase, the Gold Rush, World War II and the oil boom.History of California
Producing station: KCET. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: fundraising. Major funders: PBS for R&D, NEH for scripting. Executive producer/writer: T.S. Cook. Producer: Tom McMahon. Contact: Karen Hunte, khunte@kcet.org, 323-953-5409. • Here's the fascinating and colorful thematic history of the state with the seventh-largest economy in the world.Innovation, w.t.
Producing station: WNET. Episodes: 8 x 60. Status: fundraising. Major funder: National Science Foundation. Executive producer: Beth Hoppe. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • Eight one-hour technology specials will explore such timely topics as artificial intelligence, bionic human parts, sports technology, nanotechnology and spy technology.Latino Rhythms, w.t.
Producing organizations: WNET, New York Times Electronic Media Co., George Rivera Productions. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: fundraising. Executive producer: William R. Grant. Producer: George Rivera. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • This series examines the Hispanic American influence on American culture. It will include various waves of migration and the cultural, economic and political power of today's Hispanic America.The National City, w.t.
Producing organizations: Florentine Films/Hott Productions and WNET in association with WETA. Presenting station: WNET. Episodes: 1 x 120. Status: funding. Executive producer: William R. Grant. Producers: Lawrence Hott and Tom Lewis. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • This special will track the rich history of Washington, D.C., from its origins as a marshland along the Potomac to its current rank as the most powerful city on Earth. The project will include a website and possibly a companion book.Remembering Slavery, w.t.
Producing station: WNET. Episodes: 4-6 x 60. Status: R&D. Major funder: New York Life. Executive producer: William R. Grant. Series producer: Madison Davis Lacy. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • The series examines the legacy of slavery in the United States, including the African diaspora, the life of slaves, their influence on the culture of the continent, and the way the slavery question has infused every aspect of American life, from the founding of the nation to the present day.Streets of Gold (formerly Wall Street)
Producing organizations: WNET, Gabbe Lights and Bright Lights. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: fundraising. Executive producer: William R. Grant. Other producers: James Gabbe, Stephen Stept. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • This series examines the history of international money.The Supreme Court Project, w.t.
Producing organization: WNET. Episodes: 4 x 60. Status: funding, preproduction and scripting. Budget: $5 million. Executive producer: Jody Sheff. Series producer: Tom Lennon, Lennon Documentary Group. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • This comprehensive history of the U.S. Supreme Court chronicles the dramatic and compelling decisions that have shaped our nation and profiles the individuals behind the institution. Outreach, educational activities to include teacher training and guides, viewer guides, online component.Unseen Passages: Human Trafficking, w.t.
Producing organizations: WNET in association with Mosaic Films. Episodes: 3 x 60. Status: R&D. Executive producer: Stephen Segaller. Producer: Aaron Woolf. Contact: Lisa Braun, braun@thirteen.org, 212-560-2715. • This project explores the worldwide billion-dollar criminal activity of smuggling, trafficking and enslaving human beings.
Web page revised Nov. 30, 2001
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