Joe Tedesco

Joe Tedesco, the VP and general manager of Canada’s Family Channel, which targets kids aged 8 to 14, says he’s looking to stock up on “Live-action, or maybe compelling animation with strong story lines and character development.”

He continues, “Our focus right now has been on live action. That programming has proven to work very well with our audience. But certainly if we found an animated property that we thought was compelling and had strong story lines, character development, all those essential ingredients, we would consider commissioning something like that as well.”

Family Channel, which has an output deal with Disney, stays close to a roster of local production companies to maintain a strong Canadian connection and to meet its license requirements to offer Canadian content. 

“We’re in constant conversations with our producers, giving them insights into the kinds of shows we want and the kinds we think will work,” Tedesco says. “It’s an interactive process, in terms of how we identify the series we want to move into development. It’s a matter of them taking our thoughts and then coming back to us with pitches. When we think there’s something strong we will go to pilot, which we’ll test with focus groups.”

That process has led to international hits like Life with Derek, from Shaftesbury Films, and The Latest Buzz; Naturally, Sadie; and the animated Franny’s Feet from DECODE Enterprises.