Granny Ranny's Coming Attractions

Based on ohe critically-acclaimed children’s book series, “The Seeker” will be released on DVD March 18.

Will Stanton, a young man who learns he is the last of a group of warriors who have dedicated their lives to fighting the forces of the Dark, travels back and forth through time. Will discovers a series of clues which lead him into a showdown with forces of unimaginable power. With The Dark rising, the future of the world rests in Will’s hands.

This is an action adventure film that will keep you on the edge of your seat almost from the get go. Based on Susan Cooper’s book, “Dark is Rising” for which she won both a Newbery Award and a Carnegie medal in 1974. Although die-hard devotees to the book are likely to be unsatisfied with the changes in the storyline, for those who don’t have that issue this is an awesome movie. Alexander Ludwig’s portrayer of Will is believable even if he seems to be pulled into a role that he doesn’t relish undertaking. The missing elements to the screenplay that connect the story to British folklore are indeed missing but the special effects that bring snakes to life and collapse the glass solarium with a flood of water make this compete with the likes of recent movie releases of the Harry Potter and Chronicles of Narnia books. It helps to remember that logistically, screenplay has so fewer pages than a novel so you can never include all the elements of a great book in a film. It’s violence level is pretty tame for today’s pre-teens and teens but certainly there are enough scary elements to give younger viewers nightmares and fears.

“The Seeker” features an impressive cast of film and television veterans including Golden Globeâ-winners Ian McShane (“Deadwood”) and Frances Conroy (“Six Feet Under”) as well as Gregory Smith (“Everwood”) and sci-fi fan favorite Christopher Eccleston (“Dr. Who,” “Heroes”). Winner of numerous family-friendly honors including the KIDS FIRST! First Seal of Approval.

Have you seen the New Mr. Men Show? This delightful TV Series airs on the Cartoon Network and is based on the Mr. Men books created in the 1970s by Roger Hargreaves. According to urban mythology, Hargreaves drew the initiative prototype character after his son asked him what a “tickle” looked like. He drew an orange blob with extremely long arms and la voila, Mr. Tickle was born. Hargreaves is now one of the best-selling authors in the U.K.; the Mr. Men and Little Miss books have sold more than 100 million copies – nothing to frown at.

The TV show was created by Chorion Silver Linings’ executive producers, Diana Manson and Kurt Mueller as well as writers Eryk Casemiro and Kate Boutilier. I had the pleasure of chatting with them a couple of weeks ago about the show and about the work that Chorion Silver Lining is doing.

First of all, let me tell you what an impressive duo these two are. Diana Manson has worked in the entertainment business in some way, shape or form in Australia, UK and the US for 25 years. She has run a record label, a music publishing company, been an on-air radio announcer, producer on- and off- the West End in London, toured rock bands and produced albums. Along the way, she segued into children’s television, founded Silver Lining Productions, sold it to Chorion and moved to the US where she became EVP Creative and Development for Chorion Silver Lining Productions.

Kurt Mueller served as VP of Creative Development at Sesame Workshop where he worked his magic in bringing together creative teams of writers, producers, animators and authors to create interesting shows. Some of the properties he has developed are: “The Upside Down Show,” “Pinky Dinky Doo,” and “Sponk” -the first ever improvised comedy series for tweens.

One of the “secrets of their success,” according to Ms. Manson and Mr. Mueller is that they look for strong book properties that have an established audience and will adapt well to television. When asked how important it is that the properties perform in other arenas – ie. Mobile telecasting, Internet, etc., their answer was that first and foremost it must make a good TV show. Good criteria.

Each episode of The Mr. Men Show features two 11-minute episodes filled with comic elements ranging from long sketches to “Chaplin-style” interstitials to music videos and dance interludes, incorporated into retro-style animation. Each of the 25 characters in The Mr. Men Show has a distinct personality that have universal appeal:

The Mr. Men Characters
• Mr. Bump
• Mr. Messy
• Mr. Grumpy
• Mr. Strong
• Mr. Tickle
• Mr. Rude
• Mr. Nosy
• Mr. Small
• Mr. Stubborn
• Mr. Persnickety
• Mr. Quiet
• Mr. Lazy
• Mr. Bounce
• Mr. Happy
• Mr. Noisy
• Mr. Scatterbrain
• Mr. Nervous

Jo Wyatt, the voice of Little Miss Sunshine, Little Miss Helpful, Little Miss Naughty and Little Miss Scary.

The Little Misses
• Little Miss Sunshine
• Little Miss Chatterbox
• Little Miss Whoops
• Little Miss Naughty
• Little Miss Scary
• Little Miss Helpful
• Little Miss Calamity
• Little Miss Daredevil

In the show, all the characters live in the same city, Dillydale, which on the surface looks fully functional, but upon closer inspection you see it is ruled by wackiness. I think it’s this silliness that gives it its charm. The characters really have universal appeal – Mr. Grumpy, Mr. Messy, Little Miss Sunshine — there is a character to suit your mood.

Theme from the Show http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNo6vWKw1jg

WANT MORE: http://www.mrmenshowblog.com/