Montreal: Tele-Quebec is reinforcing its already successful late-afternoon children’s block with the addition of Cornemuse, a live-action preschool series produced by Telefiction.

The show features a cast of engaging animal toddlers and their families and aims to develop the self-esteem of preschoolers, says producer Carmen Bourassa. It debuted Jan. 4, with hopes the 65 half-hour series might perform close to the standard set by the popular u.k. series Teletubbies.

Preschoolers are tuning in to t-q, says Bourassa. ‘At the moment, Tele-Quebec is in the process of again becoming number one among little ones.’

The network’s 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. block includes the pre-tween series Les Aventures de Shirley Holmes (Forefront/Credo); Teletubbies (Ragdoll Productions); Cornemuse, which replaces La Maison de Ouimzie/Wimzie’s House (Cinar Corporation); and Macaroni tout garni (Publivision), a series for five- to seven-year-olds.

Cornemuse is a dog/veterinarian played by Gemeaux-winning actor Danielle Proulx (Sous le signe du lion, Les Intrepides). The series encourages kids to sing, play and learn, and stars four pint-sized four-year-olds, each from a different animal (read racial) family. Characters include Tibor the shy Tiger, Kounga the naughty Kangaroo, Rafi the benevolent Racoon and Bagou the teasing Monkey.

Beyond their day-to-day family lives, the ‘kids’ sometimes visit Secret Island, a place where they can really express themselves. And there’s Zozo, a sympathetic little bird who lives in a cage at Cornemuse’s and sometimes transforms into an animated cartoon character.

Forty-eight episodes are complete, with nine more to go in January and eight in February. Taping is being done at Studio 2 at Tele-Quebec. PMT Video is producing the animation sequences and Karisma is handling the balance of post.

Marie Bernard wrote the original music. Michel Marsolais is art director. Nicole Lapierre created the elaborate makeup design and Helene Schneider is the costume designer.

The show has 11 screenwriters and is an original idea of Michelle Gascon, Paule Marier, Nicole Lavigne, the late Michele Poirier and Bourassa.

Bourassa, Claude Veillet and Jacques Bonin are producing.

Cornemuse beat out 13 other producer bids in a ‘public submission’ competition in ’97. The show is produced on a tight budget of $3.8 million, with funding from Telefilm Canada, the Canadian Television Fund and Telefiction Distribution and Marketing, the exporter.

Bourassa (Pop-Citrouille, Passe-Partout) along with producer Annabel Slaight are cowinners of the ’98 Alliance for Children and Television award for career achievement.

In ’98, Telefiction also produced 65 half-hours of Pin-Pon, the top-rated preschool series on Canal Famille.

Suzanne Barron heads Telefiction’s Santa Monica, California operation, Sonoma Entertainment.

*InformAction, projects and deliveries

InformAction producer Nathalie Barton hopes to finance three or four new documentaries in ’99 including an international coproduction and projects for Radio-Canada and Canal d.

The development slate includes a portrait of an unusual Canadian archeologist who investigates site pillage in Latin America from filmmaker Jean-Claude Burger and the latest Alain d’Aix doc, All They Need is Word, a look at ‘communication between animals and humans.’

Mediamax International has sold d’Aix’s Investigating Tarzan to some 20 countries, says Barton.

Deliveries in early ’99 include Nicole Giguere’s The Age To Be/Depasser L’Age, a portrait of active North American and European seniors featuring an interview with pioneer American feminist Betty Friedan, author of The Fountain of Age, and the new Carlos Ferrand doc, Visionairies/Visionnaires.

Josee Heppell edited The Age To Be. It airs Jan. 14 on Tele-Quebec and later on TV5. Investors in the $350,000 shoot include Telefilm Canada, the Canadian Television Fund and sodec.

‘I’m sure it’s going to sell all over the place because 1999 is the International Year of the Senior,’ says Barton.

Ferrand’s doc is a personal ‘travel/diary quest for visionaries who see hope in the future.’ The film takes the form of a letter to his daughter and was budgeted at $450,000, with funding from src, TV5, Telefilm, the ctf, sodec and the Rogers Documentary Fund.

Philippe Lavalette was the dop and Dominique Sicotte edited. Barton says the film has been selected for Festival International du Film sur l’Art, March 9-14.

Two other InformAction docs will be delivered this winter, Jean-Daniel Lafond’s L’Heure de Cuba and first-time filmmaker Tally Abecassis’ Warshaw on the Main.

In Lafond’s film, journalist Michaelle Jean examines ‘the paradoxes of Cuba today.’

‘It’s the first independent documentary to be broadcast by Zone Libre [the new src current affairs series],’ says Barton. ‘So we’ve also broken some new ground with them in how to reconcile the demands of current affairs television and the demands of independent documentary.’

L’Heure de Cuba was produced for $380,000 in coproduction with Yves Bisaillon of the National Film Board’s documentary studio in Toronto, with additional funding from Telefilm and sodec. Babalou Hamelin edited.

Warshaw on the Main is a funny insider’s view of the historic boul. St-Laurent store. Howard Goldberg edited. Funding comes from sodec’s Jeunes Createurs program and the Canada Council. Newsworld (Rough Cuts) and cfcf-tv, the WIC Television affiliate in Montreal, are the licencees.

Mediamax has international rights to all InformAction projects.

*A new year begins

New film startups in January as reported by the stcvq include the Films Balac feature A Winter Visitor, with Roger Young directing, Gilles Legare as pm and Anne Pritchard as the production designer. It was slated to go Jan. 8.

Producers Andre Rouleau and Christian Fournier recently wrapped the Christophe Leitch mow The Patty Duke Show Reunion Movie.

Kingsborough Pictures producer Pieter Kroonenburg and producers Jamie Brown (the u.k.) and Gary Howsan (Vancouver) are prepping the Film Intruder feature The Intruder, with David Bailey directing. Ric Nash is pm, Jean Lepine is the cinematographer and Patricia Christie is art director. Principal photography starts Jan. 18 for five weeks.

Emergence International films from Jan. 4 through to April on the second leg of the 20-hour Radio-Canada tv drama series Reseaux. It’s penned by La Presse sports columnist Rejean Tremblay (Urgence), with Louise Gendron producing. Benoit Pilon is the director and Manon Bougie is pm. Pierre Jodoin is shooting on 16mm film and Andre Chamberland is the art director.

Projects in preproduction this month for February starts include the Coscient (SDA Productions) tv movie/series pilot tag and Dead Silence, a feature from Blackwatch Communications producer Bill Mariani.