Viewers are set to witness a landmark event on Irish television this coming weekend, with Ireland’s first animated series for adults to hit our screens Saturday the 12th of October, on TV3’s sister channel 3e.
‘Newsbag’ is to be the flagship programme of Icehouse Studios, an offshoot of the globally successful Brown Bag Films, which was founded with an eye towards producing a variety of animated content aimed at an older audience.
Over ten episodes of 22 minutes, ‘Newsbag’ will follow the exploits of the titular news organization, set up in Ireland by a New Zealander millionaire in order to avail of the tax breaks. Revolving around new media journalists Lenny, Gig and Moss, the series’ first episode sees the trio accidentally intercept US President Barack Obama during a state visit to Ireland and bring him on a tour of ‘Paedophile Island’, an off-shore reserve where the public can hunt shamed Catholic priests at their pleasure.
The satirical series is a notable shift in tone for IFTA Rising Star and ‘Newsbag’ writer Gerard Barrett, whose debut feature ‘Pilgrim Hill’ won international acclaim for a bleak but honest depiction of the loneliness of a modern Irish farmer. In a previous interview with IFTN, Mr. Barrett described the series as “a mix between South Park and the I.T. Crowd”.
‘Newsbag’ was directed by Maurice Joyce, who previously worked on MTV’s ‘Beavis and Butthead’ series, and features voice-work from Ronan O’ Neill and Peter Coonan, perhaps best known for his portrayal of Fran on RTÉ’s ‘Love/Hate’. Post-production and sound-mixing for the series was completed by Gorilla post-production in Dublin.
To see the series debut, tune into 3e at 10 p.m. on Saturday the 12th of October. An exclusive clip can be viewed here. Viewer discretion advised.
