Martin joins Short

Andrea Martin will grace Catalyst Entertainment’s Martin Short Show for seven of the 13 episodes, in a role which imitates real life – she will appear on Marty’s variety show as a guest. Shooting for the nbc series starts up at the end of July in Los Angeles and moves to Toronto in early 1995.

Streamlining

Management has been streamlined at the production and post-production subsidiaries of Tele-Metropole in Montreal. Jean St-Pierre, general manager of film and tv post house CME, and gm of JPL, a production services company, has left the company. Pierre Mercier, general manager at Sonolab, takes on responsibility for cme and Jacques Bilodeau, president of PMT Video, takes over responsibility for jpl.

McKay to leave Astral

After 10 years with Astral Communications, the past five as vice-president/general manager of the AstralTech Video Post-Production Centre, Normand McKay is leaving the company, saying he wants to spend more time with his family.

McKay joined Astral in 1984 as vice-president, administration and finance with specialty and pay-tv operator Premier Choix:TVEC. He says he has been asked to stay on in the production service business as a consultant, likely operating out of an office in Sherbrooke, Que.

Astral recently announced the appointment of Hubert Harel as president of AstralTech, the company’s technical services division.

Cousteau heads fest

Jean-Michel Cousteau, son of French ocean explorer Jacques Cousteau, has been named honorary president of the fifth edition of Festival international du film scientifique du Quebec. The festival runs Sept. 22 to Oct. 2 in Montreal.

Jean-Michel Cousteau is the producer of many award-winning films of his father’s expeditions. He is also the driving force behind the Parc Oceanique Cousteau in France.

The festival will feature some 60 films from 18 countries.

New at Radio-Canada

Marie-Andree Poliquin has been named administrator, coproduction contracts and external production with Radio-Canada. A lawyer, Poliquin had worked as legal counsel with Telefilm Canada in Montreal since 1990.

Also at Radio-Canada, Michel Comto

is has been appointed supervisor, video post-production. Comtois began his career as a maintenance technician in 1982 and was named senior technician in 1992.