SYN: 1700 – TV’S NEW KID ON THE BLOCK
Hamish and Andy, Rove, Corrine, Dave Hughes, & Safran are all Australian house-hold names. They also all started on community TV.
At 5.00pm last night, a new kid arrived on the community TV block. And this kid is ready to make a loud statement to audiences direct from the heart of the Melbourne youth community.
1700 is a fast-paced youth television program – pitched right at teenagers arriving home from school who are not interested in the family feuds of Bert Newton or the deals of Andrew O’Keefe.
Community TV is fast being recognised as the breeding ground for Australia’s ‘next big thing’. For the 80 odd volunteers (all aged 12 – 26 years of age) who help produce the show last night’s premiere episode was the culmination of over three months of planning and producing.
1700 is a brand-spanking new program from the dynamic team of Melbourne’s Channel 31 and SYN – Melbourne’s premiere youth media production house.
The show comes live from the studios of C31 and features live music, interviews, chat and much more.
The Executive Producer of the Program, Natalie Cattach knows that the 5pm weeknight timeslot means that it will be difficult to take viewers away from commercial television stations. Cattach believes that there is a whole generation of young Melbournian’s who are looking for something different.
“There is so much rubbish on TV, especially after school. We want to produce a credible show that teenagers are actually interested in. 1700 is a forum young filmmakers, musicians and artists to show their work and get people involved with our show” she says.
1700 is more then a media assignment for bored students. “The program has grown out of a need for entertaining and non-patronizing youth television. We want to make a show which actually is hosted by young people and not cardboard cut-outs,” says SYN’s General Manager Bryce Ives.
“From auditions for on-screen talent to technical setups and rehearsals and planning, this has been a well planned out and completely youth-driven process.”
Whether these budding stars break into a commercial network or finish high school, university, etc. and move on, one thing is for certain. 1700 has over 80 of Melbourne’s youth ready for the long haul of five hours of prime-time broadcast every week.
1700 is produced by SYN TV each weeknight on C31 Melbourne from 5pm.
