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TheBuzz Erika Engle |
OC16 goes all local,
all the timeThe word of the day was "local" and the numbers of the day were 16, 24 and 7. Oceanic Time Warner Cable is expanding Hawaii programming on channel 16 from about 40 percent to 100 percent.
The statewide cable company with 388,000 customers yesterday unveiled programs and cast members from locally originated shows that will launch Sept. 3. The catered blow-out premiere party at Paliku Theatre at Windward Community College was similar to the fall premiere parties Hawaii's network-affiliated TV stations threw in years gone by, without the booze.
The round-the-clock schedule will dramatically increase the advertising inventory Oceanic controls, although the exact amount has yet to be determined, according to Maryann Sacharski, director of advertising sales.
Advertising revenue from OC16 is modest, said Oceanic President Nate Smith, but "if we get this right it could grow to $2 (million) or $3 million or more."
DEAN SENSUI / DSENSUI@STARBULLETIN.COM
Na Leo Pilimehana performed at the Paliku Theater at Windward Community College yesterday as part of a celebration to mark Oceanic Cable Channel 16's move to 24-hour-a-day programming .
Except for live sports, new shows will debut on Tuesdays and will repeat during the week to fill the program grid, said Mitzi Lehano, vice president of creative services and programming. Currently, time slots not filled by local programming carry the Game Show Network.
There is no single rate structure for getting local shows on the air. Producers pitch their ideas to Oceanic and "the economics are worked out on a case-by-case basis," Smith said.
Some production companies buy chunks of time from Oceanic and sell advertising time to offset the cost and earn revenue, but not all of them do. Others split advertising income with Oceanic.
In addition to ad dollars, Oceanic also has a revenue stream from subscribers, which allows the company to be patient in letting shows develop, Smith said. If the programming expansion is successful, the advertisers and producers will make money, he said.
Oceanic is the first Time Warner system to devote a channel solely to local programming, said Lehano.
"We feel really blessed. We have an incredible opportunity. Nate Smith has been a huge supporter of local programming," she said.
New shows that will be added to the lineup include "Blood of the Samurai," after the 2000 independent film of the same name by writer-director Aaron Yamasato. The $2,000 budget for the film is dwarfed by the $150,000 cost to produce the six-part series, which has been underwritten by local investors. The cast is comprised of local actors trained in martial arts as well as "Kikaida" star Ban Daisuke from Japan.
It debuts at 10 p.m. Oct. 13 and seems certain to boost enrollment at Hawaii's martial arts schools.
The June Jones Show, by Russell Shimooka's Portlock Productions LLC in cooperation with Oceanic, University of Hawaii and Liquid Planet Productions, will recap Warrior football games in shows taped before an audience atop Dave & Buster's.
Actor Ray Bumatai, co-star of OC16's "BumaVision," produces a new program called "Mental Tilapia," an improvisational comedy game show starring other local actors and comics.
Producing a show is not an inexpensive proposition. "The money runs out fast," said BumaVision co-star and veteran local comic Andy Bumatai. "My brother would be happy to get back to zero,"
Oceanic-produced "Hawaiian Classics" will feature Hawaii's musicians and musical history.
Sixty-second news headline updates by Shimooka, "Road to Fame" co-host Lianne Killion and a growing cast will air from 4 p.m. to midnight then increase to 24 hours.
Familiar shows such as Tiny TV, Local Kine Grindz and Sports People Hawaii will stay, as will Da Braddahs & Friends, The Little Grass Shack and Board Stories, among others.
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Erika Engle is a reporter with the Star-Bulletin. Call 529-4302, fax 529-4750 or write to Erika Engle, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., No. 7-210, Honolulu, HI 96813. She can also be reached at: eengle@starbulletin.com
