The N Announces the Commencement of Production on a New Original Drama The Best Years (Working Title) Produced by Blueprint Entertainment in Association With CanWest MediaWorks

Award-Winning Degrassi Writer Aaron Martin to Create / Executive Produce 13 Hour-Long Episodes Scheduled to Premiere in the US and Canada - Summer 2007

NEW YORK, Nov. 9 -- The N takes a collegiate step forward as the nighttime network for teens announces the commencement of production on 13 new, hour-long episodes of The Best Years (working title), it was announced today by Sarah Tomassi Lindman, Vice President, Programming and Production, The N. The new drama is produced by Blueprint Entertainment in association with Canada's CanWest MediaWorks. Production has begun in Toronto and will extend through March 2007.

The Best Years is created and executive produced by Aaron Martin who served as head writer and show runner of The N's famed teen drama Degrassi: The Next Generation. Blueprint Entertainment's Noreen Halpern and John Morayniss will also serve as executive producers on The Best Years. The series is scheduled to premiere in the summer of 2007 on The N in the US and on CH Television in Canada.

"The Best Years will introduce our audience to the real-life drama of college life, including the excitement and pressures that come with new found independence," said Lindman. "Aaron Martin has a proven track record at writing compelling dramas like Degrassi and this show is sure to follow his past success."

"This is a dream cast, hand-picked from across Canada and the United States, playing 'bright young things' as they navigate the social wilderness of university life. Whether you're looking ahead to your college years, or looking back on them fondly ... The Best Years takes you from toga parties to all-nighters, and from freshman romances to finding that one person who just might be the love of your life," says creator / executive producer Aaron Martin.

"Aaron Martin has created a wonderfully smart, sexy and exciting series. Through the lead character, Samantha Best we are thrown into the first year of college and all of the wildness inherent in that," says Halpern. "By the end of the first episode, viewers will all wish they could hang out at this campus."

"Great writing, a stellar production team and top-notch talent make The Best Years a sparkling addition to our original programming roster," said Christine Shipton, Vice President of Original Programming for CanWest MediaWorks. "This edgy, young series will draw audiences in with storylines covering all of the drama, thrills and challenges of college life."

The Best Years follows orphaned and full-ride scholar, Samantha Best (Charity Shea, "Alpha Dog") as she starts her freshman year at the prestigious Charles University in Massachusetts. Samantha has been shuffled through the foster care system her entire life and is finally looking forward to a future of new opportunities and friendships. She'll have to contend with the in's and out's of college and mingle with a new world of 'frenemies' as she struggles to find her own identity. Along the way she will meet new roommate Kathryn Klarner, (Jennifer Miller) a rich socialite from one of the most prominent families in the mid-west, Dawn Vargas (Athena Karkanis) child actor who trades in Hollywood for university, and Devon Sylver, (Brandon Jay McLaren "She's The Man") a fellow scholarship recipient and star basketball player who has caught her eye. With her new dysfunctional family and a part-time job at Boston's hot spot, Colony, Samantha will find herself juggling a lot more than just academics.

Aaron Martin served as the head writer and show runner on The N's acclaimed teen drama Degrassi: The Next Generation during its first four seasons and was the 2004 recipient of the Canadian Screenwriting Award for his work on the series. He was also nominated for a 2003 Gemini Award for Best Writing in a Children's or Youth Series and also in 2005 for Best Drama. He is a graduate of The Canadian Film Centre and Queen's University.

In addition to producing, Blueprint Entertainment controls distribution rights for the series in all territories outside the US.

Blueprint Entertainment is a television production company involved in the development, production, financing, packaging and exploitation of dynamic and innovative programming for the North American and International marketplace. Established in January of 2002, by its two principals, John Morayniss and Noreen Halpern, Blueprint Entertainment is a Canadian company with offices in Los Angeles and Toronto. Blueprint has an extensive development slate that encompasses a number of half-hour and one-hour prime- time and children's series, movies, and miniseries targeted at a mix of broadcast and cable/satellite networks based in the US, Canada and the international marketplace. http://www.blueprint-corp.com.

CanWest MediaWorks Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of CanWest Global Communications Corp, (CanWest) (NYSE: CWG; TSX: CGS and CGS.A, http://www.canwestglobal.com). CanWest, an international media company, is Canada's largest media company. In addition to owning the Global Television Network, CanWest is Canada's largest publisher of daily newspapers, and also owns, operates and/or holds substantial interests in conventional television, out- of-home advertising, specialty cable channels and Web sites in Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Turkey, the United States and the United Kingdom.

The N, the nighttime network for teens, is a programming arm of MTV Networks and is currently available in 52 million households via cable, digital cable and satellite television. The N's mission is to be the authentic voice for teens and help them figure out their lives with relevant, topical programming on-air and online at the network's web site http://www.the-n.com. The N airs everyday from 6:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. (ET). The N and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom International Inc.

SOURCE The N
http://www.the-n.com http://www.nick.com http://www.canwestglobal.com http://www.blueprint-corp.com