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How to be Indie |
PROFILE
ABOUT HOW TO BE INDIE
How to be Indie follows Indira "Indie" Mehta as she humourously straddles the world of her immigrant family and the world of her peers and figures out how to do things her own way. Like a rock band eschewing a traditional label, our hero always chooses to be 'indie', independent. Teen life is full of difficult choices, but for Indie, things are never just "either or" or "black or white." She always manages to find a third way, her way, and with insight and humour blazes her own trail, creating a life that is neither ruled by her family nor ruled by her peers, but is, rather, 100% Indie.
The program has an amazing online presence - check out the How to Be Indie website at www.howtobeindie.com! Kids can encounter funny situations through a day in the life of Indie in the game, or watch some of the show's podcasts.
How to Be Indie airs on YTV. It is produced with the participation of the Canadian Television Fund, Roger's Cable Network Fund and the Shaw Rocket Fund.
FUN FACTS! THE LEAD ACTRESS: MELINDA SHANKAR
Melinda hails from Canada's capital, Ottawa Ontario, has a blackbelt in karate, and is fluent in both English and French. She was discovered at age 10 while shopping. She immediately started runway and commercial modeling, and filmed numerous commercials. Her first major role was when she landed a recurring role on "Degrassi The Next Generation" as 'Allia Bhandari.' She also appeared as a dancer in Disney's Bella Dancerella High School Musical 2. In 2008, Melinda traveled to Ecuador with the organization Free The Children. A documentary of the trip was made for MTV in Canada.
Follow her on Twitter! @melindashankar
MELINDA SHANKAR'S THOUGHTS ON THE NOMINATION
"When I found out that How to be Indie Season 1 was nominated for the Shaw Rocket Prize, I was so thrilled - although my first question was "What exactly is the Shaw Rocket Prize?" When I was made aware that it is a fund dedicated to promoting and supporting youth television, I was even more excited. The Shaw Rocket Fund is all about acknowledging quality television programming, so to have my show be considered in such a category makes me both proud and honoured!"
THE INTERNATIONAL JURY SPEAKS
"How to be Indie is a classic sitcom with a respectful nod to culture diversity. Strong comedic storytelling and pacing aligned with a robust website make this pure entertainment for kids!"
THE PRODUCERS' THOUGHTS
"At How to Be Indie we are thrilled to be a Shaw Rocket Prize finalist. It's so rewarding to know that the stories we think are goofily important have been received so well. Thanks so much for the encouragement you've given us to keep working toward co-creator Vera Santamaria's original goal for Indie: putting families like hers on TV. For laughs!"
"Writing on How to Be Indie has been a wonderful and broadening experience for us. It feels great to be writing a show that happily reflects the diverse world today's kids inhabit. It's also interesting to learn that second generation kids - no matter where they're from - share the same funny and moving stories of cultural misunderstandings, family sacrifice, struggling for balance and finding strength through love. "How to Get Some Cred," for instance, was inspired by a number of people, including cast member Ellora Patnaik (Jyoti "Mum" Mehta ), whose family's dancing background, coupled with their struggle as Canadian immigrants, gave the episode itself its 'cred.'"
"Writing on How to Be Indie has been a personal win for me. Being able to laugh at yourself is one of life's biggest and best lessons, something that helps you through good times and bad. And seeing your face and your life represented on screen as funny, warm and watchable means that kids from any background can and will laugh at themselves."
A WORD FROM THE BROADCASTER: YTV
"As a wonderful addition to YTV's live-action comedy line-up, How to be Indie is a series we're extremely proud to call our own and to be acknowledged as a finalist for the Shaw Rocket Prize is a great honour."
ABOUT HEROIC FILM COMPANY
Founded in 1999 by John May, Suzanne Bolch and Karen Lee Hall, Heroic Film Company Inc. is on a mission to create comedy that matters. The company focuses on producing animated and live-action series for tweens that cross multiple platforms such as television, interactive, book publishing, music publishing and merchandise. Heroic Film Company is currently in production on Connor Undercover for Family Channel (Canada) and How To Be Indie for YTV (Canada) and has several additional projects in development. Heroic Film Company is a creative driven production house known best for the multipleaward winning television series Our Hero (CBC) and international hit Captain Flamingo (YTV), an animated children's program seen in Canada, U.S., U.K., Europe, Australia, and Latin America. Other production and writing credits include The Magic School Bus (PBS), Naturally Sadie (Disney) and the hit film, Ginger Snaps. Heroic Film Company is located online at www.heroicfilmcompany.com.
