International buyers and media will be among the first to see footage from the new series, which stars Kiefer Sutherland as a widower and single father who discovers that his mute 11-year-old son possesses the gift of staggering genius: the ability to see things that no one else can and the patterns that connect seemingly unrelated events.
The extended Touch trailer will be screened by Fox Entertainment president Kevin Reilly during his MIPCOM keynote in the Palais des Festivals’ Grand Auditorium. Following his keynote remarks and trailer screening, Reilly will be joined by Touch executive producer Tim Kring (Heroes) and star Kiefer Sutherland (24) for an open, candid Q&A session, billed as Show-Runner Masterclass, about the series and what it takes to develop and nurture a successful television show in an evolving media landscape.
“Touch is a surprising and special drama. From its international scope and big themes to a central character who doesn’t speak a word, the show strives to break new ground for television. During my keynote session, I plan to explore creativity in the connected age, and I can’t think of a better show than Touch – or two better creative minds than Tim Kring and Kiefer Sutherland – to help drive that discussion,” says Reilly.
“MIPCOM is all about bringing together great television, great talent and providing great opportunities for delegates to access both. To be able to provide MIPCOM participants with the chance to gain insight and interact with Fox Entertainment President Kevin Reilly, Touch star Kiefer Sutherland and Executive Producer Tim Kring, and discover footage from the series, is extremely exciting,” adds Reed MIDEM’s Television Division director Laurine Garaude.
Touch is a distinct and colourful drama in which science and spirituality intersect with the hopeful premise that we are all interconnected, tied in invisible ways to those whose lives we are destined to alter and impact.
At the center of Touch is Martin Bohm (Sutherland), a widower and single father, haunted by an inability to connect to his mute, autistic 11-year-old son, Jake (David Mazouz). After multiple failed attempts at keeping Jake in school, Martin is visited by Clea Hopkins (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), a social worker sent to evaluate Jake’s well-being. Everything changes when Martin discovers that Jake possesses the gift of staggering genius – the ability to see things that no one else can and the patterns that connect seemingly unrelated events. Jake is indeed communicating. But it’s not with words, it’s with numbers. Martin meets Arthur Dewitt (Danny Glover), a professor and an expert on children who possess special gifts when it comes to numbers. Now, it’s up to Martin to decipher the meaning and connect the numbers to the cast of characters whose lives they affect.
Touch is a production of 20th Century Fox Television, Tailwind Productions and Chernin Entertainment. Tim Kring created the series and wrote the pilot. Kring, Francis Lawrence, Peter Chernin (Terra Nova), Katherine Pope (Terra Nova), Sutherland and Suzan Bymel (The War at Home) are executive producers. Lawrence directed the pilot.
