Limo10 gets a Pilot

What do you get when you put Rob Iafrate, owner of A Celebrity Limousine and the creative team at RedFish? You get a new and exciting game show that takes place in a limo. Yes, yes....we have all seen the cab show. This is nothing like that aside from the fact that you can win prizes and that you are in an automobile. Limo 10, is a game of discovery that involves a group of people, a destination a limo and some great prizes.

RedFish goes into production in two weeks with a pilot for the show to launch at the Miami NATPE conference this winter.

Are you ready to ride?

More info about Limo 10? Contact: Mike Wixson - mike@redfishentertainment.com

BBQ 101 is the hottest kitchen in the cave

Well the day has arrived for all men to enjoy a cooking show about the food they love to cook the most, BBQ! The Cave TV across Canada this week launched BBQ 101 with Two Guys and a Grill. The show features host Humble Howard alongside his good buddy and BBQ Expert, BBQ Naz Cavallaro. Together these two have made cooking on the grill a snap for just about anyone with a BBQ. From cooking to cleaning the whole process is made simple and delicious.

Watch for BBQ 101 on air now on THE CAVE. New episodes in production now.

Now in Development - Man Up! Grows Up.

Over the next four weeks, RedFish Studios will be buzzing. We are in post-production with BBQ 101 for the newly re-launched CaveTV (formerly MenTV) for broadcast coast-to-coast. We are in final stages of production with the second Season of Last Bride Standing...and now...More ManUP!

That's right. Just when you thought we could not get crazier...you were right. This time ManUp! is going big-time reaching out to adventure-reality. Without giving away too many details about the show, let me assure you: If you can even muster the courage to be a contestant you are a bigger man than most I know.

This time danger and adventure is the focus. Mainly danger. Tim and Howard are constantly screaming with delight as they figure out ways to make our contestants scream with fear.

Details about the new Man Up - The Adventure Show as news breaks.

BBQ 101 production goes brilliantly

The first six episodes of BBQ 101 are in the can and off to editing. The new series to air on The Cave (formerly MenTV) across Canada starting this summer looks great and has all the information a BBQ enthusiast needs to become a BBQ expert in their world.

Produced by RedFish Studios and shot on location in Ontario the show is hosted by Humble Howard (Howard Glassman) and BBQ Naz (Naz Cavallaro). Just two guys and a grill. Naz is the master of the grill and his job on the show is to teach Howard (and viewers) how to get the best tasting BBQ you ever dreamed of.

The show is colourful and fun and the production quality is superior to most cooking shows. It is a great way to launch a new breed of cooking show - with great production values and even some innovations for cooking show broadcast that are sure to change the way foodies see cooking shows in the future.

Look for BBQ 101 - With two guys and a grill mid August on The Cave.

RedFish and Brandcast turn some heads

Over the last four weeks, RedFish has seen an incredible build of momentum around the broadcast products Brandcast is promoting in Canada and the US. Over 30 companies have already signed up for various shows and production of their segments for TV are underway.

The project came about with the economic downturn when RedFish Studios founder, Mike Wixson and Tarik Pirbhai, RedFish COO began to contemplate what brands need on a local level to achieve impact on TV. The end result was a series of TV production products that are a turnkey and tailor-fit solution for almost any regionalized brand.

"Now companies that would normally not be able to attach their brand to a TV campaign are able to get on TV and tell their story. It's more than an ad. It is a news-style report about their business that offers a credible look a their company" Wixson says.

The brand building project seems to have hit the mark with many local businesses in Toronto and Miami. Already two half-hour shows are sold out in each market.

This week Brandcast and RedFish will announce the launch of 1 minute reports that air on multiple stations in a market with multiple airings on each station. This news has already gotten the attention of many ad agencies and marketing departments because it is the ultimate cost/credibility solution for advertising. It includes production and media but also offers a credible report-style presentation which makes it entirely more intriguing to viewers than your average 30 second commercial.

Visit Brandcast today at www.brandcast.info

RedFish Studios busy with Brandcast Shows

RedFish Studios is in full-swing already this spring with four Brandcast broadcast productions for Ontario and South Florida.

Right now crews are on location shooting segments for Cosmetic Transformations, a show that features experts in the field of cosmetic services of all kinds. The Goldberg Center for Laser Vision Correction segment will posted shortly for you to sample.

Also in production in Toronto is Home Advantage featuring experts who will help you make the most of your home.

The shows air in just weeks from now on SunTV across Ontario on Cable and across the country on ExpressView. You can find out more about how your business can take advantage of Brandcast TV properties for less than $4,000/production included, contact: Matt House - 416 593 8881

Brandcast is a RedFish project. You can find out more right here.

The Last Bride Standing has finally sat down.

Without giving any juicy details away about Season Two of Last Bride Standing let it be said that there is a new champion. Before nine this morning, the last bride showed her stamina to be the best out of over 25 competing brides. The show was created by owner of Le Jardin, Conference and Event Center in Woodbridge, Ontario. He is featured prominently in Last Bride Standing as the Ring Leader and Contest Host. His Long Valley Productions owns the show and has contracted RedFish Studios to produce the it for international broadcast sales.

The RedFish crew providing production for Long Valley Productions on Last Bride Standing wrapped the set and interviews just moments ago. The show heads directly into post-production this week for 13 gripping episodes covering the entire event.

The show wrapped this morning at Toronto's Bridal Show which continues on all weekend at the Toronto Congress Center. There are almost 200 exhibitors reaching out to the bridal crowd with an unbelievable range of offerings.

Hats off to the RedFish crew for overcoming the challenges the come hand in hand with these kinds production projects. A job well-done in a world of round-the-clock production.

A glimpse into the Last Bride Standing Reality Show Production

We will try to keep you posted with new images as the days go by.
Here are a few images to wet your whistle for this season of Last Bride Standing

Last Bride Standing - Part Deux - Shooting On Location

A second season for Last Bride Standing has RedFish in production in multiple locations over the next week around the clock.

That's right Last Bride Standing is back and this time it has become a major happening. Last season there were 21 brides, this season there are 32. Last season the whole contest took place at Le Jardin in Vaughan (amazing place for any function - blatant plug for a great place), this season the contest starts at LeJardin and moves to two other locations. Last season there was a grand prize of $75,000 and this season it is over 100 grand to winner. Yes, Last Bride Standing has grown up quick. This year the show will even culminate at the Toronto's Bridal Show at the Congress Center in front of thousands of brides-to-be and their entourage.

A favorable audience response in season one has fueled the creative passion in Carlo Parentela, the host of the contest and the creator of Last Bride Standing, to make this season a real calling card for future episodes around the world.

"Carlo sees the value in what he is doing as an entertainment vehicle, but this time he brought in the entire wedding industry in Ontario to make it outrageous and unmistakable." Mike Wixson, Executive Producer at RedFish laughs as he summarizes Parentela's drive to make this show an international success. "There is no question that he has major plans for this show. Our job is to execute it as a showpiece for international broadcast sales. And this is exactly what we will do. The contest is the best fodder for a reality series ever."

RedFish will work with Long Valley Productions, the creators of the concept to develop a second season of compelling TV that is sure to have you picking your favorite to win by the end of the first episode.

Here is a quick clip from what we shot at orientation. It is, as we say in the biz: "A rush" from the first night of shooting last week.

RedFish goes into production with BBQ 101

Recently RedFish stuck a deal with SunTV to create an inaugural 6 episodes of a high-end cooking show that would highlight the BBQ. The result: BBQ 101 with Funny Foodie Humble Howard and BBQ Master Naz Cavallero. Together these two will take your skills at the grill to a whole new level. Being shot on location in Ontario, the series is set to debut this summer on SunTV and MenTV across the country.

For more details about how to become a sponsor or to find out more about broadcast details of the show, contact: Mike Wixson - RedFish Studios - 416 593 8881

Last Bride Standing finale met with cheers!

SunTV reality series draws to a dramatic close.

After 13 weeks of dramatic happenings on the first-ever Last Bride Standing show has lead to a finale that is worthy of tears, cheers and contemplation. Created by Carlo Parentela of Le Jardin Conference and Event Center and Directed by Humble Howard Glassman of RedFish Studios, the show garnered more and more viewers each week until finally we saw the winning bride walk away with wedding worth over $60,000!

The final episode aired quite coincidentally on Valentines day which is quite suiting as the last show was a fine example of what love can actually accomplish.

The final twists and turns highlighted the final four girls on the wall and how they handled the stress of a final challenge to see who would win the big prize. After five days and nights holding a wall, what happens in the last 5 minutes of the show is absolutely stunning! It will renew your faith in humanity even if just for a moment.

Without giving away the ending (which will naturally air again soon) the winning bride in many ways owed her win to more than just her stamina. She was actually aided by at least one competing bride who simply felt that she did not need the wedding like the bride she seemingly let take the prize. A true act of kindness and humanity. Nice to see on TV. Rare to see on TV.

Congrats go out to Carlo and Howard who made the show a brilliant success. Huge Kudos go to the editing and audio creative post that was handled by Angela Schermaul and Andrew Newton for is outstanding work as Director of Production on the series. Well done. Let's make more!

Mike Wixson

Executive Producer

RedFish Studios

Last Bride Standing finale met with cheers!

The Zen Pragmatist - Tarik Pirbhai is the real boss.

Tarik Pirhbai is truly a great guy. He is a truly loving husband and father. He is a good friend.

He is the RedFish honcho in charge of...in charge of...well he is pretty much the Prime Minister of RedFish. That is he is what we wish the Prime Minister of our country could be. Tarik is the President (actually he may be the CEO...I never get that junk right). The guy who makes things happen on all matters of business. He the yin to my business yang. And god knows, I can yang a business like no one you know. Tarik is the balance. While I spin wildly for clients and broadcasters, he navigates the waters I churn making sure we get back to our loved ones safely at the end of the day.

He is pragmatist. But not to a fault. I have heard him dream aloud. He is goal-oriented and is keenly demanding of everyone on our crew - most of all himself. He has a zen-like quality to him and I often refer to him not-so-jokingly as Deepa Chopra. Calm. Calm. Calm.

It is important to take a minute once in a while to note that Tarik is there. He is quiet and thoughtful. He is caring and kind. He will let you know exactly how he feels and make no bones about how much of the load is yours to carry alongside everyone else. I love that about him. The truth is, I love everything about him.

I have never...ever...even once, seen him lose his cool. One of his great friends at work is Humble Howard. To throw down the laughs with a pro stand up comic can be a challenge, but Tarik sometimes let Howard get the last laugh. He is business up front and smart-ass through and through.

He will outsmart you and just as easily learn from you. He is a terrible floor hockey player. I mean he looks entirely out of sorts with a hockey stick . That's what growing up in Scotland gets you. Just so he doesn't feel bad if he reads this: Tarik makes a mean Banoffee Pie. It is seriously great. So he has that going for him.

On the business front: During times of financial disarray on a global scale, Tarik has helped to make a company grow. That is to be commended. He is constantly on the prowl for market opportunities, expansion of the company and creating the right partnerships to do what we need to as a company to make a legacy for ourselves, our partners and our clients. He is savvy and arms himself with the best team of professionals out there. To handle his meticulous attention to detail requires skill.

If you read this and you know Tarik. Send him a nice note. He is the kind of person who will really enjoy that. That is just the kind of guy he is.

Thank you so much, partner.

Those words aren't enough.

Mike Wixson

Executive Producer

RedFish Entertainment

Crafting a National Commercial under $30k? Writing. Writing. Writing.

This blog is a shout out to the creative minds out there who really think through what a brand should be able to accomplish for the least amount of money. They are the creative directors and writers out there who make the themes, characters, and script become a moment in time for a brand.

Sure there are commercials out there that amaze us with super-expensive seconds of high-impact effects and outrageous staging, but the truth is that I have seen many commercials with incredibly inexpensive production means make the same impact if not greater because the themes were clever. Not cheeky. Clever.

So, can a commercial be produced cheap? Cheap ones can...you know "I'm the Cash Man" (the look awful and feel awful and work locally) and then there are commercials that work with budgets which need to be extended through the only means available: creative.

It is possible to write a low-budget, effective commercial for TV, cinema and web. We have done it. Peel Region Public Health Unit and Fingerprint Communications brought us a commercial that was so clever that the budget was invisible to the viewer. The spot won an international award of excellence and a year and a half later, I am still seeing it in my local cinema. Here is that commercial. It has almost 30,000 views on YouTube, as well. Not a costly commercial, but a very clever, one. I have noticed teens snickering in the cinema and at one showing I saw of it, it got more laughs than any other commercial - one of them for Pepsi using a major sports celebrity.

The message here is this: Only You Can Prevent Big Budgets (I am Woodsey the Production Owl, I guess). Creative can be written to be really effective and make your brand stand out without spending more than $20 or $30k. Sometimes even less.

Using Social Media Along with Traditional TV

Look how much information we get that starts with a social media tipping us off. The blog, TMZ is a great example. In fact the more accurate this information is, the more likely we are to "follow" that information provider, 'tweeter' or 'facebookie'.

Now celebrities tell us about their every bowel movement and we are able to use newsfeeds and IM to update each other instantly.

How do we apply this to the world of television programming? Well it seems obvious, but a little planning goes a long way.

Thinking about what information you will use your show or commercial to push is important. It has to be good to get an audience and keep it.

It has to offer more than your show or spot does-added value if you will- or it has to provide linkage to information in the show. If you provide good info, promoting your show has value, too.

You have to be ready to operate your social adjacent media. Will you update it weekly, daily...hourly...as it happens? Make sure you have someone who will manage the updates you have planned.

Social media is a great promotional tool. After all, what is better than personal ensorsement in a social scene?

Find out how we can plan your social media adjacent production.

www.theredfish.ca

Hey, Conan! Any offers so far? Prime Time Debacle Dept.

Let me start by stating that Jay Leno is a total idiot.

Thank you.

What his ego has done (with the help of NBC executives) to prime time TV is disgusting. NBC Affiliates across North America are quivering with hunger pains from the one/two punch they got with the vaporization of the economy followed by a devastating blow to the abdominal region when Jay Leno moved into prime time with an almost-show that has driven audiences to fill their evenings with anything but his show....or TV in general. Families are reuniting. Renovations are getting done around the house. Volunteerism is up 71%! Well maybe not, but he did change the landscape of TV- for the worse.

Meanwhile, Conan O'Brien is being tossed around like a chihuahua in a Kansas dirt devil. His ownership of The Tonight Show has gone from triumphant to worthless in a matter of half a year. Reunited with his old time side-kick, Andy Richter (some are blaming Andy for carrying bad juju from cancelled show to cancelled show), Conan seemed to have a lead on funny over the Jay Leno show in a big way. Leno was sure to fail. Conan should surely do well. The numbers did not end up looking like that at all. Both were doing miserably by ad revenue and audience totals. The affiliates were left with no one watching their news. That is their main source of revenue and so at every level, prime time TV began to crumble on basic cable across North America.

Was it Jay that brought down new Tonight Show numbers? Was Conan doing that bad? It seems that with a lack of general interest in Prime Time TV as this experiment took place viewers were simply finding other options outside of regular network TV.

Now NBC scrambles to put everything back as it was (what tools!) and find an audience that has already subscribed to and committed their viewing time to second and third tier specialty cable avails. Looks like cooking shows and reality shows are going to continue to have an audience for a while thanks to Jay Leno....who is a selfish, self-centered, unfunny man.

What will Conan do? Seems he will cut his losses. He has already listed The Tonight Show on craigslist.com as a "slightly-used late night talk show".

Here is the link to his listing: click here

I will be amazed if NBC comes away in the lead over their competition anytime soon. I would imagine Conan will land at FOX, and we will see a whole host of make-do programming in prime time until the next big drama series takes hold. They are going to have to spend a massive amount of money getting back to mediocre. Good on ya, NBC.

Mike Wixson

Executive Producer

RedFish Studios

mike@redfishentertainment.com

RedFish has focus on International Markets

There comes a time in the life of every production company that makes TV shows when the content you have made has reached critical mass and is ready to hit the road in search of other markets.

RedFish Studios is in that very era of it's existence. After three years of production, the company has entered into several distribution arrangements to capitalize on the programming that is already in the can.

In preparation of this timeline marker, about a year ago we began to brainstorm about what content we have that would be good for the rest of the world. We talked about TV distribution and mobile content, web content, streaming content. All of these options became interesting in their own right so we began to develop our content to hit all points of distribution while still building in sponsorship opportunities and localized ad revenue models.

So, after thinking through as many options for content as possible, our discovery is that we have created a more full package for almost any content distribution means available. We have web content that is backed by TV programs. TV programs that resolve themselves on the web, and interactive informative programming that calls on mobile technology to access more information than is available on the show...the circle of content has begun to oscillate sending us in new directions in search of the next show, webcast, or mobile project.

RedFish showed up in the production field at the right time and place. Our theories about content are realities now and I am glad we took the time to figure out where content was needed most before we began distribution. Now we have more to offer than most producers in the market today.

Why is the world going nuts for product placement?

We hear more and more about product placement these days but why is it becoming so prevalent?

1. The ad landscape is so cluttered at this point that cutting through the pollution is a near impossibility.

2. TiVo and PVRs have created another hit against 30 second TV creative. More and more viewers are able to eliminate commercials from their view entirely.

3. Product credibility is a big factor in adding value to product placement as an incredibly viable media. Simply put, if we see actors/hosts on TV and we identify with them, we find the product to be more desirable and the brand instantly more credible.

Over the last five years product placement, title sponsorships and inserted billboards have added more to the bottom line on TV budgets than any other integrated budgetary factor I have seen.

Working your brand into the show makes more sense than ever. Write me to find out more. Send your questions or post a comment:

Mike Wixson
Executive Producer
RedFish Studios
416 593 8881
mike@redfishentertainment.com

Cosmetic Transformations - Get built into the show

RedFish Studios has finalized a deal to put a one hour special on TV across Ontario on SUN-TV that focuses

on Cosmetic options available to consumers. Now you can look younger, lose the weight, get the hair, or lose the

glasses.

This hour revolves around what can be done to create the new you. From procedures to treatments, Cosmetic Transformations

is the ultimate makeover showcase for everyone who is anyone in that industry.

Find out more about Cosmetic Transformations, the one-hour special: Call Rob Pagetto at 416 593 8881, ext 22.

Download a PDF with more info about Cosmetic Transformations

Rob Pagetto - Producer Cred.

Rob Pagetto. Where do I begin? Actually, even before I begin I can hear him giving me his list of credits and credentials in this biz (he is a good self-promoter for certain). Okay, I know. Rob Pagetto is an outstanding Producer. There. That's a good start because if it is produced at RedFish, the likelihood that Rob was the Producer on the project is almost 100%. He is the machine that we turn on when we go into production. From soup to nuts (and he is nuts!) Rob is who we rely on to make sure the show, commercial, event actually comes together. He and his team of super-energized APs are the first there, and the last to leave on everything we make.

I remember Rob calling me one day and I asked him in passing how things were going. His response lives with me still to this day: "Great. I just got the cocktail wieners and the sumo suits don't smell that bad so we are good to go. Oh, and we go the Borat Bathing suits we needed." We needed those? Who knew? Rob did and that's the point. As an executive producer you can only hope that the vision you are promising a network, a client or even talent will execute perfectly. Rob answered that call in my world a lot of years ago now. Since that time we have made over 100 commercials, almost 100 episodes of TV and countless corporate events and projects. He rarely gets upset. He always gets excited. That is the ultimate recipe for good morale on set, perfect execution of the project, and a happy client and crew who will return the next time the need arises.

I tip my hat to Rob. He is an huge amount of fun. He is a pillar in our business. I wish him a Happy New Year. Check your schedule...we are in production right now Rob! No rest for the wickedly funny, sorry bud. I know you would have it no other way.

You know, he was on YTV for a lot of years as a host?

Sometimes we forget that Rob is talent, too.

But not too often because he is a good reminder!

Here is a one last thing about Rob: Look for him as the HOST (yes, host) of THE LAST THREE coming to Canadian airwaves this summer.

Top three things to do with video to build your business

I was speaking with a colleague during the break about the real advantage to using video from a corporate perspective. We came up with a number of good applications that we had seen throughout the years and then really boiled them down to three really good uses for video on a corporate level:

In a truly Lettermaesque fashion:

3) Use video to capture training, annual meetings and corporate events. This footage is gold when it comes to HR uses, staff-motivational moments, and for use on your website/corporate DVD.

2) Showing off exactly what your business does. Is it hard to explain? Well, real footage of what you do speaks volumes. How you do it, and what the client can expect are really helpful in the selling process of any business.

And the number one thing your company should do with video....

1) Introduce the people who are your managers, customer relations personnel, and executive and put a face to the brand that is your company.

Of course, there are many, many other uses (Product Catalogues, Commercials, Weekly News Updates....the list goes on and on). However, the basis for using video as a business is really easily boiled down to these "top three".

I would recommend that you call us to talk about how to use corporate videos to enhance your business and build profits.