SSTR
2015
www.mkmediagroup.tv
Season Screen TV Review
“I fell in love with the global TV world” Tim Сrescenti
Interview with President of Small World IFT
NEWS, BROADCASTING, SALES NEWS, INTERVIEW, MEDIA REPORTS
Get inside at any cost In Production, 12x26 min, 2015, HD
ISSUE 2, MAY 2015
CONTENTS
CONTENTS EDITORIAL
4
MEDIA NEWS
6
Analytical
FORMATS: MAKE IT SUCCESSFUL World’s leading experts talk about formats and reasons that make formats successful.
Interview
TIM СRESCENTI: I FELL IN LOVE WITH THE GLOBAL TV WORLD
8
16
President of Small World IFT Tim Сrescenti told us about his personal experience of finding formats. Exclusive interview for SSTR.
Report
MK-DISTRIBUTION VISITED DISCOP ISTANBUL 2015
20
Trip blog: media impressions
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EDITORIAL
EDITOR’S NOTE I always wondered and had this science fiction idea: is it possible, at least theoretically, that there will be a time when all the television will consist of format shows only? Some day there will be a dozen of companies generating format ideas, and the rest will be channels, studios and platforms adapting these ideas for their countries. And we will no longer need creative producers, authors and script writers - everything will be done by the pattern, created by third party. But it’s a fiction... Or not? Anyway, today we are talking about formats :)
Denys Mikheiev General Director & Publishing Director, MK Media Group
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NEWS FilmBox Brand Channels Travel to Israel. SPI International/FilmBox are launching seven thematic channels on Israel’s TakeTV, a new IPTV/ OTT service that debuted this month. Under the agreement, TakeTV will offer access to FightBox HD, featuring live MMA and kickboxing events; FashionBox HD, focused on fashion and shopping; DocuBox HD, which offers docs on nature and human civilization; and Fast&FunBox HD, meant for fans of extreme sports. The deal also includes FilmBox Arthouse, which airs masterpieces of world cinema, as well as the adult channels Erox and Eroxxx. Lior Banay, CEO of TakeTV, remarked: ‘‘As a new player in the TV market in Israel we are excited to offer several SPI channels on our new IPTV/OTT platform. Our customers may now enjoy both the linear channels and the related VOD content. We value the quality of programming and the high level of professionalism delivered by SPI International and we hope it will be a win-win partnership”. Bein buys Digiturk for $1.2bn. Qatar’s Bein Sports has reportedly bought Turkish pay TV platform Digiturk for a fee between US$1bn and US$1.2bn. Bein Sports acquired a 53% stake in Digiturk last December in what was believed to be the largest ever media deal in Turkey. The agreement saw Bein Sports CEO Nasser Al-Khelaifi take on the Digiturk stake from Turkish conglomerate Curkurova Holding and combine it with the Al Jazeera TV network. Local reports have now suggested that US firm Providence Equity Partners, which owns the remaining 47%, has also agreed a deal with Bein. The reports put the price paid at between US$1bn and US$1.2bn, adding that Bein will control all the shares in the DTH platform, pending approval by the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund. Bein Sports launched in November 2003 as Al Jazeera Sport and owns the exclusive broadcasting rights in the Arab Middle East for major football leagues, such as the English Football Premier League. Middle East Pay TV Market boom fastest globally. The leading global source of critical information and insight, announced key findings from its annual Middle East & North Africa Pay TV Market Monitor report. The report found that 2014 was another year of substantial growth for the pay TV market in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, with pay TV revenues jumping from €702 million in 2013 to €873 million in 2014. While most households continue to rely predominantly on free satellite TV, the total primary pay TV households rose to 4.8 million from 4.3 million in 2013, a year-on-year increase of 12.4 percent. “This is the largest increase in revenue globally”, - said report author Constantinos Papavassilopoulos, senior analyst at IHS Technology. “The MENA region represents huge opportunities for investors. If we look at the demographics alone, over 60 percent of the population is under 35, they are media-literate and have developed international tastes in TV content”. IHS forecasts that between 2015 and 2019, the MENA region will grow five times higher than the rate of the US, UK, Germany, France and Italy. IHS expects positive growth in the pay TV market to continue, with primary pay TV households reaching 6.6 million and revenues €1.7 billion in 2019. 6 | SEASON SCREEN TV REVIEW | ISSUE 2 MAY 2015
NEWS Russian Channel Creates 4K Channel. The creator of channels for cable and satellite television, First HDTV (Russia), develops the idea of the new 4K channel. The company has proposed the satellite operator ‘‘Tricolor TV” to be the co-author of this project. Currently, according to the company’s management, the company conducts market researches on opportunities and potential audience of the channel. ‘‘First HDTV” has already started working on the production of content in 4K format, but we are not talking about starting any thematic channels in this standard yet. A few years earlier the company was working on the creation of a 3D-channel, but the project was stopped. 1+1 Studio Produces New Talent-Show For Children. TV channel «1 + 1» has begun casting for the new children’s talent show in the format of TELEVISA. The new project is open for children of 4-12 years who love singing, dancing, or have a unique talent. The new show will be produced by the creative team of Ukrainian version of “The voice of Holland”. “Participants of “The Voice. Kids” made us change our attitude to the projects we are working on. We have seen that today’s children are unique in their talents and we would like to give them the opportunity to come on the big stage and show themselves not only in singing but also in dancing, and original genre. We understand how important it is to create projects that give hope and faith in the future. Our mission is to create conditions for talented people and give them the opportunity to express themselves and to change the country and the world for the better. We hope the idea of the new project will resonate in the hearts of the viewers, who loved “The Voice. Kids”, - said Victoriya LezinaMaslyana, general producer of 1+1 Production. Year in Space: Watch ISS astronauts Scott Kelly and Mikhail Kornienko launch live. Two astronauts become the authors of the new reality: A year in space. Two astronauts are set to be sent into space to live onboard the International Space Station for a whole year. Nasa astronaut Scott Kelly and Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Korienko will take off in the Russian Soyuz spacecraft along with cosmonaut Gennady Padalka (who will not spend a whole year in space). Channel “Science 2.0” began broadcasting a new show. The format of the show is video blog. Two astronauts make reports from the station in space. “In this project, we will show all aspects of life in the ISS crew. Special attention will be paid to its scientific experiments. The main idea for us is to convey to the audience that research and experiments on the space station are needed here, on Earth”,- says editor in chief of TV channel “Science. 2.0”. Erotica Returns to Ukrainian Pay TV. The Dutch Media Authority, called Commissariaat voor de Media confirmed the request from Ukrainian Chamber of Telecommunications that content of television channels XXL Playboy TV, being prepared for launch in Ukraine, fully complies with the rules of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive as well as the Convention on Transfrontier Television. CvdM confirmed broadcasting licenses and their compliance with program requirements of the European Union documents, especially in the absence of these programs, the content of which may cause significant harm to minors. The corresponding licenses were issued for XXL channels and Playboy TV for a period of 5 years. ISSUE 2 MAY 2015 | SEASON SCREEN TV REVIEW | 7
ANALYTICAL | FORMATS: MAKE THEM SUCCESSFUL
FORMATS: MAKE THEM SUCCESSFUL Nowadays the TV World is enough structured. Everyone got used to what is shown on TV. In lots of countries formats are kept repeated, adapted or simply modified to be presented as allegedly new formats. It seems that everything that could be shown has already been shown. At the same time we observe the process when every day we can see the implementation of something new to TV broadcasts. The process of creating new international formats is too difficult. We tried to analyze and talked to the world’s leading experts about formats and reasons that make them successful.
EXPERTS TALKING:
Denis Tuzun
Sales Director (Russia, CIS), Global Agency, Turkey
Marina Williams CEO of Central and Eastern European Operations, Endemol
Luis Felipe Infante independent producer and format dealer, Chile
Avi Armoza
Founder & CEO, Armoza Formats
Anne Kirsipuu
Format Sales Director CIS & Baltic States, Fremantle Media Group Ltd
Anna Verbovska
Acquisitions and Sales manager CIS, Baltic, Spanishand Portuguesespeaking territories, MK Media Group LLC
What can make format successful in a particular country?
“There are two terms that determine whether the format will become successful outside of the “native culture”: Lacuna and Universal model”.
Anna Verbovska, MK Media Group LLC, CIS, Baltic, Spanishand Portuguese-speaking territories: Creating international format is not an easy task and it is not given to every company. Sometimes channels acquire license for original version, another time they change it for their own market. What factor influences the broadcaster’s choice of purchasing format, their decision about the necessity of local adaptation? There are two terms that determine whether the format will become successful outside of the “native culture”: Lacuna and Universal model. Lacuna is the phenomenon of congeniality between the cultures and production cultures of different countries: first one of the format origin and the second one that adapts it. Universal model is a feature by which the format is selected regardless
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FORMATS: MAKE THEM SUCCESSFUL | ANALYTICAL
“While lacunas take into account the reasons for local adaptation which lie in the nature of the content, Universals also consider the logic of the market and industry”.
“Considerable attention should be paid to close relations between licensor and licensee instead of formal transfer of production bible”.
of the differences in cultures. While lacunas take into account the reasons for local adaptation which lie in the nature of the content, Universals also consider the logic of the market and industry. Here there are three crucial lacunas that determine whether the producer will take the format for adaptation and what they will have to change: 1) Content Lacuna: when audience finds the program meaningless or such that does not fall within the scope of their culture. For example, when too private topics are affected or brought up in public twhich is not common in such a country. It can also refer to behavior and status of cast, the jury, the stars etc. They will need to be replaced with “local”. 2) Capital Lacunae: the format requires from audience certain knowledge so an adaptation has to include the base of local facts (it refers to quiz shows that require knowledge of surrounding places, people, events etc.). In addition, it is important to approach responsibly the translation of the format name and not just to create its “tracing”. 3) Production Lacunae: the style of format and its elements. It is a color scheme of show, the light in the studio and its style, kind of songs in musical shows, the way of storytelling in program (more complex or, vice versa, simpler) and so on. Every country has its own fashion and its own view of style. Universal is characterized by one or all three components: 1) Content Universal. It is the axis of format, the idea that touches deeply where dreams come true, there is competition, love story, there is escape from reality to fantasy world etc. It means the theme of the show is common for all cultures. 2) Audience-Created Universals: the format is easy to understand and it involves the viewer. While cross-media is becoming more and more powerful, producers are looking for content where viewers can participate and make their own contribution. 3) Company-Created Universals: the logic of market and relations between companies. Taking into account economic, political, legislative base will give the opportunity to correct format appropriately. Considerable attention should be paid to close relations between licensor and licensee instead of formal transfer of production bible. Luis Felipe Infante, independent producer and format dealer, Chile: There are too many things which can turn format into a success, some cultural and most conjunctional. Why does Big Brother format have 10 sessions in one country and only one failure in another? Is it because of the format or specific moment when it was broadcasted? In my particular experience timing is crucial but not the only reason to bring and produce a hit format. For example, the most successful international format in Chile was Contest Shows such as Master Chef, Money Drop and Your ISSUE 2 MAY 2015 | SEASON SCREEN TV REVIEW | 9
ANALYTICAL | FORMATS: MAKE THEM SUCCESSFUL
“Most popular formats still are singing and game-shows”.
Face Sound Familiar while “reality shows” or “scripted format” do not have as good results as producers expected. In my opinion, in order to succeed format has to approach the content in a new and unique way triggering the emotional level of the audience. It should capture audience not only in an intellectual but in subconscious way and after that it has to be well adapted to each new country where it has been bought. It´s very important for the format – owning company to supervise the show quality standards but it´s also important to let local producers introduce particular things of the place otherwise audience will never get attached to the format.
“The main factor of a format is that it needs to be very simple”.
Anne Kirsipuu, CIS & Baltic States, Fremantle Media Group Ltd: A successful format reflects important values in people`s life, is close to the cultural background and therefore able to cause strong emotions, trigger our basic instincts. Denis Tuznu, Global Agency, Turkey: The main factor of a format is that it needs to be very simple, when viewers are watching they should understand the structure right away. If the format has a complex structure, the viewer gets distracted and this will fail the title. I also believe that the excitement level is very important, viewers should feel connected while watching. Besides casting, studio design, host and production quality are the main facts as well.
What formats (by genre) are the most successful for CIS, Baltic, and MENA states? What are the reasons? Anne Kirsipuu, CIS & Baltic States, Fremantle Media Group Ltd: The most popular formats are still singing and game-shows (game-shows even taking 32% of all travelling formats in 2014 - to compare in 2012 only 20%). New singing shows like Voice Kids and Your Face Sounds Familiar have been travelling well along with already popular singing formats on air (X-Factor, Rising Star etc). Talent shows are on second place with 19% and talent-reality shows are on third place with 14%. 10 | SEASON SCREEN TV REVIEW | ISSUE 2 MAY 2015
FORMATS: MAKE THEM SUCCESSFUL | ANALYTICAL
“The local producer found a clue as to how to make this show appeal to the hearts of local viewers”.
“The key to these successes is a mix between the correct ingredients and how you ultimately present the executed format”.
“Producers have to understand nuances, tips and tricks to make format works”.
Marina Williams, CEE region, Endemol: In MENA, Star Academy (talent-show) has seen incredible achievements both online and on TV, with season 10 recently wrapping up on CBC (145 million YouTube views per month over the broadcast period). MBC produces Shiny Floor Entertainment Shows (talent show) that work extremely well too. In CIS and the Baltics, most recently Your Face Sounds Familiar has seen successful seasons in Georgia and Ukraine. Incredibly, in Georgia the show has aired on Imedi and GDS demonstrating the lengths broadcasters are prepared to go to keep the show hot and running. Deal or No Deal (game show) has just finished its 7th season on TV3 in Estonia and all Baltic MTG (TV3) channels produced The Money Drop successfully. Clash of the Choirs (talent show) in Lithuania is a total hit and has been working for over five seasons now. The local producer found a clue as to how to make this show appeal to the hearts of local viewers. In one of the seasons they assembled a choir of homeless people who were trained and won the final. That moved viewers to tears. The key to these successes is a mix between the correct ingredients and how you ultimately present the executed format. These local broadcasters have had the vision to see the potential and longevity of the show. In their turn, local producers have been able to grasp and understand not only the
basic elements of the format, but also the nuances, tips and tricks in order to make it works, that enables them to execute it in a way that stays true to the mandatory elements, while adapting it successfully to local markets. Avi Armoza, Armoza Formats: With regards to genres, prime time studio entertainment is still a sure winner across the world. However, most ISSUE 2 MAY 2015 | SEASON SCREEN TV REVIEW | 11
ANALYTICAL | FORMATS: MAKE THEM SUCCESSFUL
“Game shows are always popular too, especially those that have long-running potential”.
“Family Feud was sold in 61 countries in total”.
of the current successful prime time formats are now going on to 10 years of success, which has created a gap in the market as everyone is looking for a fresh take on prime time. We have brought a strong solution to this need with I Can Do That! (talent show), which is set to air on leading US broadcaster NBC this summer with an all-star cast, while Italy is now airing its 2nd season and Mexico, Spain and Finland among the other 15 countries are in production for their local adaptations. The show combines impressive live performances with celebrity dynamics and pure entertainment viewing. And with different live acts each week and a role reversal twist of amateur performers training the celebrities, this show is the unique answer to the need for the next prime time entertainment show. Game shows are always popular too, especially those that have longrunning potential. In addition to prime time formats and game shows, buyers are all looking for factual formats that tell personal and human stories that touch the hearts of people. The Package is the Greek Alpha TV number 1 show for 11 seasons, which tells the stories of everyday people, connecting the country through their shared moments.
What are your best selling formats? Anne Kirsipuu, CIS & Baltic States, Fremantle Media Group Ltd: FremantleMedia most sold format is Family Feud (sold in 61 countries total), in 2014 Family Feud was sold in four new countries, making successful come-back in many others. Got Talent is sold in 58 countries, Idols in 49 and X-Factor in 45 countries. Those are the most successful shows for us. Farmer Wants a Wife (sold in 30 countries) still makes fantastic audience numbers. From new shows My Mom Cooks Better Than Yours has been sold in most CEE territories, first adaptation of Who Lives Here? outperformed channel prime-time average by 21% on SVT1 Sweden as of few recent examples after MIP TV. Marina Williams, CEE region, Endemol: On a global level Deal or No Deal has been sold to 74 territories, Master Chef to 55 markets, Minute to Win has travelled to 55 counties, The Money Drop to 54, Big Brother has now been sold to 48 territories, Your Face Sounds Familiar to 37. The new amazing formats which are now making a statement are Bulls Eye from the USA and Island from the UK. These are amazing big budget productions. There are also game shows like endless UK Pointless which works across the world and there was even a book published dedicated to it (over a thousand episodes now in the UK alone). Denis Tuznu, Global Agency, Turkey: Our strong formats are Shopping Monsters, Rivals in Law, Blind Taste for daytime access and for prime time, Keep Your Light Shining is our best selling
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FORMATS: MAKE THEM SUCCESSFUL | ANALYTICAL
“Connected has created so much buzz because it is based on the very simple and authentic idea that we are all curious about other people’s lives”.
“A good humor and favorite presenters make great success”.
title. I believe The Remix will soon take the world by storm. Avi Armoza, Armoza Formats: I Can Do That! is a prime time highlight of our catalogue and is now in production in 15 countries, including the US. It was recently aired in Bulgaria and raised the channel average by 25%. Connected (reality show) is another of our formats that has received a lot of positive attention recently and has now reached more than 10 territories. Over the last few months, we’ve seen several new launches, including the 1st season in the US on AOL and in Ireland on RTE2, while Finland aired their 3rd season on MTV3. In addition, in Israel where the show has become a huge phenomenon, with each season performing better than the previous one, the 7th season is now in production. Connected has created so much buzz because it is based on the very simple and authentic idea that we are all curious about other people’s lives. And given the culture of self-exposure that stems from social media, we are more comfortable now than ever before with sharing many elements of our private lives. Connected takes this premise and uses a revolutionary language to adapt it for the world of television, making the reality genre real again and providing a big contrast to the familiar scripted reality.
What countries are the best buyers? What genres?
Mark Zuckerberg at Evening Urgant
Anna Verbovska, MK Media Group LLC, CIS, Baltic, Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking territories: For several years, in Ukraine and in CIS countries these formats are well accustomed Game shows: Evening Quarter, Make the Comedian Laugh, Evening Urgant. A good humor and favorite presenters make great success. Reality shows Master Chef, The Biggest Loser are also popular. Highlight of the show is that characters can say on camera their opinion of each participant. Social formats, made to reveal more information to consumers, are Inspector Freimuth and Money. The idea is that viewers can see many things: service industry, fraud, ISSUE 2 MAY 2015 | SEASON SCREEN TV REVIEW | 13
ANALYTICAL | FORMATS: MAKE THEM SUCCESSFUL
“The main idea of Insiders Project is penetration into hard-to-rich on the ground, under the ground or over the ground”.
corruption, etc. It will always be important for the viewer. Recently MK Media Group has signed an exclusive agreement to represent Insiders Project. The main idea of it is penetration into hard-to-rich on the ground, under the ground or over the ground. Now we negotiate with top influential networks in England & the USA and plan to create Insider’s Bible of the next seasons after the first one. You haven’t seen anything similar for sure! For MK Media Group the main goal in the format area is to create and sell only unusual, rare formats in order to be memorizable and to be in top. Denis Tuznu, Global Agency, Turkey: Russia and Ukraine are the top buyers in CIS, with high demand for Talent and Reality.
“Russia and Ukraine are the top buyers in CIS, with high demand for Talent and Reality”.
Marina Williams, CEE region, Endemol: All of our clients are considered equal, but we have noticed that in particular, reality shows work extremely well across Balkan region (Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia and Ukraine). It is interesting that Your Face Sounds Familiar is equally successful across all these regions. It makes us believe that Big Brother could also work in Ukraine if it was produced up to the right standard and promoted by one of the major channels. Big Brother is a huge success in Balkans so perhaps there is something to consider for the Ukrainians. Big Brother evolved so much in the last several years, it is not Dom 2 (Russian reality format which is often mistakenly considered to be Big Brother). Big Brother has incredible game play, amazing emotional elements, it even has more of family skewed versions like in Israel and Australia vs Edgy reality. Besides cross promotion of Big Brother with Facebook, Twitter, YouTube creates amazing following and unbeatable success. Avi Armoza, Armoza Formats: Hungary and Turkey are strong format territories for us. The 5th season of Still Standing has recently finished airing on M1 Hungary with strong ratings. Our partnerships have also included MTVA with studio game show We Believe in You and VIASAT3 on the recent collaboration of daily stripped styling format Runway in my Closet. Anne Kirsipuu, CIS & Baltic States, Fremantle Media Group Ltd: According to 2014 year results the biggest buyers were Germany (28 formats) and the USA (25 formats), France and the UK both bought 20 formats. Russia and Ukraine both bought 19 formats, together with China and the Netherlands.
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5x26 min In Production 2015, HDx
INTERVIEW | TIM СRESCENTI: I FELL IN LOVE WITH THE GLOBAL TV WORLD
TIM СRESCENTI: I FELL IN LOVE WITH THE GLOBAL TV WORLD
Tim Crescenti President of Small World IFT, USA
Success is a show you can be proud to be associated with.
“I loved TV since I was 13”.
Tim Crescenti founded Small World IFT in August and in just ten years has cultivated a global reputation for finding the most unique and entertaining television properties around the world for format distribution. In 2010, Broadcast magazine named Tim Crescenti as a Top Dealmaker in international television. Tim Crescenti has brought the world such global hits as... Dragons’ Den - Shark Tank, I Survived a Japanese Game Show - Big in Japan, Silent Library, Miss Country Girl, The Night Patrol, Tarrant Lets the Kids Loose — Old Enough and most recently The Fan and Japanizi Going Going Gong!
Tim agreed to talk about his personal experience of finding formats. Exclusive interview for SSTR. Tim, why did you decide to be a specialist, who looks for formats and shows? T.C.: I loved TV since I was 13. Wanted to be the president of the American TV network, but when I graduated from college in 1984, there were more channels and more of a need to produce shows. I did this for nine years in the USA, but burned out dealing with LA-NY TV people. Then King World asked me to go Turkey to be a flying producer on “Wheel of Fortune” format. I fell in love with the global TV world. What is the idea of your success? T.C.: Success is overall happiness. But for our business, success is to find a unique format like I did with Dragons’ Den when I worked for Sony in 2002 and watch this grow into a global success in so many countries, even in the US where it is known as Shark Tank. Plus it is a show you can be proud to be associated with.
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TIM СRESCENTI: I FELL IN LOVE WITH THE GLOBAL TV WORLD | INTERVIEW
Can you remember the most unusual and most unexpected formats you have ever seen? T.C.: I remember a few years ago Virginia of The Wit at her MIP Fresh TV showcase showed three or four nearly naked formats from Zodiac. It was like topless car wash. Recently The Bomb from Israel surprised me. But the all-time most unusual was Miss Captivity from Latvia which was a beauty pageant set in a women’s prison. Miss Captivity
“Ukraine had been one of the biggest importers of formats with terrific production value”.
What is the tendency: what types of TV content are required according to regions: CIS countries, MENA countries, Baltic countries? T.C.: Ukraine had been one of the biggest importers of formats with terrific production value. This was before the horrible downfall and war last year and they paid good money. For the other CIS territories you need to have a show that has multiple airings, like a daily or strip with high volume. Why are formats so popular? What is the reason? T.C.: As with any business, people want to reduce their risk and cover their ass. So a channel buyer will feel much more secure buying a show that has already been successful in other countries. Ukrainian format specialists need education, to be honest. And I’m not talking about some secret labs in the basement of Hollywood, where somebody wrote the secret tablets on which format becomes successful. This is foolish. Such tablets do not exist. I’m talking about banal knowledge of the market.
“What can make format successful? High ratings make it successful”.
Why may some successful in one country formats be completely unsuccessful in another one? T.C.: What are the main causes and what should be considered while creating formats? — Dating shows tend to be inconsistent because of varied religious or cultural standards. Also paranormal or psychic shows tend to have problems in strong Catholic countries. What can make format successful? High ratings make it successful. What genres are the most popular? T.C.: Aspirational reality which accounts for all singing and dancing shows. ISSUE 2 MAY 2015 | SEASON SCREEN TV REVIEW | 17
INTERVIEW | TIM СRESCENTI: I FELL IN LOVE WITH THE GLOBAL TV WORLD
And more to come. This is a natural cycle of television. Twenty years ago, people began to tire of dramas and scripted projects. Drama became more monotonous. Reality revived and became new, fresh-looking, interesting, catchy. Over the past 15 drama years has managed to weary the viewer. During this time it completely transformed. It became acute, peremptory. TV series are better than movie now. Couples prefer to watch Netflix than to go on a date to the cinema. Reality leaves, series return. What new type of TV content can enter media market and for what reasons? T.C.: Gimmick shows don’t last. We learned that with Russian Roulette in my Sony days where it was fun to watch contestants drop through the floor if the answer was incorrect but after a while it became routine. We should have developed the stronger structure. What predictions about the formats in general can you make? Will anything completely new be able to replace them? T.C.: There should be a return to game shows. And the world is still in search of the next Dating Game (aka Blind Date in Europe) which was the perfect dating show and so simple. I’ve predicted two years ago that magic and hypnosis shows would become popular, and now voila, there are a few out there. What is the most successful format in the world?:) Your experience. T.C.: Wheel of Fortune is the grand daddy or grand mommy of all formats. It has been around since early 90’s as a global format and keeps on being re-invented. Certainly Idol has a huge revenue success with all the layers of money made from ancillary forms like records, tours, spin-offs.
Wheel of Fortune (often known simply as Wheel) is an American television game show created by Merv Griffin. The show features a competition in which contestants solve word puzzles, similar to those used in Hangman, to win cash and prizes determined by spinning a giant carnival wheel. Wheel premiered as a daytime series on NBC on January 6, 1975.
PROFESSIONAL ADVICE SPECIALLY FOR SSTR How to write a perfect production bible
1. It must be 100% thorough with every single possibility, option, problem, written out. Think like “What if this happens…?” “Or this…?” “How do we handle…?” Sort of an owner’s manual. 2. The bible should also detail variations on scalability meaning how format could be produced as a big weekly prime time show, or as a daily strip show. Or how it can be produced in a big territory with a big budget, or less expensive. 3. Continually update the bible to include new ideas from other adaptations of the format. 4. There is never too little to include into the bible from production budgets for call sheets, legal releases, food supplies. 5. Lastly, have some fun with the bible. Even though it is like an owner’s manual, it does not need to be dry and boring.
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In Production Season 2 100x3 min 2015, 4K ISSUE 2 MAY 2015 | SEASON SCREEN TV REVIEW | 19
REPORT | DISCOP ISTANBUL 2015
St. Sophia Cathedral
DISCOP ISTANBUL 2015
“Only several titles of foreign content on television”.
I had a business trip to Istanbul - I took part in Discop Fair 2015. But I also brought a piece of another, not working Istanbul. The exhibition impressed me by its scale. There were about 1300 participants. Day 1 of DISCOP Istanbul 2015 was very successful, my colleague Vladimir Osaulenko (Head of sales and acquisitions department, MK Media Group LLC) and I had a pleasure just to be in “variety of colors”of the city. Plus exhibitors and sellers have been sharing a lot of great experience. When I visit media fairs abroad, I always try to understand the culture of the country through everything what fills the city: architecture,
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DISCOP AFRICA 2014 | REPORT
At Discop Istanbul 2015
Artem Zapolskyi
Sales and acqusitions manager MK Media Group LLC
“Turkey gives more than takes�.
people, traditions. Turkey was not an exception. The whole evening at the hotel I was watching 250 channels - and I understood this is the country of its cult. Only several titles of foreign content on television. By the way, it refers to everything: from TV shop blankets to exclusively cinemas of its own production. Turkish music for every taste: rock, rap, belly dancing. Turks is the nation that sings. People sing along the streets. They sing in transport, in cafes, restaurants, just sitting in the park. Most notably: maybe I was not at the prime time cinemas, but the fact that there were mainly Turkish films in cinemas shocked me. My story of Istanbul is full of colors. Speaking about media, Turkey gives more than takes. Here in Ukraine Turkish dramas have been popular for several years. Many channels put them for repeat. The audience loves Turkish culture, because Turks also love their traditions. And it is felt on every square meter of the city. ISSUE 2 MAY 2015 | SEASON SCREEN TV REVIEW | 21
DECISION MAKERS MEET IN MOSCOW!
Metropol Hotel
PRESS RELEASE, 11 MAY 2015 Once again, the Word Content Market will open its doors from 27 to 29 May 2015 in Moscow! This year, over 1000 decision makers representing more than 400 companies from 40 countries converge in Metropol Hotel in the heart of Moscow, two steps from Kremlin and Red Square. Participants are coming to Moscow from United States, Canada, Latin America, Europe and Asia.
More information: www.worldcontentmarket.com Please contact: Elena Sunbeam Director World Content Market Tel: +44 207 6124 350 E-mail: elena@planetsunbeam.com
This year, over 1000 decision makers representing more than 400 companies from 40 countries converge in Metropol Hotel in the heart of Moscow, two steps from Kremlin and Red Square. Participants are coming to Moscow from United States, Canada, Latin America, Europe and Asia. Among international exhibitors: TELEMUNDO INTERNACIONAL (United States), ZEE ENTERTAINMENT ENTERPRISES LIMITED (India), GMA WORLDWIDE (Philippines), TELEVISA INTERNATIONAL (Mexico), TV AZTECA (Mexico), CARACOL TELEVISION (Colombia), RAI COM (Italy), KOREA CREATIVE CONTENT AGENCY (KOCCA) (South Korea) – 10 companies, FLAME DISTRIBUTION (Australia), MONDOTV (Italy), LAGARDERE ENTERTAINMENT RIGHTS (France), TV3 TELEVISIO DE CATALUNYA (Spain), OFF THE FENCE (Netherlands), TV INTER MEDYA (Turkey), SER FILM PRODUCTION (Turkey), BERSERK MEDIA LIMITED (India), ABS-CBN INTERNATIONAL DISTRUBUTION (Philippines), EROS INTERNATIONAL (UK), STAR INDIA (India). These three days of deal-making are focused on negotiations with major TV Channels, well established distribution and production companies from Russia and CIS including CHANNEL ONE RUSSIA, CHANNEL ONE RUSSIA WORLDWIDE, TV CHANNEL RUSSIA, NTV BROADCASTING COMPANY, TNT BROADCASTING NETWORK, TELERADIOCOMPANY PETERSBURG CHANNEL 5, CTC NETWORK, REN TV CHANNEL, TV CENTER, DOMASHNY NETWORK, TV3 CHANNEL, TV CHANNEL ZVEZDA, TV CHANNEL PERETZ, TELEVISION COMPANY FRIDAY, TELEVISION AND RADIO, BROADCASTING COMPANY ‘’2X2’’, TV SERVICE (U CHANNEL), MTV RUSSIA, KULTURA TV & RADIO BROADCASTING COMPANY, NTV-PLUS, RT CHANNEL, RED MEDIA (Group of TV Channels), PUBLIC TELEVISION OF RUSSIA, AMEDIA PRODUCTION, CARAVELLA DDC, CENTRAL PARTNERSHIP SALES HOUSE, CONTENTICA, GROUP OF COMPANIES PARADISE, INTRA COMMUNICATIONS, RUSSIAN REPORT, RUSSIAN WORLD STUDIOS, STAR MEDIA, VIDEOFILM TV COMPANY and many others. On 27 May, first day of the market, UK Embassy and PACT will hold a reception in the British Ambassador’s Residence for World Content Market participants. On 27 and 28 May, series of conferences and workshops will be focused on trends in television industry in Russia. In a friendly and relaxed environment, specific to our market, participants will do business with clients and partners, attend conferences, workshops, and presentations.
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SEASON SCREEN TV REVIEW May 2015
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