Associated Television International is shopping its first package of holiday specials to TV stations, including Christmas in Hollywood, A Hollywood Christmas Concert and the 81st edition of the Hollywood Christmas Parade.
"These are high-quality, high-definition musical specials that stations can use as their own branded, exclusive holiday entertainment," says Jim Romanovich, ATI's president of worldwide media and entertainment.
ATI has long produced holiday specials but this is the first time the company is selling them to stations in a package, which also includes holiday-themed movies. The specials are being offered to stations in barter-only deals.
The specials come at a time of high activity for ATI. Its reality show, Bristol Palin: Life's a Tripp, premieres on Lifetime on Tuesday (June 19).
"When people think of reality television, they think everything is really scripted, but in this case that wasn't true," says Romanovich. "We followed whatever Bristol was doing and adapted to that."
The show covers the oldest Palin daughter's move to Los Angeles and then her move back to Alaska. There's also an episode where Palin throws her mother, Alaska ex-governor and Republican pundit Sarah Palin, a surprise birthday party at the CPAC convention in Washington, D.C.
ATI, which is headed by David McKenzie, is also launching a new talk show starring Marie Osmond on the Hallmark Channel in October. Marie! will air as a Monday through Friday strip at noon on the cable network.
"Marie wants to help women with anything they are struggling with," says Romanovich, "whether that's finding romance after 40, life after divorce, adult kids living at home, bullying, weight loss, depression. Even when we have celebrities on, we'll be focusing on the topics that Marie wants to talk about."
Also on ATI's slate is the educational/informational wildlife show, Safari, which digital broadcast network Me-TV will air exclusively starting this fall. The company also is producing the seventh season of weekend series Laura McKenzie's Traveler and the second season of E/I series Elizabeth Stanton's Great Big World, in which teenager Stanton travels the world and talks about it from a kids' perspective.
ATI also recently produced two documentaries for A&E and Bio: The Rocky Saga: Going the Distance and Inside Story: Ferris Bueller's Day Off. From 2009 through 2011, ATI produced the Daytime Emmys for The CW and CBS.
