Get Hopeless with Bob Balaban

There are times I miss having access to the Independent Film Channel. For some reason it seems everything interesting comes on IFC when I don’t have it available. Fortunately, there’s always DVD to catch some of their intriguing releases, such as “Hopeless Pictures,” an animated series directed by one of my favorite actors, Bob Balaban, coming to DVD on January 23rd.

Are you lacking IFC too and curious to what “Hopeless Pictures” is about? Here’s the info from the press release:

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Mel Wax (Michael McKean) is the head of a dysfunctional Hollywood indie movie studio, Hopeless Pictures. In the land where a studio chief is only as good as his last big flop, Wax struggles to reign in out-of-control, pill-popping Swedish directors and egomaniacal stars, while coping with a vengeful soon-to-be ex-wife (Lisa Kudrow), assorted affairs, his idiot nephew/head of production (Bob Balaban), a hostile takeover and an inept psychiatrist, Dr. Stein (Jonathan Katz).

I’m a huge fan of the cast Balaban has working here, especially McKean and Katz. It sounds like the show may be an excellent send up of Hollywood from some of the best people to do it. Below are some stills from the upcoming season one release, available January 23rd in a two disc set with deleted scenes and episode commentary by Balaban himself.