Switched at Birth (TV series)

Switched at Birth
GenreFamily drama
Created byLizzy Weiss
Starring
Theme music composerJohn Swihart
ComposerJohn Swihart
Country of originUnited States
Original languages
  • English
  • American Sign Language
No. of seasons5
No. of episodes103 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
Producers
Cinematography
  • Frank Byers
  • Russ T. Alsobrook
  • Daryn Okada
  • Carlos González
  • Phil Parmet
Editors
  • Peter Basinski
  • Jill D'Agnenica
  • Debby Germino
  • Susan Kobata
  • Mitchell Danton
  • William Marrinson
  • Nathan Easterling
  • David Abramson
Camera setupMulti-camera
Running time45 minutes
Production companies
  • Pirates' Cove Entertainment
  • Suzy B. Productions (from "This Is The Color Of My Dreams")
Original release
NetworkFreeform
ReleaseJune 6, 2011 (2011-06-06) –
April 11, 2017 (2017-04-11)
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)

Switched at Birth is an American teen and family drama television series that premiered on ABC Family on June 6, 2011.[1] The one-hour scripted drama is set in the Kansas City metropolitan area, and revolves around two teenagers who were switched at birth and grew up in very different environments: one in an affluent suburb, and the other in a working-class neighborhood. According to ABC Family, it is "the first mainstream television series to have multiple deaf and hard-of-hearing series regulars and scenes shot entirely in American Sign Language (ASL)".[2]

The show's debut was ABC Family's highest-rated series debut to date.[3] The series won an honorary Peabody Award in 2013, and on July 30, ABC Family ordered a third season which premiered on January 13, 2014.[4] On August 13, 2014, ABC Family renewed the series for a fourth season, which premiered on January 6, 2015.[5][6]

On October 21, 2015, ABC Family (later rebranded as Freeform) confirmed the series had been renewed for its fifth season,[7] which was later confirmed to be the final season.[8] On March 19, 2016, it was announced that the fifth season was bumped from a March 2016 to a January 2017 premiere date.[9] In October 2016, the network announced that the final season would premiere on January 31, 2017.[10]

  1. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (March 7, 2011). "ABC Family Expands Schedule To 3 Nights Of Original Programming". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 8, 2011.
  2. ^ Pennington, Gail (January 12, 2013). "TCA: Switched at Birth goes deeper into deaf culture : Entertainment". Stltoday.com. Retrieved March 12, 2013.
  3. ^ Barney, Chuck (June 29, 2011). "Chuck Barney: Switched at Birth another winner for ABC Family". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved July 16, 2011.
  4. ^ "ABC Family Announces Premiere Dates for Pretty Little Liars, Twisted, Switched at Birth and The Fosters". TvByTheNumbers. October 21, 2013. Archived from the original on October 25, 2013. Retrieved October 21, 2013.
  5. ^ "ABC Family's 'Switched at Birth' Renewed For Fourth Season". Deadline Hollywood. August 13, 2014. Archived from the original on March 31, 2019. Retrieved August 19, 2014.
  6. ^ Bibel, Sara (November 12, 2014). "ABC Family Announces January Premiere Dates for Pretty Little Liars, The Fosters, Chasing Life & More". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on November 14, 2014. Retrieved November 12, 2014.
  7. ^ Swift, Andy (October 21, 2015). "Switched at Birth Renewed: Season 5 Coming to ABC Family/Freeform". TVLine. Archived from the original on October 22, 2015. Retrieved October 21, 2015.
  8. ^ "'Switched at Birth' to End with Season 5". The Hollywood Reporter. March 11, 2016.
  9. ^ Mitovich, Matt Webb (March 19, 2016). "Switched at Birth's Final Season Won't Air Until 2017, Says Series Creator". Tvline. Archived from the original on April 1, 2019. Retrieved March 19, 2016.
  10. ^ Weiss, Lizzy [@Lizzy_Weiss] (October 17, 2016). "Hey so....the premiere date of our final season of #SwitchedatBirth has been moved one lil week. (Instead of Jan 24), it will be JANUARY 31" (Tweet) – via Twitter.