Jane Fonda, Jameela Jamil Host International Women’s Day Podcast for Women In Motion – Global Bulletin

Jamie Lang
·6 min read
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In today’s Global Bulletin, Women In Motion launches a special International Women’s Day podcast featuring Jane Fonda and Jameela Jamil, Amazon Prime Video announces a new women-fronting original series in India, BritBox heads to Amazon Prime Channels in the U.K., Keshet International acquires three new titles ahead of the London TV Screenings, BBC One unveils new casting for “The Responder,” Young Films Foundation beefs up its writing talent scheme and Paramount Plus goes all in on promoting its service in Latin America.

PODCAST

In celebration of International Women’s Day, Kering and Pomellato have released a new special edition of the “Women In Motion” podcast featuring a conversation with Jane Fonda and “The Good Place” star Jameela Jamil.

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The new podcast is part of Pomellato for Women, an initiative focusing on female leadership which Jane Fonda has contributed to for the past four years. Fonda was also the first winner of the Women In Motion Award, presented by Kering in partnership with the Cannes Film Festival.

Fonda and Jamil’s conversation focuses on diversity and gender equality on both sides of the camera, along with a retrospective look at Fonda’s activism over the course of her life.

Women In Motion, launched in 2015, highlights the creativity and contributions made by women to culture and the arts. The eponymous podcast series was created in 2019 for the 5th anniversary of the program. Each episode focuses on individuals who have been part of Women In Motion in the past, providing a platform to share their stories and beliefs.

STREAMING

Amazon Prime Video has unveiled its latest original out of India in “Hush Hush” (working title), an all-female led series, produced by Abundantia Entertainment. The streamer has also offered up a first look at its untitled upcoming original series starring Sonakshi Sinha, a crime drama which features the Bollywood star as a no-nonsense cop alongside Vijay Varma, Gulshan Devaiah and Sohum Shah.

Behind the camera, Tanuja Chandra (“Qarib Qarib Singlle”) will serve as creative director and executive producer with Shikhaa Sharma (“Shakuntala Devi”) as executive producer and original story writer. Up-and-coming director Kopal Nathani will helm several episodes of the series, with National Award-winning writer Juhi Chaturvedi (“Gulabo Sitabo”) on board to contribute to the dialogues of Ashish Mehta’s original screenplay.

On screen, “Hush Hush” has enlisted the likes of Juhi Chawla, Ayesha Jhulka, Soha Ali Khan, Karishma Tanna, Shahana Goswami and Kritika Kamra to front the new thriller drama, driven by its unique female gaze.

Amazon’s untitled Sonakshi Sinha series is produced by executive producers Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar at Excel Media and Entertainment along with Zoya Akhtar and Reema Kagti for Tiger Baby. Reema Kagti and Ruchika Oberoi direct.

*****

This spring, BritBox U.K. will be made available to Amazon Prime Video subscribers through Prime Video Channels in the region as an add-on subscription service.

For BritBox, the deal elevates the number of homes which can access its service to more than 40 million, or nearly 90% of those with access to video-on-demand services. For Prime Channels, BritBox joins an a-la-carte menu which already features the likes of Discovery, ITV Hub+, Eurosport Player, Hayu, Starzplay and more.

SALES

Keshet International has picked up three new series for its Spring lineup, Norwegian comedy “Pørni,” Serbian crime thriller “The Group” and Scandinavian docuseries “Surrounded by Enemies.” Keshet will present all three at its Spring Preview Event at the London TV Screenings.

“Pørni,” will launch this spring and is produced by Monster Scripted for NENT’s streaming platform Viaplay. Just last week the series was showcased at the Berlinale Series Market Presents. “The Group” (“Grupa”) was Serbia’s highest rated TV program in 2020 after premiering at the Sarajevo Film Festival. It’s produced by Vision Team for RTS. Another Viaplay title, “Surrounded by Enemies” is produced by Monster Entertainment, and investigates the rise of far-right extremism.

CASTING

As filming kicks off on BBC One’s “The Responder,” new casting details have been revealed, joining previously announced lead Martin Freeman (“The Hobbit”).

New additions include Adelayo Adedayo (“Unsaid Stories”), Ian Hart (Tin Star”), MyAnna Buring (“The Witcher”), Kerrie Hayes (“Tin Star”) and Warren Brown (“Luther”). David Bradley (“Broadchurch”) and Rita Tushingham (“Ridley Road”) will also appear alongside newcomers Josh Finan and Emily Fairn.

“The Responder” is the story of morally compromised first responder Chris (Martin Freeman), who works night shifts in Liverpool. Forced to take on a new partner in Rachel (Adelayo Adedayo), the two quickly learn that to survive the high-pressure job they must either join forces or face mutual career and personal destruction.

The series is written by Tony Schumacher and produced by Fremantle-backed Dancing Ledge Productions for BBC One and BBC iPlayer. Tim Mielants (“Peaky Blinders”) directs.

TALENT SCHEME

Scottish producer Chris Young (“The Inbetweeners,” “Bannan”) has teamed with The Forge’s Beth Willis (“Doctor Who,” “Eric and Ernie”), producer and former head of drama at Channel 4, to expand the scope and ambition of the Young Films Foundation’s writing scheme, launched from the Isle of Skye in 2017.

This year, for the first time, the seven participants will receive a full TV drama, comedy or feature film script commission from either Channel 4 Drama, Channel 4 Comedy, BBC Drama, MG Alba /BBC Alba, BBC Films, Film4 or Sky. Each will also be backed with a full script fee from their partner broadcaster, which will in return receive first right of refusal over the commissioned script.

Additionally, each participant will be assigned a mentor to provide support and advice throughout the year-long initiative. The program will also host a massive slate of online sessions to benefit the creators, hosted by the likes of Karen Gillan, Lenny Abrahamson, Neil Gaiman and many more.

The scheme is now accepting applications and is open to Scottish residents of any experience or background.

PROMOTION

Celebrating its launch in Latin America, Paramount Plus has embarked an ambitious marketing campaign including 3D projection mapping, a drone light show and a more than 350 seeding kits sent out to major influencers from across the region.

On Monday evening, in Mexico City, Paramount Plus will host light show featuring more than 300 drones illuminating the night sky with iconic Paramount images over the city’s historic Campo Marte neighborhood. The show will be broadcast on Facebook and Instagram Live, as well as the social channels of influencers such as Darian Rojas and Caro Diaz.

Over the weekend in Brazil and Argentina, Paramount Plus hosted 3D Projection video exhibitions on the walls of culturally important locations using 3D mapping technology, again featuring Paramount titles and properties.

The streaming service is now available in 18 countries across Latin America.

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