TV Drama MIPCOM 2018

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TVDRAMA

WWW.TVDRAMA.WS

OCTOBER 2018

MIPCOM EDITION

Legal Dramas / Medical Series / Greg Berlanti / Chris Chibnall / Matthew Rhys Shemar Moore / ITV Studios’ Maria Kyriacou / Fremantle’s Sarah Doole

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16 TV DRAMA

CONTENTS FEATURES

The Diversity Question

34 JUSTICE SERVED New innovations have reinvigorated the legal drama genre.

42 IN GOOD HEALTH Spotlighting what’s new in medical dramas.

42

Like many people in the media industry, I’ve been thinking about diversity and representation a lot lately. I grew up never seeing faces like mine in the American and British shows I watched with my family.

Ricardo Seguin Guise Publisher Anna Carugati Group Editorial Director Mansha Daswani Editor Kristin Brzoznowski Executive Editor Joanna Padovano Tong Managing Editor Sara Alessi Associate Editor Victor L. Cuevas Production & Design Director Phyllis Q. Busell Art Director Simon Weaver Online Director Dana Mattison Senior Sales & Marketing Manager Nathalia Lopez Sales & Marketing Coordinator Andrea Moreno Business Affairs Manager

Ricardo Seguin Guise President Anna Carugati Executive VP Mansha Daswani Associate Publisher & VP of Strategic Development TV Drama © 2018 WSN INC. 1123 Broadway, #1207 New York, NY 10010 Phone: (212) 924-7620 Fax: (212) 924-6940 Website: www.tvdrama.ws

The 1993 film Bhaji on the Beach, about a group of British Indian women, was a revelation to me. I had spent my whole life acutely feeling like the other, the outsider, grappling with living between two cultures. Gurinder Chadha’s brilliant film said, Yes, your story matters, you’re not alone.

That was 25 years ago and there are days when I’m honestly not sure how much progress has really been made.

Because we’re still talking about it, aren’t we? We’re talking about why representation matters—shouldn’t that just be a given? Why wouldn’t television fully, accurately reflect the diversity of cultures and sexual orientations and economic backgrounds and body shapes and political viewpoints that make societies great? Why would we ever have to ask if diversity is a good thing? How could it not be? Study after study has demonstrated why we’re still not where we’re supposed to be when it comes to representation behind, and in front of, the camera. But this supersized edition of TV Drama has much to feel good about when it comes to how this particular genre is embracing broad spectrums of society. Greg Berlanti’s shows have been lauded for their diverse casts.

We hear from S.W.A.T.’s Shemar Moore about how his show has helped to diversify the U.S. broadcast network landscape. Chris Chibnall talks about Jodie Whittaker being cast as the first female Doctor in Doctor Who history.

Fremantle’s Sarah Doole discusses how her company is putting an emphasis on fostering women directors and producers. ITV Studios’ Maria Kyriacou notes that the industry has never been more open to new ideas than it is now. You’ll hear a similar sentiment from Emmy-winning actor Matthew Rhys as he talks about his latest project, Death and Nightingales. And Japanese producer Hisashi Tsugiya shares his perspective on the importance of representing societal issues in the shows he’s making for Nippon TV. This edition of TV Drama also spotlights two hot genres in scripted—legal and medical—where stories often have to be grounded in reality for the shows to be successful. As platforms and producers finally get real about inclusion, perhaps we’ll reach a point where no one ever asks why diversity is important—they’ll just know that it is. —Mansha Daswani

INTERVIEWS

50 Greg Berlanti 56 Chris Chibnall 60 Shemar Moore 64 Matthew Rhys Studios’ 68 ITV Maria Kyriacou

74

Fremantle’s Sarah Doole

79

Nippon TV’s Hisashi Tsugiya

München’s 82 Tele Herbert L. Kloiber

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A+E Networks Project Blue Book / American Princess / Knightfall Aidan Gillen of Game of Thrones fame stars in the drama Project Blue Book, inspired by the U.S. Air Force’s investigation into UFOs. “Blue Book leverages a worldwide omnipresent fascination of ‘what’s out there,’” says Richard Tulk-Hart, A+E Networks’ managing director of international content distribution and co-productions. “It’s something that resonates with all of us, and the theme is universal.”

American Princess is the story of an Upper East Side socialite in New York City whose storybook wedding plans are dramatically derailed when she catches her fiancé cheating on the big day. A+E Networks is also promoting the second season of Knightfall. The Knights Templarfocused series stars Tom Cullen, as well as Mark Hamill in the role of a battle-hardened veteran of the Crusades.

Project Blue Book

“Our scripted content is premium, from the talent to the stories we are telling and the production auspices.”

—Richard Tulk-Hart

all3media international

Strangers

Strangers / Informer / Mrs. Wilson Produced by Two Brothers Pictures, Strangers (known as White Dragon in the U.S. and Asia) centers on a man who is investigating the death of his wife in Hong Kong. Neal Street Productions’ Informer is a character-driven thriller following a second-generation immigrant who is coerced into becoming an informant in a counterterrorism investigation. Inspired by a true story, Mrs. Wilson from Snowed-In Productions looks on as a widow encounters another woman claiming to be the “real” Mrs. Wilson. These three series “will show us what it’s like to hunt for a killer in a strange land, the challenges of undercover policing and the secrets even our families can keep from us,” says David Swetman, the VP of acquisitions at all3media international. Another highlight, hailing from Company Pictures, is the Irish thriller Blood.

“It’s a privilege to work closely with innovative and successful producers who are making programs with some of the best creative talents in the industry.”

—David Swetman

ATV

Broken Lives

Broken Lives / Foster Mother / Lifeline The female-led drama Broken Lives is being launched by ATV at MIPCOM. It centers on two women coping with their unfortunate pasts who must band together in order to move on. The series addresses the issue of domestic violence. There’s a second season of Lifeline, which has sold into 16 countries so far. Foster Mother, meanwhile, explores the concept of motherhood and the importance of family from a child’s perspective. “Foster Mother opens a box that is full of family secrets and makes it easy to see how family dynamics can be shaken,” says Ziyad Varol, ATV’s licensing and digital manager for acquisitions, sales and platforms.

“Audiences will see two sisters in a touchy situation, and it causes them to question the truth.” The series Love and Hate has a third season on offer.

“ATV will continue to be the jewel in the crown of Turkish media.”

—Ziyad Varol

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Hidden TV DRAMA 19

Banijay Rights Hidden / The Red Shadows / Idiomatic From the producers of Occupied and Millennium, Hidden features dark secrets, unsuspected identities and supernatural forces, which converge against the backdrop of modern-day Sweden. “Blending the paranormal with hardhitting realism and psychological drama, this suspensedriven series deals with being an outsider,” says Chris Stewart, commercial director for scripted at Banijay Rights. A woman kidnapped 25 years ago and presumed dead returns home, causing family conflict and revealing dark secrets in The Red Shadows. Meanwhile, Idiomatic follows the life and times of an urban, bilingual, environmentally conscious left-wing couple in their 30s: Aino, who’s originally from Finnish Lapland, and Swedishspeaking Micke.

“Hidden is a blend of urban fantasy and psychological thriller.”

—Chris Stewart

CJ ENM Lawless Lawyer / Children of a Lesser God / Live A smart but merciless attorney takes center stage in Lawless Lawyer, one of CJ ENM’s drama highlights. The company is also promoting Children of a Lesser God, which tells the story of a pseudo-religious group, and Live, focused on a local police patrol. “Already hugely successful in Korea, these three dramas have stories that can be easily understood and recognized in different territories and cultures,” says Diane Min, the head of format sales at CJ ENM. “All of them have simple elements and interesting plots that are easily adaptable in diverse regions in different ways. Most of [our] dramas share these kinds of elements, which appeal to and attract global buyers and are the reasons that CJ ENM’s meeting tables are always full at markets.”

Lawless Lawyer

“CJ ENM’s drama lineup is getting stronger as three to five new dramas are being introduced every month.”

—Diane Min

Escapade Media

Patrimonio mundial - Herencia de la humanidad

Undocumented / 600 Bottles of Wine / The Art of Killing A law-abiding Australian living in New York finds out she’s an illegal alien and must build a new life from scratch in the drama series Undocumented. The central character in 600 Bottles of Wine is a woman who finds herself flung back into the dating scene after breaking up with her long-term boyfriend. The Art of Killing is set between Liverpool in the U.K. and the Gold Coast of Australia. “These locations serve as a backdrop for a story filled with intrigue and mystery and a dark backstory that will thrill audiences around the world,” says Natalie Lawley, the managing director of Escapade Media.

“Maximizing on the demand for crime drama, with a very cinematic point of difference, this series offers buyers a story that is inherently international.”

Undocumented

“These projects represent Escapade’s mission to present unique and fresh ideas that resonate with global audiences.”

—Natalie Lawley

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Fremantle Beecham House / Taken Down / American Gods The violent death of a young Nigerian migrant is investigated in the six-part series Taken Down. Rebecca Dundon, Fremantle’s director of scripted acquisitions, International, describes it as “a gripping crime drama—full of unexpected twists and turns—that is guaranteed to keep viewers at the edges of their seats.” Also on offer from the company is Beecham House, a new drama set at the turn of the 19th century. Then there is the second installment of American Gods, a book-based fantasy series that airs on Starz in the U.S. and streams on Amazon Prime Video in other territories. “Following the success of American Gods season one, we are very excited to be launching season two this market,” says Dundon. “It is still very cinematic [with] its signature stunning visuals.”

Beecham House

“We have continued to work with some of the very best creative talent in the industry this year to bring these enormously impactful and captivating dramas to the world.”

—Rebecca Dundon

Global Agency Gulperi / Finding Hope / Daydreamer From the producers of Magnificent Century, Gulperi is a brand-new drama that Global Agency is introducing to international buyers. It tells the story of a woman who has been treated unjustly her entire life just because she is female. After her husband’s unexpected death, she is in danger of losing her children. “This drama argues that a mother is only a mother when her children are by her side,” says Senay Filiztekin, Global Agency’s head of drama acquisitions. “Gulperi will remember what it feels like to really love someone as she reunites with a man from her past.” In Finding Hope, a drama from the producers of Mother, a veteran soldier meets and falls in love with the beautiful Elif. Global Agency’s slate also includes the romantic dramedy Daydreamer.

“With a touch of a feel-good approach to the emotional ingredients of the show, Daydreamer will surely capture the interest of audiences worldwide.”

Daydreamer

—Senay Filiztekin

Global Screen After the Crash / Rule of Light / Racko: No Better Friend!

Based on a best-selling crime novel by Michel Bussi, After the Crash is a psychological thriller miniseries about the sole survivor of a plane crash in the late 1970s.

“The gripping plot—full of surprises, twists and turns— will keep viewers engaged until the very end, desperate to learn the truth,” says Alexandra Heidrich, the head of TV sales and acquisitions at Global Screen. The six-part legal drama Rule of Light centers on an ambitious lawyer who has been blind from birth. For a family audience, the live-action series Racko: No Better Friend! features a canine as its central character. “It has been a long time coming, but now this generation finally has an animal hero of its own that the whole family will love,” says Heidrich.

Rule of Light

“Global Screen always seeks to deliver high-quality entertainment for adults and kids alike.”

—Alexandra Heidrich 338 WORLD SCREEN 10/18

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GMA Worldwide Broken Hearts / Happy Together / Heart of Courage A mother and daughter are at odds because they both love the same man in Broken Hearts from GMA Worldwide. The romantic comedy series Happy Together, meanwhile, follows a bubbly young woman’s quest for self-discovery. The superhero series Heart of Courage is about an ordinary mortal who inherits the hammer of Thor. Roxanne J. Barcelona, the company’s VP, explains that the series is inspired by the Norse myth. Barcelona adds, “We are strengthening relationships with our Asian neighbors such as Myanmar and Vietnam, as well as Thailand and Malaysia, through co-productions and possibly more format deals. At the same time, we’d like to help African broadcasters in providing content for their channels and platforms and enter more European and Latin American countries through partner distributors.”

Heart of Courage

“These shows are performing well locally, both in ratings and viewership, as well as engagement in social media.”

—Roxanne J. Barcelona

Incendo Mean Queen / Mad Mom / Radio Silence In the TV-movie thriller Mean Queen, Julie Taylor takes over a senior math class for the last few weeks of school following the suspected suicide of her friend and fellow teacher. Her teenage daughter, Miya, relocates to the new school as well. Julie can’t help but worry when Miya becomes fast friends with the school’s resident mean girl, who is obsessed with becoming prom queen. The slate of Incendo thrillers also includes Mad Mom and Radio Silence. “We are always looking for new opportunities and are interested in hearing from producers with projects with an eye toward potential series co-productions and development,” says Gavin Reardon, the company’s head of international sales and co-productions. “We are also excited to open new markets, especially Asia and Africa.”

Radio Silence

“These films tell universal stories and are produced with the highest production values.”

—Gavin Reardon

Inter Medya The Pit / Flames of Desire / Innocent Turkish producer Ay Yapim is behind The Pit, about a young man who is torn between loyalty to his family, the neighborhood he came from and the woman he loves. Inter Medya is also highlighting Flames of Desire, which examines the concept of arranged marriages. In the drama, Bayram and Salih plan to have their children get married in an effort to become friends after a big fight; however, as their kids grow up, they develop minds and dreams of their own. There is also Innocent, “an unusual and extraordinary story about an ordinary Turkish family,” says Can Okan, Inter Medya’s founder and CEO. At the center of the story are a retired cop and his wife, who live peaceful lives until one of their sons arrives home with horrible news.

The Pit

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“In The Pit, Yamaç’s life is never going to be the same when he has to go back to Çukur to become the head of the family.”

—Can Okan

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Kanal D International Price of Passion / Wounded Love A hitman named Ferhat and an idealistic doctor named Asli cross paths in Price of Passion. Asli is forced to operate on a man that Ferhat shot. Asli and Ferhat wind up getting married, but will they find love in a world of corrupt relationships, ambition and power? The period drama Wounded Love examines whether true love can outlast the most difficult situations. “Production quality is always something that we are proud of, and this is combined with our unique storytelling,” says Kerim Emrah Turna, the executive director of Kanal D International.

“Among our priorities at MIPCOM will be the introduction of our new titles.” Kanal D International is also revealing the details of a new drama title at the market in Cannes.

Price of Passion

“We are currently present in over 150 markets, and we hope to expand to gain maximum international viewership with new windows.”

—Kerim Emrah Turna

Keshet International Stockholm / Autonomies / Sleeping Bears The story in Stockholm follows as a leading candidate for the Nobel Prize in economics is found dead in his bed after an apparent heart attack just five days before the winners are announced. “This is a darkly mischievous drama featuring a stellar cast of accomplished actors that shines a light on lifelong friendships in a unique and funny way,” says Rose Hughes, senior sales manager at Keshet International.

Autonomies is a dystopian drama set in an alternate reality of present-day Israel. “This family-focused drama feels so globally relevant right now, centering as it does on the burning issues of identity, religion, politics and personal freedom,” says Hughes. There’s also the family drama Sleeping Bears, written by Keren Margalit (Yellow Peppers, The A Word).

Sleeping Bears

“Viewers don’t just want explosions and thrills; they also want to think, and they want TV that connects with their emotions.”

—Rose Hughes

Lionsgate The Rook / The Spanish Princess / BoJack Horseman The supernatural spy thriller The Rook, about a woman who wakes up in London with no memory of who she is and no way to explain the circle of dead bodies around her, makes its debut at MIPCOM. Also launching at the market is The Spanish Princess, a new story in the dynastic saga of Tudor England drawn from the best-selling novels by Philippa Gregory. It is a “powerful, epic story that not only returns the audience to the world of royal-court intrigue as seen uniquely through the perspective of the women, but also sheds light on a previously untold corner of history: the lives of people of color living and working in 16thcentury London,” says Peter Iacono, the president of international television and digital distribution at Lionsgate. The comedy BoJack Horseman rounds out the slate.

The Spanish Princess

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“These exciting shows will resonate with global audiences as they marry great stories with impressive creative teams and brilliant, well-known talent.”

—Peter Iacono

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Mediaset España Truth / State Secrets / Unauthorized Living There’s a second season of Truth (La Verdad), about a young girl who suddenly appears claiming to be someone who disappeared a decade ago. The political drama State Secrets (Secretos de Estado) centers on an assassination attempt on the Spanish Prime Minister. Secrets that were previously known only by the Prime Minister, the First Lady and their inner circle are unearthed. Unauthorized Living (Vivir sin Permiso) reunites the actors José Coronado and Álex González following the success of El Príncipe. Unauthorized Living is a story about “passion, fierce rivalries and conflicting interests within a family headed by Galicia’s most prominent drug dealer, providing a melting pot of ingredients that bubble over into emotional narratives coupled with some striking and violent scenes,” says Silvia Cotino, the head of sales at Mediaset España.

Unauthorized Living

“Mediaset España is a pioneer in the Spanish TV content sector.”

—Silvia Cotino

MISTCO Hold My Hand / The Prisoner of Love / Resurrection: Ertugrul A well-educated young girl crosses paths with a spoiled boy in the drama Hold My Hand. The series “adopts both a romantic and a tragic main story,” says Aysegul Tuzun, the VP of sales and marketing at MISTCO. “The success it reached in Turkey will be reflected globally.”

The Prisoner of Love is a modern drama that chronicles a contractual marriage between a rich man who has no trust in women and a poor girl who desperately needs money to pay for her father’s surgery. “We witness how their hatred [for each other] turns into real love as time goes by,” Tuzun says. There is also Resurrection: Ertugrul, for which “sales are going great globally.” Tuzun adds that in 2019, the company will unveil “a big surprise for fans of historical drama.”

“We have very exciting new shows and valuable library programs for partners who are searching for the best titles worldwide.”

Hold My Hand

—Aysegul Tuzun

NTV Broadcasting Company Brass Sun / Beyond Death / The Crow The war drama Brass Sun centers on a small military orchestra caught in a guerilla conflict in Central Asia. “It’s a dramatic masterpiece, and it’s based on true events very few people know about, which makes it original,” says Timur Weinstein, general producer at NTV Broadcasting Company. The thriller Beyond Death sees an almost-retired detective and a young doctor investigating a case where a corpse mysteriously disappears from the morgue. “Intricate plot lines mix together three different stories that unfold the mysteries of hundreds of WWII soldiers’ deaths and even a terrorist plot,” says Weinstein. “After such a successful run, the series will return for season two very soon.” The thriller The Crow, meanwhile, follows a female in the law-enforcement system who is repeatedly met with discrimination.

Brass Sun

“A diversity of ideas, international appeal and spectacular production quality put NTV’s programs among the most popular in Russia.”

—Timur Weinstein 344 WORLD SCREEN 10/18

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Onza Distribution Little Coincidences / The Gipsy Heiress / The Value of Life Billed as an atypical romantic comedy, Little Coincidences features a couple who are unaware that their lives constantly intertwine in search of one another. The series, which is being showcased by Onza Distribution, will launch on Amazon Prime Video as well as on free TV in Spain.

Onza Distribution is also presenting to the international market The Gipsy Heiress, which centers on Luz, an exotic beauty raised by a gypsy family after she was kidnapped as a baby. Years later, she will inherit a vast fortune. In The Value of Life, Carolina and Artur may not know each other but they share a special bond, as they both wake up from an eight-year coma on the same day. “Onza Distribution continues growing and adding new productions every year,” says Jessica Ortiz, the company’s managing director.

Little Coincidences

“It’s a great time for Spanish fiction.”

—Jessica Ortiz

Rai Com

The Ladies’ Paradise

My Brilliant Friend / The Name of the Rose /The Ladies’ Paradise My Brilliant Friend and The Name of the Rose are both based on best-selling novels. My Brilliant Friend is adapted from Elena Ferrante’s work, while Umberto Eco penned the novel The Name of the Rose. Italy’s Rai is a co-producer on both big-budget projects, and Rai Com distributes the titles for the CIS and CEE territories. Meanwhile, The Ladies’ Paradise is a costume drama that “highlights the colorful Italian excellence of fashion in the ’50s through ’70s,” says David Bogi, Rai Com’s head of international distribution and business development. The show is skewed for a female audience. The company also presents the family saga Escape from Mafia. Bogi emphasizes that it’s Rai Com’s mission to bring the best Rai programming and Italian content to buyers around the world.

“Successful brands, high quality and Italian storytelling will attract worldwide buyers.”

—David Bogi

Red Arrow Studios International Death and Nightingales / Australian Gangster / Checkout!

Death and Nightingales

The period drama Death and Nightingales stars Emmy winner Matthew Rhys (The Americans) alongside Jamie Dornan (The Fall) and Ann Skelly (Red Rock). “Death and Nightingales is a riveting story of love and revenge, set in the beautiful countryside of Fermanagh, Ireland, in 1885; a world of spies, deception and betrayal, with simmering tensions of class, politics and religion that threaten to tear the country apart,” says Henrik Pabst, the president of Red Arrow Studios International. Australian Gangster, meanwhile, is described by Pabst as “a wild tale of ruthless ambition and revenge, set within the Sydney underworld, where gangsters and the Instagram generation collide with Sydney’s glamorous social elite.” Then there is Checkout!, a scripted show that follows the daily lives of the workers and customers at a dysfunctional supermarket.

“There is a need for high-end scripted series and films featuring A-list talent, with high production values and original content.”

—Henrik Pabst

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Russia Television and Radio/Sovtelexport Godunov / Desperate Wives / Megapolis The big-budget historical drama Godunov is about one of the most mysterious figures in Russian history, Boris Godunov.

“The uniqueness of the series can be seen in the historical authenticity, spectacular costumes and great cast,” says Julia Matyash, the director of Sovtelexport, which distributes programming from Russia Television and Radio. The company also has in its catalog Desperate Wives, a drama about strong women who would risk anything for the happiness of their families. “The zest of the series is the magnificent recreation of the atmosphere of Russia in the ’90s,” Matyash says. Further highlights include The Maze, a modern melodrama, and Anna Karenina, a classic drama based on Tolstoy’s famous novel.

Complementing the slate of dramas is Megapolis, a doc special about Moscow.

“Our goal has always been to introduce top Russian products to the world.”

—Julia Matyash

Godunov

Series Mania March 22-30, 2019; Lille, France Series Mania returns to Lille in 2019, after a successful relocation from Paris this year. “The key structure of the event will remain the same because the event was very successful and much appreciated by our participants,” says Laurence Herszberg, general director of Series Mania. “We will also work to improve the services for our attendees: more parties and networking events, a shuttle service to go from the Grand Palais to the city center, better catering and food services—everything that can make the Series Mania experience even more useful and productive for our attendees.” The Lille Transatlantic Dialogues, which gathers political decision-makers and top media executives, will be back for a second edition. Reed Hastings, CEO of Netflix, was among those that took part as a speaker.

Series Mania

“The first edition in Lille was a huge success, beyond our best expectations.”

—Laurence Herszberg

Star India

Kullfi Kumar, the Singing Star

Love Conquers All? / Kullfi Kumar, the Singing Star / The Wait for Love The romantic drama Love Conquers All? (Kasauti Zindagi Kay) features the story of two star-crossed lovers who meet and separate time and again as they get entwined in a web of love and revenge. Gurjeev Kapoor, the president of Star India, calls it “the most-awaited Indian show of 2018.” Kullfi Kumar, the Singing Star (Kullfi Kumar Bajewala) focuses on a musical prodigy on a journey to find her estranged father. The Wait for Love (Love Ka Hai Intezar) centers on an actress who falls in love with a prince. “Star India is the leading broadcast network in India, and any new show from Star India generates considerable interest in international markets as well,” says Kapoor. “Star India collaborates very closely with some of the biggest production houses in India, with a constant focus on stories that inspire.”

“Star India believes in harnessing the power of imagination, and this is reflected in our storytelling.”

—Gurjeev Kapoor 348 WORLD SCREEN 10/18

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Star Media Detective Anna / Richard Sorge. Master Spy / Operation Muhabbat A female investigator with supernatural powers is at the heart of the series Detective Anna, which features sci-fi elements. “It’s dark, gothic, mysterious and thrilling,” says Vlad Ryashin, general producer at Star Media. Richard Sorge.

Master Spy is about a Soviet secret agent, while Operation Muhabbat follows a last-year cadet at a prestigious military high school who is the son of an adviser to the general secretary of the Communist Party. “Moreover, Star Media is producing an adaptation of the award-winning BBC series Doctor Foster, a story that has become one of the most successful U.K. dramas of recent years,” says Ryashin. “We will add a new angle to the story that captures your attention from the first minutes, giving you a whole whirl of emotions when you see how the story is revealed.”

Viacom18/Indiacast

Richard Sorge. Master Spy

“Richard Sorge. Master Spy is a very dramatic story of a man who has been described by historians as one of the greatest spies of the 20th century.”

—Vlad Ryashin Beyond Boundaries

The Serpent / Unfaithful / Beyond Boundaries A mythical tale of vengeance plays out after the wedding of a shape-shifting serpent and his lover is marred by a group of drunken youngsters in The Serpent (Naagin 3). The plot in Unfaithful (Silsila) centers on two best friends, one broken marriage and a dangerous affair. Beyond Boundaries (Bepannah) features the love story of two strangers brought together by destiny after losing their spouses in an accident. The highlights also include Love Saga: Salim & Anarkali (Dastaan-E-Mohabbat: Salim Anarkali), telling the epic love story of Emperor Salim and Anarkali. “While our content is symbolic of the core culture and diversity of India, our approach has always been global,” says Debkumar Dasgupta, the senior VP of international business and syndication at Viacom18/Indiacast.

“Viacom18/ Indiacast brings you unique stories of love, relationships, drama and mystery.”

—Debkumar Dasgupta

ZDF Enterprises Over Water / Kristina Ohlsson’s STHLM Requiem / JJ A man with a troubled past gets a second chance to do right by his family in Over Water, on offer from ZDF Enterprises (ZDFE). “Over Water tells the story of how a former addict can make the wrong choices with the right intentions,” says Robert Franke, the VP of ZDFE.drama. Kristina Ohlsson’s STHLM Requiem is an adaptation of a best-selling trilogy of crime novels. Both of these shows are slated for screenings during MIPCOM. Another highlight from the company is JJ, a Netflix original series. “It is the story of John Jeiver, who was kidnapped by the FARC at 13 and trained as a one-man army,” says Franke. “After the signing of the Colombian peace agreements, he escapes the jungle to Bogotá, and infiltrates a dangerous and well-connected criminal organization.”

“Our topics work internationally, whether in breathtaking crime series, short-form dramas or TV movies.”

JJ

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—Robert Franke

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Red Arrow’s Stella Blómkvist.

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There is a wave of new series offering an innovative take on the traditional legal drama. By Kristin Brzoznowski he verdict is in: legal dramas are as hot as ever. The high stakes and suspense of courtroom proceedings have long provided fertile ground for storytelling, and TV audiences are guilty as charged when it comes to their innate interest in whodunits and seeing justice served.

“There’s something about the legal process that allows for twists and turns in a story,” says Jane Featherstone, founder of Sister Pictures and executive producer of the divorce-law drama The Split, sold by BBC Studios. “It allows for complex storytelling, and audiences are very sophisticated now and love stories that have real detail to them.”

And while the genre is anything but new to the TV landscape, there’s been a nice upswing in its popularity of late.

“Everything has its time,” Featherstone continues. “We’ve had lots of serialized crime stories, and it feels like maybe there have been enough of those for a while—even though there is always room for another great one. Maybe it’s time for something else to evolve from it and take center stage. It’s a good time for legal drama.”

The success of true-crime stories in the international marketplace has also helped to drive interest in shows exploring law and justice, says Jason Simms, director of drama and comedy at Sky Vision, whose catalog includes the twistladen four-parter The Victim.

“The impact and resonance of series like Making a Murderer and The Jinx have influenced demand for drama to up its game and be more authentic and even more compelling,” he says. “You can see that being woven into interesting shows like the American Crime Story series or Netflix’s Mindhunter,

T

where you’ve got real-life criminals or real-life cases being reshaped into fantastic dramas. The demands for authenticity and really going there are now playing into fully fictional dramas as well.”

THE REAL DEAL One of the ways that producers are providing a fresh spin on this well-worn genre is by fusing true crime and scripted drama. Take, for example, The Interrogation and Unspeakable, both from U.K. indie Story Films and sold by all3media international. “Story Films’ USP is being inspired and motived by real events and turning that into authentic, great drama,” says Maartje Horchner, executive VP of content at all3media international. “In Unspeakable, they were inspired by real evidence of domestic violence. In The Interrogation, they use real police transcripts.”

Channel 4 commissioned The Interrogation as a one-off that tells the story of Tony Martin, who was sentenced to life imprisonment after shooting and killing 16-year-old burglar Fred Barras. “It’s been really exciting to see how they have been able to use real people’s words, verbatim,” says Horchner.

“The actors speak these words and yet still put in a dramatic performance, making it an entertaining and compelling show for the viewer. Forgetting that it is real and then being thrown back into that stark realization—that the words you hear have been literally used in the interrogation of a suspect—is quite chilling, especially in a case like Tony Martin’s.”

The 25-year history of investigative journalism at Russia’s NTV has provided a natural springboard into legal drama.

“NTV is perfectly positioned to develop this ever-popular genre,” says Timur Weinstein, general producer of NTV Broadcasting Company. “When prosecution and defense clash in a courtroom, it always makes the audience gasp, regardless of nationality.”

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Commissioned from STV Productions

by BBC One, The Victim, on offer from Sky Vision, is set in the Scottish legal system.

The company has in its catalog The Win Cases, packed with lavish costumes and props that offer a glimpse into the Russian legal wars of the early 1900s, and Lawyers, which follows the stressful life of an attorney. “We don’t have many courtroom dramas on Russian TV, so for NTV this genre is of primary importance,” Weinstein says.

NTV recently finished filming a remake of The Good Wife, localizing the hit U.S. drama for Russian audiences. “The American justice system is cinematic in itself,” says Weinstein. “There are spacious courtrooms where an attorney moves around freely, a defendant sits to the right of the judge—it resembles a theatrical show. In Russia, the courtroom’s inner layout is different: a defendant stands in front of the judge, attorneys and prosecutors sit or stand depending on the situation. Since we had to make a [series] of high quality that will be valuable to the rest of the world, we created a legal reality to aspire to. The project designer rethought existing realities and created authentic courtrooms that would attract viewers’ attention to what happens within their walls.”

Weinstein also notes that the actual dealings of the Russian legal system aren’t generally presented to the public, so dramas that can give viewers a look inside are all the more alluring.

Because today’s TV landscape is much more open to nonEnglish-language drama, Iceland’s prowess in legal storytelling is getting its time to shine. “Iceland has increasingly proven to be an interesting creative hub,” Stehmeier says. “Given its small creative community, what is coming out of the country is very impressive. They are forging a Nordic style all their own.”

He adds that the size of some Scandinavian economies often doesn’t allow for big production budgets, “so legal or courtroom-based shows are an ideal way to drive conflict and intrigue within a narrative while keeping to the constraints placed by limited budgets.”

The Court and its spin-off series Case, both produced by Iceland’s Sagafilm and sold by Red Arrow Studios International, are “good examples of intelligent and challenging Icelandic legal dramas” that have garnered interest from markets around the world, Stehmeier says.

STUDIOCANAL’s The Lawyer offers a fresh take on the genre, as it merges legal drama with crime and elements from Scandi thrillers. “This great combination broadens the target audience and makes the series more appealing and fast-paced to suit younger viewers as well,” says Beatriz Campos, the company’s head of international sales.

NORDIC AFFAIRS Red Arrow Studios International, meanwhile, has found strong legal stories coming from the Nordics, including Stella Blómkvist, a neo-noir crime drama that stars Heida Reed as the eponymous quick-witted lawyer.

“Legal and crime dramas featuring strong, independent women as the lead character are nothing new, but we’ve recently seen a number of international hits originate from the Nordic countries, where society as a whole is quite emancipated,” says Bo Stehmeier, the company’s executive VP of global sales. The series resonated with audiences in Iceland, doubling Síminn TV’s average rating and scoring a second season, and it is also selling well internationally, according to Stehmeier.

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From Sister Pictures for BBC One, The Split focuses on a team of divorce lawyers.

While local flavor can certainly add to a show’s appeal, legal dramas need to exercise caution so that they aren’t weighed down by the country-specific nature of courtroom dealings and law. “It’s really important for legal dramas to be produced in broad strokes, as it is all about the protagonists, not the law books,” Campos says. “Few of us would want to sit down to enjoy an evening of debate over the intricacies of Swedish/Danish law. However, when there are some clear, salient legal points made to move the story forward, this is often interesting from an outsider’s point of view.”

Horchner at all3media international says that for this type of show to travel widely, the legal system of the home country shouldn’t be a big part of the drama. “Each system is different the world over, and it can be hard to come to grips with a legal system if that is integral to a storyline. Justice and the emotions that it brings forth are universal. In the end, we want to know the characters; that will always be key. We want to feel their emotions and see the world through their eyes. Then it doesn’t matter where they are from.”

NO OBJECTIONS “Despite the fact that there may be differences in the technical elements or structure of the courts from country to country, everybody loves the premise of a trial: the idea of a defense, a prosecution and a jury,” adds Sky Vision’s Simms. “People love getting into stories like that because they want to work out whether or not somebody did the crime, whether someone will be found guilty or not. That’s a compelling and very basic human drive [that is factored into] the way that these stories are put together and why they’re so appealing.”

And just because they’re scripted doesn’t necessarily mean that legal dramas can get away with being too loose with facts. “These days, audiences are a lot more demanding,” Simms says. “They respond to authenticity, and particularly so when the show is rooted in topical subject matter. That goes back to the fact that people are devouring true-crime

shows on all kinds of platforms. Viewers are very savvy about what goes into a case and the way that things are investigated.” Which is why many of the shows in this genre bring in legal consultants to help ensure accuracy.

KEEPING IT OFFICIAL The Victim, for example, had a macer—an official in the Scottish court system charged with keeping order and etiquette in the courtroom—on the set every day. “They were able to advise as to the details of the procedure,” Simms notes. “Given that a significant part of the narrative is set in and around a courtroom trial, it was important for the producers to get that right and be utterly convincing. Having somebody like a macer there helped them build a really strong sense of identity for the show.”

NTV’s Weinstein agrees that it’s critical to consult experts when creating high-quality legal drama. “We have legal consultants, including practicing lawyers, working on every NTV legal drama series. They help us avoid mistakes” and ensure that shows are believable and relevant.

NTV is currently producing Bailiffs and is putting an emphasis on accuracy within the dramatic storytelling, since Russian viewers only have a vague idea of how these officers of the court really work, Weinstein says. “It was important for us to make all the details in this TV series as realistic as possible, so we worked side by side with the Federal Bailiffs Service [the Russian government agency responsible for the orderly functioning of courts]. Many stories that the audience will see on screen were inspired by true events that the bailiffs had to deal with.”

Sister Pictures’ The Split made use of several advisors in the family-law business, including barristers and solicitors, but Featherstone says that the producers have the final say on the level of accuracy for a drama.

“No crime show is ever completely authentic; it can’t be, otherwise it’s a documentary. We tried to get as much advice as we could to make the details feel as authentic to law as

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The Win Cases from NTV is set in 1900s Russia.

possible. I don’t think we got everything perfectly accurate, but most of the time we knew we were deviating from the advice—we just felt that it was more interesting for the audience. Ultimately, it’s not a documentary, so we can deviate from the advice if we choose to.”

The Split, which had a six-episode first season and has been commissioned for a second, has a strong focus on family and relationships even though it’s set against a legal backdrop. Featherstone says that in the beginning, viewers were a bit unsure of the format—if it was a legal drama or a relationship drama—but, ultimately, the fact that it’s a hybrid is what made viewers embrace it.

“Ally McBeal is one of my absolute favorite legal dramas ever, and what I remember from that show is not the legal stories; I remember all the incredible relationship stories and the main character,” Featherstone explains. “So there has always been a history of exploring characters and relationships, but then it became quite procedural, which also has real merit. Given that so many series these days are serialized and the audience is trained to have relationships with characters over a long period of time, the legal drama has had to make sure that it kept up with that kind of storytelling.”

BY PROCEDURE “With stronger SVOD viewing habits, there is a definite appetite for serialized drama that can be binge-watched,” says STUDIOCANAL’s Campos. “There is a great opportunity for legal drama to adapt to this trend, in addition to the standard procedural series that may have dominated this genre in the past.”

This doesn’t mean that legal procedurals are by any means passé; they’re still a prime-time mainstay on many channels in major markets around the world. “There is no shortage of love from audiences for that case-of-the-week format,” says Sky

Vision’s Simms. “But they’ve evolved over the years. They are less down the middle than they used to be because you now have these overarching serial arcs where you’ve got characters’ stories going across multiple seasons. It’s not always just about the case itself; it’s about the people around it.”

REPEAT OFFENDERS Legal procedurals are also commercially desirable, as they stand up well to repeat viewing. “People can watch procedurals over and over again,” says Simms. “They can be scheduled across multiple parts of the grid for linear broadcasters.

“That said, there’s plenty of space and demand for serialized dramas,” he continues. “They tell the story in a different way and take more time to do it; perhaps they even go places that procedurals can’t.”

Given the appeal of legal dramas to audiences and broadcasters, there’s room in the market for both formats— especially as viewing habits shift between platforms.

Red Arrow’s Stehmeier sees the genre headed in two different directions: one where shows are “filled with complex characters and plotlines—more suited to the pay and SVOD markets—and on the other side of the spectrum, lighter, longrunning series with structured beats, varied locations and a sprinkling of comedy and romance.”

Horchner at all3media says that these types of shows are “an everlasting win-win for buyers, but since the world has opened up to more international drama, the pool for buyers to choose from has grown, which makes competition much stronger. I think buyers like the serialized angle but do prefer the potential for returning drama, hence the increased need for anthologies to make this happen. As long as the producer and writer have a plan for the subsequent series anthology or are clear that it’s a one-off—but event TV nonetheless— buyers are keen to keep talking.”

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ZDF Enterprises’ Betty’s Call.

IN GOOD HEALTH Steve Clarke explores the latest developments in the always popular medical-drama genre. ince the dawn of TV, medical dramas have been a lynchpin of global TV schedules.

Encounters between doctors and their patients offer scriptwriters rich pickings for stories and situations that embrace the struggle between life and death. Away from the tensions and stresses of the consulting room or the operating theater, there are abundant possibilities for multiple narratives concerning the protagonists’ often complicated private lives and troubled personalities.

In common with crime scenes, the medical workplace is a gift to commissioners, producers, screenwriters and showrunners all seeking to make compulsive TV. Today, distributors’ libraries are full of medical shows as buyers seek series that have the potential to become long-running hits that can stand the test of time. These shows are thriving in most markets as the traditional and more hybrid forms—for example, Endemol Shine Group’s The Orpheus Project, which mixes medicine with the supernatural— compete for audiences. In South Korea, where ABC’s breakout hit The Good Doctor was originally created, there’s even a medical series that incorporates time travel: Live Up to Your Name.

S

So why is medical fiction still an essential component of broadcasters’ schedules? “These shows remain hugely popular,” says Gina Brogi, the president of global distribution at Twentieth Century Fox Television Distribution— whose portfolio includes such classic medical shows as M*A*S*H, St. Elsewhere and Chicago Hope. “I think one reason why medical drama is in such demand right now is that we live in a difficult era. They offer an escape in these scary times. There are so many negative news cycles; I think people want to watch shows that provide hope.

Often, they demonstrate the good in humanity. Significantly, they deal with universal themes.”

SEEKING A DIAGNOSIS Health care systems vary from country to country, but whether they focus on the U.K.’s National Health Service (which celebrated its 70th birthday this summer) or private insurance that funds health care in the U.S., medical dramas connect strongly to themes and topics that resonate across social classes and demographic categories.

Don McGregor, executive VP, sales liaison, at NBCUniversal International Distribution, puts it like this: “Medical dramas are one of the key genres that truly translate in all markets.

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Endemol Shine’s The Good Karma Hospital, made for ITV, is shot in Sri Lanka.

I believe that everyone has either spent time in a hospital or had a loved one get sick. So no matter where you’re from, it’s something you can relate to. At the end of the day, medical dramas have themes of heroism, selfsacrifice, hope and passion. This makes them universally appealing and relevant.”

Cathy Payne, the CEO of Endemol Shine International, agrees, noting, “Everyone can relate to the storylines, which cover the whole spectrum of day-to-day life in a hospital. We are in awe of medical practitioners who deal with life-and-death situations on a daily basis while maintaining compassion and empathy for their patients.

These dramas are strongly character-driven, emotive and, hopefully in most cases, life-affirming.”

LIFE AND DEATH Robert Franke, the VP of drama at ZDF Enterprises, thinks the appeal of this schedule staple revolves around the raw material’s raw material. “All human life is there,” he says. “It might sound unduly pessimistic, but as human beings, we are people who like to learn from others’ miseries. We enjoy watching doctors struggle against the odds and seeing them make their patients well again.”

Fredrik af Malmborg, the managing director of Eccho Rights, makes a similar point. “Medical issues provide the subject matter for very good TV because they deal with highly emotional situations. Both of our medical shows, Nurses and The Clinic, are not as glossy as American medical dramas. In fact, sometimes I wonder if American hospitals really look the way they are portrayed on TV. Our shows are based more on social realism. In the Finnish version of Nurses, one of the lead characters deals in narcotics and is a drug user because she is so stressed. Another character works as a call girl to make ends meet.”

Giving principal characters an interesting backstory is one way to make a medical drama stand out in a crowded content space. It seems as if nothing is off limits in today’s über-competitive world. Thankfully, TV has moved on since the days when the lead character in a hospital series

had to fit the white, alpha-male stereotype. The clean-cut Doctor Kildare was usurped long ago.

In Germany, Dr. Klein features a feisty female character who confounds expectations of what a TV medical professional should be. She suffers from dwarfism. “It’s a very brave show, very inclusive and extraordinary,” says ZDFE.drama’s Franke. Betty’s Call, meanwhile, focuses on nurses in a bigcity hospital.

ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE To a degree, the tradition of the medical procedural has been subverted, influenced perhaps by streaming services’ addiction to serialized scripted shows.

“It’s rare nowadays that we have a straight-down-themiddle exclusively procedural show,” says Fox’s Brogi. “Generally there tend to be serialized elements to all of these shows. We certainly have that with The Resident. But being able to conclude an aspect of a storyline in one episode resonates well with broadcast television audiences.”

Endemol Shine’s Payne agrees that medical procedurals are here to stay. “Historically, most medical dramas have been largely procedurals, usually with an overriding story arc featuring the main characters. Audiences want to see a resolution to the case in the same episode, combined with the ongoing storylines of the lives and loves of those working in the medical practice or hospital.”

The procedural also remains the norm in Scandinavia, Eccho Rights’ af Malmborg notes. “But there are some stories that run over many episodes, typically those concerning relationships, the affairs and divorces that happen to people who work in the hospitals.”

“People like the fact that doctors have the same human problems as everybody else,” suggests ZDFE.drama’s Franke. “In the hospital, medical staff have the power of life and death over their patients, but away from the workplace, they are prone to the same problems as the rest of us. I think audiences find that reassuring.”

Finding a point of difference is critical to launching a successful medical drama today. “The Good Karma Hospital sees a junior doctor travel to India to find herself, and she ends up in an under-resourced and overworked cottage

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Jully Kim, a business analyst at Korea’s CJ ENM, echoes the importance of having “a special element” that makes a medical show distinctive. One of her company’s programs that debuted earlier this year, A Poem a Day, avoided focusing on doctors and nurses.

Instead, the action centered on rehabilitation therapists. Another CJ ENM program, Live Up to Your Name, introduced time travel as a crucial part of the story. Two doctors, one from the 17th century and the other from the 21st, meet and confer to help treat each other’s patients.

CROSSING GENRES

Fremantle has secured a raft of deals on the Australian drama The Heart Guy.

hospital,” says Endemol Shine’s Payne. “It mixes the heartbreaking with the humorous. The Good Karma Hospital is more than just a rundown medical outpost, it’s home. Israeli medical drama The Orpheus Project sees five of the brightest medical students take part in an elite training program where they discover that lifethreatening experiments are being carried out.”

TREATMENT OPTIONS

Hybrid period medical shows are nothing new—think Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman and Call the Midwife—and they continue to attract loyal followings. M*A*S*H, set during the Korean War, is still popular although it stopped being made in the early 1980s. At MIPCOM, Fremantle is showcasing a second season of the acclaimed German wartime drama Charité.

In certain markets like the U.K., unscripted medical shows have long proved their value to commissioners and schedulers. Jimmy’s, one of the first docusoaps, ran successfully from 1987 to 1997 on ITV. It was filmed at a busy hospital in Leeds, one of the biggest cities in northern England.

More recently, fixed-rigs shows such as 24 Hours in A&E and One Born Every Minute, filmed in a maternity unit, have been successful for Channel 4. Have unscripted hospital shows had an impact on medical drama?

“We’ve endeavored to make the events portrayed in our medical dramas grounded in reality,” says NBCU’s McGregor. “The writers on our current shows Chicago Med and New Amsterdam work to make the cases and storylines feel authentic.”

NBCU’s McGregor insists that for a medical drama to make noise, it must possess a unique point of view. “For our new show New Amsterdam, the focus is on the patients—they are the priority for our lead Dr. Max Goodwin (Ryan Eggold) and the doctors of New Amsterdam. Max is the new medical director working in one of the largest hospitals in the world and needs to be a ‘disruptor’ in order to put the patients first.” If this sounds more traditional, McGregor highlights the diversity of the cast, which includes Anupam Kher (The Big Sick).

The Australian series The Heart Guy (also known as Doctor Doctor), which is distributed

by Fremantle, is set in a rural location. Most hospital shows are decidedly urban.

“We decided to set it in the country town of Whyhope, which is where all the drama takes place,” explains Ian Collie, CEO and producer at Easy Tiger, which makes the series. Whyhope is also where the central character, Doctor Hugh Knight, was raised, and he resents having to return to his quiet small town. “He was a high-flying Sydney surgeon busted for bad behavior and his playboy lifestyle,” Collie says.

“Doctor Knight is put on probation by the medical tribunal and moved to his hometown.”

The Heart Guy is in its third season on Nine Network. It has been sold to the U.K. (UKTV), Germany (Sky Deutschland) and the U.S. (Acorn TV).

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Eccho Rights is offering up Nurses, which originated in Finland, as a scripted format.

Endemol Shine’s Payne agrees that medical dramas have gotten more realistic recently, partly due to the success of their unscripted cousins. “When you watch these unscripted shows, it sometimes feels like you are watching a TV drama unfold. The reality of the emergency situation is something that you would rather believe could only happen in a TV drama.”

Eccho Rights’ af Malmborg adds, “When you make unscripted shows set in a hospital it’s important not to make them look too glossy. The medical world is full of stories that are larger than life, so making a documentary in that environment can be very powerful. There is a lot of good material that doesn’t have to be too fictionalized.”

REAL INSPIRATION Fox’s Brogi says that screenwriters and showrunners are inspired by unscripted hospital series. “The idea that real life informs the storylines of scripted shows is a concept that resonates with creatives. On 9-1-1 all the storylines—the medical stories, the emergency stories—are inspired by real 911 calls.”

Unscripted medical series are, of course, cheaper to produce than medical drama. Generally, however, in an era when drama budgets are ballooning, the genre remains inexpensive—another reason why it continues to be ubiquitous.

“Medical dramas are relatively cost-efficient to produce,” af Malmborg points out. Consequently, co-productions are rare.

“Medical dramas are commonly financed by their domestic market, and they will often have a local feel,” says Payne. Obviously, the very best of U.S. medical shows travel all over the world. Consider the international success of Grey’s Anatomy, Chicago Hope, ER and autismthemed The Good Doctor, a big seller for Sony Pictures Television with around 200 territories acquiring the series. Yet, the importance of medical drama reflecting local concerns is a priority, especially in Europe.

“This is crucial in Scandinavia,” says af Malmborg.

“Although there are lots of things to watch on Netflix and

other streaming services, drama that provides audiences with local settings and themes is something that broadcast TV does better than the SVOD providers. Shows like Nurses adapt very easily to different local markets in Scandinavia and elsewhere. Local drama is gaining ground and becoming more important, and medical drama can fill that need.”

BACK TO BASICS Ultimately, the basis of a hit medical drama is great characters and good storytelling. Fox’s Brogi cites The Resident as a good example. Despite mixed reviews, the program was renewed for a second season in May. “It’s connected with audiences wherever we launch it. 9-1-1 is another medical drama that is performing extraordinarily well for us.”

While high-end, serialized crime drama like Scandinavia’s The Bridge has been formatted successfully internationally, adaptations of this kind are less common in medical drama—but they do occur. As already noted, Good Doctor originated in South Korea, where it won awards following its 2013 debut on KBS2. The Orpheus Project was created in Israel and has been adapted in the Netherlands.

Doktor Martin is the German version of the British series Doc Martin, which has also been adapted in several other markets.

So is medical drama faithfully reflecting modern society in all its diversity and complexity? “There is less stereotyping these days, but I think we still have some work to do,” says Fox’s Brogi. “I haven’t done a study, but I, for one, would like to see more female doctors and female medical professionals as lead characters.”

Finally, is the prognosis for medical shows good, or is the genre facing a terminal diagnosis? All distributors agree that medical drama looks sure to remain in rude health. “Like crime drama, medical drama will always be popular on TV,” states ZDFE.drama’s Franke. “The genre appeals to the subconscious and our basic human urges, and it is very atavistic.”

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Greg

BERLANTI As a writer, producer, showrunner and director, Greg Berlanti has shepherded a wide range of TV series and films. Perhaps best known for bringing beloved DC Comics characters to life on the small screen in The Flash, Arrow and Supergirl, Berlanti is now extending his storytelling prowess to the streaming platform DC Universe. He is also behind the NBC drama Blindspot; the CBS pickups God Friended Me and The Red Line; The CW’s buzzy Riverdale; and, also from the Archie Comics universe, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina for Netflix. Throughout his career he has championed diversity in characters and subject matter, wanting the fictional worlds of his shows to reflect the people and lifestyles that exist in real life.

By Anna Carugati TV DRAMA: A lot of your shows are based on and incorporate DC Comics characters. What is it about those characters and stories that continue to resonate with today’s viewers?

BERLANTI: So many people grew up with these characters and they are iconic in their eyes. Our job is always to find ways to humanize them and bring them to life but to honor what made them each individually so special. Speaking for myself, I have very fond memories of the characters and what they meant to me as a kid and what it felt like to read those books. That’s the obligation of anybody in any generation carrying those characters forth, whether in books or on screen. It’s a great honor to be able to escort them into a new generation and in doing that find new ways to modernize them and their world.

TV DRAMA: Is casting a superhero or any of the characters on those shows more challenging than casting characters that do not already exist in the comic-book world?

BERLANTI: In some ways it’s harder and in some ways it’s easier. The easier part is that you do have a very clear sense of the DNA of this character that everyone’s loved. It makes it harder in that you may search longer to find someone who lives up to that idea. You have a clearer idea of what that character is and should be. More than the look, more than the backstory of the character, we are really trying to align the heart and soul of the character with capturing the character’s essence. Inevitably, if an actor walks in and you have four or five producers and network executives in the room, when it’s very clear that it’s that actor, it becomes very, very clear to most people that it’s that actor. That part makes it a little bit, I wouldn’t say easier, but it makes it more apparent.

TV DRAMA: What are the challenges in keeping a longrunning show fresh? I’ve heard that the third or fourth seasons are particularly challenging.

BERLANTI: That can be for many different reasons. By the time you are working with people in a creative endeavor in the third or fourth year, everyone is a little tired and they’ve all spent a great number of hours together. It’s a family in that regard. The first two years of the show you are discovering a lot of new things, especially in a character-based show. In years three and four and in the years after, you are finding new ways to go deeper and to surprise yourselves and surprise the audience. If you are not surprising yourself, you are not surprising the audience. In this day and age, too, probably a big challenge is that there are so many new shows. Every day somebody is telling me about a new TV show I should watch. Even though [by the third or fourth season] you have the length of time on your side and people’s connection with the characters on your side, you have to keep working to take risks and challenge yourselves. You have to see the show in a new way so that it does hold its own, not just against itself but against every new show coming down the pike.

TV DRAMA: Long before people in the film and TV industry started talking about diversity—or the lack thereof—the casts and stories on your shows have always been diverse.

Why has this been important to you?

BERLANTI: I would say it is twofold. In part, as I got my start as an openly gay writer working on a show not in the mainstream, I found my own voice. It was something I felt very comfortable with and wanted to look for new ways to do that.

The other thing is that I always wanted to be part of shows

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that I felt reflected the world we all live in and the world I was living in. It only takes a short walk to a coffee shop to see that not everybody looks or acts alike. In those differences, there are some really rich opportunities for storytelling, for conflict and resolution and connection with the audience.

And for people to see themselves or their story or the story of someone that they know reflected on the screen is a powerful thing that can connect them to the show.

TV DRAMA: Because your shows reach a young demographic, you’ve probably helped a lot of people by allowing them to see themselves in ways they hadn’t before on television.

BERLANTI: That’s one of the more rewarding parts of the job when you do connect with a younger person. Even now that I’m much older, I actually meet people who are older themselves who say, I watched your show 15 years ago, it made me realize this about myself and that I wasn’t alone in this way or that way. You see the great person they have grown up into and it’s nice to have been there for them in some way when they felt a little more isolated.

TV DRAMA: I so enjoyed the film you directed, Love, Simon.

BERLANTI: Well, Isaac Aptaker and Elizabeth Berger wrote the Love, Simon script. They run This Is Us, so we were all a bunch of TV folk working on that. We’ve learned a lot of valuable lessons about the audience.

TV allows for great storytelling [and the film] allowed us to spread our wings even more. It was nice that we all had a shorthand because we all came out of television.

TV DRAMA: I read that earlier in your career you had to fight to get certain storylines approved. Are there still topics or issues that you have to fight for?

BERLANTI: It’s interesting; it’s not as overt. I do think people in executive suites—especially in television— are more excited by diverse storytelling and things that are different. They have recognized that that will help them stand out. That being said, they can have that appetite, but then you get into making the show, whether it’s in casting, the story itself, or the execution, and in this job you are always convincing people to take a leap. You are always convincing executives or actors or other writers or directors to trust you and jump with you and do something daring in some way or to try something that hasn’t been tried quite that way before. It can be challenging and if it works, it’s most rewarding. Even if it doesn’t work, it’s pretty rewarding because you feel like, well, at least you’ve learned more about yourself and you tried something.

From Warner Bros. Television and exec-produced by Berlanti, the array of DC Comics-based series on The CW include, from top, Supergirl, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, The Flash and Arrow.

TV DRAMA: Are streaming services offering different or more creative freedoms than networks?

BERLANTI: You used the right word, different, not more.

Each form has its restrictions that you may not realize when you are outside of them. And each form has what is cool and different about it. There is no doubt that when you are doing a streaming show, you are not worried about act breaks or some big plot explosion every 15 minutes, but you have a different muscle and responsibility to keep people engaged. Very often I’ll find myself still using the structure of a network show just because, even though it forces certain things, it also

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Riverdale, a millennial reboot of the Archie Comics characters, airs on The CW in the U.S. and has an international first window on Netflix.

makes you have to think about certain [elements] that make [the show] more narratively compelling. Obviously, the maturity of the content you are allowed when you are off broadcast feels freeing, but, by the same token, sometimes the restrictions on broadcast can encourage more inventiveness. I’m a big fan of both. [Producing for] network television is still exhausting because you are doing more of it and it can be overwhelming time-wise. There is no way around that.

TV DRAMA: Tell us about the shows you are producing for the DC streaming service, DC Universe.

BERLANTI: We have two new shows, Titans, which will premiere in the fall, and then Doom Patrol. Titans was created by Akiva Goldsman and Geoff Johns and I’m working alongside them and Greg Walker, who is running that show. A show for the DC streaming service is somewhere in between a premium cable show— it’s not a network show by a lot— and a movie, in terms of its look and the money we are putting into it. Titans is very mature; it has a lot of adult themes and I’d say is “edgier” than what we do on network television. Hopefully it will surprise a lot of people and isn’t something that people can go to the movies or turn on The CW and see and isn’t like one of our other shows on network.

It’s very specifically its own thing and it’s been a challenging but very exciting process to figure out what it could be there, both in terms of

how we shape the stories and just what are the boundaries that we are pushing against. It’s got all of everyone’s favorite Titans characters in it. That will be exciting in the fall as people discover that.

Doom Patrol, which Jeremy Carver created, in some ways is a spin-off and in some ways its own original thing. It’s also unlike anything else I’ve ever worked on for network television.

Like the Grant Morrison run of the comic book, it’s very out there and trippy but also a superhero group you’ve never seen before.

The DC service and platform is allowing us to find a new way of telling these stories and challenge ourselves regarding how much we can twist and turn both the storytelling and the audience’s expectations. In general, streaming shows can be much more novelistic in a way, whereas network shows are more episodic. They are great things to explore either way, but they are different.

Berlanti’s expanding slate includes Titans for the new SVOD service DC Universe.

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Change is in the DNA of Doctor Who. The popular sci-fi show has remained on screens for so long because of its central conceit: its time-traveling Doctor regenerates. As such, 12 actors have embodied the role over its history. This fall, Jodie Whittaker goes where no woman has gone before as the Thirteenth Doctor. The new season also sees Chris Chibnall, best known for his work on Broadchurch, assuming the mantle of showrunner. The acclaimed writer is a lifelong Whovian who penned several episodes under previous executive producers Russell T Davies and Steven Moffat. He tells TV Drama about what’s in store for the new Doctor and her companions on the TARDIS.

By Mansha Daswani TV DRAMA: What is the key to maintaining continuity from one Doctor to the next, so you can keep returning fans happy but also bring in new viewers?

CHIBNALL: That’s the balancing act, but Doctor Who has renewed itself every three or four years across its entire history. In 1969, at the end of Patrick Troughton’s reign, it went from black-and-white to color and Patrick Troughton to Jon Pertwee, and the two series feel drastically different from one another. If you put the final episode of Patrick Troughton and the first episode of Jon Pertwee next to each other, you would say this is not the same television series. And yet, it just carries on under this amazing umbrella. So change is built into Doctor Who. The history of the show allows you to make changes and sort of demands it. The biggest thing for us coming in this year was, how we make sure that Doctor Who is keeping pace with the changing nature of television: the increasing production standards, the quality of shows on Netflix and Amazon and Hulu and everywhere. How does it keep pace in a global world and still make sure it’s as good as its peers, is leading the way and is still essentially and recognizably Doctor Who? Luckily, it’s the greatest and most versatile format in the world because you can go anywhere and you can do anything. The key to the change is to make sure you have a great Doctor and a great regular cast. And for me, what’s important is that the stories we’re telling connect to the world we are living in now—stories of hope that resonate with all our lives.

TV DRAMA: We certainly need hope these days, if we watch the news....

CHIBNALL: We need hope right now, and I think you’ll find Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor is a beacon of hope.

TV DRAMA: How did the decision to bring a female Doctor come about? Is this something you’ve wanted to do for a while?

CHIBNALL: I never really thought about it until they asked me to do this job, and that coincided with Peter Capaldi deciding that he would be moving on. Once that situation was clear, it was something I wanted to do, so it just felt like the right thing to do. I felt that the audience was ready, the world was ready and the show was definitely ready, so it was very clear. We made a list of actresses and it was a very long list of brilliant women, so wherever we ended up it would be a really exciting process to go through.

TV DRAMA: You wrote episodes for David Tennant and Matt Smith, two very different Doctors. How did you write for those unique personalities, and how is writing for Jodie’s Doctor different?

CHIBNALL: The Doctors are always the same and always slightly different. [For] all of us who have written for the show and for the different Doctors, it’s quite hard to quantify, you just know when you are writing it. The thing about Jodie’s Doctor is, Jodie brought that Doctor along with her to her audition. The interesting thing about casting a Doctor from the single experience I had is, you know a Doctor when you see it. Jodie’s audition and her reading of the part are inherently Doctor-y and also new and fresh and funny and exciting. As much as anything, it’s a symbiosis between her and me. I wrote the audition scene; she brought lots of herself to it. The Doctor is a star part for a character actor. What you need is an actor who can do anything and is limitless; who is funny, who can make you cry, who can move you, who is brilliant at exposition and

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Jodie Whittaker stars in the new season of BBC Studios’ Doctor Who.

spaceships and diffusing bombs. My job is to challenge Jodie and make sure we are giving her enough so that she can play her whole range in all the colors and flavors of performance. In terms of writing for Jodie’s Doctor, it becomes a dialogue between the writing and the acting and fuses in the end, and that started right from her audition, to be honest.

TV DRAMA: Is there an extra comfort zone because you worked with Jodie on Broadchurch?

CHIBNALL: I don’t know that it’s a comfort zone; there definitely is a trust. The most exciting thing about it is that the parts that Jodie has been playing up until now were quite different from who Jodie is as a person. Jodie is incredibly funny. She’s got incredible energy. She’s very principled, she’s incredibly smart, she’s just a brilliant person, and she’s brought so much of herself to the Doctor and brought so much of the Doctor to herself. Where she and the Doctor meet is a really exciting place.

TV DRAMA: The companions play such a significant role on the show. Why did you opt to have three, and what can you tell us about them?

CHIBNALL: The reason for having three was that I [want] Doctor Who to be a big, inclusive, populist, mainstream show that is entertaining and accessible for everyone. I wanted to make sure that in the ensemble alongside the Doctor are characters that everyone can relate to, so that everybody has an access point, everybody can say [about one of the companions], Oh, that person feels like me. This is a story about humans who are taken on an incredible

journey with an incredible character through all of time and space. What you get with Ryan [played by Tosin Cole], Yasmin [Mandip Gill] and Graham [Bradley Walsh] are very different points of view, different ages, different backgrounds and [they are] obviously very different from the Doctor. What you get is a range of emotional dynamics; they’ve all got their character journeys across the series.

But what I want more than anything is for the audience to feel like these are your new best friends. These are the people you want to hang out with more than anybody in the world. They are a little family unit among themselves and are just great fun to have adventures with.

TV DRAMA: Because viewers are increasingly sophisticated, have you upped the level of special effects?

CHIBNALL: We worked very hard this year to ensure that the show is as cinematic as it can possibly be. We’re shooting on anamorphic lenses for the first time. We changed the aspect ratio to 2:1. We’ve changed our special effects company. We’ve been very conscious that we have to keep up with the times, and I think all these things have made subtle qualitative differences. In the end, what audiences come back for are great characters and great actors.

TV DRAMA: Will Doctor Who be your entire life for the next few years, or are there other projects you are working on?

CHIBNALL: The project I’m working on most is having a holiday! Doctor Who has certainly been my life for the past 18 months. It’s very all-consuming but in a great way.

There’s no story you can’t tell in this show, so it’s just a joy to be on it.

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In his 24-year career as an actor, Shemar Moore has been on the soap opera The Young and the Restless, guest-starred on several series, appeared in movies and played the beloved character Derek Morgan on Criminal Minds, where he popularized the term of endearment “Baby Girl,” Derek’s pet name for his FBI colleague Penelope Garcia. It spread like fire on the internet with millions of female fans calling themselves Baby Girls. Moore surprised the industry and shocked fans when he chose to leave Criminal Minds. He tells TV Drama why he took that step and joined S.W.A.T., the high-adrenaline series that imparts messages about the world we live in today.

By Anna Carugati TV DRAMA: How did you hear about S.W.A.T. and what appealed to you about the role of Daniel “Hondo” Harrelson?

MOORE: I knew the TV show from the ’70s and the movie. And I knew S.W.A.T. [Special Weapons and Tactics] teams are super cops running around doing some really cool, incredible stuff to save lives. I was going to play this cool dude, Hondo.

I had the opportunity to be the lead of a show, working with Shawn Ryan, who’s known for The Shield, The Unit and Nash Bridges—a phenomenal writer, with a phenomenal mind for story and characters. That got my attention, and the script was great. Justin Lin directed the pilot and he’s Mr. Action, so I thought, Damn, it’s as if I got cast to do a high-budget action movie with some of the major players, but for television. Yes, I’m the lead of the show. [Last season I was] the only African American male lead in a non-black one-hour drama on network television. I’m proud of that accomplishment, but I also understand the responsibility that comes with that. I represent diversity and diversifying the landscape of television, the stories that are being told and who’s telling them. So if S.W.A.T. were to fail, they wouldn’t look at Shawn Ryan, they wouldn’t look at CBS, they would look at me first.

I know that, and that’s why I put pressure on myself to do my best and give 150 percent, because, Oh, Shemar Moore can’t carry a show, or, Diversifying television may not be the direction that you want to go—who knows what dialogue would come from that.

But now the show is in season two. It’s successful; people in over 200 countries around the world want to watch it. So I’m just a guy living my dream, taking risks and entertaining people for a living, and people actually want to watch me. I pinch myself that for 24 years my homies, fans and Baby Girls have been so loyal and people around the world watch [my] shows. If I can help broaden the horizon of diversifying television—not just for black actors and actresses, but for people of all colors, Asian, Latino—[that’s great].

TV DRAMA: What does being the lead actor entail?

MOORE: You don’t get days off; it’s a grind. But you do what you’ve got to do—you sleep right, you work out. I’m not only the lead actor; I’m a producer. It doesn’t mean I get to say, Do it this way, or, Do it that way. But I’ve earned my place at the table to be a part of the discussions and the ideas. I love that creative side of it, where I can influence the type of stories and how we tell them. I’m corralling and maintaining the camaraderie with the cast and crew. I’m leading by example, working hard, delivering my performances and stressing the importance of team. As proud as I am of being the lead actor, I don’t take myself too seriously. I’m smart enough

and humble enough to know it can’t be The Shemar Moore Show. I might be the captain of the team, but I need a team.

I know that I can’t do it by myself and I don’t want to do it by myself, because it’s more interesting for audiences to see the individual characters, understand their strengths and weaknesses, but then see them—especially in this scenario of being super cops—saving people who can’t save themselves.

The teamwork is interesting and exciting. [I’m] part of a unique, original show that you really can’t compare to any other show on network television today. I get to be the leader of that and entertain people and thrill them with all the crazy action. But [the show is] also laced with messages of reality, real-life topics from Black Lives Matter to human trafficking to immigration to cyberbullying and so forth. That’s Shawn Ryan’s mind, and it’s great that we’re able to talk about the Trump years without talking about Trump. It’s not a political show, we’re not preaching to you, but we are giving you doses of things that are happening in real life. And we’re trying to give you a more optimistic perspective; maybe a TV show can broaden people’s mindsets, create a little more compromise, a little more patience and compassion, and maybe that can lead to a little more unity and togetherness, and a little less judgment and stereotyping. Those are heavy notions, so it sounds like S.W.A.T. is heavy—no, S.W.A.T. is fun, but it has depth and it has relevance to what’s going on in the world.

TV DRAMA: Tell us about Hondo and the community he is serving.

MOORE: Because Hondo is black and he’s from the streets of South L.A., he represents the underdog, the struggle, chasing the dream, but [in a way that] all people can relate to. He understands the black story because he’s black. You may not relate to the specifics of what Hondo’s been through, but you can relate to the mindset of what he’s done to overcome and succeed and make it bigger than himself. He comes from the streets; he’s seen a lot of injustices. His father [told him when he was a kid], If you want things to change, you can complain all day long, but it’s not going to fix anything; be a part of the change. That helped him choose his path and instead of staying in the streets, he said, What can I do to help people? So he got into the military; he’s an ex-Marine. He joined law enforcement because his dream was to be the best of the best, not only for the accolade of being the best but because he wanted to promote change. And that’s what you’re watching, Hondo, with his team, taking on the injustices that you see in the United States and around the world.

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Based on the 1975 series of the same name, Sony Pictures Television’s S.W.A.T. is in its second season on CBS.

humanity, understanding right from wrong and that we can do better. That’s the message of S.W.A.T. and that’s the message of what Hondo stands for—we, collectively, as human beings, can do better.

TV DRAMA: It was a gutsy decision to leave Criminal Minds.

What drove that?

MOORE: My mother gave me a card when I left Criminal Minds; it sits on the mantel in my living room and it says, “Leap and the net will appear.” That’s the way she lived her life and that’s the way she raised me. My mother has a far more interesting story than I do. My father, with all his dysfunction, has a far more interesting story than I do. My story before Hollywood is more interesting than my Hollywood story. We, collectively, lived outside of the box. We broke boundaries.

We created our own path. I’m the type of person who always wants to grow; I don’t want to get too comfortable. Comfort is good, money is good, but I always want to challenge myself.

When I left The Young and the Restless, I knew that the next step was prime time. How do I grow? How do I get credibility?

How do I broaden the scope of what I’m doing as an actor and try different types of roles? You have to take chances.

Then I landed on Criminal Minds. I did that for 11 years, and [when I left] there was nothing on the horizon—S.W.A.T. was not there. I was unemployed, trying to figure out what the next move would be. But I believed in myself. I always say, I don’t wear a lot of hats, but if I choose to wear a hat, I’m going to make sure it fits. So the pieces fell into place, and it was not just about being the lead in a show. It was about working with Shawn Ryan and Justin Lin to play a character that represents humanity and that we can do better and still entertain.

And to be an action hero—fly around in helicopters, propel

down buildings, fight, be in car and motorcycle chases, wear a cool cop suit and carry a big gun—everybody wants to do that. When you’re a kid, you want to be a fireman or a cop, and now, here I am on television, getting to live out that childhood dream.

TV DRAMA: Do you have consultants on the show?

MOORE: Yeah, we don’t want to just be cool actors carrying guns and doing cool stuff on TV. I don’t want it to just be fake and fun. I want it to be fun and real. For two-and-a-half months prior to the first episode of the first season, we trained with members of LAPD S.W.A.T., San Diego PD S.W.A.T., SEAL Team Six. We trained in weaponry, shooting ranges, tactics, how to move and flow as a team, how to communicate verbally, nonverbally. Physically we understood what the demands were, learning how to fight a certain type of hand-to-hand combat, and knowing what to do if you run out of bullets and you have to protect yourself.

TV DRAMA: Did you already know a good amount of that because of Criminal Minds?

MOORE: Not S.W.A.T. training, no. From Criminal Minds, I knew basic hand-to-hand combat, which is fighting, and I knew the basics of handling a pistol. We had consultants, so I went out to shooting ranges and understood how guns worked. But on Criminal Minds, I just had a pistol on my belt and a heavy foot kicking down doors. That’s why I say Hondo in S.W.A.T. is Derek Morgan on steroids because it’s just a whole different playing field. The stakes are so much higher and so is the skillset that you need to be these guys. That’s why it’s so hard to make S.W.A.T. You have to be highly trained to make the squad. These guys and gals are no joke.

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It’s been a hectic few years for Matthew Rhys. The Welsh-born actor’s hit FX series The Americans came to a close after six critically acclaimed seasons—and landed him an Emmy win for best actor in a drama series this year. Steven Spielberg’s The Post, in which he played whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg, was nominated for a best picture Academy Award. He features in the upcoming blockbuster theatrical film Mowgli.

And later this year he’ll star as Billy Winters in Death and Nightingales, a BBC Two and RTÉ commission that Red Arrow Studios International will be showcasing at MIPCOM. While in Pittsburgh filming You Are My Friend with Tom Hanks, Rhys spoke to TV Drama about what drew him to Death and Nightingales and the types of roles he is attracted to.

By Mansha Daswani TV DRAMA: How did you come to be involved with Death and Nightingales?

RHYS: I was going to say it came about in the usual way, but it didn’t actually! I was very lucky to have worked with Andy Serkis and Jonathan Cavendish of The Imaginarium on Mowgli, which is coming out this year. Death and Nightingales has been a passion project for Jonathan, the producer, for many, many years, almost a quarter of a century. He said, I have this project I’m doing, and I’d very much like you to play Billy Winters. Then he said, It’s written by Allan Cubitt, which certainly spiked my interest, just knowing him as a prominent television writer in the U.K. and now an emerging director. I thought, This is a great meeting of elements. So just reading the script was a done deal for me. Parts like this don’t come along very often. I begged them if I could do it in the end!

TV DRAMA: Had you read the Eugene McCabe novel it’s based on? Did you read it as part of your preparation?

RHYS: I wasn’t familiar with it and I didn’t read it. I spoke to Allan very early on [about that]. I’ve done a few adaptations now, and I’m not that good at differentiating between what is the script and what is the original work. On one of the last projects I did, I started playing stuff that wasn’t in the script, and the director kept saying, No, that’s in the novel, not in the script. So I said to Allan, I’d rather stick to the screenplay because then it’s a lot clearer, and it’s linear and purer for me. I said, If you want me to read it I will, but if not, I’d love to just use what you’ve written. And he said, Yes, absolutely fine.

TV DRAMA: Your body of work includes inhabiting a character made just for television in The Americans, literary characters in Death Comes to Pemberley and Death and Nightingales, and a real person, Daniel Ellsberg, in The Post. Is the creative process to prepare for each type of role different?

RHYS: It is really, and [I tend to make those choices] from quite a selfish point of view. I look at [a project] and go, Have I done this before? Is it similar to what I’ve just done?

I’m basically just looking for something new and challenging, as most actors are. To be in a position where you’re

presented with a part that can do that is a great luxury. I was looking for something that was ultimately very different from Philip Jennings in The Americans. That was part of why I did Death and Nightingales, but not entirely the whole reason. The depth of the character and certainly the complexity of it and the story were equal pulls.

TV DRAMA: Tell us about the character of Billy. What motivates him through the show’s story arc?

RHYS: That’s what I was so interested in. [As an actor] you’re always interested in character motivation. There are a number of elements colliding for Billy, which makes his motivations very interesting. He’s been lumbered with the mantle of continuing a lineage and a heritage and a piece of land, [against the backdrop of the] complexity of the religious divide in Northern Ireland. He has all this emotional turmoil bubbling away and eating away at his core. He’s this man of the land, the doer, the stoic, hardworking, Protestant landowner. But at the same time, he’s a boiling cauldron of emotion because of a betrayal. There are familial scars from his past that align and confuse him. So you see him processing a number of things, not always up to speed—that’s what makes for great drama.

TV DRAMA: I’ve seen some of the images and it looks stunning— and a far cry from where you are now in rainy Pittsburgh! What was it like filming against those gorgeous backdrops in Northern Ireland?

RHYS: It was great! Wales is home for me, but there’s something very familiar about [Northern Ireland]. Working with that crew in that place, it felt a lot like home, which I enjoyed enormously. I found the accent to be like a beautiful T-bone steak to get your teeth into, equal parts enjoyable and challenging.

TV DRAMA: You’ve done a lot of period drama. Do you think that by allowing audiences to look back at the past, these shows can help us better understand what’s going on around us today?

RHYS: I find at times in certain period dramas, you look back and think, Oh God, we really haven’t learned anything! That makes for very depressing times. There are a number of

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TV DRAMA: How do you juggle your TV and film projects?

RHYS: Not very well! It’s always a bit of a scramble. Lots of early-morning flights, late-night flights and muscling dates to work—and very patient agents and producers!

TV DRAMA: You directed a couple of episodes on The Americans. Is that something you’d like to do more of?

RHYS: Very much so. It’s in the same vein of what I said about looking for new challenges. I enjoy the challenge of directing and storytelling—and beating actors into submission!

Matthew Rhys stars alongside Jamie Dornan and Ann Skelly in Death and Nightingales, which Red Arrow is launching at MIPCOM.

elements in Death and Nightingales where you think, All of these things are still very present, sadly.

TV DRAMA: The way the show came together is a bit like an indie film model. There are two producers in The Imaginarium and Soho Moon, two commissioning broadcasters in the BBC and RTÉ, and then Red Arrow Studios serves as the distributor. Does having multiple partners behind the scenes impact anything on set?

RHYS: You are aware of it, but it doesn’t affect anything.

What’s great is you have producers like Jonathan Cavendish who will say, Whatever it takes, we’ll get it made. If you get the right people to make it, it doesn’t matter where the money comes from. If it needs to get made, it will get made. I’m always in awe of that can-do attitude and that tenacity. How did you not just give up 20 years ago when you were trying to make it? They believe in these projects, so whatever it takes to get it made, they’ll do it.

TV DRAMA: Are you more interested now in these limited series versus a long-running commitment like The Americans?

RHYS: No, if another project like The Americans came along, I’d happily jump on it! I have no qualms about that. You know, I look back at The Americans and I think, What a luxury to have 75 hours of television for this incredible story.

TV DRAMA: Tell us about your working relationship with Allan Cubitt on Death and Nightingales.

RHYS: Like Jonathan, Allan’s [wanted to do] this project for years. He shaped and molded it so much over time. He came to production with an incredible vision of exactly how he wanted it. And then, which is so rare, not just for directors but especially for writer-directors, he says, Billy is whatever you want to make him, or however you see him.

And he literally lets you shape it in any way you want. He’ll guide and at times say, What about this? It’s almost to the point of you going to him and saying, This is what I’d like to do, and he’s like, Great, do it! It’s something I’ve almost never experienced, that freedom and trust he has in you as an actor to say, You’re playing the part, it’s your character, you do what you want. So to be able to do that and be trusted to do that was revelatory to me and incredibly liberating.

TV DRAMA: Is there an intensity to your preparation, and even your performance, because you have such a limited amount of time to tell the character’s story? As opposed to having more of a slow burn over 10 or 12 episodes in a season?

RHYS: That’s absolutely right. You hit the ground running. I don’t envy Allan from a writer’s standpoint, trying to elbow everything into three hours. But I think he did incredibly well. But yes, you’re up and running very quickly. In a shooting sense that is a little tough, because you don’t have the time. You’re hitting the punchy scenes early, so you have to come in prepared.

TV DRAMA: Red Arrow will be busy selling this around the world at MIPCOM. What aspects of the story do you think will resonate with global audiences?

RHYS: There’s so much. At its core, it’s a complex love story, which I think everyone can relate to, especially when it’s as complex and as unrequited from Billy’s point of view.

You see the tumult that religion and land bring. I think those big issues are instantly accessible, given that they’re still going on and so present everywhere.

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TV DRAMA: Tell us about ITV Studios’ new drama slate for this MIPCOM. KYRIACOU: Headlining our MIPCOM slate is The War of the Worlds. It’s from Mammoth Screen, the company behind Victoria, Poldark and Vanity Fair. They are a super team, extremely good at these literary adaptations. With Peter Harness writing, I think it’s a great example of what the U.K. does very well. It’s a very bold interpretation of the original [H. G. Wells] novel, set in Edwardian England. I think people will be surprised at how the menace of the aliens is built up and how thrilling it becomes.

We have a really good-looking slate of both Englishlanguage and non-English-language shows. What’s new for us this market is the number of shows that are coming out of Europe. I believe it’s a sign of the strength of creativity in France, Italy, Spain and Scandinavia. And it’s a sign of what ITV Studios has become—more of a balanced global business now than it was a few years ago. Alongside our British shows—Dark Heart, an ITV detective series from Chris Lang; Cleaning Up, from Sister Pictures, Jane Featherstone’s company, starring Sheridan Smith—we have several European dramas. West of Liberty is a six-part series set in Germany but predominantly in the English language. It’s from Anagram and Network Movie for SVT and ZDF, and tells the story of a retired Stasi agent and CIA informant, who is coaxed back into the field for one final investigation. We also have the crime procedural Balthazar from one of our French production labels, Beaubourg Stories, and Speakerine from another of our French labels, Macondo.

By Mansha Daswani

ITV Studios Global Entertainment (ITVS GE) is well known as one of the world’s preeminent suppliers of British drama, from classics like Agatha Christie’s Poirot and Prime Suspect to its latest wave of hits, among them Victoria, Poldark, The City and the City and Vanity Fair. As its parent company has expanded its reach, however, ITVS GE has been able to radically broaden its slate. ITV Studios’ enhanced global presence—with operations in the U.S., Australia, France, Germany and Scandinavia—has translated into a wider portfolio at ITVS GE, one that includes the upcoming, highly anticipated American drama Snowpiercer and a wave of foreign-language shows. Maria Kyriacou, the president of international at ITV Studios, tells TV Drama about the diverse slate at ITVS GE and weighs in on the latest developments in the global scripted landscape.

TV DRAMA: You have a slate that encompasses shows from ITV Studios-owned outlets as well as third parties. What are some of the models you’re using to pull these projects together?

KYRIACOU: The models vary. Co-production is a big part of the conversation for us, bringing partners together. Sometimes it’s just as simple as joining forces in order to fund ambitious shows such as Vanity Fair (a co-production between Amazon and ITV), but we’re also starting to see a few more bottom-up co-developments happening organically across the business. Because we have production capabilities in France, Italy, Scandinavia and Germany, as well as the U.K. and the U.S., that network of talented producers has begun working together on ideas that could bring in audiences in more than one territory. There’s nothing we

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The War of the Worlds, based on the H. G. Wells novel, leads ITVS GE’s MIPCOM drama slate.

can announce yet, but there are three or four projects that are live and working their way through the development cycle. It’s a heartening thing to know that we are becoming much more than the sum of our parts; our labels are really benefiting from being part of our creative-led business, and they are leveraging it.

Additionally, we’re bringing in the knowledge of our local production teams to help presell and bring funding into projects that are relatively well-developed.

TV DRAMA: What are you hearing from broadcasters about the demand for procedurals versus serialized?

KYRIACOU: At the Edinburgh TV Festival in August, Kevin [Lygo, director of television at ITV] invited producers to pitch new procedurals. Some of our highest-rating, mostadored dramas are ones like Vera, which, while they don’t get the same sort of buzz in the media that an HBO drama does, do sustain very large, incredibly loyal audiences. There is still a strong market for them, which is why we like selling them internationally. Similarly, as we’ve seen with Bodyguard—from World Productions (a part of ITV Studios)—on BBC One, something highly serialized with many twists and turns was able to captivate an audience of more than 7.8 million average viewers throughout the series, peaking with 11 million live viewers during the finale. It’s become the highest-rated drama in the U.K. in over a decade.

TV DRAMA: There is so much out there. What qualities do you look for in projects that can break through?

KYRIACOU: The really exciting thing about our industry right now is that talent is allowed to explore some ideas that a few years ago would have been too tangential. There are more outlets for a wider set of genres than ever before. So we’re not shutting anything down. In fact, we’re doing the opposite. We’re opening it up.

TV DRAMA: What are some of the things your companies are doing to foster a new generation of talent?

KYRIACOU: All of our creative labels have young producers and young writers coming through the ranks. It’s about giving people a chance and making sure they have access to training and hands-on experience. With all the wealth of production in our pipeline, the opportunities are there.

TV DRAMA: You have a lot of co-productions on the slate.

What are some of the approaches you’ve used to ensure the success of these collaborations?

KYRIACOU: Number one is that everybody buys into a single creative vision, so you don’t get multiple voices at the table pulling a project in different directions. That is probably the most important thing. Whether it’s the writer or producer, you have to support what they want to make.

TV DRAMA: What considerations do you take into account when determining a windowing strategy on a property to make sure you’re maximizing it on as many platforms as possible?

KYRIACOU: It’s interesting. Distributors, five to ten years ago, were talking about the importance of pushing shows through multiple windows, and that was the way to create long-tail value. I think we’ve gone slightly in reverse now. I think buyers are now looking for ownership in the longterm—they want to attach themselves. For us, that means bringing them into a project much earlier. We are selling more shows at a script or treatment stage now than ever before. And buyers are asking us about what we have coming throughout the year.

TV DRAMA: Does that early involvement cause any issues with producers in terms of dealing with more people giving notes and other editorial input?

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West of Liberty is a ZDF and SVT co-production on offer from ITVS GE.

KYRIACOU: They’ve got to buy into the initial vision of the creative. If you’re bringing on a partner, they have to be saying, “Yes, this is what I want and this is the person I trust to produce and write it for me.”

TV DRAMA: What developments in scripted do you expect will be most transformative for your business in the 12 to 18 months ahead?

KYRIACOU: Audience curiosity is opening up the possibilities for good shows from anywhere and everywhere to find success. Personally, I am using my access to global platforms to explore shows from India, Spain, Norway and more. That is what is driving the transformation of our portfolio.

TV DRAMA: What are some of the other projects you have in the pipeline that you’re particularly excited about?

KYRIACOU: If we fast-forward six months, our shows are becoming even bigger and bolder. We have Snowpiercer in production for TNT and Netflix, and we have World on Fire. World on Fire is our big, epic drama from Mammoth Screen that tells the story of the Second World War from multiple points of view. Every season will be a year of the war. It is amazing and the scripts are wonderfully compelling. I think it’s the perfect time for us to revisit the impact of the Second World War on ordinary people and how it devastated ordinary lives. We’ve also got Noughts & Crosses, an adaptation of the Malorie Blackman books, for the BBC. That’s really exciting; it reimagines the world

as run by a black ruling class—the Crosses—with a white underclass, the Noughts.

TV DRAMA: There is so much book-based IP out there, I find myself envisioning what the TV adaptation will look like with everything I read these days! Is it becoming harder to secure the rights for new novels?

KYRIACOU: I think it depends on who you talk to. If you’re talking to an independent producer who is trying to secure the best ideas, they might feel a little bit under pressure. But from where we sit, from our point of view, when we consider the production labels we now have across ITV, they have phenomenally strong development slates and they are busier than ever before. There are a lot of great ideas out there.

Balthazar is a new crime procedural made by ITV Studios’ French operations for TF1.

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SARAH DOOLE

FREMANTLE

By Mansha Daswani

Boosting its position in the scripted business has been a key remit at Fremantle over the last few years. As the company’s director of global drama, Sarah Doole is involved with a broad array of projects across the globe, from German-language fare like Deutschland 86 and the Italian original My Brilliant Friend to the hit Australian project Picnic at Hanging Rock and Gurinder Chadha’s upcoming period epic Beecham House.

Doole talks to TV Drama about the importance of fostering diverse voices and the need for projects to be authentic in order to break through in a cluttered landscape.

TV DRAMA: What are some of the projects you’re working on that you’re particularly excited about?

DOOLE: They are all fairly different and interestingly are across all the broadcasters in the U.K., but none are actually shot in Britain. They’re being shot around the world. I love that we’re opening windows on the world for the British audience through our storytelling, which fits in with what we hope we do at Fremantle with our dramas. We’re really busy with Beecham House, Gurinder Chadha’s big, epic family saga for ITV next spring. She is one of the leading

female directors in the U.K. and we love her because she has a diverse voice, a point of view, she’s inspirational—truly a renaissance woman. She writes, produces and directs. She’d probably be in it if she could! [Laughs] She’s created this story, all set in the India of the late 1700s, a period we’ve never seen before on British television. The British and the French have arrived in India with the East India Company and they’re fighting over what they believe the spoils of India are going to be. Gurinder is keen to tell the story because we’ve always seen India through a colonial or post-colonial prism. We’ve not seen the idea that India already existed for millennia in its beauty and glory, and the Europeans came to spoil the party!

Gurinder has re-created most of India at Ealing Studios, and now she’s off in India shooting in the real locations like the Red Fort. It’s a story that is accessible, fun and emotional.

We are filming Baghdad Central in Morocco for Channel 4.

It’s a script by Stephen Butchard, and it’s the story of an Iraqi detective after the fall of Saddam. It shows Iraq of that time through an Iraqi perspective, which we’ve never seen before on television. It’s almost a standard detective story set against this fallen city. It’s really beautiful.

We have The Dublin Murders, [based on] the Tana French books, shooting in Dublin and Belfast, for BBC One. And then Taken Down is shooting in Dublin, for RTÉ and ARTE, and it’s a poignant story about the death of a young Nigerian migrant during the refugee crisis in Ireland. Again, it’s a viewpoint on the world that is unique.

And then our other big show for MIPCOM is My Brilliant Friend. We’re excited to actually have episodes to show. That’s our flagship, filmic, beautiful series, in Italian and Neopolitan.

We’ve never seen 1950s Naples on an international stage.

TV DRAMA: How are you finding new, diverse voices?

DOOLE: That’s absolutely our driving force, and it comes from a pure creative ambition. We want to be the first to tell stories, not follow stories that have already been told.

We particularly advocate for women’s voices behind, and in front of, the camera. Look at something like Picnic at Hanging Rock, which we did earlier in the year. We were determined that that would have a female director. It was nearly a wholly female production crew as well. And then we wanted a really strong actress in the lead role who also has a voice, and that was Natalie Dormer. We fought long and hard for that to happen. In the end, it was a beautiful piece, we sold it all around the world, and we were at the forefront of genuinely bringing women’s voices to the screen. You have to fight for it. I’m quite passionate about that; it’s really important to lead the way on it. And we’ve got brilliant men working with us as well!

TV DRAMA: What qualities does a drama need to cut through in the current environment?

DOOLE: The number one thing is authenticity. Viewers have a lot of choices. They want to experience a world that feels authentic and unique to them as they’re watching it.

Gurinder’s show is filming in India, she’s from the Indian diaspora, it’s a story she wants to tell. My Brilliant Friend is authentic Naples of the ’50s. They scoured every antique and junk store in Naples! Everything on set is authentic to the period and the time. Same with Baghdad Central. We’re making it as authentic as we can. It’s difficult to shoot in Iraq, so we had to create downtown Baghdad in Morocco,

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Commissioned by RTÉ and ARTE, Taken Down, a crime thriller set in Ireland, is among the new dramas on offer from Fremantle.

but they speak Arabic in the show and there’s Arabic poetry in it. And the language doesn’t matter now. Audiences would rather it be authentic and watch it with subtitles than it feel manufactured and inauthentic. The fact that HBO is playing My Brilliant Friend in Italian and Neapolitan is a big milestone for us on our international journey. The other thing is, we just want to work with the best talent. Christian [Vesper, executive VP and creative director of global drama] and I spend a lot of time just meeting talent and saying, What’s the story you want to tell? Let’s help you tell it. You have to trust the talent and the creators and work with them to bring out their unique stories.

TV DRAMA: How is Fremantle mentoring new creatives to help them get to the point where they can run their own shows?

DOOLE: There are all sorts of ways of doing that. Noemi Spanos, creative director for Kate Harwood [at Euston Films], is exec producing her first show, Dublin Murders, under Kate’s mentorship. You have to believe in people and give them a go! I’m a believer in that. Usually they deliver and if they don’t, you help them along the way. People make mistakes. We all have. That’s part of the job and you learn from them. Laurence Bowen at Dancing Ledge runs a writer-inresidence program. He pays for a young writer to come in for three months to work with him and his development team and get a feel for how you put a pitch together and how you can take an idea and develop it so that it’s good enough and bold enough to take to the broadcasters. All of our companies and producers use different mechanisms, but they all are in search of the next great talent and they’re all focused on bringing on that next generation of talent.

TV DRAMA: What are some of the trends in the scripted space that most excite you?

DOOLE: I’m always excited about book IP. Penguin Random House is part of our family–we’re all owned by Bertelsmann—

and I’m excited about how we can work with some of their big talents. It’s about taking a big book author—and therefore they’re a brand—but not necessarily doing a straight adaptation. An example of that is we’re working with Paulo Coelho, one of the biggest selling authors in the world. We haven’t optioned his books. We’re working with him to develop a TV show that isn’t a straight adaptation. It would have characters from his books and some of his own personal story, developed uniquely for television. That’s a really interesting trend for some of those big literary authors who are the world’s best storytellers. Their books might be the straightforward way of telling those stories, but there are more interesting or creative collaborations to have with them. That takes time and patience, but I think the rewards could be immense.

I think we’re ready for something breakout in sci-fi. For the last few years, genre has been a bit out of fashion and there’s room to do something really clever in that space. We’re working on that. Those genre pieces aren’t easy and they’re not quick to bring to market. But if you get it right, you’ve got a fan base. The skill here is how you keep a fan base of genre fans but extend to a broader audience. That’s an interesting creative challenge.

And there’s room for some feel-good stories. Life is quite grim at the moment for a lot of people. We shouldn’t forget that TV should be entertainment and escapism. I’m fortunate; I have a brilliant job that I love that is kind of my hobby as well.

But a lot of people do things that they don’t enjoy. TV is really important to how they live their lives and their escapism and joy. Sometimes we get a bit hooked into thrillers, the girl in the ditch. We have to look for lighter ways of telling stories as well. We’re spending some time on development on that.

And I’m excited about telling stories in Africa. I think it’s completely underexposed and there are great writers and fantastic talent out there. That’s one of my passions, to see if we can tell the next big great entertaining story out of Africa.

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TV DRAMA: Tell us about anone. How did the idea come about?

TSUGIYA: From the time we were planning Woman, I was already having discussions with our screenwriter Yuji Sakamoto on how Japanese society tends to worship money. It turned out that he had also been thinking of ways to illustrate how people give utmost importance to money and even go crazy over it. Then we started wondering how a story would unfold if the money was fake. A lot of things are fake in this world, and there are many lies. There are fake items that look authentic. But what if money, which is what we treasure the most, turns out to be fake? What would happen to Japanese society? This was how the concept of anone came about, and each brainstorming session turned out to be quite engaging. We would imagine interesting scenes, such as a lady who takes care of an orphan putting fake money every night into a vending machine and flashing a grin when the juice would come out. With that as a starting point, we dug into the meaning behind money, and because it is a Yuji Sakamoto drama, it was in the context of a family story. So at that moment, we were already talking about using this theme in a future drama series, but then we realized how difficult it was to actually show counterfeit currency on television and reached a point where we felt it was going to be impossible. We put it off to the side for a while and went on with Woman, and when [Yuji] and I met again for the next title, the fake money story sprang back up and anone was born.

By Mansha Daswani

Japanese drama will take center stage at MIPCOM with Nippon TV’s Way Too Kawaii! selected as the Asian World Premiere TV Screening. The country’s market-leading broadcaster has become well known among Asian platforms for its prolific drama output—and it’s now being recognized globally following the success of Mother and Woman as scripted formats. Mother, produced for Star TV by Turkey’s MF Yapim/Medyapim, has been rolled out to multiple markets by Global Agency. The Korean adaptation, produced by Studio Dragon (the drama production company owned by CJ ENM) for tvN, was selected as one of ten international dramas showcased at CANNESERIES this year. And now, a Ukrainian edition of Mother is in the works, courtesy of STB. The Turkish edition of Woman, meanwhile, is notching up strong sales for Calinos Entertainment.

Hisashi Tsugiya, senior drama producer at Nippon TV, shares with TV Drama his aspirations for Japanese content and discusses his latest series, anone.

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TV DRAMA: Medyapim in Turkey has adapted both Woman and Mother. What advice have you given them and other producers about adapting your dramas?

TSUGIYA: With [Fatih] Aksoy from Medyapim, for instance, I made sure to communicate the true essence of what I wanted the audience to feel. I left it completely up to the Turkish production team to decide on the details of the plot and how the story would unfold because I knew that he and I were completely aligned on what message to convey to the viewers. I did not discuss specifics, but instead got on the same page with regards to the theme, then put my full trust in them to take care of the rest. You can see that they truly grasped the theme and did a wonderful job with the story. In terms of specific advice, when the local Turkish producers of Woman wanted ideas on creating an episode that went deeper into a character or adding an extra dynamic in a family relationship, I was more than happy to throw in my two cents. Japanese culture tends to simplify, so I

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was asked what the true meaning is behind some scenes. Sometimes, the way we create allows for multiple interpretations, so I got questions on what is really going on [with the characters] and what actually happened afterward that was not shown in detail (but our audience understood).

TV DRAMA: Do you prefer working on a series where the entire story is told in one season, or do you like to be able to tell stories about characters over many years?

TSUGIYA: While the convention in Japan is to produce dramas series that conclude in one season, there have been times when we were asked to create a part two, so sometimes we produce the final episode in a way that leaves the door open for a sequel. The thing is, there is so much that I want to do and I am not all that young anymore, so I prefer to create many dramas instead of spending years on one project. I want to finish one title in one season and move on right away to the next.

TV DRAMA: Tell us about the creative environment you have found at Nippon TV. TSUGIYA: Nippon TV dramas are now being distributed throughout the world, thanks to content markets like MIPCOM. In the past, however, the top priority of the drama production teams was to get high viewer ratings domestically. This continues to be important for us, but now we have a new wave of Nippon TV creators wanting to share their content globally. It is no longer just about capturing the highest viewer ratings in our country. There is this new desire to obtain reaction and acclaim from sources other than the traditional linear broadcast business, and they factor in the international market when they pitch projects.

Hisashi Tsugiya is behind some of Nippon TV’s biggest scripted successes, including, from the top, Mother, which has been adapted in Turkey and Korea; Woman, also formatted in Turkey; and anone.

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TV DRAMA: We’ve seen Turkish dramas travel well across the globe, and Spanish series are starting to do the same. Do you envision Japanese dramas, in their original versions, being able to cross into Europe, Latin America or other markets?

TSUGIYA: Let’s look at Mother, for example, because it has been localized in several countries, but a lot of people do not know that it is from Japan or only realize it later on. I hope that when viewers realize that it came from Japan, they will want to see the original. It would be great if those who saw the Turkish remake decide to see the Japanese version and become interested in Japanese dramas in general.

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told; there’s a lot more to it than was in the film. Also, having Umberto Eco behind the idea was a great reason.

We have known the company that bought the rights from the publishing house and Umberto Eco’s estate, 11 Marzo Film, for a long time and have a personal relationship with them. My father [Herbert G. Kloiber, chairman of TMG] started producing films with Roberto Levi [of 11 Marzo] 40 years ago. In 2014 we got in touch with them about producing the series. Rai was always on board from the start, and when Palomar joined as well, we thought we had a winning partnership to get this epic project off the ground.

TV DRAMA: How closely does the series follow the book?

KLOIBER: It was developed together with Umberto Eco, who obviously was keen on having his book turned into a TV series as close as possible to his original vision. [Unlike] the book, there are new strong female roles, which make the series more interesting and appealing for a broad audience, more modern and more relevant.

The set design and costume design are as authentic as possible.

There was a lot of research done by the set designer, who was a student of Umberto Eco’s. We tried to transpose the atmosphere from the book onto the screen.

HERBERT L. KLOIBER TELE MÜNCHEN GROUP

By Kristin Brzoznowski

Umberto Eco’s acclaimed 1980 novel The Name of the Rose is coming to life as a big-budget event series. Set in Italy in 1327, the eight-part crime thriller is being produced by 11 Marzo Film, Palomar and Tele München Group (TMG) in co-production with SundanceTV and in association with Rai Fiction. Set to launch in 2019, the production boasts a bevy of big-name international stars, and TM International has already signed a slew of presales around the globe. Herbert L. Kloiber, the managing director of TMG and TM International, shares details with TV Drama about how the event series came together and what viewers can expect.

TV DRAMA: How did doing The Name of the Rose as an event series come about?

KLOIBER: It has been 30 years since the original book, and the film came right after. The author, Umberto Eco, always felt that the film didn’t do full justice to his work. He felt that a TV series with eight parts would be much better suited to tell the whole story, which is complex and has a lot of characters and varied storylines. With the renaissance of the miniseries, and series in general, it became very exciting and justifiable to do something as major as The Name of the Rose in a different way. There were many compelling reasons, including that it has not been fully

TV DRAMA: How did the financing come together for a project of this scale and budget?

KLOIBER: It was clear that a project like this had to have a big budget because of the scope of the story, the historic setting and our goal to achieve a cinematic look. But also because in today’s competitive environment in the television landscape, you almost have to have a big budget in order to compete on a worldwide scale.

Rai was on board from the beginning. It helps in a big-budget production to have at least one big anchor broadcaster on board [from the start]. Tele München was convinced of the brand and the creatives involved, so we were happy to take the additional risk on the financing side. We also agreed to take the worldwide sales efforts into our own hands in order to be in control of that big investment.

TV DRAMA: A slew of presales have already been secured. Why is it so essential to have broadcasters on board at an early stage for a project like this?

KLOIBER: The show has been sold in many territories already.

We consciously decided to try and sell to enthusiastic networks and platforms that share our vision on a territoryby-territory basis at an early stage. Because it’s such a big brand and because of the creative elements involved and the iconic cast, it has been possible to achieve this. But also because in today’s top-notch TV drama world, many big properties go directly to a worldwide streaming service, and national platforms or broadcasters have a harder time competing. For example, our partners from SundanceTV in the U.S. and Orange Studio in France have been extremely excited from a very early stage. It obviously helps to feel confident that the show will be seen by as many eyeballs as possible. Early, excited partners are much more motivated to promote a show because it’s important to them. Because early partners have a more meaningful stake and influence in the show, they can stand behind it much more strongly with their brand. That’s why we decided to go this route.

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