At the 2006 NYTVF, artists, industry figures and TV fans once again convened in Manhattan to celebrate television and to help shape its future.

Premiere Week

Last year's festival saw the inauguration of Premiere Week, during which the NYTVF and its network partners presented red-carpet screenings of some of the greatest new shows at the network level. The stars and creators of these series were on hand to mark the occasion, as exclusive screenings of NBC's "Kidnapped," ABC's "Knights of Prosperity" and FOX's "Standoff" were presented for festival audiences.

Panel Discussion Series

Each year, the NYTVF assembles some of the biggest names in the industry to examine past and current trends in television and to project where the business is headed. In 2006, the NYTVF was proud to present two marquee panels addressing the state and future of TV network news and the family sitcom. Here are summaries of these panels:

Coverage in the War Zone
Panelists included:
Dan Rather, Dan Rather Reports, HDNet
Professor Richard Wald, former dean of Columbia School of Journalism and former president of NBC News

Welcome to Our Home: The American Family on American TV
Panelists included:
Phil Rosenthal, executive producer and creator, "Everybody Loves Raymond"
Mike Scully, executive producer, "The Simpsons"
Mitchell Hurwitz, executive producer and creator, "Arrested Development"

Independent Pilot Competition

Since 2005, the NYTVF has showcased dozens of original television pilots directly for cable and network executives, TV agents, producers and fans all over the world. Winners in the competition are determined by the NYTVF panel of celebrity jurors, which has included distinguished industry leaders such as Tom Fontana, Mike Scully, Julie Chen, Mitchell Hurwitz and Rachael Ray. Ranging from scripted comedies and dramas to animated series and reality shows, the pilots featured at the Independt Pilot Competition reflect the most innovative and groundbreaking independent TV content currently being produced. The NYTVF has debuted three shows that have been purchased for development in the United States:

-- The scripted comedy "Split the Difference," winner of the TV Guide Audience Award and Best Comedy Pilot in 2006, was purchased by NBC Universal Television Studios weeks after it premiered at the NYTVF.

-- The reality program "Off the Hook," winner of the Audience Award and Best Reality Pilot in 2005, aired as a series on the Versus network in 2006.

--  The unscripted comedy pilot "Criss-Cross" was purchased and developed as a pilot by A&E in 2005.

The complete list of winners from the 2006 IPC are as follows:

MSN ARTISTIC ACHIEVEMENT AWARD: "Squid Dragon Legend," executive produced by Nick Cogan (New York)

TV GUIDE AUDIENCE AWARD: "Split the Difference," executive produced by Mary Egan Callahan, Joe Narciso and Bruce Hurwitt; produced by Alec Sash (South Orange, N.J.)

BEST COMEDY PILOT: "Split the Difference," executive produced by Mary Egan Callahan, Joe Narciso and Bruce Hurwitt; produced by Alec Sash (South Orange, N.J.)

BEST DRAMA PILOT: "Viagra Falls," executive produced by Chris Debiec, Atil Singh and Allen Wong; produced by Chris Debiec (Van Nuys, Calif.)

BEST EDUCATION PILOT: "Martti and Kim's Story Of ..." [Abridged], executive produced by Cameron Roberts and Greg Jones; produced by Martti Nelson, Kim Roberts and Marc Collins (Orlando, Fla.)

BEST REALITY PILOT: "On the Block," executive produced by George Collias, Matthew J. Haddad, Jonathan Wareham and Gwen O'Donnell (Los Angeles)

BEST ANIMATION PILOT: "Squid Dragon Legend," executive produced by Nick Cogan (New York)