News

PBS is expanding its presence in the linear, free streaming channel business. The public broadcaster has sealed a deal with Amazon to stream its PBS Kids channel, as well as 150 local PBS stations, as part of the Prime Video Fast channel offerings.

“Fast” stands for free, ad-supported TV — but the PBS channels will all be commercial free. For PBS, this reps the first time its programming will be available on a major streaming service for free. As part of the announcement, PBS Distribution also announced two new Fast channels — PBS Drama and PBS Documentaries — as well as another Fast channel that features a rotation of classic PBS series, with “Reading Rainbow” up first.

Those new channels will launch exclusively on Prime Video starting Nov. 26, and will be exclusive to Amazon at first before moving to wider distribution.

This reps the latest experiment in streaming for PBS; viewers to the pubcaster...

A new day is dawning for public television in the streaming era, with PBS and Amazon reaching a deal to bring 150 local stations, PBS Kids and two new Fast channels to Prime Video.

As in the longstanding linear broadcast model, station programming will only be available to viewers located in a given market. The new national offerings, PBS Drama and PBS Documentaries, as well as PBS Kids will be available everywhere.

The pact marks the first time PBS programming will be available for free on a major streaming service. PBS Drama and PBS Documentaries will be available exclusively for a limited time on Prime Video starting November 26. PBS Distribution will also offer a “pop-up” Fast channel featuring a rotating selection of classic PBS shows, starting with Reading Rainbow.

In order to preserve the primacy of stations in the public broadcasting ecosystem, programming on the Fast channels will be at least...

India’s Film Bazaar, the Singapore-based Asia TV Forum & Market’s (Atf) IP Accelerator Project Market (Aipa) and the Southeast Asian Audio-Visual Association (Saava) have formed a project market partnership.

Film Bazaar, South Asia’s largest film market is operated by India’s National Film Development Corporation (Nfdc) and runs concurrently with the International Film Festival of India (Iffi). The project market partnership signed with Saava and Nfdc arranges for an exchange of projects in development and/or work-in-progress between them.

The exchanges start this year, with “Becoming”, a feature-length India-South Korea production from the documentary section of Film Bazaar’s co-production market going to Aipa 2023. Next year, one or more of Aipa’s projects in the current edition will be given an automatic entry into 2024’s edition of the Film Bazaar’s co-production market.

In addition, on the back of the increased Indian film incentive schemes, the partnership between...

On Wednesday, November 8, 2023, at 9:00 Pm, BBC Two is set to broadcast the first episode of “The Secret Genius of Modern Life,” titled “Passport.” In this intriguing episode, viewers will join Hannah as she explores the fascinating world of passport production.

Hannah gains exclusive access to a highly classified facility where dedicated staff and cutting-edge technology work tirelessly to make the British passport one of the most secure documents globally. This behind-the-scenes journey reveals the secrets that make passports a marvel of modern technology.

During the episode, viewers will uncover the hidden history within the pages of every passport, dating back to World War I spy craft. The show also delves into how modern ID checks have been influenced by historical events, such as the pursuit of a 19th-century French serial killer and the psychedelic art of the 1970s.

Tune in to BBC Two at 9:00 Pm to unravel the...

Projects from South Korea, Japan and the Philippines among winners.

The Passport from Malaysian director Ananth Subramaniam has scooped the top Bucheon Award at the 16th Network of Asian Fantastic Films (Naff) project market, which runs alongside South Korea’s Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival (Bifan).

The black comedy drama, produced by Bel Choo Mun of Malaysia’s Sixtymac Production and Idio Sync, received a cash prize of KRW15m.

Scroll down for full list of winners

Set in the 1970s, the story follows a budding Indian rock star set to embark on her first international tour but who experiences...

The Bucheon film festival’s Network of Asian Fantastic Films project market wrapped up three days of meetings and pitching sessions on Monday with a prize ceremony that disbursed cash, post-production support and invitations to related genre film events.

“The Passport,” a Tamil- and English-language Malaysian project about an Indian rockstar who is forced to confront cultural expectations and her interactions with an imaginary friend, won the headline Bucheon Award for director Ananth Subramanian and producer Bel Choo Mun. It was both a popular choice among other Naff participants and the unanimous decision of the jury.

The numerical winner was “Please Bear With Me,” which saw director Gabriela Serrano and producer Gale Osorio from the Philippines collect three prizes. The project is a sci-fi and social issues mash-up about a call center operative who gets paid in dream-time and uses it to relive her glory days as a pop star.

As we creep towards summer, Netflix has a hot new list of fresh content, including the final season of “Never Have I Ever,” the sophomore season of ‘Human Resources” and the highly anticipated sixth season of “Black Mirror.”

Kicking off the start of the month on mega streamer are lots of family-friendly goodies like both “Nanny McPhee” and “Nanny McPhee Returns,” “Kicking and Screaming,” “Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius” and the “Angry Birds Movie.” But the adults won’t be left out of the conversation, as more mature flicks and series like “Jarhead,” “Funny People” and “We’re the Millers” are also hitting the platform this month.

And it wouldn’t be Netflix without its originals. “Take Care of Maya,” “Extraction 2” and the Sarah Snook-led “Run Rabit Run” will land on the site in June. And even if this isn’t enough to get you watching, Netflix will be streaming its Tudum festival on Saturday,...

(Welcome to The Weekly Watchlist, a feature where we program everything you need to stream this week. In this edition: "Ted Lasso" takes center stage, along with other wholesome dramas about self-improvement that would undoubtedly receive the Lasso stamp of approval.)

The Series: "Ted Lasso"

Where You Can Stream It: Apple TV+

The Pitch: Three seasons in, this extremely hyped-up series is still everything you've been promised! The feel-good comedy-drama follows American football coach Ted Lasso (Jason Sudeikis) across the ocean to London, where he's been hired to coach an English football (aka soccer) team. Instead of harsh words and a demanding training regimen, Ted goes in with an open heart, folksy charm, and so much earnest energy, that it seeps through even the thickest skin. But making the Greyhounds into a team is only one challenge — can these underdogs actually find a way to win the whole damn thing?...