C4 and E.On cross-platform tie-up
March 25, 2011
Channel 4 and energy giant E.On are to co-fund a major cross- platform series called Future Family.
The show will centre around a real-life family which lives in a house furnished entirely with energy-saving gadgets and technologies. The five-part series will follow the practicalities of the various energy-saving inventions, which will include futuristic kitchen appliances, high-tech entertainment technologies, alternative power sources and innovations such as fluorescent wallpaper.
The show will document how the family deals with them and whether they really are sustainable, low-energy alternatives. The most successful of their ideas will be selected to air in the series, while a large proportion of the remaining inventions will be presented exclusively online.
The aim is to use the online hub, c4.com/futurefamily, to add depth to the TV series, providing exclusive short-form videos presented by science experts providing additional detail about the inventions and how they could work. Viewers will be encouraged to watch the bespoke videos on the site and find out about the science behind the inventions.
A series of online promotional videos will run in the coming months ahead of the show’s transmission in September across a Future Family YouTube channel and Facebook page.