One of the most popular characters in "The Penguins of Madagascar" is Julien, a lemur who has somehow deluded himself into believing he is a king, against much evidence to the contrary.
As Hollywood has long known, there can be a jackpot in animals behaving badly. In just a few weeks, the animated "Penguins of Madagascar" has claimed a royal perch at Viacom's Nickelodeon, the cable network famous for "SpongeBob SquarePants" and "iCarly."We knew it was going to be a hit; we didn't know it was going to be quite this big a hit," said Brown Johnson, Nickelodeon's president of animation.
"Penguins of Madagascar" is the latest in a line of penguin-themed entertainment, including the documentary "March of the Penguins," and the animated films "Happy Feet" and "Surf's Up."
Indeed, "Penguins of Madagascar" is shaping up as another powerful weapon in Nickelodeon's ongoing battle with Disney Channel, home of the formidable "Hannah Montana," for the hearts and minds of America's children. At the moment, who's winning depends on how you look at it. Last week, for example, Nickelodeon was the most-watched cable network among total viewers, averaging 2.3 million for the entire day. But Disney was No. 1 in prime time among children 2 to 11.
The key in this case was Nickelodeon's ability to leverage a corporate relationship with DreamWorks Animation, which produced the "Madagascar" movies. The studio has a movie distribution deal with Paramount Pictures, another arm of the Viacom empire, which helped facilitate the Nickelodeon pact, according to a network spokeswoman. "Penguins" could thus be thought of as one of the rare instances in which corporate "synergy" has performed as advertised.
"We got a lot of buzz from the money DreamWorks spent advertising the 'Madagascar' movies," Johnson said.
But she added that she thought audiences were responding to the quality of the series in its own right, and she singled out the writing, which expands what were essentially supporting characters in the films. Another key, as with "SpongeBob," is that the series is plenty silly but still has enough sophisticated humor for parents to want to watch with their children.
Each episode is written and storyboarded in the U.S. but then packed off to India and South Korea for animation work. The entire process takes about 20 months per episode, Johnson said.
It's a gamble that seems to have paid off so far. Underscoring their confidence in the series, executives have ordered 52 episodes, of which 13 have aired, Johnson said. Nickelodeon is also developing a TV series based on DreamWorks' "Kung Fu Panda," although that has not progressed beyond the pilot stage.
As for "Penguins," its franchise could last for a while. DreamWorks is planning another "Madagascar" movie in 2012. But Nickelodeon, meanwhile, isn't taking anything for granted. "There's never a formula for a hit television series," Johnson said.
Spun off from the popular "Madagascar" feature movies, the TV show premiered last month and was the most-watched in Nickelodeon's history, with 6.1 million total viewers, according to Nielsen Media Research. The fact that the premiere aired right after the Kids' Choice Awards didn't hurt. But the ratings have held up well since then, with 4.9 million viewers for Saturday's episode, the first in its regular morning time slot. Season to date, "Penguins of Madagascar" is already the No. 3 show on basic cable among children 2 to 11, tied with "SpongeBob" and Nickelodeon's "Mighty B!"
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
'Penguins' is doing Swimmingly
Why you Should Be Twittering
Labels: Birds, Twitter
Last week I engaged in a conversation with a young woman who loftily asserted that Twitter is merely an “ego trip for people who feel the need to let the world know what they are having for breakfast.” It’s a pretty common sentiment among those who have never really used the service. And to be fair, if you peek in on any of the profiles, you may have a hard time figuring out exactly why it can be considered a useful tool. I tried to explain to her exactly why I find it so valuable and I thought I’d expand my thoughts here on the blog as well.
For one thing Twitter is not about YOU, per se. Oh sure, you’re there to engage people and you definitely want to participate. But it is as much about getting information as sending your wisdom out into the ethos. If you’ve been following the news this week you undoubtedly saw the hullaballoo surrounding celebrity Ashton Kutcher and his race with CNN for a million Twitter followers. The biggest critics of this nonsense were Twitter users because they understand better than anyone that it isn’t about getting a bunch of people to follow you and spouting off occasionally. It’s about talking–exchanging information. It’s about communicating.
Using an application like TweetDeck, I am able to keep my followers in categories. I have news services like CNN and NPR in one category sending me real-time news feeds all day. When news breaks, I get it via Twitter. My friends and family are in another category. And I also have different groupings of bloggers and businesses by industry. What this boils down to is a non-stop, highly organized stream of information that is coming at me 24/7. If you’re the kind of person that likes to know things NOW, as they happen; and if your business relies on knowing what is going on in the world you can rely on Twitter to get you news and information before any other source.
The other important reason to Twitter is that you actually make excellent business contacts. It is the equivalent of a business luncheon—part socializing, part networking—you can strike up a conversation about anything from sports to astronomy and once you hit it off with someone they’ll help promote you either directly or indirectly through Twittering. I’ve made some excellent contacts—business and personal—through Twitter. When people get to know your personality, they are more comfortable referring you to others. Obviously, you can tweet regularly about your business. But shameless self-promotion and spamming is a good way to get yourself blocked. Be cool and you’ll be fine.
Finally, Twittering is fun. Fascinating conversations about philosophy, religion, politics, economics, relationships and technology take place at 140 characters at a time. Even the most avid user is not exactly sure why it is so addictive. But anyone who is active on Twitter will tell you that there’s much more to it than just reporting on the minutia of your life. Twitter is about the raw, unadulterated exchange of information. It’s fast, it’s easy and it is a part of the future online. You might as well jump in and start using it now.
Klik disini untuk melanjutkan »»
Sunday, April 19, 2009
The Rainbow That Can Fly
There is something about the Rainbow Finch
that makes it look like an animal made up, using Photoshop.
The colors seem too bright to be real and each garish hue
ends abruptly to be replaced by one equally as
preposterous for a wild animal.
Found in Australia, there are only around
two thousand of them left in the wild.
Although conservation attempts are ongoing, the
question is whether or not this beautiful species will
join the ranks of those who only survive in captivity.
