FRED ARMISEN & CARRIE BROWNSTEIN WELCOME YOU TO PORTLANDIA

IFC Original Comedy Series Premieres Friday, January 21, 2011 @ 10:30 PM ET/PT on IFC

Starring Fred Armisen & Carrie Brownstein

Created by Fred Armisen, Carrie Brownstein and Jonathan Krisel

Guest stars include Jason Sudeikis, Kyle MacLachlan, Aubrey Plaza, Selma Blair, Heather Graham, Aimee Mann, Sarah McLachlan, Gus Van Sant, and Portland Mayor Sam Adams

Series Executive Produced by Lorne Michaels

The 6-part IFC Original short-based comedy series PORTLANDIA, created, written by and starring Fred Armisen (SNL) and Carrie Brownstein (Sleater-Kinney vocalist/guitarist), premieres on IFC Friday, January 21, 2011 at 10:30 PM ET/PT. Each episode's character-based shorts draw viewers into "Portlandia," the creators' dreamy and absurd rendering of Portland, Oregon.

"I love Portlandia. It really represents so much of what I love culturally, musically and in so many other ways," said Fred Armisen. "This started as just a fun summer activity for Carrie and me. We'd be hanging out in Portland and shooting whatever made us laugh, and that evolved into Portlandia."

PORTLANDIA's inhabitants include, but are not limited to: an organic farmer/cult leader; members of an adult hide and seek league, owners of a feminist book store; a militant bike messenger; and an artsy couple who attach cut-outs of birds to everything. In PORTLANDIA Armisen and Brownstein encounter the bike-riding Mayor of Portland (Kyle MacLachlan), who solicits the duo to write a new theme song for the city. Their City Hall escapades feature a cameo from the real mayor of Portland (Sam Adams) playing the assistant to MacLachlan's mayor.

An assortment of guest stars also inhabit PORTLANDIA, including Kyle MacLachlan (Twin Peaks, Sex & The City), Aubrey Plaza (Parks and Recreation), Selma Blair (Legally Blonde, Hellboy), Heather Graham (The Hangover), Edie McClurg (Ferris Bueller's Day Off), Kumail Nanjiani (Michael & Michael Have Issues), Jason Sudeikis (SNL, The Cleveland Show), and Gus Van Sant (Milk). Singer/songwriters Sarah McLachlan and Aimee Mann also guest star, alongside James Mercer (The Shins), and local Portland musicians Jenny Conlee and Colin Meloy (The Decemberists) and Corin Tucker (Sleater-Kinney).

Brownstein and Armisen spent years observing the joyous eccentricities of Portland, Oregon (when Fred was on hiatus from SNL), which spawned their "Thunderant" project, a compilation of online videos that combined their unique music styles and comedic sensibilities. Their artistic collaboration garnered an online cult following, as their "Thunderant" characters resonated with a young audience celebrating individuality, free spirit and weirdness.

Shot entirely on location in Portland, OR, the series was created and written by Fred Armisen, Carrie Brownstein and Jonathan Krisel (SNL, Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!). Krisel also directs PORTLANDIA. Much of the series' original music is written and performed by Armisen and Brownstein. The series is executive produced by Lorne Michaels; Fred Armisen, Carrie Brownstein, Jonathan Krisel and Broadway Video's Andrew Singer are co-executive producers. The show is executive produced for IFC by Debbie DeMontreux, Dan Pasternack, Jennifer Caserta and Evan Shapiro.

THE INHABITANTS OF PORTLANDIA

Donnie (CARRIE) and Jason (FRED): Friends from LA who discover the dream of the nineties is alive in Portland.

Peter (FRED) and Nance (CARRIE): A bohemian couple caught up in the organic and local food movements.

Aliki (JASON SUDEIKIS): A hospitable and flourishing organic farmer. Also, a polygamist cult leader.

Sherlock Holmies and Punky Bruisers: Portland's top 'Adult Hide & Seek League' teams.

Ziggy Hidedust (of Ziggy Hidedust and the Hiders from Mars): The greatest Hide & Seek player of all time.

Bryce Shivers (FRED) and Lisa Eversman (CARRIE): An obsessively twee and pseudo-artsy couple. They financed their Dwell-style house by applying bird graphics to luxury items.

Mayor (KYLE MACLACHLAN): The Mayor of Portland. Cheerful and idealistic, but a little misguided and impulsive and hypercompetitive with Seattle.

Fixed Gear Guy (FRED): A conspicuous bike messenger and militant bicyclist rights activist.

Toni (CARRIE) and Candice (FRED): The formerly activist, self-involved shopkeepers of the feminist bookstore.

PSU Student (AUBREY PLAZA): A characteristically acerbic and mischievous co-ed.

Dave (FRED) and Kathy (CARRIE): An uptight, overly concerned couple from the West Hills. Inflated animal rights activists.

Lance (CARRIE) and Nina (FRED): A punk rock couple in search of a safe word to help govern their love life.