The N Announces the Commencement of Production on a New Original Drama The Best Years (Working Title) Produced by Blueprint Ente
09 November 2006 - 4:53PM
PR Newswire (US)
Award-Winning Degrassi Writer Aaron Martin to Create / Executive
Produce 13 Hour-Long Episodes Scheduled to Premiere in the US and
Canada - Summer 2007 NEW YORK, Nov. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- The N takes a
collegiate step forward as the nighttime network for teens
announces the commencement of production on 13 new, hour-long
episodes of The Best Years (working title), it was announced today
by Sarah Tomassi Lindman, Vice President, Programming and
Production, The N. The new drama is produced by Blueprint
Entertainment in association with Canada's CanWest MediaWorks.
Production has begun in Toronto and will extend through March 2007.
The Best Years is created and executive produced by Aaron Martin
who served as head writer and show runner of The N's famed teen
drama Degrassi: The Next Generation. Blueprint Entertainment's
Noreen Halpern and John Morayniss will also serve as executive
producers on The Best Years. The series is scheduled to premiere in
the summer of 2007 on The N in the US and on CH Television in
Canada. "The Best Years will introduce our audience to the
real-life drama of college life, including the excitement and
pressures that come with new found independence," said Lindman.
"Aaron Martin has a proven track record at writing compelling
dramas like Degrassi and this show is sure to follow his past
success." "This is a dream cast, hand-picked from across Canada and
the United States, playing 'bright young things' as they navigate
the social wilderness of university life. Whether you're looking
ahead to your college years, or looking back on them fondly ... The
Best Years takes you from toga parties to all-nighters, and from
freshman romances to finding that one person who just might be the
love of your life," says creator / executive producer Aaron Martin.
"Aaron Martin has created a wonderfully smart, sexy and exciting
series. Through the lead character, Samantha Best we are thrown
into the first year of college and all of the wildness inherent in
that," says Halpern. "By the end of the first episode, viewers will
all wish they could hang out at this campus." "Great writing, a
stellar production team and top-notch talent make The Best Years a
sparkling addition to our original programming roster," said
Christine Shipton, Vice President of Original Programming for
CanWest MediaWorks. "This edgy, young series will draw audiences in
with storylines covering all of the drama, thrills and challenges
of college life." The Best Years follows orphaned and full-ride
scholar, Samantha Best (Charity Shea, "Alpha Dog") as she starts
her freshman year at the prestigious Charles University in
Massachusetts. Samantha has been shuffled through the foster care
system her entire life and is finally looking forward to a future
of new opportunities and friendships. She'll have to contend with
the in's and out's of college and mingle with a new world of
'frenemies' as she struggles to find her own identity. Along the
way she will meet new roommate Kathryn Klarner, (Jennifer Miller) a
rich socialite from one of the most prominent families in the
mid-west, Dawn Vargas (Athena Karkanis) child actor who trades in
Hollywood for university, and Devon Sylver, (Brandon Jay McLaren
"She's The Man") a fellow scholarship recipient and star basketball
player who has caught her eye. With her new dysfunctional family
and a part-time job at Boston's hot spot, Colony, Samantha will
find herself juggling a lot more than just academics. Aaron Martin
served as the head writer and show runner on The N's acclaimed teen
drama Degrassi: The Next Generation during its first four seasons
and was the 2004 recipient of the Canadian Screenwriting Award for
his work on the series. He was also nominated for a 2003 Gemini
Award for Best Writing in a Children's or Youth Series and also in
2005 for Best Drama. He is a graduate of The Canadian Film Centre
and Queen's University. In addition to producing, Blueprint
Entertainment controls distribution rights for the series in all
territories outside the US. Blueprint Entertainment is a television
production company involved in the development, production,
financing, packaging and exploitation of dynamic and innovative
programming for the North American and International marketplace.
Established in January of 2002, by its two principals, John
Morayniss and Noreen Halpern, Blueprint Entertainment is a Canadian
company with offices in Los Angeles and Toronto. Blueprint has an
extensive development slate that encompasses a number of half-hour
and one-hour prime- time and children's series, movies, and
miniseries targeted at a mix of broadcast and cable/satellite
networks based in the US, Canada and the international marketplace.
http://www.blueprint-corp.com/. CanWest MediaWorks Inc. is a
wholly-owned subsidiary of CanWest Global Communications Corp,
(CanWest) (NYSE: CWG; TSX: CGS and CGS.A,
http://www.canwestglobal.com/). CanWest, an international media
company, is Canada's largest media company. In addition to owning
the Global Television Network, CanWest is Canada's largest
publisher of daily newspapers, and also owns, operates and/or holds
substantial interests in conventional television, out- of-home
advertising, specialty cable channels and Web sites in Canada, New
Zealand, Australia, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Turkey, the
United States and the United Kingdom. The N, the nighttime network
for teens, is a programming arm of MTV Networks and is currently
available in 52 million households via cable, digital cable and
satellite television. The N's mission is to be the authentic voice
for teens and help them figure out their lives with relevant,
topical programming on-air and online at the network's web site
http://www.the-n.com/. The N airs everyday from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00
a.m. (ET). The N and all related titles, characters and logos are
trademarks of Viacom International Inc. DATASOURCE: The N CONTACT:
Mirian Arias, +1-212-846-7653, , or Jodi Davis, +1-212-846-5981, ,
both of The N; or Beverly Warren, Unit Publicist, +1-416-726-4771,
; or Nicole Starker, CH Television, +1-403-235-7743, Web site:
http://www.the-n.com/ http://www.nick.com/
http://www.canwestglobal.com/ http://www.blueprint-corp.com/
Copyright