A New Way To See Belize
Those of you who love browsing TV channels can now check out Belize's first channel, it's called See Belize Travel Channel. The Belize Tourism Board, Color Blind Multimedia Productions and NICH launched the channel today. I found out about the content and why this channel is going to be a game changer for tourists and Belizeans alike.
Courtney Weatherburne reporting
These are just a few of the breathtaking shots that will be featured on the See Belize Channel.
There will also be several TV series and different programs that locals and tourists can follow that highlight everything Belize.
The channel was officially launched today at the North Park Restaurant but it made it's debut last night on channel 12 on the Central Cable Vision network.
Hon. Manuel Heredia, Minister of Tourism
"As you see we were here for the launching of these video shots over here, we partnered with color blind to make sure we can show case the Belizean experience."
Audrey Wallace, Director, Color Blind Multimedia Productions
"One of the important things is that the audience that we are seeking is people who are visitors who are already in country, once they are here they may not have known they are here during lobster fest or Cocoa fest or we just went through the month of November and the big highlight is the celebration of our Garifuna people they may not know that so these things allow them to look at what is happening around them and they may extend their stay and spend more money."
While the travel channel appeals primarily to tourists, it is also for Belizeans to learn and explore their country.
Audrey Wallace, Director, Color Blind Multimedia Productions
"We realize that this local cable channel is just as important to potential visitors as it is to our own people, they come back with such pride expressing Oh my God, I didn't know we had such beautiful places, I did not know we offered these opportunities and these experiences in our very own back yard so there is an important role that this cable channel will provide for our own Belizean people to explore, experience our Belize."
"The journey of the See Belize Channel just begins today because we have loaded up the first content and it is going to be constantly updated but we also welcome feedback, this platform that we have created is not only for color blind to fill, we welcome other creatives in the industry if they have great ideas to work along with us to create content for this platform."
As you heard, you can catch See Belize on channel 12 on CCV. It will soon be available on all local cable networks countrywide. The online version of the channel will also be up and ready next Friday. You can also check out ColorBlind's facebook page, See Belize facebook page or you can call Color Blind at 223-2548 for more information.
Channel 7
See Belize is Launched as Belize's First Travel Channel
The C.E.O. in the office of the Prime Minister, Audrey Wallace, in her role as the owner of Colorblind Productions, a private company, has partnered with B.T.B. and NICH to launch a travel channel called See Belize. The event has held today in Belize City. News Five's Isani Cayetano has a report.
Isani Cayetano, Reporting
Belize's first travel channel, is a partnership between the Belize Tourism Board, the National Institute for Culture and History and Color Blind Multimedia Productions. The See Belize Channel is a visual showcase of the country's rich cultural, social and natural splendor.
Audrey Wallace, Color Blind Multimedia
"So what can you expect on this channel? What can you expect? It spans the gamut, whatever you could think about. What do we eat? What do we enjoy? What are the tourist attractions in each and every district? What are the adventure tours that we can do? What about our animals? What about our flora? All of that and much more. If people want to invest in Belize what are the real estate places that they can look at? It really, truly spans the gamut. We have incredible natural resources, we have incredible cultural history here."
It is that colourful past that is being used to generate original, authentic and high-quality video content.
Manuel Heredia Jr., Minister of Tourism
"There is no doubt that Belize is one of the world's leading tourism destination's in the Caribbean. In fact, as Minister of Tourism, I am happy to say that the industry sustained success during the past eleven years can be attributed to our strategic marketing initiatives to promote Belize, ongoing collaboration with local and international agencies and partners such as Color Blind Media and continued development and improvements to both properties and services by industry partners. While these activities have been important contributors to the industry's growth, emerging trends in tourism require that we constantly seek out new and creative ways of capturing the attention of travelers."
The brainchild of the Audrey Wallace, Chief Executive Officer in the Office of the Prime Minister, who also holds a seat on the board of the Belize Broadcasting Authority , See Belize is touted as having strong potential to reach, as well as capture the interest of visitors. Six months ago, Color Blind approached the National Institute of Culture and History to collaborate on the effort.
Sapna Budhrani, President, NICH
"We were excited to hear what the channel has to offer, not for the tourism impact but more for the cultural impact and how it will show our communities, our culture, our Belize in a creative way."
According to Wallace, the programming content is not limited to travel related material. It will also serve as a medium for Belizean artists to share original music as well.
Audrey Wallace
"I think this is a great platform for us to be able to promote our local artist and Color Blind is not in the habit of using anybody's music or anything without permission. And so one of the things that we want to do is to actually have a conversation with artists for them to see the opportunity and for us to partner. So that means money. When we make money, they make money, it's that simple. Everyone can win with this. At this point we are in the hole big time but we are hoping that that will change as soon as more people come onboard. So we see this as an amazing platform to promote our local culture, our local artists and so that is the plan."
Channel 5