Page 5 - Ellen Doherty News Today

The mid-way point of the Bentonville Film Festival was a typical summer day in Arkansas — hot and humid with highs in the 90s — making it a good one for staying inside and watching movies.

Sonia Manzano, who portrayed Maria on "Sesame Street" for 44 years, recalls vividly what it's like to be a child.

Kristin DiQuollo, supervising producer of Donkey Hodie for Fred Rogers Productions, discusses bringing the magic of Fred Rogers to life again in the puppet preschool series about big dreams.

Fred Rogers Productions has secured grants totaling $350,000 from the Richard King Mellon Foundation and Heinz Family Foundation for two of its hit series.

A look at the major themes that emerged from the TV Kids Festival last week.

Sonia Manzano, best known for her long run on Sesame Street as Maria, and Ellen Doherty, the chief creative officer at Fred Rogers Productions, took TV Kids Festival viewers inside the creation of the new PBS KIDS show Alma’s Way this afternoon.

The second day of the TV Kids Festival includes a panel on trends in preschool programming, a creative keynote from Aardman’s Nick Park, a conversation with Mattel Television’s Fred Soulie, a behind-the-scenes look at Alma’s Way and a candid discussion about navigating the complexities of the kids’ business. See the full rundown for the event, running from February 1 to 4, here.

Keynotes slated for the TV Kids Festival from February 1 to 4 include M6’s Philippe Bony, Studio 100’s Hans Bourlon, DreamWorks Animation’s Peter Gal, Mattel Television’s Fred Soulie, eOne Family Brands’ Olivier Dumont, WildBrain’s Josh Scherba, Aardman’s Nick Park, Bluey’s Joe Brumm, Alma’s Way’s Sonia Manzano and more. Check out the full schedule here and sign up for your free registration here.

Taking place February 1 to 4, this winter’s TV Kids Festival has enlisted 32 speakers from across the business—production, broadcast, streaming, distribution, L&M—to share their thoughts on where the kids’ content landscape is today and where it’s heading. If you haven’t registered yet, you can still do so here; it’s free!

Charter Oak Brewing Company recently celebrated its 10th anniversary, while Halloween...