New Media Ventures for 2010

In 2010 the focus is on New Media as Kathy brings her international experience, award-winning production expertise, and passion for story-telling to the internet, creating engaging, interactive entertainment with global appeal.  As a television Executive Producer, she has extensive experience in marketing various entertainment properties to a wide range of consumers and, whether the subject is factual or scripted, her creations are crafted to make people care.  Her newest venture involves bringing businesses and consumers together in a blend of entertainment and social networking that makes for an exciting experience for all.  For more information on these tailor-made entertainments, contact us at info@kathyslevin.com

2008 was an interesting year for drama - on many fronts. I had the pleasure of writing both a one hour series pilot and a two hour movie for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation in 2008. Both are based on my original series concept, “Plunder,” a unique procedural series set in the underworld of the trade in stolen art and looted antiquities. 

In June, with great enthusiasm, I expanded my all too solitary activities as a writer and series creator to include producing partnerships with Toronto producer Phyllis Platt and Los Angeles producers Cathy Malatesta and Bryan Taw of Lawless Entertainment.  Together we are focused on developing and producing a slate of original drama and comedy series for the Canadian, U.S. and international markets. Phyllis Platt is a former head of programming for CBC who has produced numerous award-winning television movies and series under her own banner.  Cathy Malatesta is a former Senior Vice President of Warner Bros. International and Westinghouse Broadcasting, with 20 years of experience in securing partnerships both in the U.S. and abroad.

Included on this development slate are series based on properties from Literal Media, the U.S. rights holder of classic novels and short stories written by some of American’s greatest authors.  “Mallie Stardancer” is a family drama series based on a rare series of comedic short stories by Shirley Jackson, the influential author of psychological horror best known for “The Lottery.”  “Confessions” is a detective series with an unusual twist. This concept is crafted to include stories based on the works of Cornell Woolrich, a master of crime noir fiction best known for “Rear Window.”

Always high on my agenda are quality programs for kids. In 2008 I was delighted to be commissioned to develop a new animated pre-school series for Montreal’s creator of quirky kids’ stuff, Judith Henderson of JudeBox Idea Factory, and her producing partners at Subsequence Entertainment. “Look at Lump” is a wonderful blend of comedy, art and education, developed in association with Canada’s TVO. I look forward to delivering the pilot script later this month.  I also had a wonderful experience teaming with my friend, Canadian writer Sheila Prescott on a script for the BBC preschool series “Garth”, created and produced by Andrew Kavanagh’s wonderful team at Kavaleer in Dublin.  Sheila and I look forward to collaborating on more projects this year.

Feature films are also on my slate for 2009. U.S. producer Grace Ip and the distinguished Chinese screenwriter Liping Wang have invited me and Cathy Malatesta to collaborate with them on a feature film for U.S.-China co-production.

In addition, my original feature film concept, “A Shoe Story,“ funded last year under Telefilm Canada’s Writers First Program, is now at the script stage. This “mid-life fairy tale,” is the story of an aspiring shoe couturier whose big break comes later in life, when putting her life on hold to chase the brass ring is no small matter and may wind up costing her all she has. Feature film producers are welcome to participate at any stage and are invited to contact info@kathyslevin.com for a treatment of the upcoming screenplay.

That’s it for now.  I look forward to hearing your news and wish you a very prosperous 2009!

TORONTO/LOS ANGELES, June 4: Canadian writer-producer Kathy Slevin has aligned with executive producer Phyllis Platt of Platt Productions, responsible for the CBC’s Booky family TV-movie trilogy, and Cathy Malatesta and Bryan Taw of Los Angeles-based Lawless Entertainment, for the production of new scripted series. Platt, Slevin and the Lawless Entertainment team are now seeking international partners for a development slate of drama and comedy series that they plan to jointly produce in Canada.

Slevin is a writer-producer and former long-time development chief for Paul Haggis (Million Dollar Baby, Crash) with whom Slevin co-wrote features and developed such series as Walker Texas Ranger and Due South.

During Platt’s tenure as the head of programming at CBC, she supervised the development and production of a range of Canadian television series, movies and mini-series, including This Hour Has 22 Minutes, The Newsroom, Wind At My Back, Butterbox Babies and DaVinci’s Inquest. Since establishing Platt Productions, she has produced television movies like Betrayed, Open Heart, Shania and the CBC trilogy Booky Makes Her Mark, Booky and the Secret Santa and Booky’s Crush. 

Malatesta, formerly the senior VP of Warner International and VP and general manager of Westinghouse Broadcasting, is an international television producer with more than 20 years of experience in securing partnerships both in the U.S. and abroad. Taw, Lawless’s VP, brings more than ten years of experience in marketing, production and distribution in both live action and animation.

- By Irene Lew
© WSN INC.

Kathy Slevin’s new original feature film concept, A Shoe Story, has been accepted for development by the Telefilm Canada Feature Film Fund’s Writers First Program.

In this “mid-life fairy tale,” Beth Sobel is a shoe designer who dreams that, some day, one of her original creations will earn a place in the “The Great Shoe Museum.”  For years Beth has been the underpaid and overworked assistant to Phillip Anthony, a petty tyrant of a shoe couturier, who steals credit for her work.  Then fate intervenes in the form of Peter Oliver, heir apparent to “The Big Shoe Company,” who offers Beth her first big break: her own label - if she has the courage to leave Phillip and security behind and strike out on her own.  It’s a scary proposition for a woman of 38 with a son to care for and a failing marriage she is trying hard to salvage.  At mid-life one is supposed to settle for what one has, not go chasing rainbows.  But if Beth lets this opportunity pass her by, what are the chances there will be another?  And so Beth takes her leap of faith, risking all for the love of her art. But the dreams of an artist are hard-pressed to survive in the harsh world of big business…and, even in fairy tales, “having it all” comes at a price.  

Feature film producers are welcome to participate at any stage and are invited to contact info@kathyslevin.com for a treatment of the upcoming screenplay.