Mipcom 2016 news 1

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DAY Monday 17 October 2016

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COUNTRY OF HONOUR

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A series of conferences and a Japanese-themed opening party mark day one of Japan’s tenure as MIPCOM Country Of Honour

MEDIA MASTERMIND

Sony Corporation president and CEO Kazuo Hirai gives the opening Media Mastermind Keynote in the Grand Auditorium today at 11.30

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Beta’s Cold War series The Same Sky is the Monday Evening World Premiere TV Screening in the Grand Auditorium. Doors open at 18.00

MIPJUNIOR KEYNOTE 12

TOGETHER TODAY TOMORROW

Corus Kids’ Deirdre Brennan told MIPJunior delegates that kids TV should be for all the family

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CONTENTS NEWS 8 All the action at MIPJunior; stars come to Cannes; early MIPCOM deals; and more...

PRODUCT NEWS

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FEATURES 93 Out of the darkness…

Drama: are audiences ready for lighter, brighter fare?

56 Multiplatform content for sale in Cannes

102 We’re virtually there ‘Virtual reality is the next chapter in the media revolution’

113 Stories worth telling Factual TV is enjoying a creative renaissance

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Having fun with Junior

MIPJunior attendees unwound at the Opening Party at the Martinez Beach. The occasion also marked the 25th anniversary of Millimages, the Paris-based studio that produces live-action and animated programming. “The company has never been in such good shape,” said founder and CEO, Roch Lener, pictured above

Grizzy And The Lemmings creators Josselin Charier (left) and Antoine Rodelet of Studio Hari at the world premiere of the series. Hari ter atio al has a ou ced the firs pre-sales to Tele-Quebec and Super RTL. The founding broadcasters are France TV and Boomerang

Partygoers wore troll wigs at the DreamWorks party that closed MIPJunior last night — to mark the company’s new series Trolls, a “fresh, broad comedy with music, heart and hair-raising adventures”

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NEWS KIDS’ COMPANIES GETTING CREATIVE TO BE IMMERSIVE RESEARCH shows that fans increasingly prefer immersive shareable experiences to consumer products, and how better to do that than by staying in the apartment of your favourite character?

“We recreated the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’ Turtle Lair in Manhattan and listed it on Airbnb,” said Viacom Labs’ Catherine Fulton. The resulting selfies make for highly shareable user-generated content. “We’re now looking at using Airbnb as a native platform for other properties.”

Next year sees the opening of the first CBeebies Hotel at CBeebiesland, launched at Alton Towers theme park last year. “We have been doing live experiences for adults and older kids for some time,” said Henrietta Hurford-Jones, director of children’s at BBC Worldwide. The hotel will have branded rooms where pre-schoolers and their families can stay, play and interact with their favourite characters.

BBC Worldwide has also launched the first of several early-learning centres in China where children can learn English through storytelling, movement games and puzzles led by teachers and involving popular kids’ characters.

French company Ubisoft Motion Pictures offers a VR rollercoaster ride at its Rabbids Amusement Centre. But Helene Juguet, vice-president, business development, TV and digital production, acknowledges the challenges. “VR needs the fourth dimension – movement – to really take off, and it’s complicated to do it well and get a good return on investment,” she said. “If kids get too involved, it can be dangerous, so we use short experiences.”

Balsam-Schwaber outlines new chapter for Mattel’s toy story

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ATHERINE Balsam-Schwaber, chief content officer of Mattel, looked to the company’s radical past as she explained in her MIPJunior Keynote how it was moving into an ever-more connected future.

Mattel was not a toy company when it was founded in the Forties. It had been modelled on other Californian “startups” like Disney. “In the beginning Mattel was a creations company — a powerhouse of incredible imaginations,” she said.

Now it was again rethinking its business, and it had concluded that toys and TV were increasingly tightly intertwined. “Kids expect toys to have content and expect content to have toys,” she said. So much so that she defined the Mattel of today as “less and less of a toy company and more and more of a story company”.

Stories were essential in creating

Mattel’s Catherine Balsam-Schwaber

“wonder” in kids — and wonder was what helped today’s kids form deeper connections with brands.

And it went further than that, she explained. Wonder and storytelling also helped foster the skills, aspirations and creativity that would help kids to be fulfilled in their future lives. “Wonder correlates with kids’ success and brand success,” she said. “Content is still

the most easily accessible way to inspire wonder.”

To that end, she unveiled what she described as the “wonder studio”, an in-house content-creation hub called Mattel Creations, and gave a sneak peek of its first production — a music video featuring Lady Gaga and Monster High that would premiere on October 26, just in time for Halloween.

Learning how to be big in Japan

THE JAPAN: Producing In The Land Of The Rising Sun session kicked off by profiling Mofy, the Sony-owned, Italian-animated cartoon rabbit TV series that has been a smash hit in Japan, and more than 50 other countries.

Made in stop-motion out of cotton wool, it is strikingly original but also, in some ways, typical of what works well for Japanese audiences.

Both speakers — Keisuke Tsuchihashi of NHK and Fumitaka Torio of Sony Creative Products — emphasised that foreign companies should try to understand what Japanese viewers like. “I’m always looking for non-Japanese animation,” Tsuchihashi said. “If producers want to work with us, they need to demonstrate how their properties will appeal to Japanese viewers and sensitivities.”

“Japanese people can be really

difficult to convince!” Torio said.

“You need to come to Japan and understand the people and the market, and keep trying.”

He continued with some advice: “I want to emphasise funny and exciting but healing. That’s the magic word. If you’ve been to Tokyo, it’s a lot of hustle-bustle and people are stressed out. They look to animated characters for healing.”

Both Torio and Tsuchihashi expressed cautious optimism about growth in non-linear channels in Japan, where web-based catch-up, streaming and SVOD have not taken off as quickly as in some other markets. “Streaming platforms are increasing year by year in Japan,” said Tsuchihashi. “Sometimes they are our rivals but they are good partners at other times.”

Fumitaka Torio

Keisuke Tsuchihashi

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Brennan makes plea for shows with cross-generational appeal

THE JIM Henson Company has moved from muppets to marine life, and the results — seen at the MIPJunior World Premiere TV Screening — were spectacular.

Splash And Bubbles (80 x 11 mins) was produced with Herschend Enterprises and will debut on PBS this autumn. It features colourful fishy characters and is a product of the acclaimed Henson Digital Puppet Studio, mixing traditional puppetry skills with cutting-edge CG animation.

The series is designed to be fun and also deliver an environmental message.

“We’re laying the foundations for a love of the ocean for future conservationists,” Lisa Henson, company CEO, said.

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IDS TV should also be TV for all the family, said Deirdre Brennan, vicepresident of content at Corus Kids in the opening MIPJunior Keynote.

She quoted a University of California study which showed parents in the West now spend more time with their kids than 50 years ago — and that dad time had quadrupled. The generation gap was crumbling and kids increasingly valued their parents’ approval. “What does this mean for us?” she asked. “The family dinner table is our new water cooler.

If a child is prepared to share with their family, we’ve achieved something very special.”

Great kids shows can — and should — have cross-generational appeal. And, like MasterChef, they should transmit positive values and celebrate achievement: the industry has a responsibility to help form the adults of tomorrow. But that didn’t mean TV had

Corus Kids’ Deirdre Brennan

to be worthy or didactic. “It’s not about applying a curriculum and saying this is going to be good for you, it’s about bringing heart to what we do,” she said. “We are a unique voice forming the adults of tomorrow. Let’s embrace that.”

Brennan pointed to the successes of ouTube, with its flexible running times that suited the content, and also its vast wealth of “howto” programmes. Kids were hungry for information about the

world, she said, and TV should try harder to provide it.

The title of the Keynote was Why The World Needs More Canada… Or How I Learnt To Love Ketchup Chips. Her new country of residence had a voice that was “optimistic and aspirational”, she said. And ketchup chips were a bizarre Canadian speciality that represented “originality and risktaking,” she said. “I want that in our business.”

Shimabukuro’s one-minute wonders

Luva TV’s Marcio Shimabukuro

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SHORT-form content from Brazil has won the 2016 MIPJunior International Pitch contest. Luva TV’s Marcio Shimabukuro gave an impressive presentation of The Meaning Of, his company’s x min) series for four- to eight-year-olds in which three charismatic 2D CGanimated dogs explore the meaning of a fun and unusual word.

Judges asked why the decision had been taken to make one-min-

ute episodes. “It’s the perfect time.

It’s a gag, something to remember and to be repeated,” Shimabukuro replied. The projected budget was 0,000 4,000) for the scripted element, though an app and website were planned. Luva was looking for finance through co-production, pre-sales and public funding. “With a good story, learning and discovery can be fun,” Shimabukuro said.

Runners-up were: Bellboy Luke, featuring 3D CG adventures in a time-travelling elevator (Anyzac, South orea) Bitkiz, about a trio of adventuresome shoppingmall plants Dandelooo, France) Charlotte And Frogson, featuring a girl detective and her sidekick frog Masterfilm Studio, ussia) and HeroGliffix, about aliens in ancient Egypt (CHF Entertainment, U ).

The official MIPCOM daily newspaper Monday 17 October 2016

Director of Publications Paul Zilk Director of Communication Mike Williams EDITORIAL DEPARTMENT Editor in Chief Julian Newby Deputy Editor Debbie Lincoln Sub Editors Neil Churchman, Sarah Kovandzich, Nigel Wilmott Reporters Ben Cooper, Andy Fry, Emelia Jones, Juliana Koranteng, Max Leonard, Rachel Murrell, Gary Smith, Joanna Stephens, David Wood Editorial Management Boutique Editions Technical Editor in Chief Herve Traisnel Deputy Technical Editor in Chief Frederic Beauseigneur Graphic Designers Muriel Betrancourt, Gaelle Daireaux, Carole Peres Head of Photographers Yann Coatsaliou / 360 Medias Photographers Christian Alminana, Olivier Houeix, Patrick Frega, Michel Johner.

PRODUCTION DEPARTMENT Publishing Director Martin Screpel Publishing Co-ordinator Emilie Lambert Printer Riccobono Imprimeurs, Le Muy (France).

ADVERTISING CONTACT IN CANNES Sylvia Ferreira: +33 (0)6 22 18 53 68 Reed MIDEM, a joint stock company (SAS), with a capital of €310.000, 662 003 557 R.C.S. NANTERRE, having offices located at 27-33 Quai Alphonse Le Gallo - 92100 BOULOGNEBILLANCOURT (FRANCE), VAT number FR91 662 003 557. Contents © 2016, Reed MIDEM Market Publications. Publication registered 4th quarter 2016. Printed on FSC certified paper.

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NEWS INNOVATE TO UNLOCK LICENSING POTENTIAL

Trendsetters offer insight on what channels and platforms want

“W PGS Entertainment’s Philippe Soutter

“PLATFORMS are changing so fast, it’s frightening,” said Philippe Soutter, CEO of PGS Entertainment at the session on Licensing Hits, From Brands To TV Series. “Brand owners must innovate if they are to survive.

Who knows, with 3D printers now so widely available, we could soon see customers printing toys at home for free, and the TV series becoming the major revenue source.”

Soutter raised this alarming scenario — the opposite of the current model in which animation drives lucrative toy sales — while describing how he adapted a Japanese toy into Monchhichi, a new 52 x 1 mins CGI series.

Over Monchhichi’s 40-year history, 100 million dolls have been sold in 40 countries, so why now? Three factors: the rise of Eighties nostalgia, strong brand recognition among today’s new parents, and new CGI techniques that allow for a redesign that would resonate all over the world.

“It took some time to find a story,” Soutter said. “But the brand owner, Sekiguchi, had described kids cuddling their Monchhichi doll in bed at night, so we built a storyworld around that. It centres on a ‘dream tree’ where scores of Monchhichi create sweet dreams for children.”

Anna Hewitt, licensing director of Spin Master, outlined the licensing and merchandising campaign for its hit show Paw Patrol. “Retailers are risk-averse, so any new brand has to demonstrate that it has creativity, integrity, individuality and commercial appeal,” she said. Finding ways to refresh the brand — through new characters, new locations, new vehicles, etc — is part of ensuring its longevity.

E NEED to innoMarc Buhaj, senior vice-presvate more,” said ident and general manager, Tara Sorensen, Disney XD, agreed. “Humour head of k ids’ also has universal appeal,” he programming at said. He added that Disney Amazon Studios. At the MIPJunior wants more insight into where panel on What Do Channels And kids are: “We need to develop Platforms Want?, she said: “We have new audience measurement been screen-focused but I would like techniques.” us to extend our storytelling to digiAll four broadcasters are comtal platforms, and have them feed mitted to diversity, behind the into each other.” camera and in front of it. For Amazon Studios’ This forward-thinking approach is Tara Sorensen new girls’ series American evident at Canal+ too, with LauGirl, launching this month, rence Blaevoet, head of children’s channels, Amazon has recruited a crew that reflects the revealing that she debuts the broadcaster’s ethnicity of the lead character of each show. first virtual reality game for kids this month. “We must take risks with first-timers,” SoCalled Drole De Manoir (The Odd Mansion), rensen said. “If we don’t, they can’t succeed.” it’s an escape game shot in 360 degrees.

The session ended with the 2016 World CBBC’s Sarah Muller — creative director, Screen Trendsetter Awards. Each of the four scripted, animation and co-productions — speakers received an honour for their consaid the UK pubcaster is making headway tributions to kids’ television during their reon personalising the viewer’s experience. spective careers. The awards were given by “But for me it’s still about the quality of the session moderator and World Screen group storytelling,” she said. editorial director Anna Carugati-Guise.

Pictured are: Mark Mertens of Tinker Group (left); CBeebies’ programme executive Sarah Legg; Tinker Group’s head of international business development Justine Bannister; and Jackie Edwards of BBC Children

ASTROPHYSICS for pre-schoolers sounds like a big ask, but Jackie Edwards, head of acquisitions at BBC Children, is convinced that Interstellar Ella, the new animated series from Tinker Group, can pull it off on CBeebies.

“Interstellar Ella is one of those shows that will get kids into very big ideas, very young,” Edwards said. “Like its predecessor, What’s The Big Idea?, it will do great things for our audience.”

“We start storyboarding in 2017,” said Tinker Group’s Mark Mertens. “And it will be made by our French partner, Tinkerland.”

Sharing stories on books as brands

“WE SEE ourselves as content incubators,” said Asif Bashir, director of publisher and brand manager Unique Inspiration. “We publish books and develop them as brands on all available platforms, taking a project-specific approach to each one.”

He was speaking at The Book As A Brand Platform, looking at cross-platform strategies to bring together books and screens.

Jeff Norton, writer-producer of Awesome Media and Entertainment, said that every project starts with the creative, and the book functions as the bible. And contrary-wise: “If I write a show, I often write a show bible for it that looks and feels like a novel.”

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NEWS Let personalised programme recommendation save you time

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N EW Persona lised Programme Recommendation Engine designed to enhance the experience of content buyers during the MIPJunior screenings is on offer in Cannes.

UK-based Jackie Edwards, head of acquisitions at BBC Children, said she was impressed with the technology, which will for the first time also give delegates access to the Screenings Library online, even after MIPJunior.

“So far, so good,” said Edwards, who is also on the MIP Kids Buyers Advisory Board. “Not

only has it already gone into action and been upgraded, it is a one-stop shop that allows sellers to update the library long after MIPJunior has ended.”

Programme buyers have the advantage of face-to-face meetings with distributors at numerous MIPJunior events in a limited number of days. The new encrypted digital service, available to only registered delegates, means they can catch up with anything they missed after the market.

“That limited window of opportunity is now expanded for months ahead. Initially, I wasn’t sure about the recom-

BBC Children’s Jackie Edwards

mendation element. I didn’t want to be told what I want to watch. But it’s turned out to be very helpful,” Edwards added.

The recommendation technology uses data gathered from buyers’ previous screening activities at MIPJunior. Buyers who compile a playlist of what they want to watch before coming to the market will receive recommendations.

Lucy Smith, Reed MIDEM’s director of MIPJunior, said: “From today, when buyers log on, they start receiving recommendations based on their previous day’s behaviour and anything they might have missed.”

The recommendation platform will also be refreshed early next year as sellers upload new content, which will be available from February for buyers getting ready for MIPTV.

R APHAELLE Mathieu (left) and Pierre Sissman of Cyber Group Stu-

dios, celebrate signing a deal with Natalie Altmann of Media Valley. Cyber Group will distribute Ernest And Rebecca (52 x 13 mins) and Dragon Slayers’ Academy (52 x 13 mins). Both series are based on successful children’s book series.

Sissman said that Cyber Group Studios had an unprecedented number of series in production this year for TF1, Disney and others, a fact he attributed to ramping up the company’s development activities.

Junior@MIPTV expands to meet demand LUCY Smith, the director of MIPJunior, welcomed MIPJunior attendees to the Networking Lunch, and unveiled a new initiative to expand the kids offering at MIPTV 2016 — an expanded Junior@MIPTV. “I want to ask you to spring forward and have a look at what we’re preparing for the kids community from April 3-6 here in Cannes.”

The MIPMarket’s Kids Buyers Advisory Board comprises wellknown faces from Nickelodeon, Corus Kids, NHK, RAI, Disney,

Cartoon Network, France Televisions and SuperRTL. “They will be an integral part of the Junior@ MIPTV programme,” she said.

As well as the International Emmy Kids Awards, Junior@ MIPTV will offer a chance to look at fresh programming and will feature the first ids World Premiere TV Screening in the Grand Auditorium, as well as host the first kids short-form content pitch.

“There will be over 1,300 kids buyers from over 80 countries at MIPTV,” Smith added.

Lucy Smith introduces Junior@MIPTV

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Social media’s issues are ours

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AYLEY Atwell plays the lead role as a bril-

liant but hedonistic attorney and daughter of a former US president who is blackmailed into working to free wrongly convicted prisoners in New York in Entertainment One’s legal drama series Conviction.

Also starring Eddie Cahill and Emily Kinney, Conviction has already been picked up by TF1 in France, Sky Living in the UK and Fox Networks Latin America.

More signings are due in the coming weeks, Entertainment One said.

The show debuted earlier this month on ABC in the US and on CTV in Canada, Conviction uses the theme of questionable convictions to highlight and discuss a string of controversial political issues, including the Black Lives Matter campaign and so-called slut-shaming. “All things which are completely relevant today,” Atwell, who is in Cannes to promote the show, told MIPCOM News.

“If you’re someone who’s conscious and aware of social issues, you’ll watch this and be able to see parallels with cases from real life; you’ll recognise things that people have been talking about on social media,” she said.

“These are things which will have an international appeal because, with social media, these issues are discussed all over the world.”

Written by Liz Friedman and directed by Liz Friedlander, Conviction is produced by ABC Studios and The Mark Gordon Company, with Friedlander, Friedman, Gordon and Nicholas Pepper executive-producing.

Hayley Atwell

UnREAL case for female power A+E NETWORKS’ MIPCOM 2016 star offensive includes an appearance by UnREAL headliners Shiri Appleby (Girls) and Constance Zimmer (House Of Cards). Both are in Cannes to promote their Machiavellian dramedy — now available as a one-hour primetime format — and speak at today’s Women In Global Entertainment Power Lunch at the Majestic hotel.

Now heading into its third season on Lifetime, UnREAL centres on the behind-the-scenes scheming on a fictional dating show called Everlasting. Appleby plays young but manipulative producer Rachel Goldberg, while Zimmer

is her hard-as-nails boss, Quinn King. Both characters are nuanced, complicated and flawed.

But Zimmer said she has grown quite fond of Quinn. “She’s not necessarily likeable but she is relatable to. She has the same insecurities as most women, but has just created an incredible armour to deal with them.”

For Appleby, both Rachel and Quinn are driven by “a need to win at all costs. They don’t think they’re doing anything wrong, just playing the game.”

She added that Un R EA L “wouldn’t be a show if Rachel and Quinn were men. It would just be normal behaviour. If you look at

what the TV landscape offers, we’re not seeing women at work who’ll stop at nothing to win.”

At the Power Lunch, Zimmer and Appleby will examine how UnREAL has moved the needle on how women in business are presented and the topical issue of female empowerment. As the race for the White House intensifies, “it’s a conversation that’s really at the forefront right now”, Appleby said.

UnREAL’s two protagonists’ relationship is complex and toxic, but also strong and real, Appleby added. “If women just supported each other, we’d all have a better chance in the marketplace.”

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UnREAL stars Shiri Appleby (left) and Constance Zimmer

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NEWS NHK HAS FRESH 4K TAKE ON SNIFFER NHK IS to broadcast a local version of Ukrainian series The Sniffer. The hit drama series has sold to over 60 countries t this is the fi st e a e t be aired internationally.

Produced in 4K, it will start airing on October 22 on NHK’s main terrestrial channel in primetime, and then on NHK’s Super Hi-Vision 4K/8K channel.

MIPCOM delegates can get a sneak preview of The Sniffer at 15.45 today in the Sony 4K Ultra HD Theatre at a session entitled NHK’s Rapid Progress To UHD. NHK senior drama producer Tomoaki Iso said: “More than 20 drama serials are aired in Japan every week so competition for ratings is intense. We wanted to create something new by adding the spirit of a Japanese detective drama to the framework of a great show from overseas — so we combined the fresh concept and suspenseful story development of the original The Sniffer with witty acting and sentimental characters Japanese viewers enjoy.”

Kateryna Vyshnevska, group head of development and co-productions at FILM.UA, which produced and distributed the drama, said: “We couldn’t ask for a better partner. Throughout the development process NHK has been both proactive and respectful of the original property.”

The Japanese 4K version will be distributed throughout Asia

by NHK Enterprises (NEP). It has already been sold to Hong Kong’s TVB.

NHK’s The Sniffer

Anno’s The Dragon Dentist targets teens and anime fans

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APANESE public broadcaster NHK is at MIPCOM with animation adventure The Dragon Dentist, based on an original story and screenplay by award-winning novelist Otaro Maijo and directed by Kazuya Tsurumaki.

The Dragon Dentist (2 x 45 mins) was created by producer and director Hideaki Anno in partnership with producer Nobuo Kawakami. Both are in Cannes this week to introduce the project to the international market.

“The Dragon Dentist originated as part of an animation showcase organised by Anno’s company Khara and my company Dwango,” Kawakami said. “The idea was to create opportunities for young talent to develop and display their work.”

NHK senior producer Keisuke Tsuchihashi saw the showcase and asked if it would be possible to develop The Dragon Dentist into a full-blown show for NHK.

Dwango’s Nobuo Kawakami (left) and Khara’s Hideaki Anno

The fantasy adventure is about Nonoko, a young woman whose job is to ensure her country is safe by making sure the dragon that protects the country has healthy teeth. One day she finds an enemy soldier inside one of the dragon’s teeth.

Unusually for NHK, which usually targets younger children with its animation, the show

is targeted at teens and young adults. “We are also hoping it will appeal to anime lovers around the world,” said Anno, who is known for productions like Neon Genesis Evangelion and Shin Godzilla.

Anno said the showcase is an important way of ensuring that Japanese animation stays fresh and innovative.

Fuji TV introduces Custom-Made Formats

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UJI TV — which has age any element of the production physical studio-based games for been exporting hit enter- process.” the show.” tainment formats around The business, which is being Fujinuma said that Fuji TV is the world for decades, presented during Treasure Box equipped to handle any request, including Iron Chef and Japan in Auditorium A at 10.00 from hub production to second Hole In The Wall — is to use its today, has already been proven screen interactivity. In the first expertise to help companies build to work, said Fujinuma: “We phase of the business’ developnew shows from scratch. worked with Hunan TV in China ment, he expects to work with “We are introducing a new busi- on a summer entertainment show. existing partners — broadcastness model called Custom-Made They wanted an elimination for- ers that have already acquired Formats,” said So Fujinuma, Fuji mat, so we provided around 25 and produced Fuji formats. “But TV’s director, worldwe think this can be develwide production and oped as a global business,” sales, international dehe said. “We believe there is partment. “We can help a growing demand for cusbroadcasters create tom-made formats.” new shows that meet In terms of the rights to the requirements of new formats, he said that their slots, channels and ownership is discussed on country. From creative a case-by-case basis: “But concept, format rules we have a lot of experience and set design through distributing formats around to consultation and the world. So that is another crewing, we can man- Fuji TV’s Takeshi Goto (left), So Fujinuma and Fumi Nishibashi role we can undertake.”

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Japan builds global appeal into content-creation model TV Asahi’s Takahiro Kishimoto (left); Synergy88 Group’s Jackeline Chua; and August Media’s Jyotirmoy Saha

ASIAN LINK-UP ON STREETWISE SERIES FOR PHILIPPINES TV ASAHI of Japan, Synergy88 Group of the Philippines and Singapore-based August Media Holdings have announced a collaboration to deliver a major new “man-onthe-street” animated series.

A tough drama based around Manila’s urban basketball and hip-hop scene, Barangay 143 will be recorded in Tagalog, the language spoken widely in the Philippines, voiced by a cast of Filipino celebrities.

Speaking to MIPCOM News, August Media founder and chief executive Jyotirmoy Saha said the show was “very much a working class, man-onthe-street concept” aimed at young adults.

He said: “There’s a massive disparity in wealth in the Philippines; there’s lots of glitz and glamour but also many who aren’t so privileged. That’s very carefully depicted in the series and reflected in the hip-hop, graffiti, basketball culture.

“Those characteristics of the show will resonate with most audiences in South East Asia and we think in other countries with similar socio-economic conditions as the Philippines.”

A videogame and consumer product lines are also being developed.

Engineered by Synergy88, the videogame will be launched as a smartphone and tablet app on October 20.

Japanese broadcaster TV Asahi and August Media Holdings are distributing Barangay 143, which will air in the Philippines next year.

SPE (Japan) representative director Masao Takiyama

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ASAO Takiyama, Sony Pictures Entertainment (Japan) representative director, is a familiar face at MIPCOM. A leading authority on content imports and exports, he believes Japan is at a critical point

in its attempt to establish itself on the international market.

“Japan’s status as MIPCOM Country Of Honour is important because it shows how seriously the Japanese government and industry are now taking the issue of content exports,” he said “Japan now has the opportunity to make this the era of software exports, in the way that previous decades were focused on the export of consumer electronics or automobiles.”

Takiyama said a big shift is taking place domestically that is forcing Japanese companies to look abroad. “The domestic ecosystem used to be self-sufficient,” he said.

“Most producers and broadcasters didn’t pay any attention to the international enterprise value of their rights. But the combination of an ageing population and the shift of young audiences to the internet has changed the business model.”

The Japanese animation and entertainment formats sectors have already made progress on the export front. The big question now is whether drama can follow suit. “The challenge,” he said, “is that a lot of dramas on the main networks are targeted at the older audience. So I see the role of the likes of Netflix and Hulu Japan to work with producers on dramas that are aimed at a younger audience — because these will appeal more to the international market.”

A LANDMARK scripted-format deal between Nippon TV and MF Yapim will see the award-winning Japanese drama Mother (11 x 60 mins) remade for Turkish audiences.

Under the deal, which marks the first time that a Japanese drama format has been sold to Turkey, MF Yapim and Medyapim are producing a local version of the powerful series. To be called Anne — Turkish for Mother — MF Yapim’s 11 x 90 mins version of the drama will air on Star TV, with a cast led by Vahide Percin, Cansu Dere and Beren Gokyildiz.

Mother’s powerful storyline tackles the issue of child abuse, as a teacher who notices bruises on one of her Mother’s helpers: MF Yapim’s Faruk Bayhan (left), Nippon TV’s pupils impulsively decides to take the Atsushi Hatayama and Medyapim’s Fatih Aksoy child into her own care. Atsushi Hatayama, president of international business development for Nippon TV, said: “We hope Mother will achieve tremendous success in Turkey, where we know the viewers are extremely savvy.”

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A+E Networks returns to Cannes with a line-up of stars to promote its roster of new drama and non-scripted programming for MIPCOM WALTON Goggins (left) and Barry Sloane, stars of A+E Networks’ military action drama Six, were in Cannes yesterday to meet the world’s press. Six is based on the real-life missions of SEAL Team Six, best known for killing Osama bin Laden. The series is part of a package of new programming being premiered here at MIPCOM that highlights the company’s growing portfolio of scripted and factual programming as well as formats. “It was a challenging role in that we spent three months in physical and psychological isolation,” Goggins said. “And from a personal point of view, as the father of a six-year-old, I didn’t want to glorify the violence. On the other hand, military roles, much like playing a cowboy, have a fun element to them.”

Sloane added: “The scenes in the series are all based on real events but none of them are actual things that have happened. It was more a case of taking elements of the realities of being a SEAL to create credible scenarios.”

RICK HARRISON, presenter of A+E Networks’ hit series Pawn Stars, is in Cannes this week to promote the globally popular evergreen show. eflecting on the fact that Pawn Stars is now in its 4th series, Harrison, a regular visitor to MIPCOM, said: “People love to learn but they don’t necessarily want to hear from a professor, they prefer someone they can relate to. The truth is that I really am the bookish nerd that you see on the screen and I think the audience feels that as well. The many shows that have imitated Pawn Stars most usually don’t ring true, and I believe that we do.”

KNIGHTFALL star Tom Cullen is here to mark the global success of the A+E Networks medieval drama. The show is based around the actual events surrounding the Knights Templar — one of the most powerful entities in the western world in the Middle Ages. “When I told people that I was working on Knightfall, it was impressive how many people have an opinion about them hundreds of years after they were disbanded,” Cullen said. “But their legacy is woven into the fabric of modern life. For example, they set up the banking system, and Friday the 13th is the date on which the order was disbanded. For me as an actor, it was fascinating because on the one hand we know a lot, but there are also a lot of things that we don’t know about them. It was fun filling in the gaps and it was fascinating working with the historian Dan Jones who advised us on the realities of that period and of the order.”

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NEWS SONY PICTURES’ TIMELESS DRAMA PITCH SONY Pictures Television (SPT) has sold its new time-travel drama Timeless to a slew of channels across Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

The drama, which recently debuted on NBC in the US with 11.1 million viewers, has been picked up by the UK’s Channel 4, which will air the series on E4; OSN in the Middle East, Moviestar in Spain, AXN in Portugal and Fox in Italy. Across Asia, the series has been picked up

by AXN in Japan, Viacom s l s nfinity in ndia and Sohu in China.

Created by Eric Kripke (Revolution), Shawn Ryan (The Shield) and the producers of The Blacklist, Timeless follows a group of heroes chasing a mysterious group of criminals through time. The group attempts to thwart a dark conspiracy that is a threat to all humanity.

The drama stars Abigail Spencer (Rectify), Matt Lanter (90210), Malcolm Barrett (Hurt Locker), Goran Visnjic (ER), Sakina Jaffrey (The Mindy Project), Patterson Joseph (The Leftovers), Susanna Thompson (Arrow) and Claudia Doumit (Scandal).

Keith Le Goy, president, international distribution, SPT, said: “Timeless offers viewers a boisterous ride through time to revisit some of the most pivotal moments in our collective history. It’s brilliantly written and produced - a show with truly global appeal.”

SPT will shop the series at MIPCOM, alongside other titles including The Blacklist: Redemption, Notorious, Kevin Can Wait and The Halcyon.

Lead role for Arnie as MGM puts the accent on unscripted

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AVING established itself as a key player in the scripted-TV business, MGM Television now wants to consolidate its reputation as one of the world’s leading players in unscripted TV, Chris Ottinger, president, MGM worldwide TV distribution & ac uisitions, said.

“Following our merger with Mark Burnett’s United Artists Media Group in 2015, we are now the number-one player in unscripted programming in the US. That’s a message we really want to get across in the international market, where we also want to be one of the world’s major unscripted suppliers.”

A headliner at MIPCOM will be the tape version of the US Celebrity Apprentice, with Arnold Schwarzenegger. “We’re getting interest from buyers everywhere,” Ottinger said. “Arnie is still a great movie star. He’s still

The Terminator and people want to see him in this show.”

Another key title is Steve Harvey’s Funderdome, a seed-funding competition reality series for ABC US, where two budding entrepreneurs seek funding for their business idea. Created by Mark Burnett, now MGM TV president, the show is available as either a tape sale or a format, Ottinger said: “We’re open to discussing any deal that makes sense.”

Game-show formats are also a big priority, he said — pointing to Generation Gap, created by Burnett for Televisa Mexico, and Coupled.

Coupled, which is available at MIPCOM, is a Fox dating show following 12 single, professional women, who meet eligible men.

The show focuses on what happens when couples are formed, to see whether or not they are compatible.

MGM’s Chris Ottinger: “We’re open to discussing any deal that makes sense”

Tricon optimistic about factual slate TRICON Films & Television is in town with its biggest ever slate of non-scripted content, including new formats, feature-length docs, and factual series, covering everything from vintage motorbikes and the joy of meat-eating to the history of surfing.

Explaining the decision to focus on non-scripted, Andrea Gorfolova, Tricon’s LA-based president and CEO, said: “There’s such a glut of scripted programming and it’s become such a competitive and risky market that it’s very hard these days to estimate the value of your scripted content.

“So for a company of our size, it makes sense to focus on a bigger slate of non-scripted rather than on one or two big scripted products. And there are also many more buyers and many more homes for factual popping up these days.”

Tricon’s Andrea Gorfolova: “highquality and fresh programming”

Gorfolova is particularly optimistic about Tricon’s two new formats: celebrity relationship show

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Famely, developed with veteran showrunner Scott St John, and David Arquette and Courtney Cox’s Coquette Productions; and Pop Island, in which a celebrity is isolated from the world for 48 hours before emerging into the studio to face a panel of comedians and a barrage of news — some true and some false.

Gorfolova said automotive Americana series All American Wheels (8 x 30 mins) is also a personal favourite, as is one of Tricon’s new scripted offerings, Michael (18 x 30 mins), a dramedy about a troubled young man whose therapist is in worse shape than he is.

As for Gorfolova’s mission at MIPCOM 2016, she said: “To keep the brand of Tricon associated with high-quality and fresh programming suitable for every market.”

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Kiefer’s call for calm

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OLDEN Globe and Emmy Award-winning actor Kiefer Sutherland is in Cannes to unveil his latest TV drama to the international markets.

The political drama, Designated Survivor, features Sutherland as a relatively unknown junior minister, Tom Kirkman, who is catapulted into the White House when a freak accident kills the rest of the cabinet.

Thrust into the presidency well before his time, Kirkman faces the overwhelming task and historic opportunity to rebuild the government untainted by the machinations and associations of the established politicians who have preceded him.

Speaking to MIPCOM News ahead of a Media Mastermind Keynote session later today, in which he will introduce the show to the market, Sutherland said the show’s key potential was as a “piece of social commentary” and a discussion of the state of politics around the world.

He said: “It’s a call for calm through some of the hysteria at the moment — for the left and the right to have informed discussions from both perspectives. Because the show is building up the government from the ground up, it’s set up for us to have these discussions.”

Designated Survivor, which made its debut on ABC in the US last month, is produced by The Mark Gordon Company and created by David Guggenheim. Entertainment One is distributing the show to the international markets.

Kiefer Sutherland

A tale of love and identity

NEW six-part drama Guerrilla has politics, history and a brave storyline that tackles the big questions of injustice, inequality and identity.

“But the most important thing is that it’s a love story between two characters who are pushed up against a situation that questions their very commitment to each other,” said Freida Pinto (Slumdog Millionaire), who is in Cannes with co-star Babou Ceesay (Free Fire) to promote the Fifty Fathoms and ABC Signature co-production for Sky Atlantic in the UK and Showtime in the US. “They love each other deeply, but there’s no

question that what happens ravages bits and pieces of their relationship.”

Set in the UK in the politically charged Seventies, Guerrilla’s storyline centres on Jas (Pinto) and Marcus Ceesay), who find themselves making the leap from activism to radical militancy when they liberate a political prisoner. Predominantly written and executive-produced

by Academy Award-winner John Ridley, it also stars Idris Elba.

It is distributed outside the UK and North America by Endemol Shine International.

“Guerrilla is about the universal themes of love and identity,”

Pinto said. “Its subject matter is also very topical. In the US, you have Black Lives Matter but, in the UK, racial inequality hasn’t been spoken about so openly — and then Brexit happened and revealed the anti-immigration sentiment bubbling under the surface.”

Ceesay said he was attracted to the role of Marcus by the character’s journey of selfdiscovery: “Unlike the Windrush generation, he was born in England.

So he grows up feeling he belongs, but then begins to question it. That’s still relevant today.”

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Freida Pinto

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NEWS WOWOW and Warner Bros.

open up Cold Case Japan

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ON IGH T’s Open ing Night Party at the Grand Hyatt Cannes Hotel Martinez features a screening of an episode of the Japanese version of hit US series Cold Case. The 10-episode coproduction by WOWOW’s drama label Drama W and Warner Bros.

International Television Production WBIT P) is the first locallanguage adaptation of the detective series. Shot in 4K, it will be shown using new Sony 4K projection technology.

“Warner Bros. has a lot of fantastic scripted investigative formats, and obviously some suit certain countries and cultures more than others,” said Richard Burrell, director of scripted

Cold Case Japan: perfect example of high-quality TV

NHK’s 4K series Moribito II continues the fantasy saga MORIBITO II, produced by Japanese state broadcaster NHK, is the second of two screenings taking place at tonight’s Opening Night Party in Salon Acajou II. The 4K show is being screened at 21.00, also using new Sony technology.

This original drama series Moribito: Guardian Of The Spirit is based on the multimillion-selling fantasy novel saga of the same name. It is set in a world where humans and spirits co-mingle and stars leading Japanese actor Haruka Ayase as heroine Balsa, bodyguard to a prince.

Moribito II picks up her story four years after the first Moribito series.

“It is widely felt that while Japanese formats and ani-

production at WBITVP. “The original Cold Case had proved to be very popular in Japan and WOWOW felt that with the right cast the local audience would enjoy their own version of the show set in Tokyo. Because the format looks at cases from the past, sometimes ones that are as much as 40 years old, the stories allow you to look at your own country’s past, and this sets it apart from regular cop shows where there is a case from the very recent past that needs solving.’

“Our intentions are to offer WOWOW subscribers the highest quality television series and Cold Case is a perfect example of our approach to doing just that,” WOWOW president Akira Tanaka said. “We look to find the best partners, like WBIT P, and find a way to work together to create something special for our audience. We believe we are achieving this with Cold Case in Japan.”

The screening takes place in the Salon Acajou II at 20.00. mation are global phenomena, local drama has yet to truly break out onto the world stage. Moribito and Moribito II, however, are regarded as likely to pave the way into territories that don’t typically go for Japanese series,” said NHK senior producer Yukari Hayashi. “Our usual drama buyers such as Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan bought the first series and The Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia have also shown interest. But more unusually, countries including the UK, France, Germany, Sweden, Finland, Turkey, Romania, Russia and the US — not our regular drama-buying countries — have also shown interest. On top of the scale and quality of the drama and the fact that it is filmed in 4 , I think the interest is due to the fact that MIPTV helped boost recognition, and we are grateful to Reed MIDEM for that.”

Global interest for Moribito II

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SONY PICTURES TELEVISION (SPT) premiered its highly anticipated new drama The Halcyon last night in the Grand Auditorium with SPT’s president, international distribution Keith Le Goy insisting that the bigbudget drama from producer Left Bank Pictures was emblematic of the new world of drama production.

“We have made the show with ITV, with the US as an export market. I think that is very significant: we are a global entertainment company and our global infrastructure allows us to be more flexible and nimble to find a project’s perfect partner,” Le Goy said.

The screening was preceded by a Q&A featuring actors Steven Mackintosh and Olivia Williams, alongside executive producer Sharon Hughff, producer Chris Croucher, Keith Le Goy and Andy Harries of Left Bank Pictures.

The energetic eight-part drama, set in 1940, tells the story of a bustling and glamorous five-star hotel at the centre of London society at the start of World War II and is set to a soundtrack of the music of the era.

The drama has drawn comparisons with ITV’s period blockbuster Downton Abbey, although actor Olivia Williams stressed: “When you are looking at scripts you don’t want to go over old ground and I thought ‘Is this plugging the Downton Abbey gap?’. But it has a new angle and it’s really innovative. It has an incredible ‘keep dancing while the bombs fall’ spirit.”

Actor Steven Mackintosh added: “It’s such a powerful period in time — comparisons are inevitable but this clearly has such a lot to offer. The production values aimed fantastically high and I think they have been achieved.”

Cold War drama The Same Sky makes world debut at MIPCOM

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ONIGHT’s World Premiere TV Screening at 18.30 in the Grand Auditorium of the Palais des

Tom Schilling stars in The Same Sky

Festivals is The Same Sky. Written by Paula Milne, the family drama is set in the divided Berlin of the Seventies. It recreates

the atmosphere of the Cold War city by focusing on two families on both sides of the Berlin Wall — surrounded by dissidents, informers, agents, police and diplomats. The one thing the people all share is the sky above them.

Co-produced by UFA Fiction and Beta Film, for ZDF, in association with Rainmark Films, the series came together from a number of ideas. Rainmark approached writer Milne on the strength of Die Kinder, her 1989 thriller for the BBC about the Baader Meinhof gang. “Their original concept had a similar sort of tone to The Lives Of Others which [Beta Film CEO] Jan

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Beverley Knight performing at the world premiere of The Halcyon, in which she makes a guest appearance

Mojto had been involved with,” Milne said. “He had ambitions initially to do an English-speaking series — essentially about spies. And I didn’t really grab at this, because it seemed to me that what we were dealing with in a divided city is divided families — ordinary people caught up in extraordinary times. So I took the concept of a ‘Romeo spy’, planted it within a multi-stranded story on both sides of the wall and presented my scenario. Subsequently I spent time in Berlin where I got plenty of inspiration.”

“UFA is based in Berlin, so we confront the story and the history of Berlin every day in a way,” said UFA Fiction’s Benjamin Benedict, one of the series’ producers. “So we were very, very happy when our colleagues and good friends at Beta and Rainmark approached us to take part.”

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Lambert lured by Mata Hari’s ‘quality’

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ATA HARI, the new series about the infamous dancer, courtesan and First World War spy, was last night’s MIPCOM 2016 World Premiere TV Screening. The 12-episode drama, distributed

by Red Arrow International, stars French actress Vahina Giocante in the title role, and features an acclaimed international cast including Christopher Lambert and John Corbett. All three are in Cannes this week, together with other cast members Svetlana Khodchenkova and Maxim Matveiev, to take part in numerous high-profile events.

“It’s a big, iconic story that has been done as a TV series and made into several feature films, and the fact that it is such a well-known story is both a blessing and a curse in terms of producing a new version,” said Lambert, who plays Mata Hari’s controller, Kramer, in the series. “But it was the quality of the script and the vision of the two directors that really made me want to be involved.”

The series was produced by Star Media in partnership with Channel One Russia and Inter Ukraine, and is directed by Dennis Berry and Julius Berg. “Mata Hari was a highly contradictory person, and we’ve all heard so many different stories about her, that she was sweet but also arrogant, and like any good spy, she was a consummate actress,” Lambert said. “Plus she was operating in a world unapologetically dominated by men, and she did things that women were simply not supposed to do, so she was a strong woman and way ahead of her time. In so many ways she was an extraordinary individual, but also massively paradoxical.”

Lambert is also currently acting in a Russian movie, Escape, which is being filmed in Lithuania: “It’s another amazing true story based the wartime experiences of arl Frentzel, who was one of the few Nazis who went on trial after the war not to be convicted of war crimes,” Lambert added. “Before the war he was going to marry a Jewish woman but his father, who was anti-semitic, forbade the marriage. Then during the war Frentzel became a concentration camp commander, but not at all a typical one. He was very concerned with the fate of the Jews under his charge and did his best to help them. But of course he had to hide what he was doing from his Nazi colleagues so he spent years walking a tightrope, and was indeed a very brave man.”

Lambert has also recently played a lawyer in Intimate Conviction, a comedy drama by legendary director Claude Lelouch, and is about to embark on a new project based around his book Justice, where he will act as producer, and may also be in front of the camera. “The producers are Wild Cat and Lenora Productions, and the big question posed by the book is how do you deal correctly with people who think violence is acceptable, and how do the families of victims deal with their feelings towards the person who committed a crime It’s a big issue and one that fits with our current times.”

Christopher Lambert

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NEWS BUCCANEER MEDIA BRINGS IRVINE WELSH TO SCREEN UK-headquartered production house Buccaneer Media is at Cannes to announce what is a eati e fi st f ine Welsh, the British novelist, playwright and screenwriter.

Buccaneer Media is to adapt Welsh’s celebrated detective novel Crime, the fi st ti e the a th fa s f the lt n n el Trainspotting has had any f his s e ed f TV. The resulting drama series (6 x 60) is to star acclaimed actor Dougray Scott, who will also executive produce. Crime is set in a ld f d g addicts, alcoholics, bigots and corrupt policemen.

Ericsson boosts Nuvu offering with raft of new content deals

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RICSSON has signed deals with leading content distributors for its subscription video on demand (VOD) service, Nuvu.

The deals cover more than 2,500 hours of content from international distributors including Viacom (MTV, BET, Nickelodeon), MGM, CBS, Al Jazeera, DHX Media and Mattel. Titles include globally recognised hit TV franchises such as Hawaii Five-O, Next Top Model, CSI: Miami, Being Mary Jane, SpongeBob SquarePants, Bob The Builder, Vikings and many others, along with a range of premium Holly-

wood movies.

Ericsson has also licensed dozens of pan-regional and local African TV series and movie content from distributors such as iRoko, Trace and Agwhyte International, along with hundreds of music videos from the 960 Music Group. 960 is home to some of West Africa’s most influential music artists including P-Square, 2Baba and Yemi Alade.

“We have spent a great deal of time working with distributors to source the very best and most relevant international and local content for our new SVOD service, Nuvu,” Thorsten Sauer, head of

broadcast and media services at Ericsson said. “We created Nuvu to help mobile operators in emerging markets to address a significant untapped market for video content.”

He said Africa had some of the highest mobile adoption rates globally and there was a high demand for quality content from consumers. He added: “We are proud to announce this slate of deals which we believe will meet and exceed the expectations of Nuvu’s discerning audiences, and we look forward to announcing more content deals over the coming months.”

ar shead set to fill the

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ASAHI PLAYS WITH ZIG ZAG FOR TEARAWAY TOYS d ti ns is at n eil a deal t ada t e f antasy, a segment within a long-running Japanese late night sh , f an inte nati nal audience. The segment, a t f the se ies alled Be-Bop! High Heel! on a an s sahi ad asting Corporation channel, will be ena ed ea a ay ys f international broadcasters.

The humorous candid-cameaf at, hi h feat es ids es nding n edi tably to what they believe a e tal ing t ys, is eing li ensed y nte nati nal, sahi ad asting s f at sales nit ig ag s other international adaptati ns f a anese f ats include NTV’s Exit and Ultimate Brain. t

Larkshead Media’s Tim Patterson (left) and Rob Doherty

A GROUP of UK TV industry veterans is at MIPCOM to launch a new type of agency called Larkshead Media, which offers endto-end services for international content IP owners.

Launched in September, the UKbased company is making its MIPCOM debut to meet broadcasters, investors and independent content creators requiring support for shows in development, from production to distribution and merchandise.

“There is a gap in the market for production companies of a certain size needing advice on

how to take a programme idea to market,” explained CEO Tim Patterson.

“There will always be a need for content but the broadcasting world is more fragmented and digital-focused. And since that is here to stay, we’re here to help clients navigate around this complex landscape.”

Rob Doherty, director of programming and distribution, added: “Our goal is to help develop a show and get it market-ready, especially for fledgling producers. We also follow the ad agency model as we don’t take any

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share of the IP.” Focusing primarily, but not exclusively, on kids content, Patterson and Doherty are also seeking buyers for a slate of new and existing titles.

Among the six shows being distributed by Larkshead Media, whose co-founders’ experience includes working at the BBC, The Walt Disney Company and Nickelodeon, are pre-school animation shows Q Pootle 5 and Dot and Dash, plus tweens-targeted CGI/live-action programme Tales From The Web and the TV/ apps series Alfi.

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Westman places creativity at the core of new-look Nelvana ai

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HERE’S a revamped leadership team and a refreshed brand image in place at Corus Entertainment-owned animation studio Nelvana.

There’s also a new message, said Pam Westman, head of Nelvana Enterprises since May 2016: “The new management looked at the development slate and felt that it placed too much emphasis on merchandising potential. So our message to partners is that we are placing renewed focus on producing quality creative content.”

Westman, who was previously at Hit Entertainment, is responsible for all the major revenue streams that flow from Nelvana content — from TV and digital sales to consumer products and licensing. Her view is that these will

ow’s gi io tra fi

RAINBOW’S DUO LOVE FASHION WITH A PASSION MIPCOM is the platform on which Maggie & Bianca: Fashion Friends, a kids-andteens series from Italian production powerhouse Rainbow, will be openly available to the global market.

The cross-culture series follows the adventures of American Maggie and Italian Bianca, two fashion and music-loving girls h fi st eet at the ilan Fashion Academy.

The show, which premiered on Italian channel Rai Gulp in g st, is ain s fi st f ay into full live-action production. It has 52 half-hour completed episodes, with a further 26 in production. gini t affi, ain s founder, said deals had already been clinched with streaming giant et i f the , hile ean net s in e than fi e te it ies and Brazil’s TV Cultura had also signed up.

“But we’re at MIPCOM for the sh s fi st enly gl al e ie e, t affi said he ratings in Italy have been fantastic and we hope to repeat the success internationally.” t affi said the any, renowned for its international kids animation hits, has ambitions to follow Maggie & Bianca with more live-action TV as well as shows targeted at young adults.

“We’ve already produced a live action-animation hybrid with our series Mia & Me. Now, we’re planning more full live-action TV plus primetime shows for young adults between 16 and 30 years old,” he added.

Nelvana Enterprises’ Pam Westman

come “if we focus first on great storytelling”.

In terms of headline shows at MIPCOM, she singles out Mysticons, a superhero series that centres on girl characters; and ZhuZhu Pets, a toy-based property that has been transformed into an animated sitcom. “These have been licensed to Nick and Disney respectively, so we’re talking to partners about second window opportunities,” said Westman. “We’re also showing the market Bravest Warriors, a new animation series based on a digital property on Crunchyroll.”

Alongside sales, Westman said a big part of the company’s MIPCOM agenda would be “showing our partners what is in development – and telling them that our mandate is to create strong stories.”

Xilam makes pre-school debut FRENCH cartoon maker Xilam is launching Paprika, its first ever pre-school show this week, alongside three new seasons of Oggy & The Cockroaches in 4K, and the second series of Zig & Sharko.

“Paprika is our first foray into pre-school programming, and we did it for the same reason that we do everything, because it has something unique about it,” said Marc du Pontavice, founder and CEO of Xilam.

“Olivia and Stan are twins, but Stan is in a wheelchair. It’s our way of saying that being different doesn’t mean that you should be excluded from doing what kids do. And you quickly forget that he’s handicapped because he’s such a daredevil.”

Season five of Oggy & The Cockroaches features all new episodes that see Oggy and the gang mixing with historical characters such as Ulysses and Napoleon.

Seasons six and seven feature new episodes and 4K re-makes of classic episodes from seasons one and two.

Du Pontavice explained that market realities had driven the decision to produce in 4K. “The

original three series are in SD and very soon that format won’t be broadcast anymore, so even though 4K is expensive, we felt this was the right time to make the show future-proof. And of course it looks amazing.”

Xilam’s Paprika, aiming to show the positive side of being different

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Life on Mars

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ARS is the pioneering six-part global event series created by Imagine Entertainment, the US movie and TV production powerhouse director Ron Howard co-founded with Brian Grazer, and RadicalMedia, another pioneering US content production studio.

And MIPCOM delegates will get a sneak preview of the series when it is premiered in Cannes today at 16.00 in Auditorium A. The suspense-filled epic is described as “hybrid TV” because it is part cinema-quality scripted drama and part highend documentary. And it debuts on the National Geographic Channel in 171 countries and 45 languages in November.

Set in the year 2033, it makes an audacious bid to envisage the fate of a fictionalised crew as it sets off on a mission to inhabit the far-flung planet that has captured the human imagination for centuries.

Howard explained how the concept began as a documentary before evolving into a credible semi-fictional examination of human beings emigrating to Mars.

“We decided that when the first human goes to Mars, we should look at its colonisation, not just the journey,” he said.

“And the only way to do it was to dramatise it, using all the information there is on many of the real-life projects already under way. It is fiction, but based on real-life research.”

This is backed by interviews with some of today’s great space explorers, visionaries and scientific innovators in the series.

They include Elon Musk, CEO/chief technology officer of SpaceX, the US aerospace company that made extraordinary breakthroughs for reusable space rockets earlier this year.

It is planning its first unmanned landing on Mars for 2018.

Musk, a tech startup icon who also co-founded PayPal and driverless-cars manufacturer Tesla, predicts SpaceX’s first manned flight to Mars will be in 2024.

Mars will be supported by cross-platform original content including: the online VR prequel Before Mars, available on the MakeMarsHome.com website; books; tours; and the cover story on National Geographic magazine.

“Everyone knows the television landscape is incredibly competitive right now and that buyers are looking for high-end programming that is visually stunning with gripping storylines which is exactly what we have in Mars,” said Prentiss Fraser, senior vice-president, global head of content distribution at National Geographic and Fox Networks Group Content Distribution. “With the powerful combination of Emmy and Academy award-winning executive producers Brian Grazer and Ron Howard at the helm, Mars is a scripted drama shot in 4K intercut with documentary sequences using interviews with the biggest names in the scientific community like Elon Musk, Andy Weir and Neil DeGrasse Tyson. This is a priority title for National Geographic and Fox Networks Group Content Distribution at MIPCOM and we’re looking forward to presenting it to international buyers.”

When asked why Imagine, known for its Oscar-awarded movies including A Beautiful Mind and Apollo 13, was using TV for Mars, Howard said: “As a medium, television grows more and more ambitious; and Mars is hybrid TV on an ambitious scale. Also, National Geographic encouraged us to be authentic at all times and not shy away from the drama potential.”

Imagine is behind international TV triumphs such as crime thriller 24, comedy drama Arrested Development, the hiphop music industry-themed Empire, and HBO’s From The Earth To The Moon. Additionally, Grazer and Howard are executive producers on Breakthrough, National Geographic Channel’s anthology series about science and technology.

Creatively, Howard said Mars encapsulates how he and his long-standing partner Grazer collaborate: “Although Mars could be considered very controversial, Brian and I happen to fully agree on it and he’s been very instrumental in making it happen.”

So would Howard be prepared to live on Mars?

“What I’d prefer to do is send out cameramen to Mars to grab great footage. My adventures are the stories I am curious about,” he said.

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NEWS ITALY’S CIELO SET TO AIR TRUE SEX CONFESSIONS TRUE Sex Confessions, a lifestyle series recreating the real-life sexual exploits of everyday people, will soon be on Italian free-to-air channel Cielo following a MIPCOM deal with the show’s maker Media Ranch, the Montrealbased independent producer/ distributor. Cielo has acquired the original series, which was called Vraies Histoires De Sexe when it launched in 2015 on the Canadian network MOI&Cie. Each episode features three intimate stories retold through compelling personal testimony, and dramatic reconstructions tastefully illustrated by actors. Cielo has also bought the format rights to remake the programme from Zodiak Rights. Media Ranch will also be offering formats to international buyers in Cannes including the studio-based dating show Thunderstruck, and the reality series Double Occupancy.

ITV TIES KNOT WITH RAW TV ON NEW SHOW UK-BASED international production group Raw TV has snapped up an agreement in Cannes to produce a threepart, one-hour documentary called My Miracle Wedding for ITV, Britain’s biggest commercial free-to-air network. It follows the tough challenges facing couples set on marrying against the odds. Stories include a bride who needs to regain her ability to speak, if she is to say her vows on her wedding day. However, the couples featured do overcome tough obstacles to tell their inspiring stories of true love. Richard Bond, Raw TV’s head of UK factual, said: “Following these amazing couples in the run-up to their big day is emotional, heartwarming and uplifting.”

Amazon and UFA Fiction will collaborate on Deutschland86

Deutschland83, the prequel to the upcoming Deutschland86

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MAZON and UFA Fiction are teaming up to create a sequel to acclaimed cold war th riller Deutschland83 (D83). Called Deutschland86, the German-language show will premiere exclusively on Amazon Prime Video in Germany in 2018. In addition, all episodes of D83 are now available for streaming for Prime members in Germany and Austria.

Created by Anna and Joerg Winger, the new show will be distributed by FremantleMedia International. FMI previously

licensed D83 to 38 broadcasters and SVOD platforms around the world including SundanceTV, which will continue as a co-production partner in the US. D83 was originally commissioned by RTL Television in Germany. Under the terms of the new agreement for Deutschland86, TL has secured a first-look option for the linear TV rights to the show and expects to air the sequel on German free-to-air television in 0 0 after Amazon’s first window. This resembles the deal that Amazon and the BBC constructed around the UK drama

series Ripper Street a couple of years ago.

Deutschland takes place three years after D and picks up the story of East German Agent Martin Rauch and his compatriots in the Stasi foreign intelligence in 1986. FMI CEO Jens Richter says: “D83 achieved tremendous ratings worldwide and together with our partners we were able to help turn the series into the most successful German drama of our time. We’re looking forward to working with Amazon and our partners to accomplish further success with Deutschland86.”

Studio 100 seals Nordic deals STUDIO 100 Media has signed two deals that will bring new live-action shows to the Nordics. ids channel S T Barnkanalen picked up osmoo x mins), a detective story for kids about a bionic dog of the same name. Public kids broadcaster NRK Super — part of the Nor-

wegian Broadcasting Corporation and the highest rating children’s channel in the country — has also acquired Kosmoo and two seasons of Night Watch x mins), Studio 00’s new fantasy pre-teen show.

“We are very happy about the ongoing collaboration with

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N Super and S T Barnkanalen. Both are home to some of our animation brands and NRK Super has already successfully aired recent live-action productions Galaxy Park and Ghost ockers,” Martin rieger, head of global distribution at Studio 100 Media, said.

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NEWS

Studio 100’s Maya The Bee

Kevin Can Wait (SPT)

SONY’S NEW HIT SITCOM WOWS GLOBAL BUYERS SONY Pictures Television (SPT) sitcom Kevin Can Wait has been picked up by the UK’s Channel 4 and is set to air on the networks’ entertainment channel E4.

The comedy, which stars Kevin James (The King Of Queens) and charts the ups and downs of newly retired li e ffi e e in, h is looking forward to spending more quality time with his family, has also secured distribution in China, India and New Zealand.

Kevin Can Wait currently airs on CBS where it debuted with 13.2 million viewers.

Now in its fourth week, the show continues to be the biggest new comedy on Total TV and the second comedy overall with adults aged 25 to 54, behind The Big Bang Theory. ss sia a ifi , i iy has picked up exclusive rights to the series in China; Viacom 18’s Comedy Central has picked up the series in India, and it is set to air on TVNZ in New Zealand on TVNZ 2.

In Latin America, Turner has secured the comedy to air in 20 countries across the region. Broadcaster OSN has secured the series in the Middle East.

Sony Pictures Television is promoting the series to the international market at MIPCOM, alongside scripted titles including Blacklist: Redemption, Notorious, Timeless and The Halcyon.

MoMedia delivers Studio 100 content in multiplatform deal

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DIGITAL deal between London-based distributor and cont ent-m a na gem ent company MoMedia and family-entertainment heavyweight Studio 100 Media will see CGI animation series Heidi (39 x 22 mins), Vic The Viking (78 x 12 mins) and Maya The Bee (78 x 12 mins) delivered to iTunes in the US, Canada and the UK. Under the deal, MoMedia will also launch 16 apps for Studio 100’s animated children’s content, which will be available on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire,

Chromecast, Netgem and Huawei, as well as via the Android and iOS app stores.

MoMedia CEO Lucas Betrand said the deal highlighted his company’s 360-degree approach to digital distribution, which ranges from traditional delivery to platforms such as iTunes to creating customised solutions in the form of apps. “Around 50% of consumers now prefer the convenience, reliability and — particularly in the kids’ space — safety of video-based apps,” he added. “In today’s world of digital distribution, offering all

things to all people is no longer a problem — it’s the solution.”

Studio 100’s head of global distribution, Martin Krieger, said the deal gave his company’s popular pre-school brands a broad digital reach in the English-speaking territories, ensuring their presence not only via EST but on a variety of streaming platforms. He added: “Furthermore, we appreciate MoMed ia’s exp er t ise a nd relations with various hardware companies that allow Heidi, Maya and Vic to reach their audience via their devices too.”

EasyTrack’s expanding client base RIGHTS and sales management company EasyTrack has signed up UK sales agency Drive Media ights and film sales company Escapade Media to the expanding network of users for its distribution management software. Drive and Escapade join a client roster that includes Endemol Shine, Zodiak, Passion Distribution, Off the Fence and TCB Media Rights.

EasyTrack, which is headquartered in Sydney, recently launched a London office headed by former sales and acquisitions executive Alison Baker. The company’s robust, intuitive technology, designed to handle the

EasyTrack’s Alison Baker

challenges and complexities of today’s global content industry, gives its clients control over every link in the distribution chain, from rights management through ac uisitions, sales, financial re-

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porting and servicing. It is available in both cloud-based and ‘on premises’ versions.

Drive recently launched a distribution arm, at MIPCOM with its first full slate of digital and factual entertainment content, to complement its suite of consulting and co-production services.

Drive’s joint managing director, Ben Barrett, said: “We wanted to be sure we had the correct system in place to help us manage all the aspects of the sales workflow. We looked at a few of the products on the market and felt that EasyTrack was the best fit, providing all the relevant infrastructure in one place.”

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NEWS CORUS STUDIOS BUILDS ON HOME IMRPOVEMENT

i to ar s a defi i g decade or lo al ge cy at C

I Corus tudios’

ita Car o e leury

CANADA’s Corus Studios has only been in the distribution business since MIPCOM 2015 but already it has established itself as a supplier of high-quality lifestyle and reality content. Renovation show Masters Of Flip, for example, has already been licensed to more than 100 countries.

Corus Studios worldwide sales executive Rita Carbone Fleury says: “I think buyers like the fact that we are owned by a well-established broadcaster. It gives them a degree of comfort that the shows we are licensing have already achieved good ratings on our channels in Canada.”

Carbone Fleury is at MIPCOM with three new home renovation/refurbishment shows: Home To Win, Backyard Builds and $ave My Reno — all of which are available as completed shows. Explaining their appeal, she says: “Buyers are really attracted to hosted home and space shows — because they create an immediate sense of engagement with the audience.

They also contain an element of beneficial intelligence — by which I mean the content offers viewers a tangible takeaway such as advice.”

The company also has a show called My Baby’s Having A Baby, which Carbone Fleury describes as “a docu-follow series in which we look at families where teen mums have seen their own teenagers have babies. It’s a very real, uncontrived look at why the cycle has been repeated.”

Currently, Corus Studios is focusing entirely on the distribution of in-house programming. This MIPCOM it can be found at the Canada Pavilion.

ZZET Pinto, CEO and co-founder of Turkish TV distribution and formats behemoth Global Agency, is celebrating the company’s 10th anniversary at MIPCOM. And his ambition is to return in 10 years’ time as one of the world’s top five distribution companies, with more international titles and double the number of employees.

“The MIP markets in Cannes have contributed massively to marketing strategies that have seen us grow significantly in our lo al ge cy’s et first 0 years,” Pinto said.

Those strategies include celebrated stunts that have had actors dressed as monks, imams and priests for the reality format Choosing My Religion. Another promotional gimmick had Global Agency giving away real cash in the

streets of Cannes, or bringing a Lady Gaga lookalike to the market last year.

To promote Mother, a new drama series starring Turkish actress Cansu Dere, clients are being flown to Nikki Beach in Monte Carlo and back.

Starting out with only one format 10 years ago, Global Agency now boasts a catalogue of 150 format and drama titles. The number of employees has soared to 26 from only two.

Pinto, one of the few company bosses who also creates formats, comes to i to MIPCOM with his latest, a singing talent show called The Legend.

“I always tell clients that if they don’t get good ratings from our shows, they won’t pay anything. I’ve never had to eat my words,” he said.

Big deals or Woodcut’s Co UK INDIE Woodcut Media is celebrating a flurry of US and European sales and presales for its history series, Combat Trains (8 x 60 mins) and Combat Ships (10 x 60 mins).

The deals were brokered by distributor TCB Media Rights with major broadcasters including Smithsonian Channel in the US and RTL Germany’s news and documentary channel n-tv.

Combat Trains and Combat Ships both examine the evolution of impressive machines during the industrial age and their key role in warfare — from carrying troops, to moving hospitals, and being transformed into weapons.

The series highlights hum a n st o r ie s alongside the engineering and m ilita r y perspective and Woodcut edia’s ate Beal le t a context. lewelly - o es

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at series

“I’ve seldom seen such interest in a franchise — this is proof of the pent-up demand for premium factual content about military and naval history,” said ate Llewellyn-Jones, managing director, TCB Media Rights.

“Nobody tackles factual content with more truth, balance and authority than Woodcut.

With their creativity and our commercial acumen, we are confident we can achieve great things.”

The success of the slate deals has given rise to a strategic d eve l o p m e n t partnership between TCB Media Rights and Woodcut Media, under which both parties will work together to create, fund and distribute new factual projects with international appeal and high revd CB edia ights’ ate enue potential.

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NEWS AXN CENTRAL EUROPE TAKES TEST DRIVE AXN CENTRAL Europe has acquired a package of the series Test Drive from Prime Entertainment Group. The show will air on Viasat 6, which was recently acquired by Sony Pictures Television Worldwide Networks along with the channel Viasat 3 which will focus on viewers aged 18-49.

“Our previous deals with AXN were for the longrunning series Stars!. It’s very satisfying for us to see that our diverse catalogue is appreciated by our clients and meets their growing needs for high quality programming,” Alexandra Marguerite, head of sales of Prime Entertainment Group, said. Test Drive features car enthusiasts being given the opportunity to drive a lap on a race track in their car against a Formula 1 driver.

Colors TV catches Rising Star format for Indian primetime

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ESHET International (KI) interactive talent format Rising Star has been licensed to Colors TV, Viacom18’s flagship entertainment brand in India.

Targeted for launch in early 2017, the hour-long format will air in primetime on the channel.

Gary Pudney, head of Asia, Keshet International said, “We are

beyond excited about bringing Rising Star to Indian audiences.

The nation is embracing technology more ferociously than ever before and, together with our brilliant partners at Colors TV, we will be delivering primetime entertainment that satisfies viewers’ hunger to become more active and engaged viewers of high-end content.”

Raj Nayak, CEO, Hindi Mass

AFTER being acquired and revived in 2014, Revolution Studios, led by CEO Vince Totino and chief operating officer Scott Hemming, is sponsoring the Press Club this year. US-based Revolution Studios develops, produces, finances and ac uires film, television and stage productions.

The company boasts an independent library of premium content including 240 television episodes and, under the new leadership, the motion picture library

Ent er t a i n ment, Viacom18, said: “Colors TV has adapted many popular formats for Indian viewers. What we found beautiful about Rising Star was not only its high entertainment quotient, but also its ability to connect and communicate with the viewers directly.”

Other Asian markets to have localised the show include China, Cambodia and Indonesia.

has increased from 4 to a total of films in less than two years.

Revolution’s production activities are focused on developing theatrical sequels, television series and stage musicals based on properties in its expanding library, as well as creating original content. Most recently, principal photography was completed on Return Of Xander Cage with Paramount Pictures for a January 2017 worldwide release.

RMC DECOUVERTE BUILDS BRIDGES WITH QUINTUS QUINTUS Media has sold Giant Constructions — The World’s Most Spectacular Bridges to French documentary channel RMC Decouverte.

The series shows the huge efforts and gruelling experiences involved in the construction and design of gigantic bridges, takes a look behind the scenes and shows how much time and effort is required on a daily basis to maintain these unique structures.

Each episode focuses on a different bridge type and presents several giants from around the world, from the longest bridge in the world, to adventurous railwaybridge constructions, to bridges built at dizzying heights.

Revolution Studios’ Scott Hemming (left) and Vince Totino

The Revolution will be televised BUILDING on their successful collaboration on opera extravaganza Jonas Kaufmann: An Evening With Puccini, Starline Entertainment and Arts Alliance have entered into a similar agreement for a new arts documentary to mark the centenary next year of the Russian Revolution.

Under the distribution deal, Starline has taken the TV and

VOD rights to Revolution: New Art For A New World by respected documentary filmmaker Margy Kinmonth. Produced

by Maureen Murray for Foxtrot Films, the film is currently a worldwide event cinema release for Arts Alliance. It focuses on the momentous creativity unleashed by the Bolshevik rising, and explores how artists

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such as Chagall and Kandinsky attempted to reflect the period’s profound societal changes in a radical new aesthetic.

Revolution’s cast includes Tom Hollander as Malevich and Matthew Macfayden as Lenin. The film also features contributions from the directors of the Hermitage Museum and Moscow’s Tretyakov Gallery.

mipcom

NEWS PARTNERS ALL SET FOR DAS BOOT REBOOT THE CLASSIC anti-war fil as t is eing ela n hed as an eight e is de se ies y na nte tain ent, e any s a a ia e nseh d ti n and y e ts hland he th ee a tne s ill d e and dist i te the ne se ies, hi h ill egin d ti n in t ai ld ide in i e the iginal fil , the ne se ies is ased n tha nthe hhei s est selling n el, t is set i ediately afte the e ents f lfgang ete sen s fil nd he eas the s a n inated ie ne f the st s essf l e an fil s f all ti e ent ed n the la st h i ld inside a e an at, the ini se ies ill e and the f st in l de the e e ien es f the en h esistan e and the llied f es a id llende , esident f gl al dist i ti n and d ti n f na , hi h h lds the gl al dist i ti n ights t the se ies, e l ding y s fi e ean te it ies e any, st ia, , eland and taly , said his e t e e ts na s st ategi itent t s ing f lly integ ated eati e and e ial lla ati ns ith t tie gl al a tne s t de el and dist i te high end ntent a a ia s an aise added ith na s enna ant ianni and a a ia e nseh d ti n s li e gel and it lte , e ha e a fantasti tea f e e ti e d e s h f ll the sa e isi n f this inte nati nal lti laye ed da a

BBCWW’s Ocean and Planet Earth II prove natural choice

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ERMAN publics e r v ic e b r o a d caster WDR has come aboard BBC Worldwide’s (BBCWW) forthcoming natural history series Ocean (7 x 50 mins), due to be delivered next year. The co-production deal continues a relationship between BBCWW and WDR that started with the series Africa and Wild Atlantic.

Tobi de Graaff, BBCWW’s executive vice-president, Western Europe, said Ocean was “on course to become another amazing series for the BBC’s Natural History Unit”. He added: “WDR’s commitment helps make ambitious projects like this happen to the benefit of audiences all over the world.”

Meanwhile, BBCWW has reported a string of pre-sales for another landmark natural history series, Planet Earth II. The six-parter has been licensed to Slovakia’s RTVS, Spain’s Telefonica and Poland’s TVP, along with Japan’s NHK. Paul Dempsey, president of BBCWW’s global markets, said: “The original Planet Earth set the standard for natural history

television, captivating a global audience of half a billion people and selling to 240 territories.

Ten years on, Sir David Attenborough and the team return with, dare I say, an even more compelling insight into our natural world.”

Several major CEE deals have also been closed in the runup to MIPCOM. Hungary’s MTVA has taken the entire back catalogue — some 335 hours — of UK sitcom My

Family, along with dramas War And Peace and The Durrells.

Sherlock has been acquired

by Channel 1 Russia, while a 200-hour drama, comedy and factual-entertainment package has been signed with Viacom.

AMC Networks International Central Europe has committed to 87 hours of natural history, science, history, lifestyle and cookery content for its Czech, Hungarian, Slovakian, Romanian and Moldovan channels.

NEXT up for the enduringly popular Nordic noir genre is a crime series based on Danish writer Anna Grue’s best-selling book franchise Dan Sommerdahl, to be produced by ndF, Nordisk Film, Dynamic Television and Danish broadcaster TV2.

The series is billed as an engaging family-oriented take on Nordic noir. “I’ve been presented with a long list of adaptation proposals for Danish and Swedish crime series since I cocreated and wrote The Bridge,” said Nikolaj Scherfig, who has been attached to the project as head writer. “But the Dan Sommerdahl series is the first one to

give me something different to the classic Scandi Noir genre: a tight, clean series reflecting on life outside urban cities.”

The series, which will be available in both 5 x 90 mins and 10 x 45 mins formats, will be distributed worldwide by Dynamic. Production is slated to begin in summer 2017 in Denmark. Set in a picturesque town on the coast, each episode centres on an intriguing murder case, to be solved by private detective Dan Sommerdahl and his best friend, detective superintendent Fleming Torp.

Matthias Walther, CEO of ndF, said: “In addition to securing the rights to the novel series, we have

also reached an agreement with the author to further expand the property and its characters beyond those 12 stories. This set-up allows for multiple seasons, giving us the opportunity to establish a long-running format.”

Planet Earth II (BBC Worldwide)

Dark debut for ndF’s new detective

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Author Anna Grue

mipcom

NEWS HG CELEBRATES DECADE OF GOING THE EXTRA MILE HG DISTRIBUTION will be marking its 10th anniversary with an exciting and provocative line-up. The past decade has seen the fi g y, as it ts it, meeting challenges and focusing on selling the right thing to the right place.

“The company has achieved some innovative milestones li e selling the fi st anadian animation programme in sia t a t n et , said en y agn n, president of HG Distribution and et a agn n, who is also a jury member for the International Emmy a ds, highlighted the fi s fi st ile ntent sale in ai an, hi h, he said, had eg n a t end f short sales and other genres to multiple platforms.

“HG Distribution has grown its catalogue always putting its lients fi st, ad ent ously taking the paths less ta en, he insisted empathise with producers and i nee e ts, and support them with our a et e e tise, h nesty and isi n e said the webseries Time Out had been a particular success story where “we walked the e t a ile f the d e HG Distribution has also established itself as solid distribution partner for d ts li e e e s documentary series Sex nd he ld, hi h is now sold to over 20 countries.

Major drama sales boost Star India’s international reach

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TAR INDIA is at MIPCOM on the back of a record year, which has seen several of its top dramas, including Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon, Saraswatichandra, Sada Haq, Diya Aur Baati Hum and Sapna Babul Ka… Bidaai, sell around the world, boosting channel ratings from Turkey to South Africa.

Last November, Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon became the first Indian drama to air in Turkey – one of the biggest drama-producing markets in the world – where it quadrupled Kanal 7’s ratings. It also entered another major drama market, Latin America, with Saraswatichandra, which has now been sold to more than 40 territories.

Another Star India drama with proven international traction is Diya Aur Baati Hum. The story of a girl who challenges stereotypes to become a police officer has now been sold into some 20 countries. Deepika Singh, who plays the lead role,

Saraswatichandra: into Latin America

said the show had “inspired women across the globe to pu rsue thei r d rea ms”. She added: “I think the best thing about Star India’s content is that every show has a certain thought, value and quality attached to it.”

That quality can also been seen

CANADA’s 108 Media has secured the worldwide live-broadcast rights to Kyokushin karate, a specialised form of Japanese martial arts rooted in a philosophy of self-improvement, strict discipline and hard training.

The deal the first of its kind for the Toronto-based distributor includes both upcoming fights as well as archived content. It is also seen as a significant step in 0 Media’s ambition to introduce global audiences to the sort of local content seldom seen outside of Asia.

Ryo Ebe, managing director of 108 Asia, who brokered the deal, said: “Kyokushin karate has a deep-rooted history in Japan and is widely practised and highly respected. As karate has become an official sport of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, we believe more audiences around the globe will enjoy its art, discipline and strength.”

MISTCO renews Resurrection deal TURKEY’s MISTCO has closed a deal with Kazakhstan’s Channel 31 for the second season of TRT’s historical drama Resurrection, following a strong performance by the first season of the hit Turkish series. The distributor has also announced that its exclusive agency deal with

in Sada Haq, which centres on a girl who dreams of becoming a mechanical engineer and has become a hit in South Africa.

Also proving popular in Europe is Sapna Babul Ka… Bidaai, which has achieved impressive shares in Bulgaria and Albania respectively.

public broadcaster TRT, announced last March, has been expanded and extended to include the distribution rights to the full TRT library.

Tuncay Yurekli, TRT’s TV department head, said the partnership with MISTCO had helped the broadcaster gain momen-

tum in 2016, despite the rapidly changing agenda all over the world, both inside and outside of Turkey. He added that the strengthened relationship with MISTCO, combined with a pipeline of powerful new projects and a rich library of quality content, exemplified by esurrection and

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Ottoman detective drama Filinta, would “keep up this momentum in 2017”.

MISTCO CEO Mahmut Ipsirli said: “We are proud to extend our partnership with the leading Turkish TV network TRT. This new and enriched collaboration will give us the opportunity to present the widest range of Turkish content to the world.”

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NEWS ALCHIMIE: HELPING PRODUCERS FIND THEIR NEXT NICHE DIGITAL distribution platform and SVOD operator Alchimie is launching its new app WatchIt at MIPCOM. The company, which specialises in the sort of niche programming that is increasingly disappearing from traditional multichannel offers, is also seeking to reinforce its place in the market as a specialist in the marketing and distribution interests of small and medium-sized producers.

“We offer a range of services including Alchimie Hub where we act as a negotiating partner for producers with the big distributors such as Apple, Amazon, Hulu and WeChat,” company CEO Nicholas D’Hueppe, said. “Alongside that we have a service called Alchimie Tech which offers coding, storage and streaming services for producers, Alchimie Channel where we put together series and documentaries that are complimentary to create niche channels, and Alchimie Store which creates apps and other alternative means of distribution for producers.”

Alchimie also creates content for YouTube, and, in terms of its own distribution platform, specialises in niche channels covering a range of sports such as motocross and nordic skiing, alongside hunting and fishing, lifestyle and home decoration: “As traditional TV platforms are increasingly competing on pricing, channels like these that don’t attract much advertising are no longer being bundled,” D’Hueppe added. “And that forms the basis of our SVOD offer.”

AIS immerses itself in major new virtual reality venture

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IRTUAL reality is high on the agenda at the Advanced Imaging Society (AIS) after the organisation announced earlier this year it was forming the VR Society, a new division within the parent association. The group will provide research, hands-on seminars, and best practice recommendations to help facilitate the creation of high quality VR content.

“Our consumer research shows a remarkable public awareness and excitement for VR content and products,” said AIS and VR Society president Jim Chabin.

“VR is a new medium for a new generation, and it also represents a confluence of new technologies that appeals to a surprisingly wide section of the public. Even in the 45- to 60-year-old demographic, 62% of respondents said they were excited by the prospect of VR, which is unprecedented.”

Chabin said VR’s suitability to short-form content is helping to drive its success: “Redux is everything these days. Ask a 15-year-old if he wants to invest an hour of his time watching a sports show where the highlight clips they play have been online for several hours, and he’ll run a

Jim Chabin

mile. People want small content packages and that trend is accelerating rapidly, so consumers are more than ready for VR. Plus they are now conditioned to expect a constant flow of new tech and new content.”

Chabin sees VR becoming mainstream well before 2020: “The weight of expectation is driving the industry forward and I believe we’ll see VR hitting critical mass in two or three years.

Already all the studios have VR incubator laboratories, headsets

are coming down in price and getting lighter. there’s a VR version of pretty much every movie trailer currently on the market and Spielberg’s Ready Player One (about a VR world) is going to be released soon. The down side is that there are a lot of neophytes who know little or nothing about storytelling or creating great content, so we need to have some sort of guarantee of quality, because user-generated content is not going to drive the VR market.”

Wuaki grows European presence WUAKI.TV, the Spanish-based T OD feature-film service, is expanding with the opening of new offices, one in the Netherlands, and one in Portugal.

“Our service is already in 10 countries including Spain, the UK, France, Germany and Italy, and the Wuaki app is pre-installed on all 50 million smart TVs in Europe,” founder and CEO Jacinto Roca, said. The service, which currently has 3.5 million registered users, will start acting as a co-producer next year: “Ultimately our aim is to be a producer of films, but we are go-

ing to start cautiously by acting as a co-producer or maybe even doing pre-buys. But we are also currently looking at scripts and talking to companies that have a good track record of making films,” oca said. “And of course this is something that we’ll be actively pursuing at MIPCOM, it’s the ideal place to meet quality producers, plus of course we’ll be meeting with all our current partners from Europe and the US.” eflecting Wuaki’s growth across Europe, the service offers a mix of Hollywood and local films, with its local offices sourcing the

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best indie films from each territory that Wuaki operates in.

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PRODUCT NEWS ORANGE SMARTY

THE SLATE from the UK’s Orange Smarty includes: the documentary The Forgotten Children, which follows the stories of refugee orphans across Europe; Clean Eating’s Dirty Secrets; House Of Hypochondriacs; Secrets Of The Salon; and Over The Counter Addicts.

The Forgotten Children (Orange Smarty)

DRIVE DISTRIBUTION

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EBS

PROGRAMMING brought to Cannes by new UK distributor Drive Distribution includes: Building Star Trek (1 x 120 mins/60 mins), a 50th anniversary special celebrating the impact of the iconic TV series which became a pop-culture phenomenon, an inspiration for social progress, scientific and technological endeavour, and space exploration; The World’s Deadliest Weather: Caught On Camera (13 x 60 mins/26 x 30 mins), which explores extreme weather with survivors; Hell Below (6 x 60 mins), which charts subsea warfare in World War II; and following a deal with Barcroft Media, a catalogue of over 1,000 short films.

KOREA’s EBS is in Cannes with Fire Engine, Ray (26 x 15 mins/HD), aimed at four- to six-year-olds.

Ray, a talking fire truck, and his crewmates pay close attention to remove any obstacles, hazards and risks lying in children’s way. Ray also keeps his teammates alert against the three villains who are always looking to create trouble.

Building Star Trek (Drive Distribution)

Fire Engine (EBS)

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PRODUCT NEWS DAEHAN MEDIAWORLD

A MIPCOM highlight from Korea’s Daehan Mediaworld is wildlife documentary Galapagos, The Fearless Wildlife (2 x 52 mins/4K UHD). The twoparter explores the volcanic landscape of the Galapagos archipelago, home to giant tortoises, sea lions, penguins, marine iguanas and many different bird species, many of which can be easily approached.

COTE OUEST

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TRICON FILMS & TELEVISION

MAURITIUS-based Cote Ouest brings medical drama Hospital IT — the first series of its kind in French-speaking Africa — to MIPCOM. The drama centres on the tensions between two doctors: Tanya who after training overseas returns home to help her doctor father, and Idriss, the youngest in a long line of traditional healers. The disagreements around their diagnostic approaches soon give way to romantic tension. The first season of Hospital IT (20 x 26 mins) filmed in Togo and Ivory Coast, and will be ready to air in early 2017.

HIGHLIGHTS from Tricon’s slate include: Michael (18 x 30 mins), a series in which a troubled young man depends on his therapist to help him get over his fear of flying, while his therapist depends on Michael to help him get his mojo back; ESPN documentary Unchained (1 x 90 mins); about freestyle motocross, following the growth of the sport and its early roots into the X Games and up to the present day; and All American Wheels (8 x 30 mins), a nationwide quest for vintage motorcycles hosted by Wheels Through Time Museum curator Dale Walksler.

Hospital IT (Cote Ouest)

Michael (Tricon Films & Television)

Galapagos, The Fearless Wildlife

PORTFOLIO ENTERTAINMENT

DO YOU Know? (25 x 15 mins/HD) sees host Maddie Moate answer pressing questions from preschoolers including: how does a toilet flush? and how are ice cream cones made? Other titles on the kids slate include: season three of The Cat In The Hat Knows A Lot About That!, plus four one-hour movies; Freaktown (26 x 30 mins/52 x 11 mins), an HD animation featuring Ben Bones and his freaky friends; pre-school series Doki (52 x 30 mins/104 x 11 mins + 3 x 30 mins); and new series Mack & Moxy (12 x 13 mins), combining 3D animation and liveaction puppets. Also on the MIPCOM roster are food and travel shows You Gotta Eat Here!, Everyday Exotic (52 x 30 mins) and Chef Abroad (26 x 30 mins); and automotive series Car Stories (13 x 30 mins).

NIPPON TV

NIPPON TV is in Cannes with two new formats and a new drama series. The Character gives animeloving celebrities the opportunity to develop characters, combining their fresh ideas with cuttingedge Japanimation technology. They oversee the design, voice selection, music, choreography, music video production and 3D animation. Burning Questions!, is a one-hour true-or-false quiz where celebrity contestants compete to win a prize and avoid having their embarrassing secrets revealed.

The drama is Pretty Proofreader, a new series that follows 28-year-old Etsuko, who dreams of being a fashion editor. She finally secures a start in the proofreading department, but her bold and daring style leads to trouble.

Simone (KOTV)

KOTV

Do You Know? (Portfolio Entertainment)

SIMONE (13 x 30 mins) is an ensemble drama brought to MIPCOM by Montreal-based KOTV. Facing the challenges of everyday life, the characters find that their values and knowledge are sometimes challenged.

The series tackles the issues of modern life with dark humour, sarcasm and irony, demystifying the sometimes quirky behaviour of the women.

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PRODUCT NEWS

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FULLERAT PARTNERS

AB INTERNATIONAL

THREE titles are brought to Cannes by Spain’s Fullerat Partners. The Gnomix features friendly magical beings who live in a candy world. The Animukis feature fun-loving animals that love to play games, while a narrator interacts with them.

Glob! follows a group of kids and their dog as they travel the world in an amazing flying-ship-balloon.

SERIES Black Spot (8 x 52 mins) is brought to MIPCOM by Paris-based AB International. The story concerns a new urban prosecutor appointed to a crime-ridden isolated town where he works with the local female sheriff. On top of the crimes in the area she is increasingly obsessed with the case of her own kidnapping 20 years previously.

Gnomix (Fullerat Partners)

ANIMA KITCHENT Black Spot (AB International)

VERSATILE MEDIA

CHINA’s Versatile Media is prioritising two animation titles in Cannes. Firstly, feature-length Axel 2: The Floating Planet, which follows an earth-man who was left on a planet and with the use of an engine must try to force the planet from its orbit and fly it back to the earth. However the planet is home to three characters trying to defend their homeland. Secret Y is a series that aims to introduce scientific knowledge to children by telling short stories.

HG DISTRIBUTION

QUEBEC’s HG Distribution is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a wide-ranging line-up. Titles include: youth sitcom My Boss Is A Bear (26 x 30 mins), set in a campsite where the boss is an agoraphobic bear; sci-fi animated kids series Guardians Evolution (13 x 30 mins); new factual entertainment show Gamers: Beyond The Game (1 x 90 mins), following three players as they aim to be world champions while discovering the workings of a booming industry; adolescent story Fluffy Marky (16 x 7 mins/1 x 48 mins), about a young waster who overnight is transformed into a puppet; pop science show One Stop Science Shop (26 x 15 mins/13 x 30 mins); and St-Nickel (6 x 52 mins), a drama series set in a strip club.

SPAIN’s Anima Kitchent is showcasing two animation series at MIPCOM. Piny Institute Of New York sees Michelle and her friends share their passion for fashion, sports, music and also discover the importance of friendship and effort. In Cleo & Cuquin Cleo and her siblings solve everyday problems by playing — as cooks, actors, astronauts or detectives among other things.

Piny Institute Of New York (Anima Kichent)

GLOBAL SCREEN

DRAMA series top the slate of Germany’s Global Screen. New to the international market are Charite, Fangar - Prisoners and historical drama Luther, a film that will be ready for the 500th anniversary of the Reformation in 2017. The company also brings The Tale Of The Land Of Plenty, the latest story from the Finest Fairy Tale Collection (42 x 60 mins), which are adaptations of German fairy tale classics.

REDROVER

PRE-SCHOOL series Bubble Marin (52 x 11 mins) employs Korea-based Redrover’s 3D technology to portray the adventures of submarine Marin and his friends in a lush environment. A recent deal with Planet Nemo Animation will see the series roll out across the Francophone world, Italy and CEE regions.

Fangar - Prisoners (Global Screen)

COTTONWOOD MEDIA

My Boss Is A Bear (HG Distribution)

COTTONWOOD Media returns to MIPCOM with pre-school series The Ollie & Moon Show (52 x 11 mins), a mix of 2D animation and live action, featuring a pair of curious, globe-trotting cats who introduce kids to unlikely friendships and global citizenship.

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PRODUCT NEWS KESHET INTERNATIONAL

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ENDEMOL SHINE INTERNATIONAL

ADVENTURE reality show Welcome To The Wild: Amazon (22 x 75 mins) heads the Cannes roster for Israel’s Keshet International. The first season sees 18 contestants enter the Amazon jungle to face a gruelling obstacle course along the banks of the Amazon River. At each leg of the race there is a challenge inspired by the ancient culture of a different hidden tribe.

AUSTRALIA’s greatest racing driver, Peter Brock, is the subject of documentary mini-series Brock (2 x 120 mins), which traces the highs and brutal lows of his career. Other titles from Endemol Shine include: new political reality format The Society Game; detective thriller The Fall (season one 5 x 60 mins, season 2 - 5 x 60 mins + 1 x 90 mins, season three - 6 x 60 mins); drama series Humans (season one - 8 x 60 mins, season 2 - 8 x 60 mins); Delicious (4 x 60 mins), starring Dawn French; Decline And Fall (3 x 60 mins), an adaptation of Evelyn Waugh’s novel; and Guerrilla (6 x 60 mins), starring Frieda Pinto, Babou Ceesay, Rory Kinnear and Idris Elba, which centres on a couple who move from political activism to radical militancy.

Welcome To The Wild: Amazon (Keshet International)

MONDO TV

ROME-headquartered Mondo TV brings a catalogue of in-house and co-produced properties to Cannes, including: YooHoo & Friends 3D (52 x 11 mins), based on a line of plush toys that has sold more than 80 million units, about a group of friends on a mission to help planet Earth. Other titles include: Cuby Zoo (52 x 11 mins) following a group of cube-shaped animal characters; the first 26-part season of animation Sissi The Young Empress; Treasure Island (26 x 26 mins); Adventures In Duckport (52 x 13 mins); non-dialogue series Eddie Is A Yeti (52 x 3 mins); Bug Rangers (52 x 13 mins); Nori RollerCoaster Boy (52 x 11 mins); and live-action series Heidi Bienvenida A Casa (60 x 45 mins), a re-imagining of the classic story written by Johanna Spyri.

Brock (Endemol Shine International)

J.O.K. FILMS YooHoo & Friends 3D (Mondo TV)

CORUS ENTERTAINMENT

HIGHLIGHTS from Canada’s Corus include: Home To Win (10 x 60 mins), featuring a group of celebrities who pool their expertise, creativity and renovation skills to remodel an average house into one of the hottest properties in the country; Backyard Builds (8 x 30 mins), showcasing opportunities for homeowners to maximise their backyard’s potential; and $ave My Reno (14 x 30 mins), where contractor Sebastian Clovis and designer Sabrina Smelko make renovation dreams come true on small budgets.

THE LATEST project from Bilbao-based J.O.K. Films is Invitez-vous, a digital format where bloggers and well-known web presenters explore a destination, for example Fadela Mecheri (fashion) and Clo (culinary travels), who visit Bilbao. The audience interacts with them and can win a trip to the featured destination.

Further exotic destinations are planned.

GAUMONT TELEVISION

PARIS-based Gaumont is in production on preschool series Do, Re & Mi (52 x 11 mins), which will feature original tracks performed by Kristen Bell (Princess Anna in the Disney film Frozen) and Jackie Tohn (American Idol finalist), among others. Do, Re & Mi is about Mi, a musical eighth note, who with his two friends, Do, a nerdy electronic tablet with access to a world of knowledge, and Re, a keyboard who is a bit like a big sister, he finds a different inspiration and song in every episode. Do, Re & Mi will extend into apps, games and music videos.

Home To Win (Corus Entertainment)

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PRODUCT NEWS UNION MEDIA

THE HAND-drawn animated film We’re Going On A Bear Hunt, produced by Lupus Films and Walker Productions, is brought to MIPCOM by Union Media. The film has already sold to ABC in Australia, SVT in Sweden, NRK in Norway, YLE in Finland and Canal+ in France for its pre-school channel Piwi+.

CANAMEDIA

DISNEY MEDIA DISTRIBUTION

TWO DOCUMENTARIES top the priorities for Canamedia. F For Franco (1 x 90 mins/HD) about actor/artist/writer/director James Franco’s artistic process. Art Of Darkness (1 x 90’ / 1 x 60’ HD) profiles painter and performance artist Bryan Lewis Saunders, who is renowned for producing a selfportrait every day. His ‘drug series’ of self-portraits has made him a viral internet sensation.

ALBATROSS WORLD SALES

AMONG the latest documentary highlights in the German distributor’s catalogue are: The Run (1 x 52 mins), about Sohn Kee-chung, a Korean marathon runner who won a gold medal at the 1936 Olympic Games; science film Battle For Blood (1 x 52 mins), exploring the latest research in industrial blood production; travel series Alto Adige — Italy’s Alpine Paradise (5 x 43 mins); and Down To Earth Flightless Birds (1 x 52 mins).

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INCLUDED on the Disney slate for MIPCOM are: When We Rise (8 x 60 mins), about the real-life personal and political struggles of a diverse group of LGBT men and women who were pioneers in the civil rights movement; American Housewife (13 x 30 mins), about a natural woman living among others with plastic surgery and perfect hair; FBI thriller Quantico (22 x 60 mins); medical drama Code Black, centered in the busiest ER in the US in LA; private investigator drama The Catch; returning series American Crime, Scandal and How To Get Away With Murder; and the as-yet untitled period drama series from Shondaland based on the continuing family feud after the death of Romeo and Juliet.

F For Franco (Canamedia)

NAKED ENTERTAINMENT

100% HOTTER (10 x 60 mins) is a new series that challenges individuals who embarrass their friends and family with their up-front style in what is billed as an extreme makeunder show. Each week a stylist, make-up artist and hairdresser see if they can improve their style. The London-based producer also brings Shock Treatment (4 x 60’), which places families suffering internal conflicts on a desert island where they have to work together to survive.

When We Rise (Disney Media Distribution)

ZODIAK RIGHTS

LONDON’s Zodiak Rights launches format All Against 1 at MIPCOM. In the 60-minute live quiz show one contestant is pitted against the rest of the nation. They are all asked the same questions, based on the outcome of a variety outlandish experiments. The average of the viewers’ responses via the app determine the nation’s collective answer. Whoever’s answer is the closest banks the money at stake. The distributor is also showcasing new six-part thriller The Accident, from French producer GTV Productions for France 3.

The Run (Albatross World Sales)

ITV STUDIOS

ITV STUDIOS is launching 10 new formats at MIPCOM: dating show Meet The Parents; The Job Interview, which follows the interview process; quiz show Cash Trapped; Celebrity Home Secrets; My Dog, Your Dog, about opposing discipline styles; Yes Chef, which partners professional and amateur cooks; Youtubers, an online video contest; school competition Top Class; lie detector format, What You Don’t Wanna Know; and in each episode of The Letter a close group of friends draw names and anonymously write an honest letter outlining the things their subject needs to change to make their lives better, which the candidate must follow for one week before the author is revealed.

All Against 1 (Zodiak Rights)

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PRODUCT NEWS GUSTO WORLDWIDE MEDIA

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ZDF ENTERPRISES (ZDFE)

THE SECOND season of One World Kitchen (54 x 30 mins) is showcased at MIPCOM

by Canada’s Gusto. Shot in 4K, the series profiles five young cooks covering Argentinian, Italian, Thai, Japanese and Indian cuisines, using age-old traditions along with fresh recipes and tips. The hosts include an executive chef, culinary arts instructor, self-taught cook, food blogger and a YouTube presenter. Combined with the first season, 54 native 4K episodes plus 215 webisodes are now available.

ON THE kids slate from Germany’s ZDFE are: Kick It! Great Football Heroes (26 x 7 mins), part live-action, part animation, in which six football and comic -loving kids get to know football players who are on their way to a professional career, with the aim to show children that even famous players started off small; and Inui (52 x 7 mins), about an Inuit girl who lives in the Arctic Circle. Other titles include factual shows The Desert Sea (2 50 mins/4K); and Children Of The World (1 x 50 mins/4K). Dramas include season three of The Fall (6 x 60 mins/3 x 90 mins) and Highway Of Love (10 x 50 mins); and entertainment shows highlighted are 4 For Family - The Big Family Competition and 90-minute format You Can’t Fool Me!.

One World Kitchen (Gusto Worldwide Media)

Kick It! Great Football Heroes (ZDFE)

RAINBOW

THREE new properties head Rainbow’s slate for MIPCOM. In World Of Winx fairy friends visit Earth looking for gifted children for a talent show. Regal Academy gives fairy tales a makeover as Rose Cinderella discovers that Cinderella is her grandmother. Maggie & Bianca: Fashion Friends is the Italy-based company’s first full live-action production and tells the story of an American girl who wins a scholarship to the Milan Fashion Academy where she meets her new friend Bianca.

9 STORY MEDIA GROUP

PROGRAMMING from Canada’s 9 Story includes: 3 Amigonauts (52 x 11 mins), about three friends in a space academy; Nature Cat (80 x 11 mins); Garfield And Friends (121 x 22 mins + specials); Peg + Cat (130 x 12 mins); Wild Kratts (118 x 22 mins); Camp Lakebottom (104 x 11 mins), with season three (26 x 11 mins) in production; Daniel Tiger’s Neighbourhood (130 x 11 mins), with season three (40 x 11 mins) in production; Numb Chucks (104 x 11 mins); live-action series Finding Stuff Out (42 x 22 mins); and new show Monica Chef (40 x 22 mins).

FREE DOLPHIN INTERNATIONAL

ELEMENTS Of Disaster (4 x 90 mins), a collection of four english-language action/ disaster movies, themed around air, earth, fire and water, is brought to MIPCOM by Parisbased Free Dolphin. The first, Crystal Inferno, is now in post-production and ready for delivery

by December. Next will be Avalanche Down, followed by Daybreak and Fireline in 2017.

DW TRANSTEL

COMPOSERS Of Genius (5 x 52 mins/HD), available in English and Spanish, is brought to Cannes by Germany’s DW Transtel and explores the lives of musical masters through the cities, people and places that touched their lives and helped to shape their genius. Subjects include Handel, Chopin and Beethoven.

3 Amigonauts (9 Story Media Group)

LOOKING GLASS INTERNATIONAL

World Of Winx (Rainbow)

AUSTRALIA’s Looking Glass brings a new dating show to MIPCOM. W.I.M.P. What’s In My Pocket (13 x 30 mins) is hosted by comedian, artist and musician Matt Geiler, on a ‘dating bus’. Eligible daters wear different colour jackets with items in the pockets to best describe themselves. The contestant must put their hand in each pocket and determine what the items represent. In each round a dater is eliminated until one remains.

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PRODUCT NEWS STUDIO 100 MEDIA

DCD RIGHTS

GERMANY’s Studio 100 Media offers live-action series Kosmoo (13 x 25 mins) at MIPCOM. Kosmoo follows the escapades of Robbe and his bionic dog Kosmoo as they try to solve the many crimes and mysteries in the sleepy costal village of Seaview.

Robbe’s bedroom can be transformed into a secret control centre to follow Kosmoo’s activities, what he hears and sees. The series is targeted at six- to nine-year-olds.

Kosmoo (Studio 100 Media)

GLOBO

TIME After Time/ A Traves Del Tiempo (100 x 60 mins) is a romantic telenovela set in two different eras. The characters have the opportunity to make up for their mistakes, come to terms with the past and write themselves another story. The series is brought to MIPCOM by Brazil’s Globo.

LONDON-based DCD Rights showcases new reality show Aussie Gold Hunters at MIPCOM, an eight-part series that follows gold prospectors and miners in the vast wilderness of the Western Australian Goldfields.

For the prospectors it’s a land of opportunity. But the life also includes backbreaking work, extreme weather, isolation, cut-throat competition, deadly wildlife and breakdowns — mechanical and personal.

Aussie Gold Hunters (DCD Rights)

QUINTUS MEDIA

DOCU-series Behind Bars: The World’s Toughest Prisons (6 x 60 mins/HD) is brought to MIPCOM by Germany’s Quintus Media. The series profiles the personalities who live behind bars, exploring why they’re there, what kind of contact they have with the outside world, and also why the prison was built in such a way and what the security measures are.

MGM TELEVISION

Time After Time (Globo)

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BLUE ANT INTERNATIONAL

MGM TV’s new drama series include: The Handmaid’s Tale (10 x 60 mins), based on the best-selling Margaret Atwood dystopian novel, and starring Elizabeth Moss; Condor (10 x 60 mins), inspired by the feature film Three Days Of The Condor; Get Shorty (10 x 60 mins), a reimagining of Elmore Leonard’s novel about a mobster turned movie producer; the third instalment of Fargo (20 x 60 mins), starring Ewan McGregor and Carrie Coon; the final season of Teen Wolf; and season five of Vikings. Unscripted highlights include The Celebrity Apprentice (13 x 60 mins), and Funderdome (13 x 60 mins), where entrepreneurs competitively pitch their ideas in front of a live studio audience, who then vote.

HD NATURE programmes from Canada’s Blue Ant include: Guardians Of The Wild (5 x 60 mins), following the daily challenges facing conservationists working in the Zambian wilderness; Africa’s Wild Horizons (11 x 60 mins); Tales From Zambia (6 x 60 mins); and Wildlife Icons (14 x 60 mins). Science shows include How The World Ends (6 x 60 mins/HD), exploring doomsday forecasts; and Make It Big Make It Small (7 x 30 mins/HD), inspiring kids to reconstruct experiments through fun projects. From the entertainment genre comes I’ve Got Something To Tell You (6 x 60 mins/ HD), which is filmed in a tea room in which host Amanda Holden listens to people’s life stories.

Fargo (MGM Television)

Guardians Of The Wild (Blue Ant International)

HAT TRICK INTERNATIONAL

BRITISH distributor Hat Trick International launches Inside The Freemasons at MIPCOM, a five-part observational documentary commissioned for Sky 1. The series features the first-ever look at the organisation as it approaches its 300th anniversary in 2017. With unprecedented access to the United Grand Lodge of England and Lodges all over the country, it features footage of Freemason ceremonies and learns the truth behind the ancient rituals and closely-guarded practices.

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PRODUCT NEWS NEWEN DISTRIBUTION

NEWEN Distribution is launching its thriller series Ouro (8 x 52 mins), a Canal + original set in the Amazonian jungle, at MIPCOM. Also on the slate is: the second season of thriller series Witnesses (14 x 52 mins); fantasy thriller Beyond The Walls (3 x 52 mins), kids animated series The Mysterious Cities Of Gold (91 x 26 mins), with 26 new episodes for a third season set in Japan, India and the Middle East; documentary Terror Studios, (1 x 52 mins/90 mins), an in-depth exploration of ISIS propaganda, commissioned by Canal+; and celebrity game show Truth Or Dare.

Ouro (Newen Distribution)

THE TELEVISION SYNDICATION COMPANY (TVS)

TVS BRINGS several lifestyle titles to MIPCOM, including: a new series of Positively Paula (26 x 30 mins), who shares food and recipes, stories and memories from her home; Arranged (8 x 60 mins), looking into the tradition of arranged marriages; and Look @ My Wedding (14 x 30 mins), looking at fabulous weddings, including in Australia and Malaysia.

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ELECTRIC CIRCUS

JUNGLE Survival (52 x 11 mins) is based on an educational comic book, and Korea’s Electric Circus is in production on the third season (26 x 11 mins). A feature film is also planned by the end of 2017. Another priority for Electric Circus is GFighters, an action animation series aimed at boys, also destined to be a feature film.

Jungle Survival (Electric Circus)

NORDIC WORLD

THE STREAM (18 x 90 mins) is a new music competition format that gives new talent a chance to be discovered through the internet and social media. Hopefuls upload a video to the website and watch the public stream and share it, with the top 100 performing for Universal, Sony and Warner Music. 100 goes down to nine who perform in weekly live shows, with songs made available on Spotify, and the winner is the most streamed.

ONZA DISTRIBUTION

FILMAX INTERNATIONAL

DOCUMENTARY series Jungle Planet (26 x 26 mins/4K) is an exploration of the importance of jungle and trees in supporting a surprising biodiversity. The Spanish distributor also brings telenovela The Pretender (150 x 50 mins), in which a plane goes missing with Veronica´s twin sister on board, the victim of a millionaire’s scam. As her sister is presumed dead, Veronica assumes her identity and swears revenge on the businessman’s family.

FILMAX‘s expanding catalogue includes: crime drama I Know Who You Are (10 x 70 mins), with additional episodes in preproduction; thriller Central Bank - The Takeover (4 x 70 mins), based on real events in 1980s Barcelona; and 4 Sisters (4 x 70 mins), a drama exploring the role of women and set over a 60-year period. The Spanish distributor also brings a feature film library including Truman, The King Of Havana and documentary Barca Dreams.

Jungle Planet (Onza Distribution)

I Know Who You Are (Filmax International)

Positively Paula (TVS)

ZOLAND ANIMATION

CHINA’s Zoland Animation is showcasing Rubi - Under Water World at MIPCOM, a story about Rubi and YoYo who travel through the sea to collect examples of marine biology for their inventor father — who invented the cute Question Mark, their travel assistant. The aim of the series is to give children knowledge of marine science in an entertaining way.

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PRODUCT NEWS ARMOZA FORMATS

THE ARMOZA Formats line-up for MIPCOM includes: Curvy Supermodel (5 x 120 mins), a competition that aims to redefine beauty; The Ex Team, a 60-minute factual entertainment format in which a bachelor is guided by three ex-girlfriends to find love; and Born To Be A Chef (10 x 60 mins), in which two chefs each lead a team of 10 young apprentices.

KABO INTERNATIONAL

FRENCH distributor Kabo International brings three new episodes of scripted format Our Crazy Family to MIPCOM. Our Crazy Family aired on France’s M6 and the broadcaster has commissioned the new episodes which are no longer sketch-based as in the original, but feature the same characters. Our Crazy Family is based on another of Kabo’s products, the Pick’n Mix sitcom format, comprised of individual comedy sketches.

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ALL3MEDIA INTERNATIONAL

GAME show Take Your Chance, brought to Cannes by all3media, has been commissioned for a 25-episode series for France 3. Available as a 30- or 60-minute format, the show sees two teams battle to gain control of the game and the screens. The team that makes it to the final must have the correct answers to 10 questions and predict how well they have done.

If they achieve their prediction they win — and a high prediction means a better prize.

PILOT PRODUCTIONS

PILOT Productions brings a new lifestyle series to MIPCOM. Travelling In The 70’s (2 x 60 mins) uses archive, reconstructions and a classic Seventies soundtrack to recapture the travel and culture of the era, featuring smoking, free love, big hair, big planes and trains, easy check-ins, hot outfits, fast cars and the Space Age. Host Dean Cycon travels across the US and Europe in this entertaining exploration of the past.

Curvy Supermodel (Armoza Formats)

VISION FILMS

US DISTRIBUTOR Vision Films’ extensive film roster includes: holiday films A Doggone Christmas (1 x 85 mins) and A Miracle On Christmas Lake (1 x 90 mins); family titles GadgetGang In Outer Space (1 x 84 mins) and Aldabra: Once Upon An Island (1 x 73 mins); romantic comedies A Date With Miss Fortune (1 x 97 mins) and Sam (1 x 100 mins); and action film Check Point (1 x 90 mins).

MONELLO PRODUCTIONS

Our Crazy Family (Kabo International)

TELEMUNDO INTERNACIONAL

PROGRAMMING from Spanish-language network Telemundo includes: La Dona: Lethal Beauty, a telenovela starring Mexican actress Aracely Arambula, about a beautiful woman who becomes ruthless and ambitious; The Acero Dynasty, about Vicenta Rigores, one of the most respected and feared coyotes of the Mexico/US border; Without Breasts There Is Paradise, about a young woman determined to get ahead in a world dominated by drug violence, while proving that one does not have to succumb to the pressures of society; and romantic comedy Rich In Love.

IT’S A MIPCOM launch for Monello Productions’ animation series Max & Maestro, about a young boy who dreams of becoming a musician since he became a pupil of Daniel Barenboim, the world’s greatest conductor, who is a character in the show.

In Max’s neighbourhood nobody likes classical music, so he takes his lessons in secret. The series will air on France Televisions, ARD, KiKa and Rai. Travelling In The 70’s (Pilot Productions)

WOODCUT MEDIA

Max & Maestro (Monello Productions)

La Dona: Lethal Beauty (Telemundo Internacional)

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WOODCUT Media is currently in production on two crime documentary series. Britain’s Most Evil Killers (12 x 60 mins) and World’s Most Evil Killers (8 x 60 mins) examining what drove them to commit the crimes. The series includes interviews, first-hand accounts, expert views from criminologists, crime journalists and psychologists, archive footage and reconstruction.

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PRODUCT NEWS BBTV

VANCOUVER’s BBTV is prioritising The Adventures Of Annie And Ben at MIPCOM. The series features three good friends who like meeting new people, traveling and music. Their adventures include real travel destinations with a hint of fantasy.

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AMC STUDIOS

AMC ORIGINAL drama The Terror (10 x 60 mins), is based on a Dan Simmons novel set in 1847 which tells the story of a Royal Navy expedition searching for the Northwest Passage who are attacked by a mysterious predator. Other titles brought to Cannes include: comedy series Brockmire (8 x 30 mins), following a sportscaster’s struggle to revive his career 10 years after an on-air meltdown; two seasons, and a third in production, of spoof documentary series Documentary Now!, hosted by Helen Mirren; comedy horror series Stan Against Evil (8 x 30 mins); motorcycle travel series Ride With Norman Reedus; and talk show Geeking Out.

The Adventures Of Annie And Ben (BBTV)

GAD

GAD IS highlighting a range of new documentaries at MIPCOM including: two-part show Soyuz MS-03 Mission, following three astronauts on a six-month mission in the International Space Station; Maids, about domestic workers in Asia, the Middle East and Europe; 4K series Worldwide Wine Civilizations, featuring breathtaking aerial cinematography; and In The Eyes Of The Pharaohs. Other titles from the Paris-based distributor include: Jacob Collier At Jazz A Vienne; Robin McKelle At Jazz A Vienne; and La Boheme.

The Terror (AMC Studios)

MADHU ENTERTAINMENT & MEDIA

HIGHLIGHTS from Madhu’s library of Indian films, TV serials, Bollywood gossip shows and animation include: 19 seasons, each 104 x 23 mins, of ensemble drama Looking @ The World Upside Down; and award-winning films Names Unknown, about a poor father and son in Kerala and Birds With Large Wings, about the aftermath of a terrible pesticide accident.

BLUE DREAM STUDIOS

PRE-SCHOOL series Hero Dad (52 x 5 mins), from Spain’s Blue Dream, features a man who returns from his office everyday and plays with his two-year-old daughter, Miao. He pulls on superhero boots and gloves, ties on his towel cape and fits his mask over his glasses. As Hero Dad he tries to save the day and teach Miao life lessons along the way.

JETPACK DISTRIBUTION

UK-BASED Jetpack Distribution presents Kazoops (78 x 7 mins) at MIPCOM. The pre-school series features six-year-old Monty and his best friend Jimmy Jones, the pet pig. In each episode Monty confronts a preconception about life and embarks on an imaginary musical adventure with Jimmy Jones to find fresh prospectives and discoveries.

Soyuz MS-03 Mission (GAD)

CYBER GROUP STUDIOS

CYBER debuts Gigantosaurus (52 x 11 mins 2D/3D/HD/CGI) in Cannes. Aimed at preschoolers, the series stars four young dinosaur friends who leave their family to explore the world and learn to be curious and not rush blindly into things. The French company also brings: Zak Jinks (52 x 13 mins/2D), an animation series based on a comic book about a likeable shirker; and Menino And The Children Of The World (52 x 7 mins), combining live action and animation.

Kazoops (Jetpack Distribution)

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PRODUCT NEWS PGS ENTERTAINMENT

THE ROSTER of animation series from France’s PGS Entertainment includes: four mini-movies starring Alpha And Omega, about a wolf family; Alvinnn!!!

And The Chipmunks (208 x 11 mins); Miss Moon (52 x 13 mins); Monchhichi (52 x 11 mins); The Jungle Bunch: To the Rescue! (104 x 11 mins + TV movie + shorts); Zak Storm (39 x 26 mins); Miraculous (26 x 30 mins); Ghost Force (52 x 13 mins); Robin Hood: Mischief In Sherwood (104 x 11 mins); Super 4 (104 x 11 mins); and The Little Prince (36 mini-movies).

mipcom

STARZ

STARZ Original Series The White Princess, based on part of a book series by Philippa Gregory, is brought to Cannes by Starz. Set in Tudor England, it is a tale of power, love and betrayal, when women were engaged in the battle for the English throne. The company also brings action series Insomnia (8 x 60 mins), which focuses on a deadly game in which 20 contestants must kill or be killed, set in Moscow, Russia. Insomnia is planned as a multi-season programme where each season will play out in a different city.

The White Princess (Starz)

MARIA FARINHA FILMES

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THE BEGINNING Of Life is a film brought to MIPCOM by Brazil’s Maria Farinha Filmes that reflects on the development of human beings, neuroscience breakthroughs and how the development of people is determined by a combination of genetics, the quality of relationships and the environment they are in.

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MORE BRILLIANCE. MORE BEAUTY. Incredible brightness and contrast that make colours burst to life in exceptional 4K detail.

BRAV IA 4K HDR TV

‘Sony’, and their logos are registered trademarks or trademarks of Sony Corporation. All other logos and trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

PRODUCT NEWS LEFT POCKET ANIMATION STUDIO

SHANGHAI’s Left Pocket — winner of the MIPJunior International Pitch 2014 — brings new episodes of the pre-school 2D animation series Emmy & Gooroo (52 x 11 mins) to Cannes. Currently in production, it follows Emmy, a creative and resourceful little girl, and her best friend GooRoo, in their adventures in the Magic Forest. The first season is expected by June 2017.

BBC WORLDWIDE

BBC WORLDWIDE is launching pre-school title Andy’s Baby Animals (20 x 10 mins) at MIPCOM, a funny and educational way for children to learn about animals in the wild. The series is also available Amazing Baby Animals without a presenter. Other launches include: a third series of Sarah & Duck (40 x 7 mins), where the pair embark on simple but exciting adventures; a second series of Hey Duggee (52 x 7 mins), a pre-school animation in which Duggee welcomes a group of squirrels into his activity club; a fourth series of The Next Step (40 x 23 mins), a dance reality-style drama; and three 30-minute Horrible Histories specials — Sensational Shakespeare, Staggering Storytellers and The Grisly Great Fire Of London.

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STARLINE ENTERTAINMENT

LONDON-based Starline Entertainment brings a line-up of drama series, TV movies and factual entertainment to Cannes. Highlights include: threepart serial killer series Silent Hours; and detective series In The Shadows. Arts shows include: opera show Jonas Kaufmann: An Evening With Puccini; and Revolution: New Art For A New World, marking the centenary of the Russian Revolution in 2017. Feature films include Lawless Range, a modern-day Western starring Kris Kristofferson and Beau Bridges; comedy Ministry Of Love; The Marriage Of Reason And Squalor, starring Rhys Ifans; and Radiator, starring Gemma Jones with the late Richard Johnson. The company also showcases its Classic Film Collection which includes The African Queen and The Long Good Friday.

TRACE

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FOLLOWING the acquisition of pan-african VOD service Buni.tv, in preparation for the launch of its own VOD platform TracePlay, Trace has secured the pay-TV and VOD rights to comedy shows Ogas At The Top (Nigeria) and The XYZ Show (Kenya), produced by Buni.tv’s sister company Buni Media.

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Revolution: New Art For A New World (Starline Entertainment)

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MIPCOM Stand C20.A

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PRODUCT NEWS EARTH TOUCH

ABOUT PREMIUM CONTENT (APC)

WILDLIFE and factual producer and distributor Earth Touch is showcasing scripted/factual hybrid 1491 - The Untold Story Of The Americas Before Columbus (8 x 50 mins), about North America before Columbus arrived, a diverse land full of languages, trade and culture. Earth Touch holds worldwide rights excluding Germany and North America.

TWO LAUNCHES top the priority list for Parisbased APC. Two episodes of drama series Valkyrien are complete, the final six are due end of year. The story is about a physician trying to save his wife’s life in an underground clinic while keeping up appearances above ground where everybody thinks she is dead.

From the kids genre comes The Memories Of Nanette (52 x 11 mins), an animation set in the 1930s about nine-year-old Nanette who moves from the city to a small village.

1491 - The Untold Story Of The Americas Before Columbus (Earth Touch)

EONE TELEVISION INTERNATIONAL

HEADQUARTERED in London, eOne Television International brings a raft of content to MIPCOM. Designated Survivor (13 x 60 mins), starring Kiefer

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5+ billion

app downloads

300 million

monthly app users

mipcom

Sutherland, features a lower level US cabinet member who is suddenly appointed President after a catastrophic attack that kills everyone above him in the line of succession. Cardinal (6 x 60 mins) begins with the discovery of the body of a missing 13-year-old in an abandoned mine.

Conviction (13 x 60 mins) tells the story of a rebellious daughter of a former President, who is blackmailed into taking a job as head of a newly created Conviction Integrity Unit. Foreign Bodies (8 x 42 mins) is an eight-part comedy drama about a diverse group embarking on a threemonth trip around Asia, and Ransom (13 x 60 mins) is a thriller based on hostage stories.

Designated Survivor (eOne Television International)

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29+ million Facebook fans

7.9 billion video views

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RED ARROW INTERNATIONAL

ON THE slate for Red Arrow is: Mata Hari (12 x 60 mins), charting the life of the exotic dancer, courtesan and spy; Scandi thriller Farang (8 x 60 mins); edgy drama Pregau (8 x 60 mins); and thriller The Romeo Section: Assassins (10 x 60 mins). Formats include: Look Me In The Eye, an attempt to bring divided people together by the power of eye contact; Streetlab, testing human behaviour; and dating show Kiss Bang Love.

Also launching is adult animated comedy The Cyanide & Happiness Show (15 x 30 mins).

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PRODUCT NEWS THE JIM HENSON COMPANY

THE JIM Henson Company’s Fraggle Rock has been digitally remastered and is available at MIPCOM in HD. The 96-episode series features the quirky cave-dwellers who live underground alongside their industrious green neighbours, the

Doozers and a family of enormous Gorgs. The series includes a mix of original music including folk, blues, gospel, country and rock, and embraces themes of friendship, tolerance, diversity and caring for the planet.

Fraggle Rock (The Jim Henson Company)

mipcom

STUDIOCANAL

STUDIOCANAL launches drama series Below The Surface at MIPCOM, a nerve-racking eight-part thriller. In a subway train beneath Copenhagen, fifteen innocent people are taken hostage by three masked armed men. A terror taskforce is dispatched to rescue them, while a reporter acts as a go-between.

Below The Surface (Studiocanal)

MEDINA MEDIA JAM MEDIA

JAM MEDIA is launching its new hybrid live action/animated series Little Roy (52 x 14 mins) at MIPCOM. To solve his real life quandaries Little Roy escapes into his imagination and in a full cartoon sequence becomes Wonder Roy, who with his sidekick Finn plays out his predicament, finds a solution and applies it to the real world.

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POPULAR Celebrations In Spain (3 x 90 mins/4K/UHD), brought to Cannes by Sevillebased Medina Media, is a lively non-scripted cultural and travel series that portrays various traditions and celebrations in Spain during the most important days of the year.

Actualités produits l Articles & dossiers exclusifs l Témoignages l Bancs d’essais l Agenda l Web TV l

Mediakwest, c’est Multi Ecrans et Multi Connecté

www.mediakwest.com

Mediakwest est édité par Génération Numérique, organisateur de Screen4All Forum et du 360 Film Festival

www.screen4all.com

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PRODUCT NEWS LINEUP INDUSTRIES

AMSTERDAM-based Lineup Industries is launching new game-show format Switch (45 x 30 mins) at MIPCOM. Five contestants stand side by side. Their position in the line is determined by their answers. By solving word puzzles and trivia questions contestants can Switch places. The goal is to stay in the game and be in first place before the final. Other titles include documentary format Emergency Call (7 x 45 mins), following an emergency call centre, and Long Lost Family (aka Find My Family).

mipcom

PLANO A PLANO

SPANISH production company Plano a Plano is at MIPCOM with its new drama series for Telecinco, La Verdad (The Truth). The company has also started principal photography for the third season of romantic primetime comedy Alli Abajo (Down Below), and has received a commission from Antena 3 for new comedy series Your Face Looks Familiar, starring Silvia Abril.

NETWORK IRELAND TELEVISION

Switch (Lineup Industries)

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NETWORK Ireland Television celebrates its 21st anniversary this year and launches Sir Bob Geldof’s documentary on the life and work of Irish poet, W B Yeats, A Fanatic Heart (2 x 55 mins/1 x 100 mins) at MIPCOM. The musician and advocate has been a lifelong devotee of Yeats, one of the 20th century’s greatest poets.

Performances include Sting, Noel Gallagher, Bono, Van Morrison, Liam Neeson, Stephen Fry, Dominic West, Bill Nighy, Edna O’ Brien, Colin Farrell, Ardal O’Hanlon and Shane McGowan.

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A Fanatic Heart (Network Ireland Television)

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INVITATION MIPCOM OPENING PARTY HONOURING JAPAN

Monday 17 October -19.30 Grand Hyatt Cannes Hotel Martinez

MIPCOM® MIPJunior® are registered trademarks of Reed MIDEM. Création

Live Music KEN ISHII - HIFANA - SOIL & « PIMP » SESSIONS - DJ CALM 4K HDR Screenings Authentic Japanese food

Join the TV industry’s largest networking evening, more spectacular this year than ever!

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21/09/2016 17:51

PRODUCT NEWS DHX MEDIA

TV ASAHI

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DARO FILM DISTRIBUTION

SPACE Ranger Roger (13 x 30 mins) is a new 3D pre-school series brought to market by DHX Media.

Roger scans earth from the Friend Ship, if he picks up a distress signal from an earth creature, it’s his job to fix it with his Ranger Bots.

TV ASAHI brings a range of programming to Cannes.

Included are: the fourth season of Doctor-X, the story of an uncompromising freelance female doctor who works in a hospital; Hello, I Love You, a drama that depicts the struggles and joy of adoption; and World Pro Wrestling, with over 80 one-hour episodes with English play-by-play commentary.

Space Ranger Roger (DHX Media)

Doctor-X (TV Asahi)

MONACO-based Daro Film is highlighting the third installment of the Against The Wild family adventure franchise, titled Against The Wild: The Great Elephant Adventure. Daro is handling international rights (outside the US) and will be entering pre-sale discussions during the market, with shooting scheduled to commence in South Africa before the end of the year.

CRITICAL CONTENT

CRITICAL Content launches the second season of home-makeover competition series Home Free (8 x 45 mins). Thinking they are trying to win a Dream Home for the hero in their lives, the contestants believe there is only one home. However, they discover they will be building 10 homes, plus a Dream Home, creating an entirely new neighbourhood. The company is also highlighting documentary series The Case Of: JonBenet Ramsey at MIPCOM, examining the details of the sensational case of the six-yearold’s tragic death, and featuring the original investigators and new experts.

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TM

TM

KOREA TM

IRELAND January 2015

ISRAEL

GERMANY

June 2014

TM

FRANCE

November 2014

TM

May 2015

May 2015

TM

UK

January 2015

TM

PORTUGAL

CHINA

April 2015

TM

September 2015

JAPAN

February 2014

GUIDE 2016

TM

TM

The who’s who of the global industry

TM

CAYMAN ISLANDS June 2015

TM

LUXEMBURG NETHERLANDS February 2016

August 2016

mipcom® is a registered trademark of Reed MIDEM — All rights reserved

USA

August 2013

TM

Against The Wild: The Great Elephant Adventure (Daro Film Distribution)

TM

2017:

AUSTRALIA, BRAZIL, POLAND, ARGENTINA, CANADA, ITALY, ROMANIA, RUSSIA, SPAIN, DENMARK, SWEDEN, FINLAND, CROATIA, SWITZERLAND

YOUR MARKET?

Come meet us at our booth P3.B4 to learn more about distribution opportunities.

Pick up your copy at the registration area

A year-round networking tool

www.dogtv.com

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15/10/2016 18:28

Spring Forward More drama. More series. All new hits for every screen.

Your next rendezvous with content is in Cannes.

3-6 APRIL 2017 Register for MIPTV by 24 January and save 30%. miptv.com

Marché International des Programmes.

The world’s entertainment content markets.

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14/10/2016 17:22

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MONDAY 17 OCTOBER DRAMA SCREENINGS ‘THE MISSING, SERIES 2’ MIPCOM 2016 WELCOME PRESS BREAKFAST 08.30-09.15 | Blue Lounge, Press Club

9.00-10.15 Auditorium K By

JAPAN: MARKET OVERVIEW

Breakfast served from 8.30.

9.30-10.00 | Auditorium A PRESENTER: Yosuke Ito, Senior Consultant, Mitsubishi Research Institute, Japan

Yosuke Ito

TREASURE BOX JAPAN: WORLD PREMIERE – BRAND NEW FORMATS!

‘FREAKISH’ 10.30-11.45 Auditorium K By

10.10-11.00 | Auditorium A SPEAKERS: Hisako Fujioka, NHK / NHK Enterprises (NHK/NEP) Thomas Hiraoka, Asahi Broadcasting Corp. / ABC International (ABC JAPAN) Yuka Kakui, TV Asahi Corporation (TV Asahi) Kei Kitamura, TV TOKYO Corporation (TV TOKYO) Yukiko Katie Nakano, Nippon Television Network Corporation (Nippon TV) Fumi Nishibashi, Fuji Television Network (Fuji TV/FCC) Norie Taga, Yomiuri Telecasting Corporation (YTV) Masashi Yamamoto, Tokyo Broadcasting System Television (TBS Television)

MODERATOR:

TRENDS & VISION THE NEW TELEVISION: THE VALUE OF CONTENT 9.00-9.30 | Esterel

Bruce Mann

Supported by

Virginia Mouseler, CEO, The Wit, Switzerland

SPEAKERS:

Hisako Fujioka

Yukiko Katie Nakano

Thomas Hiraoka

Fumi Nishibashi

Yuka Kakui

Bruce Mann, Managing Director Programming, Liberty Global, The Netherlands Joachim Stephan, Senior Partner and Managing Director, The Boston Consulting Group, Germany

Kei Kitamura

Norie Taga

‘TINDERING’ CONTENT: CHOOSING THE BEST OUTLET FOR YOUR STORY

Masashi Yamamoto

Joachim Stephan

Jeanne-Victoire David

9.45-10.15 | Esterel

PRODUCERS TOOLBOX

SPEAKERS: Jeanne-Victoire David, Co-Founder, Acquisitions & Partnerships, VODD, France Greg Diefenbach, Managing Director, XiveTV, USA Damian Pelliccione, CEO / Founder, REVRY, USA

THE PITCH DOCTOR’S GUIDE TO MAKING IT AT MIPCOM 10.15-10.45 | Verrière Californie Seating Limited - Broadcast in the front of the auditorium

Dr Paul Boross

MAKING DRAMA THAT TRAVELS Seating Limited - Broadcast in the front of the auditorium Nicola Söderlund

11.15-12.00 | Auditorium A SPEAKERS: John Enser

Amanda Groom

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Janice Lee, Managing Director, PCCW Media Group, Hong Kong Jason Njoku, CEO, Iroko, UK Carlos Tibi, Founder and CEO, ICFLIX, United Arab Emirates Theresa Vimmerslev, Senior Consultant, Oliver & Ohlbaum Associates, UK

Jason Njoku

Carlos Tibi

MODERATOR: Dr. Anke Beining-Wellhausen, Managing Director / Founder, Utofilm, Switzerland

MODERATOR: Stewart Clarke, Editor, TBI Vision, UK

Janice Lee

10.30-11.15 | Esterel SPEAKERS:

BREXIT: A SURVIVAL GUIDE

John Enser, Partner, Olswang, UK Amanda Groom, MD, The Bridge, UK Richard Johnston, CEO, Endemol Shine UK, UK John McVay, Chief Executive, Pact, UK

Catherine Warren, President/Board Member, FanTrust/Bell Fund, Canada

THE RISE OF REGIONAL OTT GIANTS

11.00-11.30 | Verrière Californie

Eccho Rights, Sweden

Damian Pelliccione

MODERATOR:

SPEAKER: Dr Paul Boross, The Pitch Doctor, UK

SPEAKER: Nicola Söderlund, Managing Partner,

Greg Diefenbach

Richard Johnston

John McVay

Theresa Vimmerslev

14/10/2016 14:41

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OFFICIAL CONFERENCE & SCREENINGS 4K ULTRA HD

MEDIA MASTERMIND KEYNOTES 11.30-12.00 | Grand Auditorium

MIPCOM 2016 OPENING KEYNOTE HERE COME THE UHD CHANNELS 10.00-10.30 | Sony 4K Ultra HD Theatre SPEAKERS: Rian Bester, CEO, Insight TV, Netherlands Michel Chabrol, Senior Vice President New TV Formats, Eutelsat, France Joe Nakata, Senior Producer, Sony Corporation, Japan Claudia Vaccarone, Head of Market Research & Customer Experience, Eutelsat, France

Rian Bester

Michel Chabrol KAZUO HIRAI

MODERATOR: Chris Forrester, Contributing Editor, Advanced-television.com, UK

KAZUO HIRAI, PRESIDENT AND CEO, SONY CORPORATION

MODERATOR: Marcel Fenez, President, Fenez Media, Hong Kong

SPECIAL ULTRA-HDTV PRESENTATION THE CEREMONY OF THE HOLY DOOR AT ST PETER’S BASILICA, ROME

Joe Nakata

12.15-12.45 | Grand Auditorium

MEDIA MASTERMIND KEYNOTE Claudia Vaccarone

SEAN COHAN, PRESIDENT, INTERNATONAL AND DIGITAL MEDIA, A+E NETWORKS

10.30-11.15 | Sony 4K Ultra HD Theatre SPEAKER: Benito Manlio Mari, President, Ultra HD Forum Italia, Sony Europe, Italy

MODERATOR:

IN CONVERSATION WITH Benito Manlio Mari

Chris Forrester, Contributing Editor, Advanced-television.com, UK

MUSIC/CULTURE: THE UHD PRODUCERS

HOWARD T. OWENS, FOUNDER AND CO-CREATOR, PROPAGATE

Reza Ackbaraly

11.30-12.30 | Sony 4K Ultra HD Theatre SPEAKERS: Reza Ackbaraly, President, Auditorium Films, India Giuliano Berretta, President, DBW Communication, Italy René Delwel, CEO, United4All, Netherlands

Giuliano Berretta SEAN COHAN

HOWARD T. OWENS

MODERATOR: Chris Forrester, Contributing Editor, Advanced-television.com, UK

MODERATOR: René Delwel

Andy Fry, Journalist, writer, MIPCOM Daily News, UK

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP EVENTS WOMEN IN GLOBAL ENTERTAINMENT POWER LUNCH 12.30-14.30 | Majestic Hotel By invitation In partnership with

Media Partner:

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SPEAKERS: Shiri Appleby, actress, star of UnREAL, USA Betsy Beers, Partner, Shondaland, USA Amanda Hill, Chief Marketing Officer, A+E Networks, USA Euzhan Palcy, Director, Screenwriter, Producer, France Constance Zimmer, Emmy® Award-nominated actress, star of UnREAL, USA

Shiri Appleby

Betsy Beers

Amanda Hill

Euzhan Palcy

Constance Zimmer

MODERATOR: Marisa Guthrie, Television Editor, East Coast, The Hollywood Reporter, USA

14/10/2016 14:41

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MONDAY 17 OCTOBER VIRTUAL REALITY

TRENDS & VISION

In partnership with

SUPPORTING NEW DISTRIBUTION STRATEGIES 14.00-15.30 | Auditorium A

DISRUPTIVE STORYTELLING: WEAVING NARRATIVES INTO VR

By

14.00-14.30

14.15-14.55 | Esterel SPEAKERS: Nathan Brown, Senior Vice President, Development and Operations, Discovery Communications, USA Neil Graham, Executive Producer - Sky VR Studios/ Sky Cinema Sky UK, UK James Milward, President / Executive Producer, Secret Location (“Halcyon”), Canada

Nathan Brown

Q & A with Claire Bury, Deputy Director General, European Commission, moderated by Marjorie Paillon, Presenter / Founder, France 24 / I Love Productions, France.

14.30-15.30 PANEL DISCUSSION WITH:

MODERATOR:

Marc du Pontavice, President, Xilam Animation, France Ville Vilen, Director of Creative Content, YLE, Finland Bettina Oebel, Head of Distribution, LOOKS Distribution, Germany

Sam Witters, CEO, SW Media, USA

MODERATOR:

Neil Graham

Marjorie Paillon, Presenter / Founder, France 24 / I Love Productions, France James Milward

ENTERTAINMENT 3.0: BEST-IN-CLASS VR EXPERIENCES 15.00-15.30 | Esterel SPEAKERS: Madiana Asseraf, Senior Media Development Manager, European Broadcasting Union, Switzerland Alex Berger, Executive Producer, TOP-The Oligarchs Productions, France Ben Smith, CEO, Laduma, UK

Madiana Asseraf

AN AUDIENCE WITH ANDREW DAVIES, HOSTED BY REBECCA EATON 16.10-16.40 | Auditorium K SPEAKERS:

Andrew Davies

Andrew Davies, Writer, Care of The Agency, UK Rebecca Eaton, Executive Producer, PBS Masterpiece, USA Rebecca Eaton

Alex Berger

MODERATOR:

4K ULTRA HD

Sol Rogers, CEO/Founder, REWIND:VR, UK

Ben Smith

NHK’S RAPID PROGRESS TO UHD

PRODUCERS TOOLBOX: PRODUCERS + GAMING STUDIOS, VR’S CREATIVE ALLIES

15.45-17.00 | Sony 4K Ultra HD Theatre SPEAKERS:

15.45–16.15 | Esterel SPEAKERS:

Arnaud Colinart

Arnaud Colinart, Producer, Creative Director, EX NIHILO, France Amaury La Burthe, CEO, AudioGaming, France

Yoshiharu Kashima, Senior Manager / Programming Department, Japan Broadcasting Corporation (NHK), Japan Masashi Yoshino, Senior Producer, NHK, Japan

Yoshiharu Kashima

MODERATOR: Chris Forrester, Contributing Editor, Advanced-television.com, UK

Masashi Yoshino

MODERATOR: Angela Natavidad, Co-Founder, Hurrah, France

Amaury La Burthe

INTERNATIONAL SCREENINGS DRAMA SCREENINGS

‘MARS’

‘MAXIMILIAN AND MARIE DE BOURGOGNE’

16.00-17.15 Auditorium A

14.30-15.45 | Auditorium K

By

By In the presence of lead actor Jannis Niewoehner, director Andreas Prochaska and the producer of MR Film and Beta Film.

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Q&A moderated by World Screen’s Anna Carugati with the presence of Courteney Monroe, Chief Executive Officer, National Geographic Global Networks.

Cast members: including Ben Cotton, Jihae and Clementine Poidatz as well as Executive Producer Justin Wilkes, Director Everado Gout, and author of “How We’ll Live on Mars” Stephen Petranek.

14/10/2016 14:42

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OFFICIAL CONFERENCE & SCREENINGS MEDIA MASTERMIND KEYNOTES

MONDAY EVENING WORLD PREMIERE TV SCREENING

16.40-17.10 | Grand Auditorium

KEYNOTE: KIEFER SUTHERLAND, ACTOR AND EXECUTIVE PRODUCER / “DESIGNATED SURVIVOR”

‘THE SAME SKY’ 18.30-19.45 | Grand Auditorium Doors open at 18.00.

Presented by

FRIEDERIKE

BECHT

TOM

SOFIA

BEN

SCHILLING HELIN BECKER

KIEFER SUTHERLAND

MODERATOR: Michael Idato, The Sydney Morning Herald, USA

17.15-17.45 | Grand Auditorium

YOUTUBE KEYNOTE SESSION

SUSANNE DANIELS, GLOBAL HEAD OF ORIGINAL CONTENT, YOUTUBE

KEVIN BEGGS, CHAIRMAN, LIONSGATE TELEVISION GROUP

BURNIE BURNS, CO-FOUNDER AND CHIEF CREATIVE OFFICER, ROOSTER TEETH

directed by OLIVER HIRSCHBIEGEL written and created by PAULA MILNE

4K HDR WORLD PREMIERE TV SCREENINGS AT THE MIPCOM OPENING PARTY

Presented by

Presented by

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© NHK

From 21.00 | Grand Hyatt Hotel Martinez – Salon Acajou 2

© WOWOW/Warner Bros. Intl TV Production

From 20.00 | Grand Hyatt Hotel Martinez – Salon Acajou 2

14/10/2016 14:42

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mipcom

FEATURE

Out of the darkness‌ GLOBAL DRAMA TRENDS

Clues (Keshet International)

After years of darkly compulsive drama hits, are global audiences ready for lighter, brighter fare? Marlene Edmunds puts the question to some of the international drama industry’s leading players 93

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FEATURE W

Female empowerment has appeal to both genders because it’s so high on the agenda today

HILE event drama, Nordic noir, the classics, teen psychic fiction and spunky coming-of-age stories are still in high demand, if the project pipeline is any indication, international drama is increasingly sliding towards the comedic side. A case in point is Foreign Bodies, among the wave of new comedy commissions by UK broadcaster Channel 4. The eightepisode series, produced by Eleven and Entertainment One (eOne), is set to launch on E4 in early 2017. A debut in the US on TNT will follow.

Carrie Stein is executive vice-president of global productions for eOne Television, which is handling Foreign Bodies’ worldwide distribution outside of the UK. She describes the drama as “an hour-long funny romp set in some of the most interesting places in the world — Thailand, China, Nepal, Malaysia and many more locations you don’t get to see on television”.

The tale of a group of young adults hooking up to travel “is tonally comedic and yet it explores big life issues for each of our characters”, Stein adds. “What I’m confident we’ve achieved is relatability. Each character goes on a very specific emotional journey over the course of the show.”

Often easy to export, detective drama runs the gamut from police procedurals through noir to grim horror.

However, some of the best creators in the world are now mixing crime with comedy. Coming off period drama Medici: Masters Of Florence and The Man In The High Castle, writer, producer and showrunner Frank Spotnitz is now partnering with Canadian comedian Russell Peters on The Indian Detective.

Spotnitz says: “Peters is a great comedic talent and the fun of The Indian Detective is that Russell plays someone who looks Indian but is not — and then he

Howard Burch

Foreign Bodies, a comedy commission by the UK’s Channel 4

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goes to India. He’s sort of a double fish-out-of-water. In Canada, he looks Indian but he’s Canadian, and in India he looks Indian but he’s Canadian. He’s completely westernised, so he’s completely out of his element. In both places, there is a dissonance that is both comedic and dramatically interesting.”

The Indian Detective is produced by Big Light Productions, Blue Ice Pictures, Wonder Films and Canada’s CT , and financed by Blue Ice Pictures and the Industrial Development Corporation of South Africa.

Keshet International’s detective comedy Clues, about two women abandoned by the same guy, who run a detective agency, is among the raft of new shows now climbing aboard the female-empowerment train. Not surprisingly, however, considering the scriptwriter is US writer, actor and comedian Ruti Rudner, Clues does it with humour. And while humour can sometimes find travel difficult, Howard Burch, head of drama at eshet U , believes Clues will have no trouble finding a passport: “It’s a detective drama with comic flare, but essentially it’s about relationships and female empowerment. The latter has appeal to both genders because it’s so high on the agenda today and that adds to its sex appeal and originality.”

Burch adds that the character-driven side of Keshet’s drama also has proven international appeal. “Shows like Your Family Or Mine, which has aired two 50-episode seasons in Greece, and Traffic Light, which had eight series in Russia, have turned the belief that comedy is difficult to sell on its head,” he says.

There is arguably no other production company in the global industry that has, in such a short period of time, so successfully migrated between T and film screens,

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FEATURE

It’s exciting to be able to originate projects in Europe or in the US, with full awareness that anything is possible these days

linear and non-linear, than Scott Free Productions. In funding as well as content, David Zucker, president of television at Scott Free and executive producer of the much-awarded The Good Wife, notes that the industry has changed completely in the 15 years that Scott Free has been in existence. “There really are no more boundaries, domestically or globally,” he says. “Amazon and Netflix are obviously especially intent on producing projects with both domestic and international appeal, but it’s exciting to be able to originate projects in Europe or in the US, with full awareness that anything is possible these days.”

At press time, Scott Free, along with The Good Wife creators Michelle and Robert King’s King Size Productions, were all hands on deck with CBS All Access’ as-yet untitled online spin-off of The Good Wife, which is set to launch in the second quarter of 2017.

Executive producers include Ridley Scott, Zucker, Phil Alden Robinson (Field Of Dreams) Brooke Kennedy and Liz Glotzer, with CBS Studios handling the global distribution.

The project is but one in the more than a dozen that Scott Free has on the front burner, including on the development side Strange Angel for AMC, Vatican City for Amazon, 3001: The Final Odyssey for Syfy, and limited series adaptations of the Kit Carson tale Blood And Thunder. In addition, the company has also been active this year on The Man In The High Castle for Amazon, CBS satirical series BrainDead, the Amazon action-comedy half-hour pilot starring Jean-Claude Van Damme as Jean-Claude Van Johnson, and AMC historical anthology series The Terror.

In July, CJ E&M’s channel tvN launched the only international remake so far of The Good Wife, starring Cannes 2007 best-actress laureate Jeon Do-yeon. The

DOCTOR WHO’S CLASS ACT THE FIRST offshoot of Doctor Who in five years, Class, created by A Monster Calls author Patrick Ness, will bow first on young adult-targeted BBC Three in October before it eventually moves over to BBC One. While thoroughly sci-fi, an undercurrent of humour runs through the Doctor Who oeuvre — but will it rub off on Class? Liam Keelan, director of scripted content at BBC Worldwide, says: “While there’s a clear tie-in with Doctor Who, Ness brings his own style of writing to Class. It’s as much about the emotional highs and lows, joys and sorrows of our main characters as it is about the terror of aliens invading their environment.”

That said, Class promises to have, as Ness himself has put it, “aliens and terror and emotions and stuff”.

BBC Worldwide’s Class: “thoroughly sci-fi”

remake rights package included CBS consulting on the early stages of development. Chief producer of the Korean version of the drama, Young-Kyu Kim, says: “We had to make some changes to the original because the drama was to be aired as a short TV mini-series of 16 episodes.” He adds that, while Alicia’s character in the original drama develops slowly, Kim Hye-kyung, the Korean Alicia, “is a person who is frank and speaks her opinion from the outset”.

David Zucker

The Good Wife – Korea, the only international remake of the series so far

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FEATURE The legal and political systems in the US and South Korea are also different, Young-Kyu Kim notes. There is no jury system in Korea and, while Peter in the US show is elected to political office, his orean counterpart is appointed. For a sexually conservative Korean society, alinda Sharma’s flexible’ or bisexual lifestyle in the original series is also only very discretely alluded to in the Korean version.

At MIPCOM, DCD Rights is showcasing Striking Out, a Bl!nder Films Production for Ireland’s RTE about a Dublin-based solicitor who sets up her own practice after catching her fiance and partner playing around.

While there are some clear parallels with The Good Wife, Striking Out is fundamentally different in environment and tone, says DCD Rights chief executive Nicky Davies Williams: “Both have a strong central female character at their core reacting to, and being paradoxically empowered by, the infidelity of their respective partners. But Alicia Florrick is dealing with the more political and litigious environs of Chicago than the intrigues and charms of Dublin.”

DCD is also showcasing Deep Water, a thriller based on 80 cold-case murders against gay victims that took place in Sydney in the Eighties and Nineties.

Japan’s Fuji Television has a strong track record in drama, as the popularity of Atelier, a Netflix original,

DCD’s cold-case thriller Deep Water

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has shown. “We have been producing drama series for half a century and I believe that’s the reason Netflix chose us as partners when they first entered the Japanese market,” says Takayuki Hayakawa, Fuji Television Network’s director of worldwide production and sales, international department. Atelier is a coming-of-age story about a young woman trainee at a lingerie shop in Tokyo. Hayakawa adds that Fuji Television would be happy to co-operate on high-end drama with more SVOD platforms: “There will come a time when all audiovisual will be available for digital streaming.”

Fuji Television has worked with Latin American and Hispanic US companies in anime and non-scripted.

“We are convinced we could make popular drama work in these territories if we utilised Fuji Television assets effectively,” Hayakawa says.

Also on the Japanese broadcaster’s slate is Hope, a remake of the Korean hit drama series Misaeng, and the just-announced spin-off co-production with Taiwan of A Girl & Three Sweethearts. Both are part of a new tide of Fuji Television drama that transcends both borders and languages, says Satoshi Kubota, producer of worldwide production and sale in Fuji TV’s international department.

Some high-quality drama needs time to brew. The TV adaptation of the mini-series Les Miserables by BAFTA fellow Andrew Davies actually began six years ago.

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FEATURE

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These days, it’s the original stories that attract audiences.

They are the ones that surprise you and take you on the most interesting journeys Piv Bernth

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The BBC Studios and Lookout Point co-production for BBC One is in association with Weinstein Television.

“Six years ago, Andrew wrote a breakdown of the novel, and started planning a mini-series,” says Lookout Point co-founder and CEO Simon Vaughan. “We put it on hold when the 0 feature film of the musical [Les Miserables] came into sight, as it felt a bit ‘me too’. But now, a few years later, the book still seems like a tempting prospect and we thought the time was right.”

BBC Worldwide will distribute the mini-series, except to the US and China, which will be handled by Weinstein Television. Davies, Harvey Weinstein and Vaughan were also driving forces behind the 2016 TV series War And Peace, which has now been sold to territories across the globe.

Vaughan calls Weinstein’s involvement “as propulsive as ever”. He adds: “Harvey said ‘yes’ immediately and has been a key engine in helping this production to happen. We already have some brilliant casting ideas in discussion that will make this feel fresh and different and essential. It’s a major part of his genius.”

Created by Adam Price and produced by Camilla Hammerich — both of Borgen fame — the first of twoseason drama series Rides Upon The Storm will be debuted by Danish public broadcaster DR in September 0 . The long-awaited series marks the first collaboration between DR, French/German network ARTE and Studiocanal and SAM Le Francais.

“Rides Upon The Storm is an original story about spirituality,” says DR head of drama Piv Bernth. “We are living in a time when there are very strong faith-based feelings and emotions, and when organised and other religions have a lot of political influence.”

She adds that the project has been in the creative cloud for some years: “Four years ago, Adam Price talked to us about this project. Both Adam and DR were involved at the time in several other high-profile productions and didn’t have the time to do it, so we agreed with Adam to put it on hold.”

Bernth adds: “Rides Upon The Storm is an original story and, these days, it’s the original stories that attract audiences. They are the ones that surprise you and take you on the most interesting journeys.”

Preciosas is one of the latest limited telenovelas to

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PSYCHIC INSIGHT THE LAST few years have seen HBO Asia churn out original productions and co-productions that have regional and international potential. Following on the heels of Grace, a collaboration with Infocus Asia (IFA), mythological thriller Halfworlds and detective thriller Sarangoon Road, it is now moving into production on The Psychic, working once again with IFA. Erika North, head of programming and production for HBO Asia, says: “IFA brought us the project and introduced us to PTS, the local Taiwan free-to-air broadcaster. For us, the concept of a young psychic struggling to balance wider concerns with that of being a normal teenage girl really appealed.”

The Psychic is directed by Chen Ho-Yu and crafted by his team in co-operation with IFA. North adds: “Creatively, it was an opportunity we did not want to miss and we feel very strongly that this TV series — our first in the Chinese language and set in Taiwan — will resonate across our audience base.”

Yao Yao and Kent Tsai, stars of HBO Asia original The Psychic

come out of Mexico City-based global distributor Comarex’s relationship with Chilean network Canal 13.

“The Chilean drama narrative is innovative, complex and reflective and, in addition to high uality, that is what audiences want these days,” says Marcel Vinay Jr, CEO of Comarex.

Preciosas’ lead character is a woman struggling to balance a career and love interests, who is unjustly sent to jail and then escapes. Vinay adds: “Audiences these days want a lot of twists and turns, and this is a telenovela that clearly falls into that category.”

Comarex a year ago signed an exclusive deal with Chilean network Canal to distribute a pack of finished TV series and formats worldwide. It also inked a deal with Mediaset, broadening a relationship that already included distributing Mediaset’s catalogue in Latin America to include Asia and Africa.

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FEATURE VIRTUAL REALITY

We’re virtually there

The ballet Giselle, created for Sky by the UK’s Factory 42

The rapidly growing VR industry is estimated to become a $150bn per year industry by 2020. But can the crucial element that will drive that growth — namely, great content — reach the market fast enough to feed the huge and growing demand for VR experiences? Juliana Koranteng and Gary Smith report

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F YOU want to understand the impact virtual reality (VR) technology could have on the international content business, then immerse yourself in this year’s plethora of MIPCOM VR sessions. A host of dedicated panels on what VR can do for media and entertainment, via sports, gaming, news and its production and monetisation, can be experienced right here in Cannes.

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Traditional TV players, including Discovery Communications, Sky, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), Russia’s RT, Euronews and ARTE are on board the VR content-production train. Simultaneously, specialists, ranging from Laduma, Atlantic Productions, Rewind, Agat Films/Ex Nihilo and AudioGaming to VR news studio Immersiv.ly, want to show us why they are along

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for the ride.

As a production format, VR is still so new that there are more questions than answers about its potential.

But that does not faze Ben Smith, CEO of international sports and entertainment at VR studio Laduma. “Like TV, radio, digital and mobile before it, VR is the next chapter in the media revolution,” he says. “There will always be people using words like ‘fad’ and ‘toy’, but tomorrow’s winners are already embracing VR, understanding that it isn’t a threat to TV. See it as an opportunity to bring your audience closer than ever before by adding incredible value.”

Just as sports has adopted most media platforms to bring fans and brand-owners together, Smith sees VR doing the same. Among Laduma’s recent ventures is a VR series following LA Galaxy, the US soccer team famous for David Beckham. “This summer, our producers were interviewing Liverpool legend [player] Steven Gerrard at his Beverley Hills home and trailing LA Galaxy stars through the streets of LA,” Smith adds.

“Last month, our proprietary VR rigs were tracking lions and elephants in the South African bush and literally in the huddle with the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars.”

Smith is keen on sport because “millions of fans around the world follow their teams with incredible loyalty and passion — and they often do that from thousands of miles away”. He adds: “VR allows the biggest brands to reach out to those fans and transport them to wherever it is they want to place them — in the locker room, inside the ground, at the homes of their heroes...”

There will always be people using words like ‘fad’ and ‘toy’, but tomorrow’s winners are already embracing VR Ben Smith

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Spike TV, the Viacom-owned network known for its appeal to hard-to-reach young male audiences, recently hit the headlines for launching the VR version of Lip Sync Battle, the reality music contest pulling in high ratings in the US. But Frank Tanki, Spike TV’s executive vice-president of brand marketing and creative, also says VR is “perfect for sports and our coverage of Bellator MMA [mixed martial arts], because it enables different looks and provides an in-arena experience”.

The first fully immersive content created by U satellite broadcaster Sky, which introduced its Sky VR Studio in March, consisted of films of the Barcelona Formula 1 Grand Prix as seen on the tracks, and in the pit lanes and team garages. Meanwhile, UK streaming network BT Sport has promoted its exclusive rights to some of the top-tier football games by offering VR viewing of live matches at its flagship mobile-phone stores in London. And broadcasters including the UK’s BBC, US network NBC and Sweden’s Modern Times Group (MTG) made some of the year’s Olympic Games available to watch in VR. But while the sports world and the video-games sector, which has traditionally provided immersive interactive experiences to players, have made an easy transition into the VR space, other forms of entertainment are now catching up. Currently, the genres of choice appear to be based on stories with established fans. For example, Sky recently commissioned Factory 42, a new UK-based VR content studio working at the intersection of T , film and games, to create a piece based on a new production of the famous ballet Giselle.

Fusion, the Disney-backed US-based multicultural TV and multimedia platform, has joined forces with NASA

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FEATURE and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to produce Mars 2030, a VR reproduction of life as an astronaut on the planet. The quality is high-end cinematic. “It is a VR experience that provides an accurate, realistic rendition of life as one of the first astronauts to arrive on Mars,” says Adrian Saravia, Fusion’s creative director. “Designed by our VR producer, the multi-sensory layout transcends physical space, with an accurate 3D rendition of the Mars terrain, offering an immersive, interactive walkthrough of the habitats and rovers designed by NASA. It’s set to an original soundtrack interpreted by the London Symphony Orchestra.”

More and more media companies are committed to investing in VR. Major US movie studio STX Entertainment, for example, recently acquired immersive-content producer Surreal Inc to set up a dedicated VR division. Amazon Studios, the entertainment arm of the e-commerce behemoth, recently posted an advertisement for an executive who can produce TV and films for VR viewing. Crackle,

NBCUniversal’s Halcyon

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Sony Pictures Entertainment’s streaming platform, has declared plans to produce VR shows. And the BBC has brought together various divisions, including BBC R&D (Research and Development) and BBC Learning, to work with specialists to experiment in making VR content.

As with all new audiovisual technologies, it is not only the traditional T and filmmakers that have entered the VR arena. US newspaper conglomerates Gannett Company and The New York Times have set up their own VR production and distribution units. USA Today Network, the online video arm of the national newspaper, is to launch VRtually There, a new VR platform.

Niko Chauls, USA Today Network’s director of applied technology, says the move confirms that ’s strength lies in its ability to tell stories. “One of the distinguishing aspects of our organisation is that we have a local and regional footprint of over 100 news properties across the US,” he says. “Combine that with our national flagship brand, USA Today, and we have a large and distributed force of VR storytellers.”

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So what about VR’s creative potential? “I think what audience numbers enjoyed by traditional content.” we’re seeing right now is programme-makers grappling In terms of which companies are making the most inaround to create VR spin-offs of shows, just to be seen novative content, Witters believes it “boils down to eito be ahead of the curve,” says Phil Birchenall, projects ther those who are the most flexible artistically, or with director at UK-based consultancy K7 Media. “But per- the biggest appetite for experimentation”. She adds: sonally, I’m excited to see how SyFy’s Halcyon plays “Valve’s SteamVR is a partner on the HTC Vive and out, where the VR elements are genuinely trying to add has both the biggest addressable market for its hardware an extra dimension to the show.” and comes from one of the most trusted gaming distriFusion, meanwhile, is experimenting with different ap- bution platforms in the world. They are playing with plications for VR, “knowing some will work better than room-scale VR, allowing you to walk around within the others”, Saravia says. “We’re exploring different ways experience and immerse your entire body. I’ve already to integrate the technology into our other content of- seen demos of their popular title Portal in VR and it’s ferings, as well as large immersive projects like Mars fantastic.“ 2030. We are also working on a There are also independent profew episodic VR experiences that duction companies such as Felix are fully immersible 3D environ& Paul Studios working with big ments with complex narratives.” brands on cinematic VR, plus the Sam Witters, CEO of SW & PartBBC’s work with Oscar Raby, ners, stresses the importance of which includes The Turning Forest content: “While 360-degree vidand Easter Rising. Oculus Story eos on Facebook and YouTube Studio is specifically tasked with have made it easier to reach massexperimenting with VR content market audiences with promotionand Henry won ’s first Emmy al experiences — like for Netflix’s this year. Penrose Studios’ AlStranger Things — the big platlumette premiered at this year’s forms haven’t yet proved that a VR Tribeca Film Festival to great actitle is the must-see content of the claim. year,” she says. “VR and 360-de“But most of the work that’s pushgree content is already becoming ing the medium ahead in the most popular in the markets that have interesting ways struggles to find access to high-end, head-mounted distribution that can include its indisplays [HMDs] like the Oculus teractivity as well as reach its audiRift, HTC Vive and the mobile ence,” Witters says. “Distribution Phil Birchenall headset, Samsung Gear. The replatforms have announced expandlease of additional platforms with ed interactive functionalities in the even wider addressable markets before the end of this next 12 months, but haven’t released those updates yet. year from PlayStation and Google [Daydream] prom- For now, the best places to see these exciting pieces are ises to fuel the fire of adoption.” at festivals and other exhibitions.”

We can also expect to see some breakout work as distribution channels become better able to sup- According to Ben Trewhella, CEO of Opposable VR, port interactivity and cinematic-style VR. “We’ll conflict is in the offing: “There’s a console-style war see bigger name gaming companies entering the brewing among the high-end VR headset manufacturmarket with their own immersive experiences,” ers, which will fast move to who has the best content,” Witters says. “While these titles will speed things he says. “However, at the more consumer-friendly end, up, VR is still a few years away from the sort of there are many exciting VR headsets that work with mo-

What we’re seeing now is programmemakers grappling around to create VR spin-offs of shows, just to be seen to be ahead of the curve

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bile phones. A good example of this is I See Ooo, a VR game that is sold with a branded viewer available from the Google Play Store, and is based on the hit Cartoon Network show Adventure Time. I think it’s going to be fairly commonplace to see games like this and Google Cardboard in most people’s homes next year.”

There are, Trewhella says, a lot of companies now looking at VR and immersive content: “For example, AltspaceVR, vTime, Rec Room and Bigscreen are working on social VR experiences while, in terms of games, there’s Raw Data from Survios, Budget Cuts from Neat Corporation, the new Rez Infinite level on PS from Monsters + Enhance Games, and anything from Squanchtendo and Owlchemy Labs. I’ve also seen the preview of Gnomes & Goblins, which is a beautiful narrative-led experience from studio Wevr. They are working Sam Witters with film director Jon Favreau, so I feel that’s definitely something worth keeping an eye on.”

Graham Saltmarsh, director of licensing, UK and Nordics, at Turner Broadcasting, is convinced that VR is going to be important to Cartoon Network: “One of the advantages of having our own studios is that we are able to create and own our IP. This means we can produce exciting new content that is exclusive to us.”

The launch of Secret Location’s Halcyon was a ground-breaking move for Syfy. “We intend to keep exploring options for the kind of innovative programming that enables Syfy to deliver on its Imagine Greater promise, including virtual-reality content,” says Steve Patscheck, executive vice-president of programming at NBCUniversal (NBCU) International.

“Halcyon gave us an opportunity to experiment with VR content across both linear and VR, and has struck a chord with Syfy fans and VR enthusiasts alike. Further, our promotional approach was equally as innovative as the content. For example, Halcyon had its international premiere in VR on [social interaction

platform] AltspaceVR. We also used AltspaceVR to host NBCU International’s first-ever virtual international press junket.”

So will we see Syfy offering VR content as standalone, episodic series? Or is it mainly, for the moment at least, an add-on for hybrid shows such as Halcyon? “VR is an exciting new format and particularly compelling for the Syfy audience,” Patscheck says. “Available on air, online and in VR, Halcyon is simultaneously accessible to linear viewers and VR enthusiasts. Ultimately, the VR episodes provide an enriched experience, but those only watching linear episodes don’t miss out, as brief recaps of VR episodes are incorporated within the linear storyline. Going forward, we’ll be evaluating fresh VR content that appeals to both linear and VR audiences.”

Gone, released on the Samsung platform and created by the team behind The Walking Dead, features 11 episodes and was, according to Skybound partner Dave Alpert, quite a challenge. “It runs like real life — that is to say, if you turn your head one way, there is stuff going on around you that you’re not seeing,” he says. “The main challenge was to create a credible and thoroughly immersive 360-degree world and to make it feel organic. I think we succeeded.

Gone is the number-one viewed show on the Samsung platform, and we are currently making a second series.

We are also working on a number of other projects, including 360-degree videos and some hybrid shows.”

Alpert adds: “We totally believe the hype around VR because, unlike 3D, which was an addition to an existing medium, VR is new and different. The episodes have to be short, which is a good fit with current content-consumption habits. All we need now is cheaper and lighter headsets, which will come. But as much as VR is exciting, the real game-changer is Augmented Reality [AR], which has so many applications beyond entertainment, like training, education and advanced computing.”

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FEATURE VIRTUAL REALITY

What’s happening in the virtual world?

Virtual reality — is it all talk? Well, there is programming being produced.

Here’s some content that has gone from virtual to actual

Blair Witch (trailer) Creators: US studio giant Lionsgate; California-based VR ad agency Vertebrae What is it? A 90-second interactive VR advertisement to promote the sequel to The Blair Witch Project, the 1999 found-footage horror movie.

Easter Rising: Voice Of A Rebel Creators: UK public broadcaster BBC; Melbournebased digital production agency TO U filmmaking consultancy Crossover Labs What is it? A documentary that places the viewer in Dublin in 1916, during the bloody Easter Rising uprising, Ireland’s fight for independence from Britain.

Giselle VR Creators: UK immersive content producer Factory 42; satellite TV giant Sky What is it? One of the first pieces of content on Sky’s new VR app, Giselle VR was inspired by the English National Ballet’s production of the iconic romantic ballet Giselle, which started touring the UK in September. #HACKED: Syria’s Electronic Armies Creators: Al Jazeera English

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What is it? A game-like alternate-reality interactive app that invites the user to assume the role of an investigative journalist infiltrating Syria’s cyber war by collecting information from hackers, activists and coders. Based on People & Power, a documentary by correspondent Juliana Ruhfus, Al Jazeera hopes the immersive format will win over new viewers.

Halcyon Creators: Hollywood studio NBCUniversal; its network SyFy; Canadian/US VR studio Secret Location What is it? A dark futuristic sci-fi mystery series set in 2040 consisting of 10 standard scripted episodes complemented by five experiences. The interactive elements are built with videogame engine Unity.

Home: A VR Spacewalk Creators: UK public broadcaster BBC; VR production studio Rewind What is it? Inspired by the spacewalk training methods of NASA and the European Space Agency, this 15-minute cinematic VR experience enables users to feel what it is actually like to be an astronaut floating 250 million miles above Earth.

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Disney and Univision Communications’ Mars

Lip Sync Battle Creators: Viacom’s Spike TV network What is it? A VR version of the popular celebritypacked lip-sync reality singing contest hosted by LL Cool J and Chrissy Teigen. It is thought to be the first TV series to offer VR versions of its episodes.

Mars 2030 Creators: Fusion (Disney and Univision Communications’ multiplatform joint venture aimed at young US multicultural audiences) What is it? The immersive experience is the closest you will get to the thrill of being among the first astronauts to arrive on the Red Planet.

On Ice Creators: Google Spotlight Stories; Google’s Advanced Technologies And Projects What is it? A hilarious interactive 360-degree animated short centred on an egocentric ice-skating champion whose fiercest competitor comes from the most unlikely of places. It can be watched on YouTube, YouTube’s Android app and the Google Spotlight Stories app.

VR Noir: A Day Before The Night Creators: Sydney-based Australian VR studio Start VR

What is it? The interactive crime thriller sees viewers taking on the role of cynical private detective Veronica Coltrane, who has even more problems than the suspects she investigates.

VRtually There Creators: Newspaper publishing giant Gannett; its branded content studio GET Creative What is it? Described as “the first branded news experience presented in virtual reality”, the immersive video series is dedicated to the news gathered from Gannett’s national and local newspapers. It will be available on the online video platform USA Today Network and its VR Stories app.

We Wait VR Creators: UK public broadcaster BBC; Oscar-winning studio Aardman Animations What is it? Based on the BBC News’ coverage of the global refugee catastrophe, We Wait VR takes users right into the middle of the crisis to understand the migrants’ hopes and fears as they risk their lives crossing treacherous seas in equally treacherous vessels.

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FEATURE HIGH-END DOCUMENTARY

Stories worth telling

Children Of The Wild (ZDFE)

It is generally acknowledged that we are in a golden age of scripted TV. But less well documented is that factual TV is also going through its own creative renaissance.

Andy Fry reports

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ITLES such as Making A Murderer, Jinx, Zero Days, OJ: Made In America, The Story Of God, Planet Earth II and Great Barrier Reef have all contributed to the impression of an international factual community operating at full throttle.

Paul Cabana, executive vice-president and head of programming at A+E Networks’ History and H2, says: “History Channel has made headlines with scripted series like Vikings recently. But we have a number of premium documentary series and events coming up in the near future that represent a really nice range of tone and content.”

Highlights include The History Of Superheroes (working title), a film from Morgan Spurlock that explores the cultural backdrop to the rise of Marvel and DC; Age Of Terror (working title), a look at the factors behind the rise of organisations like ISIS; and The Human Journey (working title), the story of migration over the last 70,000 years.

While these are quite distinct subjects, Cabana says “the thing that unites them is that they all feel like stories that must be told, which is one of the real strengths of the factual genre. All of these titles either involve great storytellers [like Morgan Spurlock], or benefit from new information that has come along. In the case of terror, recent world events have prompted a desire for context. With human migration, it’s a combination of subject relevance and new DNA technology that allows us to explore the fundamental forces that set mankind in motion.”

Get the ingredients right “and you have stories that are

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as compelling as fiction”, Cabana adds. “I think we’ll see more of them in our portfolio because there is demand for them. But it’s important to realise I’m not just talking about shows that have premium production values. They are just as likely to be premium in terms of insight, access, subject, point of view, auspices or research. What the audience is really craving from factual is something they’ve never seen before.”

He cites the example of 60 Days In, an A&E series about a group of individuals who volunteered to spend 60 days undercover in prison to gain evidence of questionable or illegal activities.

Of course, “never seen before” does not mean you cannot revisit a subject — it just means you need to approach it in a fresh way. The BBC, for example, is poised to present Planet Earth II, a sequel to 2006’s landmark natural-history series Planet Earth.

BBC Natural History Unit creative director and executive producer Mike Gunton says: “We were keen to do this series because the world has changed in the last 10 or 20 years. But advances in technology also means it has become possible to tell stories in a new way. The original Planet Earth looked at the world from a godlike perspective, but this is more about the drama of individual animal lives. We still get to see the great habitats of the world, but this is a more personal approach to storytelling.”

In many ways, Gunton says, Planet Earth II deploys

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FEATURE Woodcut Media’s Derren Lawford

BBC Natural History Unit’s Mike Gunton

the techniques that have made scripted TV so popular: “The challenge we have as natural-history filmmakers is that it takes a lot longer to get from concept to delivery with a high-end factual series than it does with a drama — maybe four or five years. But we have evolved the way we do things to take advantage of scripted TV’s strengths. Our animals have become characters engaged in recognisable challenges, such as bringing up babies. This adds a poignancy and relevance that viewers respond to.”

Making the animals into characters also makes it possible to tell new stories under the Planet Earth franchise, Gunton adds: “For example, we look at the city as a habitat, exploring how some animals have adapted to take advantage of the expansion in urban areas.”

The idea that factual has borrowed from drama comes up a lot. But it is only one reason for the genre’s current success. “I think factual TV producers are also learning ways to make their shows stand out in a competitive landscape,” says Derren Lawford, creative director at Woodcut Media, which is backed by Bob & Co. “We co-produced Mandela, My Dad And Me with Idris Elba’s Green Door Pictures and Shine North. The film followed Idris while he was filming Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom while also coping with the sudden death of his father. Now we are working with Idris again on Cut From A Different Cloth, a documentary which looks at Superdry’s attempt to launch a premium fashion line.”

The inclusion of a renowned actor such as Elba brings with it the benefit of buyer name recognition. “But we also discovered something else,” Lawford adds. “When you search for Idris Elba’s movies on Netflix, Mandela, My Dad And Me also comes up, showing how promotable elements can help your production stand out from the rest of the competition.”

Like Gunton, Lawford says one of the biggest challenges with making a great documentary series or one-off is that it can take a long time to produce — one reason why the number of high-end factual titles lags behind

History’s Paul Cabana

Cut From A Different Cloth (Woodcut Media)

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drama. “Great documentaries like Making A Murderer are predicated on amazing access, which isn’t easy to get,” he adds. “So most factual production companies can’t survive simply by focusing on high-end projects.

But the positive message these days is that you can be as bold as you want with factual, in the same way as drama producers.”

Simon Andreae, CEO of Naked Entertainment, has played a key role in the recent reinvention of factual TV, working at Optomen Television, Channel Four, Discovery Channel and Fox before setting up his own company. The titles with which he has been involved include everything from Hell’s Kitchen and Naked And Afraid to Emmy-nominated The Story Of God with Morgan Freeman for National Geographic Channel.

“The factual TV business has learned a thing or two from the pharmaceuticals industry,” Andreae says. “It has realised that it isn’t enough just to offer people intellectual nourishment and expect them to swallow it — you also need to give them attractive packaging. Factual television needs to be presented in an unmissable, magnetic way. It has to be delicious and good for you.”

This, Andreae adds, is part of the reason that celebrity has become such an important part of the high-end factual arena. He cites Discovery’s Curiosity and Nat Geo’s The Story Of God. “The Story Of God was such a success because Morgan Freeman really engaged with the project,” he says. “It was a serious exploration of religion mixed with a star-driven travelogue.”

Echoing a point made by History’s Cabana about the meaning of the word “premium”, Andreae says that a big change in the business is that it is no longer possible to make simple distinctions in factual between high-end and populist productions. “Our ‘make-under’ show 100% Hotter has a populist feel about it, but it deals with a serious issue — young women disguising themselves with make-up and accessories because they are scared to reveal what’s underneath. You can take a

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FEATURE

Russia’s Golden Mermaids (NHK)

tabloid approach and deliver broadsheet nourishment.”

David Royle, executive vice-president, programming and production, at specialist factual broadcaster Smithsonian Channel, agrees that key players in the genre have learned to play the marketing game better: “We try to play off the popular zeitgeist. We’re always trying to work out what subjects are coming up that will interest people, or whether there’s some kind of anniversary we can hook an idea to.”

Recent examples include Million Dollar American Princesses, a show about the American heiresses who married into the English aristocracy. Smithsonian Channel established a link between this show and drama hit Downton Abbey by getting actress Elizabeth McGovern to tell the story.

“We also have a new project called In Search Of The The Assassination Tapes (Smithsonian Channel)

Real Jesus Of Nazareth,” Royle adds. “This will coincide with the 40th anniversary of Franco Zeffirelli’s iconic movie Jesus Of Nazareth. The star of that film, Robert Powell, will explore the story of Jesus for us over four hours.”

One possible problem for factual TV is the number of real-life subjects that are now being reinvented as dramas rather than being produced as documentaries.

However, Royle says this can actually work to the genre’s advantage: “The thing that a good factual series offers is the truth. So when viewers see a drama they like — for example, Deutschland 83, which is set during the Cold War — their next step is often to look for a factual series.”

Royle says stylistic innovation is also helping factual to stay fresh: “Tom Jennings put together a superb film called MLK: The Assassination Tapes, which is based around a treasure trove of footage he found in a Memphis library. He took clips, radio and photos created in the run up to Martin Luther King’s assassination and reconstructed them into a film. There’s no narration and no new elements added, but the result is spine chilling.”

One other factor that has helped factual TV maintain its freshness and innovation is that it is not as restricted as drama in terms of the source of its ideas. While the international drama market still tends to be dominated by a handful of territories, high-end factual ideas emerge from all over the world. The German-speaking territories, for example, are home to a number of leading factual players, including ZDF and ORF. ZDF’s commercial arm, ZDF Enterprises (ZDFE) is at MIPCOM with factual series including The Desert Sea, The Celts: Blood, Iron & Sacrifice and Children Of The Wild, which investigates whether a child can grow up all by itself, surrounded only by wild, ferocious animals, in the way that Mowgli did in The Jungle Book.

Another global force in factual is Japanese public broadcaster NHK, whose senior producer of international co-productions, Sayumi Horie, says: “We are experiencing success with our high-end documentaries.

One example is a three-parter that revealed new truths about the Lockheed bribery scandal in 1976. This was one of the greatest political and economic scandals involving both the US and Japan, and it brought down the then prime minister of Japan. NHK’s in-depth investi-

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Behind Bars: The World’s Toughest Prisons (Quintus Media)

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gation brought out a string of unknown facts on what happened behind the scenes.”

Other high-end factual series involving NHK include Russia’s Golden Mermaids, a look into why Russia’s synchronised swimming team is so strong. In part, this is about the grace of the swimmers, but the programme also provides a scientific analysis, Horie says: “Using the latest 4K technology and science investigation, the doc not only beautifully captures the swimmers’ performance, but reveals for the first time ever the oxygen consumption in their muscles and brains, and how their bodies have evolved to gain an ability only aquatic mammals have.”

Also of interest is The Body: Miracles Of The Inner Social Network, an eight-parter coming out in 2018. “Until now, we have been taught that our brain and heart are the control centres of our lives,” Horie says. “But the latest medical research tells us that, in fact, the crucial key to life is the dynamic exchange of information between our organs and cells. Combining 8K/4K UHD microscopic images and 4K CGI, The Body visualises the complex yet delicate interaction of organs within the body.”

Echoing her peers, Horie adds: “4K, unique access, amazing CGI and dramatic reconstruction are all important elements [of high-end factual]. But on top of that, what captures viewers is the dramatic adventurelike thrill of not knowing what’s going to happen next and the excitement of being taken to an unknown world.

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Our new series The Great Amazon is an example that rated well. It’s a look into the most remote areas of the Amazon, with viewers taken on a hunt to find rare fish and monkeys.”

Choice of subject matter is dictated to some extent by local experience, Horie says: “We have recently been experiencing unusual typhoons, strange weather and frequent earthquakes in Japan, so we are producing a great number of doc series along these lines. We just started airing Mega-Crisis, which looks at how our weather and earthquakes will change with the continuing global warming, and the impact it will have on both the world and Japan.

We are also now producing a series, Geo-Japan, which is an ambitious science project that will visualise in full 4K HDR the spectacular and drastic changes that our country has gone through over tens of millions of years, and look at how the Japanese archipelago miraculously came about. Docs on this subject always get very high ratings, which means that viewers are keen to understand what is going on.”

The range of broadcasters interested in factual also means the genre benefits from pooled resources and shared expertise. “International co-production helps us produce high-end docs,” Horie says. “It provides us with an extra budget and also creative co-operation with partners who share the same mission. Life Force 3 is an example. NHK and NHNZ, both known for creating high-end natural-history films, joined forces to employ breath-taking 4K cinematography and cutting-edge com-

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puter graphics to visualise the science behind evolution.”

Continuing this theme, ZDF Enterprises is also showcasing a high-profile documentary project called Big Pacific. A rich cinematic vision of the world’s largest ocean, the 4K series is a co-production from NHNZ, PBS and CCTV9 that also involves ZDF, ZDF Enterprises, Discovery International, Channel 9 and ARTE as participants.

NHNZ managing director Kyle Murdoch describes Big Pacific as the most important series NHNZ has ever embarked on: “Not only is it our most ambitious project to date, but it’s also about a region close to our hearts — the Pacific is our backyard and everyone involved with the production has a connection with this body of water.

Our shooters were in their element and have managed to capture unique behaviour.”

Gerrit Kemming, CEO and founder of Berlin-based distributor Quintus Media, says factual is benefiting from a growing number of buyers around the world. “Competition is rising in a number of key markets, with new channels in territories such as Poland and Germany,” he says. “That’s good news for series in our catalogue like Behind Bars: The World’s Toughest Prisons and Giant Constructions.”

Kemming reports demand for “exciting, immersive factual TV that makes great use of 4K, access, graphics and new production approaches, such as drone cameras. It’s not clear yet how factual TV will fare as audiences shift to on-demand, but I anticipate another good few years.”

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