Follow
A new bet from Participant Media, launching a brand new channel called Pivot.
With 40+ million subscribers at launch, pivot’s programming slate is anchored by more than 300 hours of original programming in its first year. The network’s first six greenlit series are: “TakePart Live,” a live talk show, five nights a week; “HitRECord on TV!,” a re-imagination of the variety show from director/creator/star Joseph Gordon-Levitt and executive producer Brian Graden; “Raising McCain,” a genre-bending docu-talk series starring and executive produced by the complex and accomplished Meghan McCain with Go Go Luckey Entertainment; modern period drama “WILL,” from Craig Pearce, writer of “Moulin Rouge” and “The Great Gatsby”; “Jersey Strong,” a real reality series from Peabody Award-winners Marc Levin and Mark Benjamin. The network also announced a pioneering joint venture with Univision News and Latin World Entertainment to co-produce ten, one-hour documentaries that will air on pivot in English and Univision in Spanish.
pivot will be available through traditional Pay TV packages, offered by multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) across the country. For these subscribers, pivot will offer perhaps the most comprehensive set of TV Everywhere rights in the industry, allowing subscribers to stream the network, Live and On Demand; to any device, anywhere.
The following series have been greenlit for production and will premiere in 2013:
HITRECORD ON TV!
Producer: Joseph Gordon-Levitt/Brian Graden Productions; Lois Curren, Brian Graden,
Gaurav Misra
A new take on the variety show, hosted by Joseph Gordon-Levitt who directs countless artists from his global online community – hitRECord – to create short films, live performances, music, animation, conversation, and of course, more! Each episode focuses on a different theme as Joe invites and encourages anybody with an internet connection to join him and contribute. Are you RECording? (7 x :30)
TAKEPART LIVE
A one hour, no-holds-barred live show, begins with a live-streamed pre-show midday where viewers help build the show they will see on air that evening. Equal parts serious discussion and comedic take on the daily headlines, “TakePart Live” will bring celebrities, activists, newsmakers and viewers together to discuss and decode the events that make up the fabric of daily life and how to act on the stories that move us. The nightly show will also be fully second-screen enabled, featuring live interaction with the cast, polling, social media sharing and more. Additionally, there will be a live-streamed pre-show on the network website and Takepart.com.
RAISING MCCAIN
Producer: Go Go Luckey Entertainment; Julie Auerbach, Henry Capanna, Tina Gazzerro
A genre-busting docu-talk series following Meghan McCain, the outspoken daughter of Senator John McCain, on the road talking to unexpected experts, regular people and members of her generation, exploring the most important and unusual questions of the day framed by Meghan’s experiences in her personal life. (10 X :30)
JERSEY STRONG
Producer: Mark Benjamin and Marc Levin
From the team behind the Peabody Award winning series, “Brick City,” this Newark-based docu-soap chronicles the lives of two families from parallel universes — the street and the executive suite. Former Blood (Jayda) and Crip (Creep) gang members are raising two kids while pursuing their careers and following their dreams. Jayda is working to build mentorship programs for young women in Newark, while Creep balances a day job in sanitation with his dream of launching a comedy career. Brooke is a trial attorney balancing the stress of high stakes litigation with the real life drama of raising two college-aged kids with her partner in life and business – Maggie. “Jersey Strong” will explore Newark’s warm center and tough exterior through the eyes of two unconventional families striving to achieve the American Dream. (10 x :30 )
WILL
Writer: Craig Pearce (“The Great Gatsby”, “Moulin Rouge”, “Romeo + Juliet”)
Executive Producers: Craig Pearce, Vince Gerardis (“Game of Thrones”), Louise Rosager, Howard Braunstein, Christina Wayne, Hilary Bevan Jones
A one-hour scripted series by Cineflix Studios Inc. about young William Shakespeare. Will is a young man from the wrong side of the social, political and economic tracks who, against all the odds, sets out to do that most modern of things: create his own destiny. Set in young Will’s crazy, intense, violent and sexy Elizabethan London, “WILL” is a period piece – but not as we know it. A hip sound track, contemporary shooting style and edgy production design will create a world that is fast, fresh, dangerous, and totally unique. (10 X :60)
UNIVISION NEWS AND LATIN WORLD ENTERTAINMENT DOCUMENTARY SERIES
Through an innovative and groundbreaking joint venture, Univision News, the news division of the leading media company serving Hispanic America, Latin World Entertainment, the premiere Hispanic talent management and entertainment marketing firm in the United States and pivot will join together to a produce and market a series of ten compelling documentaries drawn from the headlines and produced in both Spanish and English. Univision News is no stranger to millennials, often beating the ratings of other major networks in the 18-35 demographic. Its mission to inform, educate and empower Hispanic America is perfectly aligned with pivot’s goals.(10 X :60)
WORLD TELEVISION FILM PREMIERES
Surrounding its original scripted and unscripted series will be world television premieres of Participant Media documentaries, including “Last Call at the Oasis,” “State 194” and “A Place At The Table” as well as festival favorites including “We Are Legion,” “Terms and Conditions” and “99%—The Occupy Wall Street Collaborative Film,” a compelling portrait of the Occupy Wall Street movement which sheds a light on why and how this movement took off with such explosive force, and what it means.
Will you give Pivot a chance? Follow me on Twitter for more scoop on this bran new channel.