Carsey-Werner in Film Deal With Paramount

One of Hollywood’s last independent television production companies -- Carsey-Werner-Mandabach -- is shooting for the big screen.

Carsey-Werner and Paramount Pictures said Tuesday that they would jointly finance feature films under a three-year production deal. Paramount, a unit of Viacom Inc., has been at the forefront of a trend among Hollywood studios to lessen risk by seeking financial partners.

The deal marks the first time Carsey-Werner has ventured into the volatile motion picture business.

The move comes as the premiere TV producer, which established itself with such hit comedies as “The Cosby Show” and later “Roseanne” and “3rd Rock From the Sun,” has been struggling on its home turf.

Carsey-Werner was forced to lay off about 15% of its 130-employee work force this year after landing only one show on the networks, “That ‘70s Show” on Fox.

General Electric Co.’s NBC, Walt Disney Co.’s ABC, Viacom’s CBS and Fox Broadcasting have increasingly turned to their in-house studios to produce TV dramas and comedies, limiting opportunity for independent studios.

The Paramount deal allows the 20-year-old independent producer another outlet, Marcy Carsey said. “We needed to define what it is we love to do and find other ways to do it.

“We really love being independent, and we want to do it for as long as possible.”

The company hasn’t abandoned its TV business, however. Carsey-Werner has nine projects in development, including three series planned for ABC -- one of them co-produced by Steve Martin and another by Tim Allen -- and a series planned for NBC with Whoopi Goldberg.