Studio 3 (TV series)

Studio 3 was an Australian children's television block, which was premiered on ABC3 along with the channel's launch in 2009. The program premiered on 7 December 2009, originally presented by Amberley Lobo and Kayne Tremills. The block was composed of small hosted segments which serve as links between external programs on the channel. The show was removed when ABC3 rebranded as ABC ME on 19 September 2016. The final presenters were James Elmer, Grace Koh and Tim Matthews.

Hosts

 Original   Replacement/Addition   Final 

Notes

• The amount of hosts on the show at any one time has ranged from two to five, who usually host segments on screen in groups of two or three.
• Ben Crawley was included as part of the original host line-up as a roving reporter and news correspondent, occasionally doing reports.
• Other fill-in hosts and guests from other ABC3 programs have included Alannah Ahmat, Stephanie "Hex" Bendixsen, Steven "Bajo" O'Donnell, Joel Phillips, Nicole Singh, Mitch Tomlinson, Scott Tweedie, Hannah Wang
• Director and writer Dave Cartel appeared on screen from 2009 to 2013, usually as the character of the Janitor.^[1] He left to direct You're Skitting Me.
• Tremills returned as a guest in 2015 to promote My Great Big Adventure and Bushwhacked.

History

Studio 3 was announced along with the launch of new channel ABC3 in 2009, with open auditions held to find the faces of the new channel, with over 5000 applications submitted.^[2] Studio 3 was originally hosted by Kayne Tremills and Amberley Lobo, premiering along with the launch of ABC3 on 7 December 2009.^[3] The pair also presented Countdown to 3, an introduction to the new channel.

James Elmer joined the show as an additional third presenter in 2011. Elmer had previously auditioned for ABC3. Executive Producer for ABC TV's Children's Television, Jan Stradling, explained "He's someone who I think will continually surprise our audience, which is a great asset to have on a daily show." Elmer stated "I'm keen to make the ABC3 audience laugh, so stay tuned because not even I know what's about to happen next." His first appearance was made on 4 April 2011.^[4]

Alfie Gledhill and Olivia "Liv" Phyland joined as additional hosts in December 2011 after an open talent search, joining Lobo, Tremills and Elmer.^[5] Gledhill left the show in September 2012 and was replaced by Khaled Khalafalla, who joined in October. Khalafalla departed in March 2013 to focus on his stand-up comedy career, due to feeling his comedic nature was too restricted on a children's show.^[6] With the addition of new hosts, the presenters usually hosted the segments in pairs of two. During this period, Tremills and Lobo were often absent from Studio 3 to film other series for ABC3, such as Splatalot!, My Great Big Adventure, Bushwacked (Tremills), and WAC (World Animal Championships) (Lobo). After being phased out from the program, Tremills and Lobo had both departed by 2014.

Tim Matthews, Grace Koh and Ivy Latimer joined the show in June 2014 after an open casting call for additional presenters. The trio joined established presenters Elmer and Phyland. Stradling stated, "The three young hosts we’ve discovered each have something different to offer but all have one thing in common that kids love – they're funny."^[7] Phlyand left the show in 2015 to move to Eleven's The Loop.^[8] Latimer also departed in 2015.

The show was removed when ABC3 rebranded as ABC ME on 19 September 2016. The final presenters were James Elmer, Grace Koh and Tim Matthews.

Format

Studio 3 began as a daily variety style morning show, airing 7:00am daily. The show was designed to add personality to ABC3, with the hosts becoming the faces of the channel, offering the channel "the chance to speak with its audience".^[9] Since its inception, the show has branched out to air evenings as well as mornings.

The program was a television block, featuring hosts who present interstitial segments, linking external programs. The hosts can produce up to 55 linking segments each week, ranging from 1 to 3 minutes in length.^[10] The segments see the hosts presenting games, competitions, comedy skits, characters, and field segments. Also included are celebrity interviews and musical performances.^[11] Occasionally the show airs repeated segments branded as Studio 3 Gold. Studio 3 also serves as a space for introducing new ABC3 programs. The hosts may interview the casts from these shows or feature animators as guests.^[10]

Original hosts Lobo and Tremils presented a daily episodic comedy entitled Bitcom; a mockumentary miniseries. A special titled Bitcom and the Oblivion Ray aired in 2011 and featured other ABC3 hosts guest starring. A sequel entiled Airwaves featured subsequent hosts.

In 2013, TV Tonight's David Knox stated that Studio 3 was proving to be a "fertile training ground for its young presenters", suggesting the hosts would learn the skills and gain experience to later progress to other shows.^[10]

Special editions

A special edition entitled ABC3's Birthday Bash aired on 4 December 2010, commemorating the first anniversary of ABC3's launch. The special featured Lobo and Tremils counting down the top three moments of the year as voted across different categories.^[12]

Each year on Australia Day a Smackdown special is produced, a comedy spoof running for 20 minutes. The special is presented as a comedy-drama and brings together the ABC3 hosts to participate in an event or sport that children might also play on Australia Day.^[10]

References

External links