NEW YORK, NY – October 19, 2010 – IFC announced today a roster of guest stars appearing in the network’s original comedy series, "Portlandia," premiering in early 2011. The line-up is an eclectic mix of actors and musicians including: Selma Blair (Hellboy); Heather Graham (The Hangover); Aimee Mann (Community); Edie McClurg (Ferris Bueller’s Day Off); Kumail Nanjiani (Michael & Michael Have Issues"); Jason Sudeikis (The Cleveland Show); and Gus Van Sant (Milk). Singer/songwriter Sarah McLachlan also guest stars, alongside James Mercer (The Shins), and local Portland musicians Jenny Conlee and Colin Meloy (The Decemberists) and Corin Tucker (Sleater-Kinney).
Each half-hour episode of "Portlandia" will include interwoven comedy sketches starring Fred Armisen ("SNL") and Carrie Brownstein (vocalist/guitarist, Sleater-Kinney), which portray the progressive personalities, aesthetics and values of "Portlandia," the creators’ dreamy and absurd rendering of Portland, Ore. Other guest stars include Kyle MacLachlan (Sex & the City), Aubrey Plaza (Parks and Recreation) and Portland mayor, Sam Adams.
Armisen and Brownstein wrote the show alongside Allison Silverman (The Colbert Report) and Jonathan Krisel (SNL), who is also the series’ director. "Portlandia" is executive produced by Lorne Michaels and produced by Broadway Video. For IFC, the series is executive produced by Jennifer Caserta, Debbie DeMontreux, Dan Pasternack and Evan Shapiro.
"Portlandia" is based on a web series Armisen and Brownstein produced together called "ThunderAnt."
About IFC
IFC creates and champions authentic, original content that is "Always On. Slightly Off." Since 1994, IFC has cultivated television programming that challenges the conventions of storytelling. Today, IFC continues to embrace content with an indie perspective. Original series – headlined by brand-defining scripted and sketch comedy – air alongside an extraordinary collection of films and cult TV shows. Long and short-form original content inspired by music, web, gaming, animation, news, and culture is available on multiple platforms. IFC provides viewers access to must-see festivals and events around the country, like the Film Independent’s Spirit Awards and SXSW. IFC.com features exclusive video, podcasts, blogs, news and reviews cultivated and written by industry experts. The network’s On Demand offering, IFC Free, gives fans the opportunity to watch select content from IFC whenever they want. IFC is a subsidiary of Rainbow Media Holdings LLC.
About Rainbow Media Holdings LLC
Rainbow Media Holdings LLC is a subsidiary of Cablevision Systems Corporation (NYSE: CVC). Rainbow Media owns and operates some of the world’s most popular and award-winning entertainment brands, including AMC, IFC, Sundance Channel, WE tv, Wedding Central and IFC Entertainment (IFC Center, IFC Films, IFC In Theaters, IFC Midnight and IFC Productions). Additional information about Rainbow Media’s multiplatform brands is available at www.rainbow-media.com.