U.K. Broadcasters Team to Create Access and Inclusion Passports – Global Bulletin

PASSPORT

U.K. broadcasters Channel 4, ITV, BBC, STV, UKTV, S4C and Paramount U.K. have teamed to create access and inclusion passports aimed at removing barriers and supporting better inclusion of disabled people and other colleagues at work. The passports, adopted from an initiative introduced at the BBC in 2019, will be confidential and will support conversations with line managers to ensure disabled colleagues and others get the right support they need at work. They will also be transferrable to enable holders to move smoothly across departments and between broadcasters, reducing the need for disabled talent and staff to repeatedly disclose their adjustment needs to each new employer or manager.

Managers will be supported at each organization to help them work with employees and their passports most effectively. The plans will also be introduced into the independent production sector to support disabled freelancers.

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Channel 4 recently set a disabled presenting team for the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games, to present on the ground in China.

Amazon Prime Video

STREAMING

“Sharmaji Namkeen,” the last film of late beloved Bollywood actor Rishi Kapoor, will premiere on Amazon Prime Video worldwide on March 31. Directed by Hitesh Bhatia and produced by Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar under the their Excel Entertainment banner in association with Honey Trehan and Abhishek Chaubey of MacGuffin Pictures the family entertainer follows the life of a recently retired man who discovers his passion for cooking after joining a riotous women’s card playing circle. “Sharmaji Namkeen” is the first Hindi-language movie where two actors — Rishi Kapoor and Paresh Rawal — have come together to play one character, with Rawal taking up the role after Kapoor’s death. The cast also includes Juhi Chawla, Suhail Nayyar, Taaruk Raina, Satish Kaushik, Sheeba Chaddha and Isha Talwar.

ITV

PRESENTER

ITV News U.K. editor Paul Brand will take over as the new presenter of Britain’s popular weekly current affairs program “Tonight” from April. He succeeds “ITV News at Ten” anchor Julie Etchingham, who decided to step down from “Tonight” at the beginning of the year to concentrate on “News at Ten” and other major documentary projects in the pipeline. Brand has previously led an investigation for “Tonight” – “Searching for Patient Zero: Britain’s AIDS Tragedy,” which solved the 40-year mystery of the first recorded person to die of AIDS in the U.K., John Eaddie. Brand will continue in his role as U.K. editor at ITV News, where his recent exclusives include the video showing Downing Street staff joking about a Christmas party. He was named Political Journalist of the Year at the British Journalism Awards 2020 for his work uncovering the COVID-19 crisis in care homes.

APPOINTMENT

TV executive Kim Shillinglaw is joining Curious Films as a non-executive director. Shillinglaw has 30 years’ experience in the media industry, running commercial production companies for EndemolShine, as controller of BBC2 and BBC4, and in several commissioning roles. Across her career Shillinglaw has commissioned hits including “Frozen Planet,” “Horrible Histories,” “Blue Planet II,” “The Real Marigold Hotel,” “Muslims Like Us,” “Exodus” and “Inside The Factory.”

UKRAINE

Under the banner Lens On: Ukraine, social publisher and content creator LADbible will produce a range of short and mid-form factual content including exclusive interviews with journalists and refugees in Ukraine as well as with Ukrainian people situated within the U.K. Content will include animated explainers, vox pops, and clips from contributors on the ground in Kyiv and other conflict zones covering events on TikTok. The LADbible Group has also launched an initiative to raise funds for The British Red Cross. Each piece of content produced for the Lens On: Ukraine campaign will feature links to The British Red Cross Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal website where viewers can donate funds.

PROGRAMMING

Kartoon Channel! Worldwide programming block Kartoon Genius launches across Latin America and the Middle East and North Africa region, reaching 67 countries, parent company Genius Brands International has revealed. This week, the Kartoon Genius two-hour, Monday-Friday programming block premieres across MENA on the pan-regional linear Pay TV channel fully dubbed in Arabic and English. On March 7, the programming block debuted throughout Central and South America on 24/7 linear, offering content in Spanish and English languages. Series on the programming block line-up include “Stan Lee’s Superhero Kindergarten,” “Llama Llama,” “Rainbow Rangers,” “Warren Buffett’s Secret Millionaires Club” and “Thomas Edison’s Secret Lab.”

Genius Brands International has made a strategic investment in Germany’s Your Family Entertainment AG to expand the Kartoon Channel! global footprint.

Genius Brands International

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