Start of Production of new Anne of Green Gables TV Movie Marks "A New Beginning" with CTV Production news / CTV Posted by RAD on Oct 15, 2007 - 04:50 PM She's back...and precocious as ever. Production has begun on Anne of Green Gables: A New Beginning, a three-hour movie and television event set to have its world premiere on CTV in 2008. The announcement was made today by Kevin Sullivan, President, Sullivan Entertainment and Susanne Boyce, President, Creative, Content and Channels, CTV Inc. After screening nearly 1,000 young girls from around the globe, Toronto's Hannah Endicott-Douglas has been cast by Sullivan as the newest Anne Shirley for the movie. Endicott-Douglas co-stars with Rachel Blanchard and Academy Award nominee Barbara Hershey, who plays Anne as a woman in her fifties reflecting on her past. A New Beginning is the prequel to the original 1985 Anne of Green Gables mini-series, which has also been acquired by CTV in addition to the entire Anne catalogue and more, totaling 128 hours of content. Today's announcement of the new Anne Shirley follows an extensive search to find an actress who could play one of Canada's most beloved fictional characters and an international icon. The search included an open casting call on YouTube, a cross-Canada audition tour and screening nearly a thousand young girls' audition submissions from Canada, the United States, England and Australia. After three months of searching, 12-year-old Hannah Endicott-Douglas (The Good Witch; Samantha: An American Girl) was chosen by award-winning filmmaker Kevin Sullivan to carry on the legacy of Anne Shirley. Principal photography continues until November 7, 2007 on location throughout Ontario. In a completely new screenplay by Sullivan, Anne of Green Gables: A New Beginning reveals Anne's early life before her arrival at Green Gables. The movie is book-ended by the introduction of Anne as an older woman now in her fifties, played by Emmy and Golden-Globe winning actress Barbara Hershey (The Portrait of a Lady, Hannah and Her Sisters). Rachel Blanchard (7th Heaven, Clueless) rounds out the cast as Louisa Thomas. Additional casting details will be announced soon. "To say that we are 'excited' about bringing the Anne of Green Gables franchise to CTV would be an understatement!" said Kevin Sullivan, President, Sullivan Entertainment. "Ivan Fecan and I created the "Avonlea/Family Hour" franchise on CBC in the early 90s and together we made it into one of Canada's most successful weekly television events. We are very proud to have been given the opportunity by Ivan and his team to premiere A New Beginning on CTV as a major television event, for the enjoyment of a new and younger audience; as well as for the audience that fell in love with the original." "As Anne says, we've become 'kindred spirits' with Sullivan Entertainment," said Susanne Boyce, President, Creative, Content and Channels, CTV Inc. "Anne of Green Gables is an enduring and endearing worldwide franchise. We welcome Anne with great respect and look forward to the world premiere of A New Beginning on CTV." Anne of Green Gables: A New Beginning comes to CTV along with eight other titles from Sullivan Entertainment, including the original three Anne of Green Gables mini-series, the Emmy Award winning series Road to Avonlea, and more. CTV has also acquired Kevin Sullivan's The Magic Flute Diaries starring Rutger Hauer, Warren Christie and singer Mireille Asselin, showcasing Toronto's internationally renowned Opera Atelier Baroque Opera Company. CTV's acquisition includes: * Anne of Green Gables: A New Beginning (TV Movie, three hours) * Anne of Green Gables; Anne of Green Gables - The Sequel; Anne of Green Gables - The Continuing Story (Mini-Series; 13 hours) * Road to Avonlea (TV Series; 91 hours) * Road to Avonlea Christmas (TV Movie; two hours) * Anne of Green Gables: The Animated Series (TV Series; 13 hours) * Anne, Journey to Green Gables (Animated Feature, two hours) * The Magic Flute Diaries (Feature, two hours) * Mozart Decoded - The Magic Flute Diaries Documentary (Documentary, 1 hour) * Anne Trilogy Documentary (Documentary, 1 hour) Anne of Green Gables and Road to Avonlea have been broadcast in over 140 countries around the world and have won numerous awards including four Emmys, the George Foster Peabody Award, CableAce Awards and numerous Gemini's. Anne of Green Gables: The Sequel originally aired in 1987 and has remained the highest rated mini-series ever to air in Canada with an audience of 5.4 million. Anne of Green Gables: A New Beginning is produced by Sullivan Entertainment in association with CTV. This article is from CHANNEL CANADA   http://www.channelcanada.com/ The URL for this story is:   http://www.channelcanada.com/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=2026