Incredible Story Studio receives Gemini nomination for best kids' series 4 times running!

September 18, 2001

(REGINA, SK CANADA) - Incredible Story Studio, the one-of-a-kind series where kids' stories from around the world are made into MOVIES, received it's fourth consecutive Gemini nomination today, for Best Children's or Youth Program or Series. The series took home the coveted Gemini in the same category last year, reaffirming Incredible Story Studio's immense success and popularity with kids worldwide.

Season 4 marked the first time Incredible Story Studio included stories written by Canadian kids as well as international child authors living in the United Kingdom, France, Martinique and Taiwan. The international episodes were filmed on location in Galway, Ireland and Regina, SK Canada. Each half-hour episode is hosted by the Studio Boss, the kid movie mogul with mega moxie and features two kids' stories adapted into 10 minute, live action TV dramas. Incredible Story Studio is currently shooting its fifth season.

Now broadcast to over 300 million homes worldwide, Incredible Story Studio can be seen on YTV, SCN and CBC in Canada, the Disney Channel in the UK, France and Germany, Discovery Kids in the US and Latin America, Nickelodeon in Australia, SABC in South Africa, CETV in China, KEBS in Korea, NHK in Japan, Noga in Israel, TG4 in Ireland, Singapore Cable Vision, and RAI SAT in Italy among others.

Series Producer/Co-creator Virginia Thompson sees this year's nomination as a very special one for the series. "Season 4 marks the first time kids from around the world will share their stories with each other on television. This is the goal of Incredible Story Studio and we're thrilled the Academy shares our commitment to promote literacy and creativity to kids worldwide."

Executive Producer Kevin Dewalt is pleased with Incredible Story Studio's success. "This series continues to garner national and international acclaim, it's beyond our wildest dreams. It's a winner in every sense: to date we've been nominated for more than 40 awards, created five great seasons, and touched millions of viewers around the globe."

Virginia Thompson and Robert de Lint are series creators, Kevin DeWalt and Kieran Corrigan are executive producers, Virginia Thompson and Mark Reid are producers, Robert de Lint is co-producer.

Vérité Films was founded in 1994 by Virginia Thompson and Robert de Lint to launch Incredible Story Studio. Vérité developed The ISS Writing Workshop: the creative writing guide that teaches kids how to write imaginative stories for television. It's estimated that over 500,000 school children from across Canada, the UK, France and Germany have used the writing workshop to date. Vérité Films is currently developing a number of children's and youth series. Each project in development follows the same commitment to quality and innovation demonstrated by the international success of Incredible Story Studio.

Established in 1986, Minds Eye Entertainment is a fully integrated production, post-production and distribution entity with offices in Canada and the U.S. As Western Canada's largest film and television production company, Minds Eye Entertainment has been instrumental in contributing to the country's thriving motion picture industry. Its award-winning feature films, television series, shorts and documentaries have been sold in more than 100 countries.

Merlin Films Group specializes in the development, financing, production and distribution of high quality product for the international media marketplace and is recognized as Ireland's leading film financier. Merlin Films, the motion picture division of the group, is a leading producer of feature films for worldwide distribution. Merlin Films Group has an ongoing commitment to maintaining its leadership position within Ireland and continues to provide quality entertainment to audiences through all mediums. Headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, Merlin also has offices in Shannon, London and Los Angeles.

Incredible Story Studio is a Canada-Ireland co-production produced with the financial participation of the Canadian Television Fund Equity Investment Program, the Canadian Television Fund License Fee Program, YTV, SCN, Minds Eye International, The Shaw Cable Children's Programming Initiative, The Shaw Cable Television Broadcast Fund, Independent Production Fund, The Saskatchewan Film Employment Tax Credit, Government of Canada - Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit Program, and Saskatchewan Post Secondary Education & Skills Training. SaskFILM has provided development assistance. Incredible Story Studio is distributed internationally by Minds Eye International.

For More Information Contact:
Melinda Luther, Unit Publicist
Phone: (306) 790-1496
Fax: (306) 359-3466
Email: mluther@mindseyepictures.com