Spirits to be Broadcast Internationally for the First Time in its 20 Year History
UK Deal with ITV4; Additional Coverage Through Out Europe with NonStop Television's Entertainment Channel Star!; and Various Agreements throughout all of Latin America and North Africa
New York, New York – February 23, 2006 – Rainbow Media announced today that it has secured its exclusive coverage of the 2006 Independent Spirit Awards Ceremony to over sixty-five broadcasters around the globe. This is the first year that the premiere award show for the independent film community will be shown internationally. The carriage agreements for Rainbow Media's exclusive coverage of the 2006 Independent Spirit Awards ceremony were brokered by Electric Sky, and includes ITV4 in the UK; additional coverage throughout Europe with Nonstop Television's Entertainment Channel Star! and various agreements throughout all of Latin America and North Africa.
As of today, the 2006 Independent Spirit Awards will be broadcast in over sixty-five countries and territories, including – Angola, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Aruba, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belgium, Bermuda, The British Virgin Islands, The Cayman Islands, Cuba, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Colombia, Denmark, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Estonia, Finland, French, Grenada, Guiana, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guinea, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Iceland, Jamaica, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxemburg, Martinique, Mexico, Montserrat, Mozambique, The Netherlands, The Netherlands Antilles, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Suriname, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Sweden, Trinidad, Tobago, Turks and Caicos, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela.
Hosted annually on the Saturday before the Oscars, the Spirit Awards is a celebration of independent filmmakers who bring a unique vision and a spirit of independence to filmmaking. Last year, the 20th Anniversary ceremony was hosted by Samuel L. Jackson and honored such films as Sideways, Garden State and Mean Creek. This year, comedian Sarah Silverman will host the Award Show.
In addition to offering its exclusive coverage of the 2006 Independent Spirit Awards worldwide, Rainbow Media is also making history with its unprecedented triple-platform coverage of the event domestically. Red carpet celebrity arrivals before the awards ceremony will be covered on Rainbow Media's WE: Women's Entertainment cable network, beginning the half hour before the ceremony. The exclusive Spirits Awards ceremony will follow live on Rainbow's IFC (Independent Film Channel), followed by a post-ceremony rebroadcast highlighting the fashions, personalities and spontaneous moments of the night on AMC.
"2006 will be a year of firsts for the Independent Spirit Awards. With its cross platform domestic coverage and now its international distribution, Rainbow Media is once again leveraging its unique and powerful resources to create a valuable global event," stated Glenn Oakley, Senior Vice President of Business Development for Rainbow Media Holdings LLC. "Over the years, the Rainbow brands have shown dedication in celebrating the achievements of the independent film community, so we are obviously very pleased to see the audience of the Spirit Awards expanding globally."
"It's a great opportunity to be able to deliver a new and exciting movie awards title to the international market place" says Electric Sky's Chief Executive, David Pounds. "We look forward to expanding the reach of the show even further for 2007."
"This year's broadcast expansion of The Independent Spirit Awards is in tandem with the overall expansion of audiences for independent film in general," stated Film Independent Executive Director Dawn Hudson. "From the very beginning, Rainbow Media and its brands have been a supportive and an important partner with us in developing and growing the Spirit Awards. We value their dedication to independent film."
About Film Independent and its Spirit Awards
Film Independent, the largest non-profit membership organization for independent filmmakers, cultivates the careers of independent filmmakers, builds the audience for independent films, and increases diversity in the film industry. Film Independent provides its members with more than 250 annual events and screenings, along with professional advice, educational programs, affordable camera and equipment rentals, and discounts to hundreds of industry-related businesses.
Film Independent also offers Filmmaker Labs, giving filmmakers the opportunity to develop their projects, and Project:Involve, a mentorship and job placement program that pairs filmmakers from culturally diverse communities with film industry professionals. Film Independent produces the Independent Spirit Awards and Los Angeles Film Festival, celebrating the best of American and international independent cinema. For more information, visit www.FilmIndependent.org .
About Electric Sky
Since 1998, Electric Sky has established itself as a cutting edge, forward thinking and innovative company. The catalogue features over 800 hours of vibrant and revealing television whether it's hard-hitting documentaries, lifestyle programming, entertainment docu-soaps, reality series and special events. The company has won a strong reputation throughout the international broadcast industry as one of the major players of factual programming.
About Rainbow Media
A leader in the entertainment industry, Rainbow Media Holdings LLC is a subsidiary of Cablevision Systems Corporation. Rainbow creates and manages some of the country's most compelling and dynamic programming with linear networks including national networks – AMC, fuse, IFC (The Independent Film Channel) and WE: Women's Entertainment; its regional programming service – Rainbow Sports Networks; on-demand networks including Mag Rack and sportskool; and the largest suite of high definition channels available anywhere – the VOOM HD Networks. Rainbow's other businesses include its film distribution, production and exhibition division – IFC Entertainment; in addition to its advertising sales division – Rainbow Advertising Sales Corporation – and its full service network programming origination and distribution company – Rainbow Network Communications.