Bullivant, Russell Launch New British Indie

LONDON, January 10: Former TV-Loonland and Kickback Media
executive John Bullivant has teamed up with Iain Russell, previously with The
London Studios and Fire Mountain Productions, to launch Fireback Entertainment,
a new independent British production company.

John Bullivant is the former director of programs at
TV-Loonland and managing director of Kickback Media, which he founded in 2002. Bullivant
started his career working in various roles within international children’s
television, including HIT Entertainment.

Iain Russell was previously the
head of productions at The London Studios and the managing director of Fire
Mountain Productions. A BAFTA nominee, Russell is founder and managing director
of Shepperton Studios-based Fire Mountain Productions and has worked in
association with ITV for more than 25 years. Prior to establishing Fire
Mountain, he was head of production at The London Studios, part of ITV.

Fireback is currently in production on its first fully
funded CITV commission, Captain Mack, a
new 52×11-minute live-action children’s series aimed at 4- to 6-year-olds. Captain
Mack tells of the adventures of its
eponymous brave Sky Captain who performs daring deeds and flies heroic
missions. Inspired by the 1960s live-action show Batman, Captain Mack is a non-violent, all-action superhero. Fireback controls worldwide
rights to the property and is in final negotiations to secure a worldwide TV
and video distributor. Captain Mack
joins the company’s existing children’s productions, including Tom
& Vicky, also licensed to CITV, The
Treacle People and The Fourth
King, which have been licensed to Channel 4
in the U.K.

Fireback aims to diversify beyond children’s programs and
animation into film, drama and factual entertainment production. The company is
already presenting an extensive drama development/film slate to British
broadcasters and financiers. Fireback is also working with writer/director Jim
Hill (The Bill, Casualty, Byker Grove) on development and also on identifying the young writing talents of
the future. Fireback will be taking a similar approach to factual
entertainment.

In addition, Fireback also operates a corporate and
commercials production arm that trades under the name of Fire Mountain
Communications. Clients include RBS, BBC Worldwide and McCann-Erickson.

Bullivant commented: “Fireback will position itself as an
ideas-driven company rather than a genre-driven company. If we see a great idea
that we think has potential, we’re not going to walk away from it simply
because it’s not ‘our genre.’ The idea is bold but simple—we pull the
best possible team together and make it our genre!”

Russell added: “With a unique
combination of creative talent and proven business acumen, Fireback is
committed to making its properties a commercial as well as creative success;
factoring in distribution and consumer products’ potential from day one will
set us in very good stead.”

—By Irene Lew