A drama that combines a teen rock band and Christian themes, a sitcom with puppets, and the jarringly descriptive Fat, Broke and Horny are among the 28 independent pilots that will be in competition at the third annual New York Television Festival in early September.
The festival, which bills itself in a news release as "the industry's first showcase for independent television," is offering 16 series in competition that were made in and around metropolitan New York, which has seen TV production rise sharply in the past few years, thanks to city and state tax incentives. Other pilots in the competition were made in areas such as New South Wales, Australia; Bangalore, India; and a car dealership in Canoga Park, Calif.
In The Band, four college students form a rock group "to inspire and transform lives, and demonstrate God's love through the power of music," according to the release. They name the band, apparently without irony, Leviticus Rocks. (The release omits the fact that some consider Leviticus one of the most virulently anti-gay books of the Bible.)
In Apartment 413, veteran puppet masters from Sesame Street, the Jim Henson Company, and Crank Yankers apply their talents to a sitcom featuring friends who share a New York apartment. In Fat, Broke and Horny, an L.A.-based actor named Mark loses in one day his house, girlfriend, friend, agent, and two jobs. It stars and was written by Mark Phinney, who was in Déjà Vu with Denzel Washington; it was directed by Sean McGinly, who wrote and directed The Great Buck Howard with Tom Hanks and John Malkovich.
The festival will run Sept. 5-9 at New World Stages in Midtown. The pilots will also be available on MSN Video Sept. 5.
Pilots in Competition
(with brief descriptions and filming locations)
The Agency (Supernatural dramedy)
Executive Producers: Sean Jaques and Corydon Wagner — New York
Apartment 413 (Sitcom featuring puppets)
Executive Producers: Tamra Malaga, Josh Cohen and Tony Colon — New York
The Band (Teen drama)
Executive Producers: Kevin A. Calhoun and Loretta De Stefano — New York
Carpeted Afterhours (Sketch comedy)
Executive Producer: Alan Callaghan — Chicago
Chance Your Hand (Workplace comedy)
Executive Producers: Luke Heywood and Tim Pass — New South Wales, Australia
Codeword Secret (Action comedy)
Executive Producer: Barry Gribble — Washington, D.C.
Deal With It (Workplace comedy)
Executive Producers: Stephen Muterspaugh and Michael Kary — North Hollywood, Calif.
Dear Harvard (Teen drama)
Executive Producer: Anne Jarmain — New York
Ex-Pats: Bangalore (Dramedy)
Executive Producer: Kevin Napier — New York; Bangalore, India
Fabulous Flowers (Educational/Do-it-Yourself)
Executive Producer: Bill Dougherty — Virginia Beach, Va.
Family Values (Family sitcom)
Executive Producers: Mike Shapiro and Rob Kutner — New York
Fat, Broke and Horny (Character comedy)
Executive Producer: Sean McGinley — Los Angeles
The Gauntlet (Reality competition)
Executive Producer: Scott Patterson — Brooklyn, N.Y.
Gnome (Character comedy)
Executive Producer: Will Janowitz — New York
The Grass Is Greener (Relationship sitcom)
Executive Producer: Randall Bobbitt — Los Angeles
The Happy Hour (Educational/Travel)
Executive Producer: Steve Luttman — Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Here On Earth (Workplace comedy)
Executive Producers: Josh Baron and David Bartin — New York
I'm Sorry Melissa (Comedy)
Executive Producer: Wayne Parillo — Brooklyn
In Your Backyard.tv (Family educational)
Executive Producers: Charles Roocke and Mary Sue Roocke — Bellmore, N.Y.
Mild Mannered (Supernatural comedy)
Executive Producers: Marc Collins and Martti Nelson — Los Angeles
Oh! Be Joyful (Workplace sitcom)
Executive Producer: Jonathan Roumie — New York
Redeeming Rainbow (Apartment sitcom)
Executive Producer: Dan McNamara — Jersey City
Sacrifice (Supernatural drama)
Executive Producer: Grant Weiss — Lombard, Ill.
Strange Faculty (Supernatural comedy)
Executive Producers: Marty Johnson, Mark Odlum and Will Leaura — Boston
Strokes (Buddy sitcom)
Executive Producers: Jim R. Coleman and Nicole Absisinio — Orlando, Fla.
Stuperheroes (Animated comedy)
Executive Producers: John Bellotti Jr. and Victor Romero — Staten Island, N.Y.
Video Shmideo (Workplace comedy)
Executive Producer: Ali Farahnakian — New York
What She's Having (Female dramedy)
Executive Producers: Leonard Catz and Sarit Catz — Short Hills, N.J.