Speakers Named for Children, Youth & Media Conference

MONTREAL: Set to open the 2011 Children, Youth & Media (CYM) conference are Hedda Sharapan, the director of early childhood initiatives at The Fred Rogers Company, and Angela Santomero, the executive producer of the new preschool animated series Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood.

At the conference, Hedda Sharapan will present the past, present and future of The Fred Rogers Company where she will provide an overview of the original Neighborhood series that revolutionized children’s media. Angela Santomero, will discuss the pressure of re-imagining this beloved series for today’s audiences with the new series Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood. The presentation will include previously unseen clips of the Daniel Tiger, son of the original Daniel Tiger, and his preschool friends. The series will be launched in fall 2012 on PBS KIDS, together with a website featuring interactive games for kids, online resources for parents and teachers and other cross-platform content. Animation for the series is being done in Toronto by the Canadian partner for the series, 9 Story Entertainment.

The conference is set to take place in Toronto.