ATX Television Festival Launches New Podcast Series THE TV CAMPFIRE

ATX Television Festival, the beloved annual event celebrating all things television, has premiered its inaugural podcast series, The TV Campfire, as a part of its ATX TV Podcast Network. The series is co-produced by Madica Productions and provides an insider's perspective into the world of television with special guests including Bill Lawrence (Scrubs, Cougar Town), David Simon (The Wire), Jason Katims(Friday Night LIghts, Parenthood), Marta Kauffman (Friends), and many more.

Norman Lear has been quoted as calling television the "modern day campfire." The TV Campfire takes a deep dive into the social issues, the seminal moments, and behind the scenes content that captivates television viewers and the people who make it. The first 2-episodes, which are available today, feature television heavy-hitters Carlton Cuse (Lost, Bates Motel), Kerry Ehrin (Bates Motel, Friday Night Lights) in the episode "A Showrunner Defined," and Liza Richardson, Jason Katims, Angela Catanzaro (Friday Night Lights, Parenthood, Rise) in "TV Mixtapes presented by NBC's Rise."

ATX Festival cofounders, Caitlin McFarland and Emily Gipson created the series to discuss a wide range of topics with guests including what it means to be a showrunner, the role music plays on a show and how to find the right sound, diverse representation on and off screen, how some of the most popular shows were pitched successfully, first big breaks, and how today's current political climate is influencing television.

"We're so incredibly excited to launch our first podcast that is completely and 100% inspired by the festival. Each of our six original episodes are topics taken directly from past festival panels, but have been focused down to 1:1 conversations with some of the most impressive people in TV. We couldn't have done this without the support of Madica, who said yes before we had even finished asking the question. Producing this series has been a true gift to the two of us, to sit down with TV creators to talk about the past and future of the industry, both from the viewpoint as TV fans themselves as well as the people responsible for our favorite shows."

The TV Campfire is the first original series in the ATX TV Podcast Network, which aims to serve as an extension of the ATX Television Festival. Each episode within the 6 part limited series stands alone as a potential pilot to its own future series. The ATX TV Podcast Network also acquired and is co-producing "The Writers Panel" with Ben Blacker and the Forever Dog Network. Future content on the network will include exclusive looks, rarely shared creator perspectives, original and extended programming from TV cast and creators, ATX Festival Panels, and above all, intimate and accessible conversations with a wide spectrum of people from behind and in-front of the camera.

"We have been looking for a way to work with Caitlin and Emily on creating content around the ATX brand and think that this podcast series is the perfect vehicle for all types of TV fanatics," said Madica Productions managing director Jeff Tahler. "We hope this is the first of many ways to share what makes ATX such a unique and dynamic experience."

ATX's focus is the celebration of the television medium - looking back at its history, where it is now, and where it is headed. Our weekend consists of events in which attendees can interact with actors, writers, directors, creators, showrunners, music supervisors, casting directors and studio executives involved in all stages of bringing their favorite shows to the small screen. We have all the functionality of a traditional film festival - spotlighting classic shows, never-aired pilots, cancelled too soon series, cult favorites, current hits and premieres of new series. In addition, we feature episode screenings with Q&A's with the cast and creators, panels focused on industry related topics, and parties, live music, meet-ups, social media events and "super-secret happy hours." ATX's goal is to serve both the community and industry professionals equally, by giving them the opportunity to discuss and celebrate all aspects of TV.

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