Attending The Hills panel at PaleyFest without being a regular viewer of The Hills is like going to a Friday night party at some condo off Sunset where everybody knows each other and nobody knows you. So you stand there amid an attractive crowd and nod and smile and pretend like you get their jokes. Helpfully, before the panel the producers screen a 20-minute compilation of clips from The Hills that summarizes the first five seasons of the hit MTV docu-soap. The clips are either perfectly edited, or the series has incredible amounts of filler because when the lights come up you feel like you just sat through every single episode and understand everything that’s happened: A blonde girl named Lauren moved to Hollywood and fell in love with another blonde girl named Heidi. They broke up when Heidi fell in love with a blond guy named Spencer. Each season the girls wore more obvious makeup and Lauren cries a lot. Oh, and at one point Lauren went to France. But when the cast comes onstage there’s a glaring omission. Heidi, who was billed to be onstage with Lauren, is not here. This is a considerable letdown, even for those of us who just started watching The Hills roughly 20 minutes ago. We’re told she’s planning for a “big event” this weekend, which is rumored to be her wedding to Spencer. Needless to say, The Hills cameras will be there, and three cast members say they are invited, none of which are Lauren. The biggest news bits from the Q&A:

– Producers were asked if the show will continue beyond the fifth season and gave the usual “we’re in talks … seeing if there are more stories to tell,” etc., etc., answer.

HMMM … I don’t think there was anyone who seriously doubted that it was Spencer who came up with the sex tape rumor, I mean … c’mon. The fact that he finally admits it on camera should come as no shock to anyone. Since this is the “last” season of The Hills, they have to pull out all the stops … the sex tape thing is one big loose end that was never tied up and the Speidi wedding is another. It really sounds like LC is done with the show … which means that any attempts to keep it going without her are going to be really bad, I think. Laguna Beach didn’t really fare so well once she left the show … and when they moved the drama to Newport Beach (introducing a new cast of characters) the whole thing went into the toilet. If MTV is smart, they’ll just let the show end on a relative high note.

But that doesn’t mean they may not try to launch a new show around Heidi and Spencer. It remains to be seen if those two can carry a show all by themselves but, I’m telling you, they’re gonna try. First, tho, they’ve got a little wedding to get thru … let’s see if they can pull that off before they think about launching their own TV show. Do you think they’ll be able to carry a show on their own? Would you tune in?

[Photo credit: Splash News; Source]

Right around episode 6, “Dollhouse” kicked into creative high-gear — but it might have been a little too late. Series creator Joss Whedon, speaking on a “Dr. Horrible” panel Tuesday night at the Paley Festival, said the possibility of the show receiving a second-season pickup was, well, rather grim. The chances are “not very good,” he said, according to SciFiWire.com. “Obviously our numbers are pretty soft … but we live in hope. “I’m really proud of the episodes that are coming out,” Whedon said. “More than that, I can’t really ask.” His comments follow the recent news that Fox would not be airing “Dollhouse’s” 13th episode, a stand-alone episode titled “Epitaph One” that the studio asked to be added on to the first season’s 12 to package for sale on DVD and overseas. Whedon elaborated on the episode’s set-up: “[I agreed to shoot] a post-apocalyptic thriller that’s all on our sets in six days with a cast of four other people … and peppered with different bits from our regular cast. … It’s one of the best episodes we’ve ever made.” The most recent episode of “Dollhouse” delivered a 1.4 rating among adults 18-49 and 3.6 million viewers overall. A renewal for its Friday-night lead-in, “Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles,” is even less likely. Fox will announce its fall schedule May 18.

Personally, I feel that the reason that the show is underperforming in the ratings has mainly to do with the fact that FOX exiled it (along with Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles) to Friday night. As much as I am loving Dollhouse over all, I am usually not home on Friday nights to watch it … so it gets recorded on my DVR so that I can watch it later. I’m sure there are LOTS of other folks who do the same. I know the show would do much better if the network featured it on a night when people are actually home to watch television. That being said, tho, I sorta feel that Dollhouse will go the way of that other Joss Whedon show Firefly (which aired only one season and then was axed by FOX due to poor ratings). While I don’t think that Dollhouse will eventually get it’s own movie like Firefly did (2005’s theatrical release Serenity), I think there are a lot of similarities between the two series. If Dollhouse does not survive and the show does get the ax by FOX, it seems to me that the working relationship between Joss Whedon and FOX needs to end — for both of their sakes. Whedon is going to continue making smart, character-driven TV shows and FOX is going to continue treating those shows like unwanted step children. How many times can both sides afford to expend time and money into a relationship that doesn’t seem to work? It’s a damn shame that Whedon’s work is not given the support and promotion that it deserves because I honestly believe he is one of the most talented TV people out there. I, too, am living “in hope” that Dollhouse will defy the odds and will live to see another season but I’m also very much prepared for the fact that the show might be killed off way before its time. At this point, I’m relishing every ep as much as I can while I still can. I understand the 13th ep is really spectacular … if the show has to end, I’m not surprised they are planning to go out with a bang.

[Source]

From the press release: Last spring, FOX announced that after a nearly two-year hiatus, 24 would return to the airwaves with 24: REDEMPTION, an unprecedented two-hour television event shot on location in South Africa and Los Angeles. Now as the producers ready this epic tale for broadcast, they are unveiling a never-before-seen collection of stunning photographs shot by five members of the show’s creative team during the overseas filming. “24: REDEMPTION – Captured in Africa” is a rare inside look at the making of the show composed of candid moments between cast and crew, including Emmy Award-winner Kiefer Sutherland; dramatic stills from the spectacular action sequences; and vivid photographic captures of the scenic South African locations. The Paley Center for Media in Los Angeles will host the one-of-a-kind photo exhibit of fine art museum quality archival prints from Nov. 10, 2008 through Jan. 11, 2009, when it may move on to additional venues to be announced later. Curated by Entertainment Weekly deputy photo director Michael Kochman and custom printed at DigitalFusion’s fine art printing facility, the exhibit features works by executive producer/director Jon Cassar, director of photography Rodney Charters, producer Michael Klick, unit photographer Kelsey McNeal and star/executive producer Kiefer Sutherland. “I was so impressed with the quality of the photography, and it was exciting to see a production photographed from five different perspectives,” said Kochman. “Each photographer captured something very special and poetic – sometimes intimate, sometimes epic, sometimes documentary-like and raw. It all adds up to a fascinating photographic experience.” “Shooting 24: REDEMPTION in South Africa was the highlight of my six years on the show,” said 24 executive producer and Emmy Award-winning director Jon Cassar. “It was nothing short of exhilarating. Africa also became a wonderful canvas for the still photography enthusiasts among our crew. Every day put us in places and situations that were new and exciting to us, and our cameras clicked constantly. This exhibit chronicles the seven weeks that were spent in Cape Town and the surrounding regions from moments captured during a hectic shooting schedule to the faces and places that represent not only the making of 24 but the Africa of today.”

After the jump, check out a few of the photos that will be on display in this new exhibit …

Photobucket has been chosen as the premier online destination for the behind-the-scenes photographs that were taken during filming of 24: Redemption. 24 fans and photo enthusiasts overall can visit this special Photobucket album HERE to view select photographs from the full photo exhibit at The Paley Center, as well as additional photographs which are available for viewing only online. I was very impressed when I watched 24: Redemption in full a couple of weeks ago and am as impressed with the photography shot on location in South Africa included in this exhibit. Check out the Photobucket album and see for yourself. There are a some great photos in there. I might have to make my way to The Paley Center before January 11 to see the full size photos in person.

[Photo credit: Wireimage, Photobucket]