Multi-territory Commission for Staraoke

ATLANTA: Turner Broadcasting has commissioned Archie Productions to produce six European versions of the Finnish kids’ series Staraoke.

Archie is adapting the 78×30-minute format for the U.K., Germany, Italy, Spain, France and Poland. Created by Intervisio, Staraoke is aimed at 7- to 11-year-olds and features two teams battling head to head in karaoke-style competitions to win prizes. Contestants gain points based on their ability to sing in tune, with scoring determined by voice-recognition software. Their performances will be rendered on a giant plasma screen with a computer-generated avatar, which will be chosen from characters appearing on Turner’s portfolio of kids’ channels, the likes of Ben 10, The Powerpuff Girls, Scooby-Doo and Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends.

Finn Arnesen, the senior VP and general manager of original series and international development for Turner Broadcasting System International, said: "Staraoke is an excellent format of obvious appeal to kids. We’re delighted to have commissioned this entire new run of episodes, with many exciting elements added that will take the show to the next level. Having worked with John Marley and his team on our successful game show Skatoony, we are pleased to have Archie Productions on board as producer of our latest U.K.-produced live-action brand."

John A. Marley, the creative director at Archie Productions, added: "We are excited to be working with Turner on such a major, international project and look forward to the challenges and rewards of producing six localised versions of the same format. Archie is all about creating brands on this scale and we feel proud to have achieved a commission such as this within our first twelve months."