INDIE HOUSE: Get Money from Samsung; THE EX-BOX, DATING RULES FROM MY FUTURE SELF, FREEFALL, HUSBANDS, THE VARIANTS, THE SOURCE

HOT BOX:  "The Hunk" ( Alix van Aernam) returns
to THE EX-BOX

Gossip, secrets, leaks; kudos, picks, congrats - in the Indie Soap Web Series (Indies) world, this is where they live. Listen up: Kevin's Indie House.

Samsung wants to give one lucky Indie $300,000!

Samsung Electronics America, Inc. and the NYTVF have launched a landmark partnered initiative providing indie producers and production companies with the opportunity to compete for a guaranteed production budget of $300,000 to create an original short series with accompanying second screen material. The winning selection and subsequent series will debut at the Consumer Electronics Show in 2013 and will then be exclusively distributed via Samsung Smart TVs and Galaxy devices.

Putting together a competitive entry looks easy-peasy for any established Indie producer. Here's what you need:

- An original short pilot or excerpt scene that is six (6) to ten (10) minutes in length
- One (1) piece of corresponding second screen content that is a maximum of two (2) minutes in length
- One (1) series treatment outlining the show concept and second screen extension opportunities that is a maximum of four (4) pages in length
- Signed Entry Packet

Entries are being accepted from August 6, 2012 through September 24, 2012. The winning selection will be announced at the 8th annual New York Television Festival, taking place from October 22-27, 2012, in lower Manhattan. The winning show will then debut at CES 2013 in January and then exclusively distributed via Samsung Smart TVs and Galaxy devices. If you end up winning, you had best thank Kevin's Indie House in the credits!

CHEET-OH!:  DATING RULES FROM MY FUTURE SELF
goes bright orange.

EX-BOX 2?
Just because showrunner Emily Brownwell of THE EX-BOX has a 30 ROCK producer (Kristyn Macready) EP-ing her Indie doesn't mean the series is rolling in dough.  It's approaching a six-digit view count and the budget is economical, so hopes for a second season are high - but if you're a fan of the show, and want more, then tell your friends to check it out!  And if you happen to know of a sponsor or two...

The stakes for a season two are about to get much higher since Emily promises me a massive cliffhanger to end episode ten, the final episode of the season. I've also heard that we'll be getting some more of that hunk (Alix van Aernam) from episode 2 in this week's epi. which is great news for anyone who likes red-hot men.  I mean, talented actors!  We'll also see Jezebel (Juliette Hing- Lee) again and of course lots of the main anti-couple, played by Adam Kitchen and of course Emily (who also writes).

And you didn't hear it from me... but there may be a threesome in episode nine!

WHO'S NEWS?
- Cheeto Sex Alert!  The latest episode of DATING RULES FROM MY FUTURE SELF is actually sponsored by Ford (so is it still an Indie?) but it should have been brought to us by Cheetos. RULES offers us up a sex scene (something we don't get enough of in the Indie world, by the way) that's quirky yet endearing, involving lots of contagious orange cheese powder. Candice Accola of THE VAMPIRE DIARIES stars and Jay Hayden (currently the campaign manager in Hulu dramadey BATTLEGROUND but you probably know him from The House Bunny) guests as the yoga instructor/love interest.  They actually "Lady and the Tramp" a Cheeto.  Awesome.
- Superfans will have a chance to "hang out" with HUSBANDS' Emmy Award-nominated TV writer Jane Espenson (ONCE UPON A TIME, BATTLESTAR GALACTICA, GAME OF THRONES) and super cute actor/producer and showrunner Brad Bell live, as they take your questions on Google Play on August 17 at 4PM PST. To be chosen as one of the lucky participants in this live-streamed discussion with Jane and Brad, comment here with your best question for them, and then follow the link to provide contact info.
- THE VARIANTS will soon return with another season! See the opening credits trailer here. Season Three will see the return of the core cast members and the addition of Curt Franklin and Chris Haley, from Let's Be Friends Again.

COMIC-AL:  Cute nerds Chris Haley and Curt Franklin join
THE VARIANTS. (photo from fandomania.com)

CONSIDER THE SOURCE
High hopes for teen drama FREEFALL, a five-episode series launching August 18, 2012. It promises gritty sex and drug exploits and sports an age-appropriate cast (25-year-olds playing 18-year-olds drive me nutty). Supposedly, it's based on true stories. The players are Cassandra Caballero, Lauren Chase, Will Little, Christina Norcia, and Jack Polubinski:
- Blair, a stuck-up and gorgeous sorority girl who can’t say no
- Cleo, a damaged drug addict trying desperately to start over in college
- Parker, who thinks college is a party that will never end
- Selena, a beautiful and intelligent Latina intent on getting all A’s
- Serious Luke, hiding a secret from back home that threatens to follow him to school.
What I find particularly intriguing about FREEFALL is that it's a public education product produced with support from Planned Parenthood.

SOURCE Theatre and Video Productions (www.thesourceteentheatre.org) is an exciting, educational touring theatre and video company for young adults that has been based in Sarasota, Florida for over thirty years. Created and produced by Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida in 1981, The SOURCE creates innovative theatre, film and videos that directly respond to the needs of youth and young adults. The actors in The SOURCE Theatre receive extensive training in theatre, film acting, life skills, and sexuality education in order to give back to the community and the nation by becoming a “source” of life-saving information to their peers.

Looks like a juicy series and a great cause, lunching on a very lucky date. I'm looking forward to it!

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