News Release

Playback, September 16, 2002

Reality for kids at CCI

CCI Entertainment, having just wrapped its MOW Burger High, is now moving ahead with two kids shows. Timetrackers is a 13 x 30 "junior reality" series expected to air on YTV in 2003. Shooting began two weeks ago and will run on a tight schedule into January.

"It's about putting the lessons of history to the test," says director of development Kate Horton. "So what does it really mean to storm a castle? What's that really like? Or jousting? Why did they do it? How did it work?"

Wilson Coneybeare (Call Me Irresponsible) will direct and doubles as executive producer with Nancy Chapelle (Burger High). Jim Cortson also produces and Damir Chytil (Avventura: Journeys In Italian Cuisine) is DOP. Each ep is expected to cost $125,000 and the show is backed by licence fees from YTV and Discovery Kids, the LFP, Gullane Entertainment and CCI Releasing.

CCI is also partway through season three of the CGI series Monster by Mistake, again for YTV and VRAK, Germany's Super RTL and Buena Vista International. Twenty-six half-hours will be turned out between now and the planned airdate of fall 2004, to the tune of $350,000 to $400,000 per ep. The series, about an eight-year-old boy who turns into an eight-foot-tall monster whenever he sneezes, is a coproduction with Toronto's Catapult Productions. Helping with the bills are the Independent Production Fund, the Shaw Television Broadcast Fund and distributor Gullane Entertainment.

Series creator Mark Mayerson will direct and, with Horton, also produce. Executive producers are Arnie Zipursky (The Ride), Annette Frymer (The Ripping Friends) and Kim Davidson, president and COO of Side Effects Software. Monster is made with Side Effects' acclaimed Houdini software.

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