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03 Jan 2012 No Comments

Farewell 2011!

Lets all welcome 2012 and say farewell to a very challenging 2011, but should we be optimistic or fearful of what lies ahead?

The economic conditions are continuing to make life very tough for producers, and the toy and consumer products industries are nervously assessing their books after what appears to be a very disappointing Christmas period. Here in the UK the British Retail Consortium have described the sales figures for the period as ‘miserable’ – enough said!

Here at Open Mind we are pushing forward with the development of a number of new and very exciting television and media projects, and we’ll stick by the mantra that ‘quality will always win the day’. Our Numberjacks Mission to Learn website saw increased take-up in membership over the Christmas period, and the new pricing structure that now sees members get ‘lifetime’ use of the site for under £20 is proving popular.

Certainly, parents are having to be far more choosy in how and where they spend their hard earned money at this time – with many items that were previously considered ‘day-to-day’ now being moved into the ‘luxury’ bracket. The same is also true to some degree with broadcasters and media owners, and they are rightly looking to get as much for their money as they possibly can. This, we feel, will favour producers such as Open Mind who not only have a highly cost-effective production operation but who specialise in producing content rich with the kind of values that many discerning consumers are looking-for.

So, let’s embrace the new year and look forward with some optimism. Happy New Year everyone!

by open-user in Blog

21 Dec 2011 No Comments

Christmas Cheer

With less than a hundred hours to go until Santa’s sleigh arrives on our rooftops many of us will already be adding up the personal cost to our wallets this Christmas, whilst the toy and consumer products industries will be nervously checking their balance sheets to see if there will be a Christmas 2012!

The relationship that exists between the producers of children’s television content and the manufacturers of children’s merchandise has grown ever closer in the past ten years, not least because a great many shows have come to rely on the belief that their anticipated popularity will give rise to them selling large quantities of merchandise, the revenues from which will help pay for the making of the show.

This relationship has never been a particularly comfortable one, as programme makers worry that ‘the tail will wag the dog’ and that too much attention being paid to how a character looks from a toy manufacturer’s perspective may cause them to lose sight of the story or the show’s core values. On the other side of the coin the potential licensees are looking and thinking ‘if only they’d used four colours in that logo instead of eighteen we could have saved a fortune on packaging’!

So, it remains an uneasy marriage, but no doubt one that will be long lasting. As with most long-term relationships, the two sides eventually find their common ground. Producers now know what the licensing industry look for in a property, and if they don’t they should, and the licensing industry understand where the line is in terms of the creative process – even if they do have the odd foray into enemy territory from time-to-time.

As we pass each other in the halls and corridors at the London and New York Toy Fair, at Nuremburg and Harrogate, or at the Kidscreen Summit and MipTV, lets tip our hats and wish each other ‘Happy Christmas 2012’.

It may never be the perfect marriage and there will be more than the odd spat along the way, but it is one that must and will endure – even if it is ‘for the sake of the kids’.

by open-user in Blog

19 Dec 2011 No Comments

Open Mind announces new company structure

Ahead of the company’s 23^rd anniversary, UK independent production company Open Mind have announced significant structural changes.

Founder and Managing Director, Roland Tongue will retire at the end of the year from the day-to-day management of the business he formed in 1989 with ex-BBC colleague Chris Ellis. Tongue, together with Ellis, remains a majority shareholder in Open Mind Productions, and will continue to work with Open Mind as a Consultant Producer on a project-by-project basis.

Speaking about his semi-retirement from a long and successful career in broadcast television, and on the changes to the company, Roland Tongue commented “Together, we have achieved a lot over the past 22 years or so and I look forward to seeing Open Mind moving on just as successfully over the years to come and, if possible, with me playing the role of one of the old men in the Muppet Box!”.

Chris Ellis who, as co-founder and Creative Director, has been responsible for the creation and writing of many of Open Mind Productions’ most successful series, including The Number Crew, Maths Mansion, The Shiny Show, and Numberjacks, will continue at Open Mind in a senior creative capacity whilst also continuing his career as a freelance writer.

Since delivering a second series of Numberjacks to CBeebies and a brace of DVD Specials for ITV Global Entertainment, Open Mind, and Ellis in particular, have concentrated heavily on the development of the Numberjacks brand in areas such as radio, music performance, live theatre and the development of the early years learning website Numberjacks Mission to Learn.

Prior to forming Open Mind Productions both Chris and Roland enjoyed long spells at the BBC, Roland as a Film Editor and Chris as a Producer/Director. Chris having begun his career as an English teacher, worked for the BBC on classic education shows such as Zig Zag, the English File, and Scene, working in parallel as a freelance writer on shows such as The Biz and Grange Hill.

Ellis commented: “Nick’s creative commercial thinking, and wealth of UK and international connections, make him a great choice to take Open Mind forward, and I very much looking to forward to continuing working with him in this next stage of my career. Over the years I’ve enjoyed a rich mix of producing, directing, and writing, working across a wide range of genre including drama, documentary and animation, and I’m very much up for new challenges and opportunities, looking to find new ways of entertaining and educating children with Open Mind, as well as continuing to work with other companies as a writer.”

Nick Underwood joined the company as a marketing consultant in 2005, having previously held senior management positions in both the licensing and children’s entertainment sectors since 1994. Nick was elevated to the role of Commercial Director in 2007 and will now move into the position of Managing Director of Open Mind Ventures Ltd and will lead the new business strategy for the company, with Chris Ellis in the primary creative role.

“It’s certainly a case of mixed emotions” commented Underwood. “Having worked alongside Roland for the past six or more years, and learned so much on the production side, it’s naturally quite an emotional moment. But, we do know where he lives and he is remaining within the business as a consultant and major shareholder, of course. On the other hand, the chance to take the lead with such a well-known and highly respected brand as Open Mind is not one that I could ignore, and I’m extremely excited to have been given the opportunity” he said. “Open Mind has certainly lived up to its name over the years, and the company has moved with the times and reacted quickly to new platforms and innovative media technologies. We’re perhaps best known for award-winning television projects, but we’ve also produced a lot of interactive, online and other new media content over the years and, having retained the commercial rights to our recent work, the company has also become a ‘rights marketing’ business alongside the long established production and creative operations”.

In advance of the management changes Open Mind has launched a re-vamped website and is now actively seeking new partnerships and ventures that will move the business forward over the coming years.

Open Mind Productions Limited was set up in 1989 by Roland Tongue and Chris Ellis, and the company has gone on to make over 700 children’s and educational programmes for clients such as the BBC, Channel 4 and Discovery Kids.  Credits include Paz, Ratatat, the Number Crew, Maths Mansion, The Shiny Show, and The Numberjacks, which has been seen in over 50 countries around the world and translated into 15 languages.

Roland Tongue was a film editor in BBC Television for fifteen years editing many series including Horizon, Your Life in Their Hands, Ken Hom’s Chinese Cookery and Citizen Smith. Since founding Open Mind Productions in 1989 Roland has produced more than five hundred and fifty programmes for BBC Television, Channel Four Television, Discovery Kids in New York and corporate clients including BP, Ofsted and SEAC.  In the last seven years programmes produced by Roland have won two Royal Television Society and one BAFTA awards and nominated for a further two BAFTA and 3 Daytime Emmy awards.

Roland also specialises in new media production and has worked on major projects for Pearson Broadband and the “Homework” electronic classroom project with the University of Sussex School of Cognitive Science and Channel 4 Learning for the DTI & ESRC.

Chris Ellis was a teacher of English and Drama for ten years, where he started writing plays and musicals for young people.  He then joined the BBC and produced and directed a wide range of programmes for children and teenagers, including Zig Zag, You and Me, Tales From Europe, and the History File.  Chris was also writing as a freelance for shows such as Grange Hill, the Biz, and Fourways Farm.

In 1989 he set up Open Mind Productions with Roland Tongue, and has been Creative Director of the company since that time, devising and writing most of the companies shows. Chris has been nominated for a BAFTA, and he has won several Royal Television Society Awards, the Japan Prize, and a Peabody Award.

Nick Underwood had a successful career in hospitality and sports marketing before joining Ragdoll Productions in 1994 as Head of International Marketing. In 98 Nick moved to South Africa where he worked for Primedia SA on licensing and new media ventures before returning to the UK in 2000. Following a period at Just Group plc and then as CEO of the resurrected Newscreen Media Group plc, he joined Open Mind as a consultant in 2005. In 2007 Nick became a Director and permanent employee of Open Mind Productions and has worked across all of the company’s commercial and new business matters during his period with the company.

by open-user in Blog

17 Dec 2011 No Comments

Channel 5 Decides Against HD Freeview

UK broadcaster channel 5 has notified the industry regulator Ofcom that it will not be taking-up the opportunity to launch the Five network on Freeview HD.

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16 Dec 2011 Comments Off on Hasbro to Eliminate PVC From Packaging

Hasbro to Eliminate PVC From Packaging

The world’s second largest toy company, US-based Hasbro, Inc.,  has announced that it will eliminate polyvinyl chloride (PVC) from all new core toy and game packaging, beginning in 2013.

Hasbro has already begun to phase out PVC from some packaging. Phasing out PVC in packaging is Hasbro’s most recent effort in a series of sustainable packaging initiatives by the company. The efforts, including eliminating wire ties, increasing recycled content, and sourcing paper, are designed to minimize the impact on natural resources.

by open-user in Blog

16 Dec 2011 Comments Off on NPD Releases KIDS Report on Christmas Holiday Wish Lists

NPD Releases KIDS Report on Christmas Holiday Wish Lists

Toys are still at the top of kids’ wish lists, according to a recently released Kids Industry Data Service (KIDS) report by The NPD Group.

NPD asked the open-ended question, “What is on your child’s wish list for the upcoming holiday season?” and received 6,612 mentions of items for kids ages 0 to 14. Of the mentions, 44 percent were toys, up from last year when 38 percent of mentions were playthings. Consumer electronics was second (11 percent), followed by video games (10 percent), apparel and accessories (9 percent), video game system hardware (5 percent), and sporting gear (4 percent).

The top five properties mentioned across all product categories included Lego, Barbie, Transformers, American Girl, and Thomas & Friends. Newer brands and products included Fijit Friends, Kindle Fire, InnoTab, Spryo: Skylanders, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Ripstik, and Airsoft guns.

by open-user in Blog

16 Dec 2011 Comments Off on Neil Ross-Russell Departs BBC Worldwide

Neil Ross-Russell Departs BBC Worldwide

A big surprise to hear that Neil Ross-Russell is leaving his post as Managing Director Licensed Consumer Products and Global Children’s Brands (what a title!) at the end of this month. Neil was a contributor to a panel produced and moderated by Open Mind’s Nick Underwood at the Children’s Media Conference in 2010 and has certainly made his mark at the BBC. We wish Neil well and are sure he’ll pop-up somewhere interesting in the new year.

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by open-user in Blog