More than 350 people gathered Thursday night at the Saenger Theatre for the unveiling of BlabTV’s new programming concepts.

The local station’s Talent Search, which invited people to pitch programming ideas and to tryout for on-air talent spots, drew 250 applicants. Friday and Saturday at the Saenger, people will present their ideas to a group of community and out-of-town judges who flew in from California and New York for the event.

Quint Studer and his wife, Rishy, recently entered into a partnership agreement with the station to manage the stage. 

“We are committed to improving the quality of life in Pensacola,” said Quint Studer. “We believe by helping businesses and organizations grow, we also can grow a community.  By offering local programming that reflects the talent and ideas of the people right here in Pensacola, we can make this a better place for all of us.”

BlabTV will continue to partner with its existing clients and is developing improved sets for show productions, higher quality video and better audience reach. 

“BlabTV is here so small businesses can tell their story,” said Randy Hammer, president and CEO of Studer Communications, which oversees the station. “That will always remain our core mission.”

Some of the new local programming BlabTV plans to launch includes a morning talk show and an evening news show, called Pensacola Today, featuring Mollye Barrows, a former WEAR Channel 3 anchor.  Viewers are even in store for a sports network that will feature  local sports, and weekly sports talk shows.

BlabTV and Mayor Ashton Hayward also announced last night that selected participants from the Talent Search will help create and produce a 30-second television commercial highlighting the Pensacola area. 

This commercial will be made available to local government, tourism, and marketing groups to help promote the community for regional and national tourism efforts

“What better way to showcase Pensacola than to use our very own talent,” said Quint Studer.  “We have so much hidden talent here. This is a chance for everyone to see it.”

Three Pensacola natives, who flew in to judge the Talent Show, include Jenny Long, Kevin Wheatley, and Jarvis Derrell. 

Long, a University of West Florida Telecommunications and Film graduate, started her career by working on humanitarian video projects. She has been an on-air model for the Home Shopping Network and is the national spokesperson for ACCEL Performance Group. 

Wheatley has appeared in several films and dozen of national commercials. Some of his show appearances include Warner Brothers Network Television Pilot Joint Custody, Fox’s Adopted, and the FX series Dirt. 

Creator of the hit comedy blog, @SHEHASHADIT, Derrell is a regular on-air correspondent and columnist for MTV and MTV Style. He has his own show on VH1, Jarvis in the Elevator. 

For more information, visit BlabTV.com.