REAL_1018_COVER_KID_409_COVER 9/25/18 9:40 AM Page 2
TVREAL
WWW.TVREAL.WS
OCTOBER 2018
MIPCOM EDITION
Wildlife Docs / Biographies & Celebrity Reality Steve Backshall / Discovery’s Kathleen Finch
SPREAD TEMPLATE_Layout 1 9/20/18 11:07 AM Page 1
SPREAD TEMPLATE_Layout 1 9/20/18 11:07 AM Page 2
SPREAD TEMPLATE_Layout 1 9/26/18 12:19 PM Page 1
SPREAD TEMPLATE_Layout 1 9/26/18 12:19 PM Page 2
SPREAD TEMPLATE_Layout 1 9/26/18 5:01 PM Page 1
SPREAD TEMPLATE_Layout 1 9/26/18 5:01 PM Page 2
SPREAD TEMPLATE_Layout 1 9/24/18 11:34 AM Page 1
SPREAD TEMPLATE_Layout 1 9/24/18 11:34 AM Page 2
REAL_1018_TOC_ASP_1206_MANSHA COLUMN 9/26/18 4:47 PM Page 1
10
TV REAL
CONTENTS
Past Post-Truth
FEATURES 26 NATURAL WONDERS New perspectives and innovations are driving the demand for natural-history shows.
26
In these (increasingly) strange times we’re living in, it’s harder and harder to tell fact from fiction.
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 Real © 2018 WSN INC. 1123 Broadway, #1207 New York, NY 10010 Phone: (212) 924-7620 Fax: (212) 924-6940 Website: www.tvreal.ws
The U.S. President paying off a porn star for an alleged affair. A former Russian double agent and his daughter being poisoned on U.K. soil. The powerful dictator of a reclusive country befriending a one-time NBA star with a penchant for cross-dressing. These stories of intrigue may sound like the plots of new limited series, but alas, they are actual events that have made recent headlines—and are but a few examples of the stranger-than-fiction news we’re faced with on a near-daily basis. In today’s weird world, even the word “fact” has come under scrutiny as having a muddled meaning. Donald Trump’s presidential counselor Kellyanne Conway famously brought the term “alternative facts” into the cultural and political lexicon when defending (false) claims made by a former White House press secretary. Attorney Rudy Giuliani told a CNN correspondent that, nowadays, facts are “in the eye of the beholder,” and the former mayor of New York City again raised eyebrows in declaring that “truth isn’t truth” during a Sunday morning news program. With all the misnomers about facts in the news these days, the quest for truth has become even more important. And this is being reflected in the programming audiences are seeking out on television. Whereas viewers at one time were relishing reality TV’s over-the-top characters in semi-scripted situations, many of the shows that are popular today harken back to the traditional documentary style, with “authenticity” being a buzzword. Programs that follow brave expeditions into the unknown have had quite the draw, and in this issue, we hear from adventurer Steve Backshall about his series that follows as he boldly treks around the globe. Also, Discovery’s Kathleen Finch talks about the importance of having experts who are real people in real-life situations fronting the lifestyle shows featured in the company’s bouquet. Viewers are also enjoying true-life stories about everyone from the famous to the infamous, the ordinary to the extraordinary. This issue of TV Real shines a light on the demand for one-off biographies, docuseries and celebreality shows. We also look at the immense popularity of natural-history documentaries. What better way is there to escape the confusion of this post-truth age than to be immersed in uplifting and awe-inspiring explorations of the world around us? —Kristin Brzoznowski
34 FAME GAME One-off biographies, docuseries and celeb-reality shows are filling schedules around the world.
34
INTERVIEWS
38 Expedition’s Steve Backshall
42 Discovery’s Kathleen Finch
REAL_1018__Layout 1 9/21/18 9:58 AM Page 1
REAL_1018_UPS_Layout 1 9/25/18 2:43 PM Page 1
12
TV REAL
A+E Networks Nightwatch Nation / I Knew Jesus / Forged in Fire: Knife or Death A spin-off of the reality hit Nightwatch, Nightwatch Nation takes viewers along for the ride as first responders across the U.S. attempt to save as many lives as possible on the overnight shift. Cameras capture them administering Narcan to individuals who have overdosed, treating active stroke victims and more. A+E Networks is also presenting the eightparter I Knew Jesus. The program is “thoughtful and compelling, an amazing and timely docuseries,” says Glen Hansen, the company’s VP/head of content sales for the Asia Pacific. Each hour-long episode is dedicated to presenting interpretations of Jesus. In Forged in Fire: Knife or Death, America’s most experienced bladesmiths, martial artists and knife experts slice, stab and chop their way through everything from flying watermelons to huge ice blocks for the opportunity to take home the $20,000 grand prize. “We are super excited to bring these forward-leaning titles to MIPCOM,” Hansen says. Other highlights include Live PD, Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath and The Curse of Civil War Gold. Hansen adds, “A+E Networks’ factual series resonate greatly with viewers and garner success— not just in ratings out of the gate, but in the repeatability factor. A+E Networks has led the cultural conversation with awardwinning factual programming that shines a light on the most pressing issues of the day and resonates around the world.”
Nightwatch Nation
“We have a reputation for defining new factual genres and setting trends.” —Glen Hansen
Autentic Distribution
Raising Wildlife
The Wild Andes / 24H Europe: We Are the Future / Raising Wildlife Unique animal behaviors are captured in 4K in The Wild Andes, which Autentic Distribution is presenting to international buyers. “Either as a three-part series or as a feature film, this is a stunning nature documentary,” says Anne Hufnagel, the general manager of sales at Autentic Distribution. The program features “fantastic 4K footage of rare animals in their natural habitat as you’ve never seen before.” The company is also introducing 24H Europe: We Are the Future, which Hufnagel describes as a “24-hour, real-time project that hopefully will be aired all across Europe in May 2019, just before the European Parliament elections.” The program follows 66 individuals between the ages of 18 and 30 who hail from 25 countries. They will share their everyday lives, realities and dreams. “Especially in times like these, when there is a noticeable shift to the right all over Europe, such a program is a great opportunity to bring back the European spirit,” says Hufnagel. The bond between humans and animals is explored in Raising Wildlife, a family-friendly show that follows people who have dedicated their lives to caring for creatures in need. “In this series, you’ll get an intimate look at the exhilarating friendships between man and beast,” Hufnagel says. She adds, “We are a young and flexible team with a broad thematic base in different genres, so we can easily adapt to the needs and wishes of our clients.”
“With our diverse portfolio, we can easily adapt to any client’s demands.” —Anne Hufnagel
482 WORLD SCREEN 10/18
REAL_1018__Layout 1 9/24/18 10:16 AM Page 1
REAL_1018_UPS_Layout 1 9/26/18 12:29 PM Page 2
14
TV REAL
Beyond Distribution Storm of Suspicion / Merchants of the Wild / Built to Last Six Indigenous individuals learn what it takes to complete fur trade missions similar to those of their Northern Canadian ancestors in Merchants of the Wild. “They must survive for 25 days, using their collective knowledge and courage to find food, make shelter, endure freezing nights and battle an emotional journey to reconnect with the land of their forefathers,” says Munia Kanna-Konsek, the head of sales at Beyond Distribution. Another factual highlight from the company is Storm of Suspicion, a true-crime series that is on The Weather Channel. “Each episode, featuring experts and forensic meteorologists, is structured as a real-life whodunit, with weather ultimately playing the pivotal role in how the crime was resolved,” says Kanna-Konsek. Then there is Built to Last, investigating the resilience of today’s homes.
Merchants of the Wild
“Merchants of the Wild mixes survival, nature and adventure.” —Munia Kanna-Konsek
Distribution360 It’s How You Get There/Tomorrow’s World Today/Jack of All Tastes Viewers go along on some of the most scenic rides across America with the hosts of It’s How You Get There. “Sometimes the journey is just as important (and fun!) as the destination,” says Diane Rankin, the senior VP of international sales and acquisitions at Distribution360. “The series is both a moto enthusiast’s dream as well as a gorgeous travelogue.” Tomorrow’s World Today is a “forward-looking series that presents a cutting-edge approach to exploring concepts in science and technology that are changing lives today and making a difference tomorrow,” Rankin says. Meanwhile, Jack of All Tastes is a food series hosted by Jackie Long, the wife of a former National Football League (NFL) player. Long takes viewers with her as she dines with NFL players at their favorite restaurants.
It’s How You Get There
“We have a robust selection of new unscripted male-skewing titles that we are looking forward to sharing with buyers at MIPCOM.” —Diane Rankin
Escapade Media Slice / Walking Points / Charged & Disbarred Adam Richman travels the world on an eating adventure in Slice. “This will be an incredible journey of food, culture and travel that will also deliver a number of digital assets to allow the audience to immerse themselves” in the series, says Natalie Lawley, the managing director of Escapade Media. The company also has the documentary Walking Points, which illustrates the strong bond between humans and dogs while exploring the idea that canines may be able to detect cancer. Charged & Disbarred explores reallife crimes perpetrated by those trusted to uphold the law. “This series offers the viewer a unique twist on crime programming by exposing those [individuals] who we turn to in times of trouble who abuse their position of power and trust,” says Lawley. Slice 484 WORLD SCREEN 10/18
“We are very interested in hearing about titles that feature out-of-theordinary and obscure stories.” —Natalie Lawley
REAL_1018__Layout 1 9/6/18 10:31 AM Page 1
REAL_1018_UPS_Layout 1 9/26/18 2:22 PM Page 3
16
TV REAL
Fremantle Expedition with Steve Backshall / Manson: The Lost Tapes / In Search Of Made by True to Nature, Expedition with Steve Backshall looks on as the titular adventurer visits uncharted corners of the globe. “Commissioned by BBC, UKTV and Fremantle, this groundbreaking collaboration for an ambitious, primetime adventure series is filled with world firsts,” says Angela Neillis, Fremantle’s director of non-scripted acquisitions, International. “These include the first descent of a white-water river in the Himalayas, trekking through an unexplored jungle in South America and climbing mountains in the deserts of the Middle East.” Also on offer from the company is Manson: The Lost Tapes, featuring access to more than 100 hours of previously unseen footage of the infamous cult. “The Lost Tapes provides exclusive, new and unique insight into how Charles Manson assembled a group of young followers in a commune that would go on to commit the most infamous series of murders in U.S. history, which came to be seen across the world as the dark side of the hippie movement,” says Neillis. There is also In Search Of, in which host Zachary Quinto examines unexplained phenomena from around the globe. “From the mythical to the scientific, each episode will follow Quinto as he investigates a different subject—such as alien encounters, mysterious creatures, UFO sightings, time travel and artificial intelligence—and searches for the truth to some of the world’s greatest mysteries,” adds Neillis.
In Search Of
“This year, we’ve been working with the best international producers to acquire the highest-quality factual programming.” —Angela Neillis
Gusto Worldwide Media DNA Dinners / Bonacini’s Italy / Flour Power In each episode of DNA Dinners, host Tyrone Edwards surprises one person with the results of his or her DNA test. The individual then celebrates this newfound heritage by preparing a meal for their family. Gusto Worldwide Media is selling DNA Dinners both as a finished tape and as a format. Celebrity chef Michael Bonacini cooks his way through 15 Italian regions in new episodes of Bonacini’s Italy, exploring the flavors and textures that make each area unique. “Shot in 4K UHD, this series is accompanied by recipes, digital artwork and webisodes that inspire viewers to perfect some of Chef Bonacini’s signature dishes,” says Corey Caplan, Gusto Worldwide Media’s senior director of international sales. The company is also presenting 13 new episodes of the baking series Flour Power, which is set in a retro-style kitchen. “The vivacious host, Jessica McGovern, inspires with simple to extravagant baked treats for all occasions,” Caplan says. “From the colorful, high-fashion set to the decadent recipes, this program is a feast for the eyes.” Caplan notes, “Our concepts are innovative, and we approach food with a global sensibility. DNA Dinners, Bonacini’s Italy and Flour Power are accompanied by turnkey, multiplatform packages that include high-resolution talent and food photography, as well as original webisodes.” He adds, “Following the success of our recent launches, we’re looking for partners in new territories.”
Flour Power
“We have a catalog of over 500 hours of content that comes with a marketing package that enables us to launch almost immediately anywhere in the world.” —Corey Caplan 486 WORLD SCREEN 10/18
REAL_1018__Layout 1 9/6/18 10:29 AM Page 1
REAL_1018_UPS_Layout 1 9/25/18 2:43 PM Page 4
18
Anna’s 12 Steps to Love
TV REAL
Keshet International Showdown: Aviv/Eyal / Personal Dater / Anna’s 12 Steps to Love Two of Israel’s most popular performers face off in Showdown: Aviv/Eyal to discover the country’s next great singing talent. “Talent shows have always been and will continue to be staples in broadcasters’ schedules because of their broad appeal and Cinderella element,” says Keren Shahar, COO and president of distribution at Keshet International. “Showdown is no exception, but we believe that with this format you get a built-in audience and viewer engagement by having two well-known local artists headline the show.” There’s also Personal Dater, a dating format featuring best friends and social media, and Anna’s 12 Steps to Love, which has a “fly-on-the-wall, observational-documentary feel to it,” says Shahar. “This is a style and tone that viewers have grown to appreciate and expect in the past couple of years.”
“Our recent acquisition of Greenbird Media means we have lots of brand-new factual English-language finished tape.” —Keren Shahar
Kew Media Distribution
The Brigade: Race to the Hudson
Killer in Plain Sight / Haunted Hospitals / The Brigade: Race to the Hudson Detectives look at every suspect involved in murder cases and try to filter out the lies from the truth to crack the mystery in the true-crime show Killer in Plain Sight. Another program on offer from Kew Media Distribution is Haunted Hospitals, which tells stories of paranormal activity inside hospitals, nursing homes, morgues and medical institutions. “It is known that more than two-thirds of society have paranormal beliefs, making Haunted Hospitals fascinating to many viewers around the world,” says Jonathan Ford, the company’s executive VP of sales. The Brigade: Race to the Hudson, meanwhile, offers an “epic survival-genre experience,” Ford says. With a large sum of cash at stake, ten strangers must work together to conquer a grueling cross-country wilderness race that pushes their bodies and minds to extremes.
“We are bringing one of our strongest nonfiction lineups to the market, offering compelling subject matter, pedigree in production, high volume and one-off specials.” —Jonathan Ford
NHK Enterprises Antarctica: The Frozen Time Capsule / Crew 191: A Cameraman’s Records of “Life on Mars” / Wild Yellowstone The mysteries of the ancient natural world are uncovered using 8K cameras in Antarctica: The Frozen Time Capsule. “Under 3.5-meter-thick ice at the bottom of an Antarctic lake is a strange undulating landscape, unchanged from 1 billion years ago when oxygen first began appearing on Earth,” says Akira Ichikawa, the general manager of the program sales department at NHK Enterprises. “The image of microorganisms producing oxygen is captured in extraordinary detail.” The documentary Crew 191: A Cameraman’s Records of “Life on Mars” allows viewers to experience what life would be like on the red planet. Another highlight is Wild Yellowstone. Shot in 8K, it immerses audiences in the “natural beauty and grandeur” of the landscape and offers an idea of what life is like for the animals that live there.
Wild Yellowstone
“NHK’s natural-history programs are known for their excellence.” —Akira Ichikawa 488 WORLD SCREEN 10/18
REAL_1018__Layout 1 9/21/18 12:51 PM Page 1
REAL_1018_UPS_Layout 1 9/26/18 2:23 PM Page 5
Native America 20
TV REAL
PBS International The Facebook Dilemma / Native America / World’s Greatest The Facebook Dilemma examines warnings about Facebook’s impact on privacy and democracy, as well as its response to claims that it is promoting “fake news” on the platform. “It may make you rethink your social media habits,” says Tom Koch, PBS International’s VP. The four-hour series Native America, made with the participation of Native American communities, uses animations from Academy Award-nominated artists and 3D computer modeling to bring the pre-Columbus world to life. It was filmed in “some of the most spectacular locations in the hemisphere,” Koch notes. World’s Greatest is another highlight from PBS International. The 36-episode series “takes viewers on a timeless journey around the planet, revealing the world’s greatest cities, natural wonders, animal encounters, journeys, man-made wonders and islands.”
“PBS International offers broadcast and digital platforms around the globe 3,000 hours of the highest-quality factual, lifestyle and children’s programming.” —Tom Koch
Rive Gauche Television My Misdiagnosis / Trace of Evil / Donal MacIntyre’s Murder Files Each episode of My Misdiagnosis, on offer from Rive Gauche Television, features two medical cases told by misdiagnosed individuals and their friends, family and doctors. The company is also presenting the crime shows Trace of Evil and Donal MacIntyre’s Murder Files. “In a world in which crime programming is in high demand, our goal as a company is to always bring the highest-quality factual crime programming to the marketplace; Trace of Evil and Donal MacIntyre’s Murder Files [are] just that,” says Jon Kramer, the CEO of Rive Gauche Television. “Both are proven, long-running series that give audiences their ‘crime fix’ with captivating storytelling.” He adds, “Rive Gauche will be broadening out its slate going forward by adding scripted series. We expect to announce some projects prior to MIPTV next year.”
Donal MacIntyre’s Murder Files
TCB Media Rights
—Jon Kramer
Egypt’s Unexplained Files
Borderforce USA: The Bridges / Massive Engineering Mistakes / Egypt’s Unexplained Files Large-scale building blunders are showcased in Massive Engineering Mistakes. “Visually, it tells a stunning story, so it is certainly something that buyers can see cutting through crowded schedules,” says Paul Heaney, TCB Media Rights’ CEO. Borderforce USA: The Bridges touches on a timely topic as it offers access to the land border between Mexico and the U.S. TCB’s slate also features Egypt’s Unexplained Files. “With this series, we’ve tried to highlight many mysteries associated with one of history’s richest eras and tell its story in a very contemporary way,” Heaney says. He adds, “We’d like to use MIPCOM to demonstrate the broader appeal of our catalog. We are also launching Extreme Love Stories and World’s Most Extraordinary Families, which skew more toward a female demographic.”
“Our goal, as always, is to provide highquality, tailored content to our buyers and listen to their current programming needs.”
“We’re launching in the area of 400 hours and 50 to 60 titles; it’s our biggest lineup ever.” —Paul Heaney 490 WORLD SCREEN 10/18
REAL_1018__Layout 1 9/26/18 10:00 AM Page 1
REAL_1018_UPS_Layout 1 9/26/18 12:06 PM Page 6
22
TV REAL
Terra Mater Factual Studios Earth: The Nature of Our Planet / Cantabria: Spain’s Magical Mountains / Mystery of the Celtic Tomb Natural elements such as air, land and water are explored in the three-part blue-chip series Earth: The Nature of Our Planet. Terra Mater Factual Studios puts the Cantabrian region into the spotlight in Cantabria: Spain’s Magical Mountains. “With a grand selection of animals such as brown bears, wolves, wildcats, snow grouse and solicitous ants in one spot, rest assured that the time you spend watching will be filled with awe and wonder,” says Sabine Holzer, the head of specialist factual at Terra Mater Factual Studios. Another highlight, Mystery of the Celtic Tomb, examines the Celts through evidence discovered in a 2,400-year-old tomb. “It’s science at its finest, following archaeologists as they solve thousand-year-old puzzles and connect threads to shed light on questions of humanity’s past,” Holzer says.
“We’ll bring nearly a dozen hours of new releases and freshly available projects to the table.”
Cantabria: Spain’s Magical Mountains
—Sabine Holzer
TVF International Empires of Silver / Dog’s Best Friend / Vogue Williams Investigates TVF International’s slate includes Empires of Silver, which “tells the fascinating story of the birth of the modern world in South American silver mines and the chain of events that has led us to where we are today,” says Harriet Armston-Clarke, division head. The 4K doc features reconstructions and interviews with experts. Season two of the 4K entertainment series Dog’s Best Friend is a “viral pop-culture phenomenon packed with fun facts and bite-size human and animal psychology takeaways,” Armston-Clarke adds. TVF International is also showcasing Vogue Williams Investigates. Armston-Clarke notes, “Buyers’ reception of Vogue Williams Investigates has been phenomenal. Williams is making waves all around the globe for her unique ability to get to the heart of the biggest issues facing young people today.”
Dog’s Best Friend
“We will launch 350 hours of brand-new programming at MIPCOM, alongside separate slates for shortform, 4K content and formats.” —Harriet Armston-Clarke
ZDF Enterprises History of Weapons / The Spying Game: Tales from the Cold War / The Truth About Franco: Spain’s Forgotten Dictatorship The documentary series History of Weapons uncovers the connection between the development of a new military device and the aftermath of its use. “The series tells a story about weaponry that took leading roles in the major battles in history,” says Ralf Rückauer, the VP of ZDFE.unscripted. “Further, it investigates man’s desperate attempts to tame the destructive power of new instruments of war.” The Spying Game: Tales from the Cold War takes a close look at the era of rising tensions between the East and West. The Truth About Franco: Spain’s Forgotten Dictatorship, meanwhile, reflects on the regime of Francisco Franco, who is regarded as one of Europe’s most brutal leaders. “Spain is marked by traces of his tyranny,” says Rückauer. “This series casts new light on ‘Spain’s forgotten dictatorship.’”
History of Weapons
492 WORLD SCREEN 10/18
“ZDFE.unscripted’s aim is to enhance the genre and deliver the bestquality factual programs.” —Ralf Rückauer
REAL_1018__Layout 1 9/11/18 4:29 PM Page 1
SPREAD TEMPLATE_Layout 1 9/25/18 1:01 PM Page 1
SPREAD TEMPLATE_Layout 1 9/25/18 1:01 PM Page 2
REAL_0418_WILDLIFE_ALT_REAL_408_NIGHT 9/25/18 9:53 AM Page 2
26
TV REAL
BBC Studios’ Blue Planet II.
496 WORLD SCREEN 10/18
REAL_0418_WILDLIFE_ALT_REAL_408_NIGHT 9/26/18 1:54 PM Page 3
TV REAL 27
New perspectives and innovations are driving increased demand for natural-history programming. By Neil Crossley hen it comes to instilling a sense of awe and wonder in audiences, few genres deliver quite so dramatically as natural history. The opportunity to glimpse rare and spectacular natural sights in remote locations holds increasing appeal. According to a study published in January 2018 by Parrot Analytics, natural-history documentaries experienced a surge in global demand in 2017, fueled by “high-profile and high-demand” productions. The study concluded that natural history is now second only to biography in terms of documentary sub-genre, with Ireland experiencing the highest demand per capita for natural-history documentaries, followed by New Zealand, the U.S., Canada, Israel, Australia, the Netherlands, Sweden, Malta and the U.K. In the last year, there has been a resurgence in the number of productions offering unique contexts and perspectives. Limited event blue-chip productions, in particular, have dominated, with producers and distributors reporting strong sales. “The one-off or two-parter blue-chip or the four- to sixpart landmark series are the formats that do best for us,” says Ralf Rückauer, the VP of unscripted at ZDF Enterprises, who cites the recent success of Big Pacific. “It’s one of those massive international program events that only appear on the market once every couple of years,” he says of the project, a co-pro involving NHNZ, PBS, ARTE, CCTV, Discovery, Nine Network, ZDF and ZDF Enterprises. Rückauer says that limited, well-crafted portraits of a region and natural habitats—such as The Greater Caucasus, The
W
Lesser Caucasus: Between Ararat and the Caspian Sea and Wild Italy: Mountains, Coasts and Deserts—have also been hugely successful for ZDF Enterprises, unlike the longerrunning productions. “Long-running monothematic wildlife series have proven hard to program for most of our international clients,” he says.
BLUE-CHIP STOCK Blue-chip productions have also yielded brisk business for BBC Studios. “Without a doubt, our blue-chip landmarks have been our strongest sellers,” says Patricia Fearnley, the head of natural history, factual content, at BBC Studios. “This is always the case, but the success has been even more dramatic over the last couple of years.” In February of this year, BBC Studios launched the series Dynasties to international buyers. Presented by Sir David Attenborough, shot in Ultra HD and filmed over four years, Dynasties examines the power dynamics among lions, hunting dogs, chimpanzees, tigers and emperor penguins. It followed on from the colossal success of Blue Planet II, which galvanized audiences on the state of the oceans and pushed the issue of plastic waste up the global political agenda. Fearnley believes that conservation will remain a core element of natural-history programming. “The most significant change in natural-history programming is in audiences embracing content that doesn’t just touch on conservation issues but deals with them in a very direct way,” Fearnley says. “The Blue Planet II team couldn’t possibly make a series about the oceans without tackling it head-on. Nobody anticipated quite what an impact it would have. I think moving forward we will
10/18 WORLD SCREEN 497
REAL_0418_WILDLIFE_ALT_REAL_408_NIGHT 9/25/18 9:54 AM Page 4
28
TV REAL
ZDF Enterprises’ portfolio of successful wildlife properties includes the two-part Wild Italy: Mountains, Coasts and Deserts.
see a lot more development of programming around conservation issues throughout the world.” It’s a view shared by Sabine Holzer, the head of specialist factual at Terra Mater Factual Studios. “Only a few years ago escapism dominated the genre and the ‘C’ word was guaranteed to put audiences as well as commissioners off. But in the last year, ecology, conservation and environmental topics seem to have reconquered the linear and nonlinear platforms. Conservation is making its way back into prime time.”
RAISING THE BAR One of the most significant challenges for producers and distributors is matching and surpassing the high expectations of audiences who yearn for ever more spectacular experiences. “I think the biggest [development] in the last six months is that the bar of editorial storytelling is so much higher,” says Solange Attwood, executive VP of international at Blue Ant Media. “Producers, storytellers and creators are coming up with compelling, thoughtful, smart, emotional and connective stories. Especially in the natural-history world, it’s so important to get all of your senses involved as you go through the journey of watching these stories.” ZDFE.unscripted’s Rückauer stresses that broadcasters, DVD publishers and VOD services still look for time-tested topics, species and habitats within the catalog that work well with audiences, such as lions, zebras, elephants, sharks, penguins, the African savanna and the Amazon rainforest. “But, on the other hand, it can’t only be ‘more of the same’ as audiences become more and more demanding,” he says. One production that is breaking new ground, says Rückauer, is Equator: The Line of Life, made by Spiegel TV and Primitive Entertainment for ZDF, ARTE, NHK and Discovery Canada. The virtual one-day journey around the equator shows how many extraordinary wildlife and people stories take place simultaneously in Ecuador, Brazil, Gabon, Kenya, Uganda, Indonesia, Kiribati and numerous other countries. “We are constantly looking for new perspectives, new contexts to give a different insight into these spectacular wildlife worlds,” he says. The importance of new perspectives is reinforced by Natalie Lawley, the managing director of Escapade Media, which represents productions such as Australia: Kingdom
of the Quokka. A new title that is attracting much interest, she says, is Walking Points, a cross-genre natural history and science 4K special that examines how the keen olfactory senses of dogs can be used to detect cancer in human beings. It succeeds, says Lawley, because it offers the audience “brand-new information against the backdrop of a bread-and-butter genre.” It also reflects a trend across the natural-history genre for innovative approaches to programming. Innovation is critical, she says, and increasingly the most important element is the storytelling. “The storytelling aspect of each wildlife project is the essence of the [show] because the audience needs to be advised about what they are seeing.” On what clients are looking for, Blue Ant’s Attwood observes, “You have to have everything these days. The market is demanding premium content that requires strong narrative, unique settings, compelling access and innovation in approach to production. Our natural-history offering is a genuinely global opportunity. We have stories that come from every part of the world, whether that’s in Borneo through Orangutan Jungle School, or Africa’s Hunters, set in Zambia. Audiences want to be drawn in, they want to feel an emotional connection to the wildlife stories that are being told, and have a deeper understanding of the world around them.”
NATURAL NARRATIVE Terra Mater’s Holzer agrees that storytelling development has become key to natural-history productions in the last year. “Storytelling becomes more and more important,” says Holzer. “It’s not enough to string together sequences, even if they are beautifully and lavishly shot. You need to develop a storyline throughout. Moreover, wildlife programs more often need a single or several main characters that the audience can follow, just as they do in the fiction genre.” The use of scripted storytelling techniques is increasingly prevalent in the wildlife space. BBC Studios’ Dynasties was conceived as an “intimate animal drama,” with a clear beginning, middle and end, a hero or heroine with a problem, a twist, a peak of drama and hopefully a pay-off for the main character. “Dynasties sees many of the tools used in drama applied to natural history,” says Fearnley. “This series takes real-life animal stories, shot across approximately 600 days in the field per [episode], allowing the audience to get to know and care for the individual
498 WORLD SCREEN 10/18
REAL_1018__Layout 1 9/20/18 10:43 AM Page 1
REAL_0418_WILDLIFE_ALT_REAL_408_NIGHT 9/26/18 1:56 PM Page 5
30
TV REAL
Terra Mater arrives at MIPCOM with the holiday-themed special It ’s A Wild Christmas.
characters they are watching in a way they never have before. As a viewer, you will absolutely be invested in that character. You’ll get to know the relationships they have with those closest to them and appreciate the challenges they face in an effort to stay alive.”
SCREEN INNOVATION As storytelling gains in importance, so too does the technology driving it. In recent years the visual “wow” factor for audiences has been enhanced by advances in screen resolution, such as HD, 3D, UHD and 4K. Escapade Media made the decision back in 2016 to future-proof content by offering all genres in 4K and it now also provides some titles in HDR. At Blue Ant, which has been rolling out 4K docs for the last few years, HDR is a significant new opportunity. “The addition of HDR makes for a compelling and beautiful story,” Attwood says. Likewise, Terra Mater began originating all its programs in 4K. “Everything else doesn’t make much sense when you think long term,” says Holzer. BBC Studios is now taking delivery of its landmark series in UHD and HDR, says Fearnley, and Rückauer at ZDFE.unscripted acknowledges the benefits of UHD across its natural-history titles. “Wildlife is always the early adopter genre for technical innovation,” says Rückauer. “More than any other factual genre, wildlife lives on the stunning beauty of the images, so the advantage of a higher resolution and truer colors is obvious here. While we do not have a strict UHD-only policy yet, we can proudly say that a very large share of our new wildlife and nature output is now UHD.” In an age of rapid technological advancement, numerous innovations have been utilized that are transforming the wildlife space, offering audiences never-before-seen opportunities and access. Drones and submersibles predominate, enabling filmmakers to push creative boundaries, accessing locations such as the deep sea, volcanic craters and previously inaccessible footage of animal behavior. Indeed, multi-camera and multi-format shoots are also changing the wildlife space. BBC Studios’ new natural-history title Earth’s Great Rivers, which launches at MIPCOM, utilizes split under water and water-level filming. Drones as aerials, cranes and
GPS lock-off posts enable time-lapse transformations across its natural-history programming. “Innovation in technologies allows for more intimate storytelling,” says Escapade’s Lawley. “The more innovative the visual is, the more interesting the story arc becomes because the audience is presented with new discoveries and experiences.”
DEMANDING VIEWERS Rückauer stresses the importance of ensuring that images captured via drones and submersibles are shot in the best possible UHD quality. As audiences become more and more demanding, he says, showing inaccessible locations “as if these things were shot in a controllable environment in front of your own doorstep” is paramount. “For example, we are the European distributor of the NHK and ZDF co-production Deep Ocean: Lights in the Abyss, where the specialized Japanese UHD high-tech underwater cameras show the bioluminescent wildlife of Monterey Bay in all its stunning bright colors. And with our friends from True to Nature in Bristol we are in the middle of production of the big Volcano 24 special [a ZDF, ARTE and WNET co-production] that will include amazing drone shots from volcano craters.” One technology that is injecting real excitement and value into natural history is virtual reality. The immersive experience that it offers puts audiences right at the center of natural history, enabling them to become active participants in the story. “VR allows us to provide our audiences a level of immersion unparalleled by other mediums and to tell stories of the natural world in new and exhilarating ways,” says BBC Studios’ Fearnley. The value add-on of VR has strong potential, says Lawley. “These VR journeys can provide entertainment, education, allow a direct voice in terms of conservation, expand demographic appeals and so on. The value-added elements are provided as web experiences or VR goggle experiences.” Lawley highlights the potential of 360-degree cameras that allow the audience to experience the location “just how the host is seeing the environment” and can be planted to gain insight into habitats on land and underwater.
500 WORLD SCREEN 10/18
REAL_1018__Layout 1 9/20/18 10:44 AM Page 1
REAL_0418_WILDLIFE_ALT_REAL_408_NIGHT 9/25/18 9:55 AM Page 6
32
TV REAL
ZDFE.unscripted’s Rückauer believes VR is “great for producers who want to tell a different kind of story, for broadcasters commissioning 360-degree clips as add-ons to attract an additional audience and for users experiencing this in museums, specialized festivals or downloaded to their own devices.” For distributors such as ZDF Enterprises, however, it is not the top commodity right now, he says. “A B2B distribution market in the classical sense, with reasonable license fees paid for VR productions, has not been established yet,” he says.
ADDED VALUE
Orangutan Jungle School is a docusoap that has been a strong seller for Blue Ant.
While innovations in technology and storytelling are driving the genre forward, the value of presenters in natural history is in serious doubt. With the clear exception of an icon such as Sir David Attenborough, selling presenter-led programs globally is an ongoing challenge. “As an international distributor we prefer presenter-free programs, as they are much easier to sell,” says Rückauer. “As soon as you have a presenter you will always have the language problem.” It’s a view shared by Lawley, who says most of Escapade Media’s programs are presenter-free. Audiences need to identify with the host on a global scale, she says, and when a project is hosted, it minimizes the interest across global markets. But she does not rule the possibility out. “Our position is always led by what is best for the project and how we are able to maximize sales. While a project that is steered by a presenter can create challenges for global sales, if a presenter can genuinely provide introductions and summaries, this can work very well, and if needed, even illustrate the interaction of human and animal.”
BBC Studios’ Fearnley acknowledges that presenter-free wildlife programming is much easier to exploit commercially. But she says BBC Studios will always be interested in trying to find presenters that work for a U.K. and international audience. The challenge, of course, is finding a presenter who will engage audiences across the globe.
PRESENTED BY... “We have quite a few presenter-led series, such as Guardians of the Wild, that have been incredibly successful,” Blue Ant’s Attwood says. “And we have a strong blue-chip slate that excludes humans within the context of the editorial. I think it’s important to have both. As a distributor, you want to have a compelling offering that can tell stories in ways that will have broad appeal to people around the world. We want to make sure we have stories that are compelling for all viewers. We won’t shy away from presenter-led stories, even though you often hear that some [buyers] prefer the ease of naturalhistory stories that don’t necessarily include people, that are evergreen, that are easily versioned. There are pros and cons for each. As a distributor that wants to have a compelling offering, you need to have a diversified approach.” Terra Mater Factual Studios also produces both presenterled and presenter-free wildlife programs. When recruiting presenters, the company sets out to find the perfect match between the topic of the film and the expertise of the presenter. “Ideally the host is a key scientist, conservationist or ranger who is closely involved in the topic,” says Holzer. “We believe strongly that audiences feel and notice when you add a celebrity presenter to a program just to boost up the show. Credibility and authenticity are key.”
502 WORLD SCREEN 10/18
REAL_1018__Layout 1 9/25/18 9:56 AM Page 1
REAL_1018_BIO_ALT_EUR_1006_ELLENDER 9/26/18 1:57 PM Page 1
34
TV REAL
Kew Media’s Broken: The Incredible Story of Brangelina.
Distributors share insights about why one-off biographies, docuseries and celeb-reality shows are filling broadcast schedules around the world. By Sara Alessi 504 WORLD SCREEN 10/18
REAL_1018_BIO_ALT_EUR_1006_ELLENDER 9/26/18 1:58 PM Page 2
TV REAL 35
iopics are everywhere in the scripted space these days. From noteworthy politicians to legendary singers, serial killers to members of scandal-ridden family dynasties, real lives are proving to be excellent fodder for drama producers. Of course, factual producers have known for a long time about the allure of stories on the rich or infamous. Whether it’s a high-brow documentary about the Pope or a tongue-incheek celeb-reality series, viewers are hungry for an inside look at stories of people who became famous—by destiny, design or accident. “It’s such a chaotic time in our world that people gravitate to this kind of factual storytelling and true stories about icons,” says Elaine Frontain Bryant, the executive VP and head of programming for A&E at A+E Networks. “Biographies offer an unbiased and unfiltered way to tell a story, and they don’t say anything about the world we’re in now. Viewers can draw their own conclusions if they want, but it’s just a true story about these people and their lives.” “There’s a demand for biography programming because the people covered in these shows are very much in the news all the time,” states Jonathan Ford, the executive VP of sales at Kew Media Distribution, which has a catalog that boasts documentary programming on music legends such as James Brown, Frank Sinatra, Janis Joplin, The Doors and The Go-Go’s. “Audiences want to understand, get behind and get into their lives.” Paul Heaney, the CEO of TCB Media Rights, puts it bluntly: “Viewers are obsessed with the minutiae of famous people’s lives. People are looking for the scandal, the controversy. They want to know what these figures’ human weaknesses are and what their humanity is.
B
don’t have, and with biographies and celebrity-reality programs, we get to escape into it for about an hour.” Two strong sellers from the GRB slate are Beyond Boundaries: The Harvey Weinstein Scandal and Remembering Whitney, about the life of the late singer.
What we call a ‘biography’ is a very boring word for quite an interesting show.” “It’s an appetite as old as time,” muses Harriet ArmstonClarke, division head at TVF International. “I don’t see that our interest in celebrities is going to wane.” “There’s a fascination with the celeb life, the grand life,” maintains Melanie Torres, a sales consultant at GRB Studios. “We always want to know a little bit more about that lifestyle we
her children, so it’s not all based around the anniversary of her death; it has a bit more life to it.” There was, of course, a slew of docs marking the 20th anniversary of Princess Diana’s death. Producers must be careful not to fall into the trap of telling the same old story. “There tends to be quite a lot of competition in this space, so it’s important to have a title that has a different and interesting perspective,” advises Ford.
FAMILIAR FACES Fremantle has seen success with a strand that began as a one-off documentary titled I Am Bruce Lee. It has since covered other well-known figures such as Martin Luther King, Jr., and Paul Walker. The latter, I Am Paul Walker, is one of the titles that the company is introducing at MIPCOM, alongside Manson: The Lost Tapes. Angela Neillis, the company’s director of non-scripted acquisitions, International, believes this Charles Manson-focused doc will be a big seller, as it features rarely-seen footage and because “famous individuals bring their own audiences with them.” And yet, not all shows about famous faces travel well, no matter how glamorous. GRB sells the celebrity-reality series Braxton Family Values and its spin-off, Tamar & Vince. “Celeb-reality programming does well on certain channels, but not everyone is looking for this type of programming because some celebrities don’t translate internationally,” Torres cautions. Plus, TVF International’s Armston-Clarke notes, “Some celebrities might be in the spotlight today and not tomorrow.” Though she adds, “Our catalog features more timely [stars] like Madonna, so the programs continue to sell year on year.” Kew Media also has timeless personalities in its biography slate, including Princess Diana. “With Princess Diana: A Life After Death, we took a different perspective on the 20th anniversary of her death,” Kew’s Ford says. “Our documentary looks at Diana’s life and the legacy she has had on
10/18 WORLD SCREEN 505
REAL_1018_BIO_ALT_EUR_1006_ELLENDER 9/26/18 1:59 PM Page 3
36
TV REAL
GRB has a number of celeb-reality shows in its slate, including Braxton Family Values.
“The world is just too saturated; there is too much competition these days,” notes A+E’s Frontain Bryant. “You have to be able to say ‘We have something you haven’t seen before.’ There’s no reason to do another show that somebody’s seen.” Frontain Bryant stresses that this is particularly relevant today, when a quick Google search can deliver an individual’s life story, replete with images, videos, tributes and more.
GETTING PERSONAL
harder, and a producer does, too, to deliver something that has some thought behind it, rather than just a collection of archives.” TVF International’s Armston-Clarke agrees that viewers “don’t want to see the same talking heads in every single show. We’re always trying to find some fresh angle so that programming feels new in some way.” “If it’s well made, can relate to now, and is something that’s fascinating and offers a bit of an insight, then it will work,” Heaney adds. And generally, these biography docs will work in more than one market. “We live in the age of celebrity, where people know celebrities from other countries,” states ArmstonClarke. “If they’re shiny and glossy and they live an aspirational
“Times have changed since the Biography franchise, which A+E Networks revived about a year ago, was first on the air,” says Frontain Bryant of the strand. “You can pretty much get all the information you want about a figure online nowadays, so what we’re looking for from our filmmakers is a unique angle, unique access and something new to tell.” She explains that if the focus of the documentary is a deceased individual, the new element can come in the form of a family member offering interesting insight or an audio recording that hasn’t been shared before. “It has to be something that is revelatory about that person’s story that can be shared with the world.” Frontain Bryant points to David Cassidy: The Last Session as a biography that brings something new to the table because the musician revealed information about his life that had never been made public before. “We can’t give buyers something too simplistic or too derivative,” echoes TCB’s Heaney. “They appreciate if there’s something with a bit more guile and a bit more knowing. Otherwise, it’s just a rehash of old archives, and buyers get a lot of that. You TCB’s six-part Private Lives series, launching at MIPCOM, explores controversial have to think a bit harder and work a bit figures in world history. 506 WORLD SCREEN 10/18
REAL_1018_BIO_ALT_EUR_1006_ELLENDER 9/25/18 10:14 AM Page 4
TV REAL
TV REAL 37
life, then we find that the appeal is pretty broad across territories.” Torres says that there is a market for biographies in all territories and adds that GRB is now doing co-pros, “so one of the angles we can take is to work with partners on biographies of well-known artists or celebrities in their territories.” TCB’s Heaney has found that there are some figures who are universal—such as the British royal family, Hollywood stars or big TV celebrities. Elizabeth sold very well for TCB last year. Other big sellers include The Private Lives of the Tudors and The Private Lives of the Monarchs. There’s an upcoming Private Lives series that will take a broader look at historical figures like Al Capone and Napoleon Bonaparte. As for whether buyers are more interested in one-offs or docuseries, Fremantle’s Neillis says, “One-offs are easier to sell, particularly if you are targeting public-service broadcasters; it needs to be something mainstream, often a documentary strand. But series are popular as well. It depends on the subject matter.” GRB’s Torres agrees: “One-offs on big celebrities sell better than series.” “What’s versatile and flexible about biographies is that you can tie them together with a theme—for example, music-related docs can go together—and you can create packages for buyers,” Neillis points out. “In our experience, it’s one-offs, such as Diana: 20 Years On, and miniseries, including Inside Windsor Castle and Inside Buckingham Palace, that sell best,” explains TVF International’s Armston-Clarke. “Biographies and celebrity programming are among the most evergreen titles in our catalog, to be honest,” she acknowledges. “Particularly those about the British royal family. Programming about royals continues to sell. It’s quite astounding the number of times that we are windowing, re-windowing and relicensing shows about them.”
LONG LIVES Kew’s Ford also notes that documentaries on the royal family tend to have a longer shelf life. For instance, Kew sold Harry & Meghan: A Very Modern Romance around their wedding this year and also saw renewed traction on Kate: The Making of a Modern Queen—a 2017 documentary about Prince William’s wife—as channels were relicensing the title or licensing it for the first time because they were scheduling programming blocks showcasing the royals. “Biographies can easily be evergreen and they do have a long shelf life, provided that they are updated,” GRB’s Torres says. Ford warns that often with more topical documentaries— such as one from Kew’s catalog about former couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie—“you have a specific window of time to sell in because people are only going to be interested in the Brangelina story for a period of time after they split up.” “These types of films can have very short life spans in terms of really maximizing the revenues because of the
time period and the slot in which people want these films, but demand is still heavy,” Ford adds. Torres also cautions that celebrity-reality series tend to have a shorter shelf life and replay value because “if you’re keeping up with these people in the age of social media, something in the show might become a little outdated.” That’s why Ford says it is essential to ensure that “there’s something in a program that has replay value, because the channels buying the programs don’t want a scenario in which a show plays once or twice and then goes out of play.” Replay value is also a factor for digital platforms, which have self-curating audiences that may peruse their offerings to find a biography on a favorite celebrity or wellknown figure.
DIGITAL DEMANDS “There are OTT platforms cropping up that are focusing on celebrity and royal-related content, including True Royalty,” says Armston-Clarke. However, “The majority of the deals we close are with linear channels, but that’s because celebrities and royals have a mass appeal. It’s not specialist, it’s not niche content.” “There was a real hunger from the OTT platforms before because this type of programming wasn’t really on the linear channels,” says TCB’s Heaney. “So it established a point of difference. The SVODs went into the royals and went into biography in a big way, and that helped establish it a bit more.” “Historically, we’ve always [sold to] linear, that was our model,” says GRB’s Torres. “But a lot of OTT players are trying to get content for younger audiences that are making use of these services, and OTTs are interested in biographies and celebrity-focused content.” The key is knowing who is watching. “Netflix used to buy a lot more music documentaries than they do now,” Kew’s Ford says. “They learned about their audience, which is younger. There’s not a market for a documentary on a star from the ’60s or ’70s on Netflix.” Ford notes that to be successful, “It’s all about understanding the subject matter and who the audience is.”
10/18 WORLD SCREEN 507
After being outed on Instagram, Angelina King—formerly known as Ian—and her wife, TV personality Joey Mead, shared their story in Our Transgender Love Story, from TVF International.
REAL_1018_BACKSHALL_WSN_1207_IN THE NEWS 9/25/18 10:18 AM Page 1
38
TV REAL
508 WORLD SCREEN 10/18
REAL_1018_BACKSHALL_WSN_1207_IN THE NEWS 9/26/18 2:00 PM Page 2
TV REAL 39
Steve Backshall has built a career in television by being boldly unafraid to experience the natural wonders of the world. He parlayed his innate curiosity and penchant for traveling into a gig as an Adventurer in Residence for National Geographic Channel before doing a raft of natural-history series for the BBC—including the hit kids’ title Deadly 60—Discovery, Sky and Channel 5. His latest is Expedition with Steve Backshall, which sets out to document a series of firsts, including the descent of a white-water river in the Himalayas and a trek through unexplored jungle in South America. Produced by True to Nature for BBC and UKTV, the show is being distributed by Fremantle. On a short trip home in between expeditions, Backshall spoke to TV Real about his long-awaited dream project and what he hopes audiences will take from it. By Mansha Daswani TV REAL: How did your new series Expedition come about? BACKSHALL: It’s a concept I’ve been trying to get off the ground for a very, very long time. I’ve been pitching it in its present condition since 2006 and finally managed to get moving on it a couple of years ago. I’ve been making expedition television programs for 20 years now, and just doing expeditions for 25 years. [The series] stems from the fact I’ve managed to get together a little black book of people who are capable of extraordinary things and of places that are still very much waiting to be explored. I’ve been convinced that this was an epic series in the making—convincing commissioners of that was a whole different ball game! [Laughs] TV REAL: What was it that finally moved BBC and UKTV to come on board? BACKSHALL: We did two other expedition programs with the BBC. One was a mountain climb in Venezuela [Extreme Mountain Challenge] and the other was [a journey along] the Baliem River in New Guinea [Down the Mighty River]. They both worked well and were very well received. To say in 2018 that we could go out and do ten expeditions that no one has ever done or seen before, and we’re going to bring you back extraordinary things, is a pretty bold claim. And I imagine a lot of people would look at you and say, “Yeah right, whatever!” [Laughs] They’d take you with a real pinch of salt. The only way I was ever going to get this going was to prove that we could do what we were saying. It went well. I mean sometimes it went really, really badly! [Laughs] It’s all been caught on camera, all there for people to see. And there is a refreshing quality to the authenticity of these expeditions. Everybody knows that what they’re watching is as close to reality as you can ever get with television. And there are moments where we are
genuinely in very real threat for our lives, and there are moments where we’re experiencing highs and a level of euphoria that normal life doesn’t ever give you a chance to achieve. People can see that and have taken to it. TV REAL: Tell us about the research you and the team at True to Nature did to come up with the expeditions. BACKSHALL: Most of them are locations that I have had in my little black book for a long time now. There are others that [emerged from conversations with the production team]. The team is really special. It is very much dominated by women. They’re all very strong-willed and very capable. We have a team that feels more like a family of people who are all very good friends, with a lot of respect for each other. We sat down in endless coffee shops and thrashed out ideas and have come up with a compendium of expeditions that works. It was tricky. We’re filming this entire thing in a year. We wanted to make sure that we had a full diversity of locations—the Arctic, mountains, deserts, seas. Trying to slot all of those together so that they work [in terms of] timing and calendar and schedule is hard enough. If I didn’t have a team of this quality behind me, it would be impossible. TV REAL: How did you get into television? BACKSHALL: I started in 1998. I was working as a writer and I had an idea for a program and went out and made it myself. I went to the jungles of Colombia for about six weeks and filmed myself living rough in the jungle, catching snakes and spiders and scorpions, and I sold it to the National Geographic Channel and they took me on as an Adventurer in Residence, which is the coolest job title I’ve ever had! And I’ve been doing it ever since. It’s been a crazy,
10/18 WORLD SCREEN 509
REAL_1018_BACKSHALL_WSN_1207_IN THE NEWS 9/26/18 2:01 PM Page 3
40
TV REAL
Fremantle picked up the global rights to distribute Expedition with Steve Backshall, a BBC and UKTV commission.
crazy ride and amazing fun. I’m so chuffed that it’s still going, 20 years on. Every single new project is a thrill. And this is the one that I’ve been working toward for 20 years. TV REAL: I interviewed Bear Grylls and Anthony Bourdain in the past and they both mentioned cringing somewhat at their early television work. Do you ever go back and watch some of your initial productions and think, I wish I had done that differently? BACKSHALL: I don’t really, because all of those experiences were formative. Yes, they’re very raw and they lack much of the storytelling and the finesse that I have managed to accrue over 20 years of work. But in those early programs where I was making all my mistakes, I was editing the programs and I was filming the programs. I was learning what it is to put together a short story in television. I feel like I’ve cured a lot of the mistakes I made. There’s something satisfying about that. And there’s something quite endearing about seeing the early me trying to make it work, and quite often utterly failing in television. [Laughs] All of those experiences have got me to where I am today, making my dream [project]. TV REAL: Is there a particular message you want Expedition to convey to audiences about conservation or about encouraging them to go out and experience the world? BACKSHALL: I think if you have one simple message, you’re likely to lose or alienate an enormous number of the viewing public. The public can take from this what they want. If they simply spend an hour watching me nearly die and are all excited over how I’m going to injure myself next, that’s fine! If they’re inspired to get out and explore themselves, that’s amazing. A lot of work I’ve done in the past has been about getting kids outside into nature. The next [message] is conservation. There is a conservation angle in every one of these programs. All of the environments that we are experiencing for the first time are under threat. If the audience
listens to that and has any kind of take home from it at all, even if they merely hear it and recognize it, then I will be very happy. If there’s a call to action from that, if people see what we’re talking about in conservation and think they might want to do something positive to make the world a better place, that would be the gold at the end of the rainbow. TV REAL: Have you now gone through all the expeditions on your wish list, or are there still more in your little black book? BACKSHALL: I certainly have enough to do this all over again, to do another ten. But it is getting harder and harder. The world is a much smaller place than it was in the golden era of exploration 200 years ago. And an awful lot of modern exploration is done through a microscope and genetics, breaking apart the genomes of animals and bacteria and viruses. Old-fashioned exploration is harder to find now, but it is that much more exciting when you do manage to find somewhere [that hasn’t been explored]. There are a couple of expeditions that we have on the hit list for this series that I’ve been trying to do since the late 1990s! Every year I come back to them and ask, Has anyone managed to do this yet? No? Amazing! Eventually, all of these things will get done. I want to do all I can to try to make sure we do them first. TV REAL: Being a new dad, how did you manage the filming schedule? BACKSHALL: It’s hard. I have a [newborn] son. You’re just about to hear him break into full voice now! This is a time when I want to be at home with my wife and my son. I go off this Sunday and I’ll pretty much be away for two months. That’s a long time to be away from them and to miss big parts of his development and his growing up. But this whole year has been an adventure for me in many ways, a plunge into new frontiers, be that in my personal life or in exploration.
510 WORLD SCREEN 10/18
REAL_1018__Layout 1 9/25/18 9:57 AM Page 1
REAL_1018_FINCH_ALT_WSN_1207_IN THE NEWS 9/25/18 9:57 AM Page 1
42
TV REAL
512 WORLD SCREEN 10/18
REAL_1018_FINCH_ALT_WSN_1207_IN THE NEWS 9/26/18 2:04 PM Page 2
TV REAL 43
As chief lifestyle brands officer at Discovery, Inc., Kathleen Finch oversees some of the biggest, most well-known channels in the pay-TV universe, including Food Network, Travel Channel, TLC and ID. She assumed the post earlier this year after driving the strong performance of HGTV and Food Network, among other services, in her long tenure at Scripps Networks Interactive. With the integration of the Discovery and Scripps portfolios now complete, Finch talks to TV Real about the importance of brands, the art of finding compelling lifestyle personalities and the keys to driving viewer engagement. TV REAL: How did you go about integrating the Discovery and Scripps channels under the lifestyle group? And how did you get to know the DNA of the Discovery channels you added to your remit? FINCH: The integration has been going great. So many of us across the aisles at Scripps and Discovery knew each other long before [the merger], and it’s been fun to have everybody working together. The DNA between the two is similar. The channels are very brand-focused and very consumer-focused—we don’t make a move without thinking about what our consumer is going to want. On a practical level, in the months we’ve been together I’ve had two big cross-network brainstorming meetings. Even though we all liked each other, we were frenemies before this! So it was fun to get all the creative people in a room, spending the whole day together spit-balling ideas. A lot came out of those. [Drew Scott from] Property Brothers on HGTV was getting married, so we did a wedding special on TLC. We have some TLC talent that are coming over to Food Network to be guest judges on Chopped. We’ve had a lot of fun. When you hear Travel, Food Network and HGTV, you know they’re about traveling, eating and homes! Equally, ID, the number one [cable] network for women, has this passionate audience of women who are interested in crime investigation and mysteries unfolding. The length of tune is among the top in the industry. And on TLC, one of the things we love to do is celebrate people and relationships and circumstances that don’t generally get celebrated. The through-line there is really about sharing lives with people and everyone is accepted. We tell intimate stories about people, with a lot of drama and emotion. They’re different from a Food Network brand, but they all have passionate audiences that are pretty consistent night by night.
TV REAL: The portfolio has such a wealth of on-screen talent. How are you managing relationships with these personalities? FINCH: Talking about our talent is our most favorite thing! Our talent is the best in the business; they are what make our brands unique. They’re not actors—they are real people in real-life situations, and they are experts who viewers invite into their homes every night via the television because they want to learn from them. So our viewers have a relationship with our talent that is completely different than typical TV talent. They’re always interesting, are at the top of their fields and are engaging to watch. It’s hard sometimes to find them—that’s probably our hardest job. They’re not handed to us on a reel with ten other talents from an agent. We go out and find these people. That’s a job the programming teams do exceptionally well. At our big Upfront in New York, we had about 50 or 60 talents across all of Discovery, and the most amazing thing was watching them offstage fangirling over each other! It was fun to see how many HGTV stars love stars on Velocity [which is rebranding as Motor Trend Network] and how many TLC stars love Food Network. It was cool to see all of them come together. TV REAL: Where are you looking for new talent? FINCH: We find quite a lot on social media. We recently had a show on Food Network called Girl Meets Farm featuring Molly Yeh. She’s huge on social media. On HGTV we have Ben and Erin Napier from Home Town. All of our programming teams comb social media to find interesting people. We also have these great producing partners that we work with—our TLC producers know we want interesting families, our ID producers know we want great detectives and investigative journalists. We’ve empowered a lot of our partners to go out and find talent because we can’t sit and wait for it, we have to be out aggressively looking for it. We also have Digital Lifestyle Experts, about 40 talents who we’ve put on retainer. We work with them in social and digital to get them to a place where they can come up with a show we think might work. We use it to train our next generation of stars. TV REAL: What are the best ways to build a schedule that promotes stickiness and watch time? Once a viewer arrives on the channel, how do you keep him or her there through multiple shows? FINCH: We suck people in. Our goal is to not let viewers leave! We’ve got this incredible length of tune across our brands. ID and HGTV are among the top. We super-serve
10/18 WORLD SCREEN 513
By Mansha Daswani
REAL_1018_FINCH_ALT_WSN_1207_IN THE NEWS 9/26/18 2:07 PM Page 3
44
TV REAL
them twice as hard! Brother Vs. Brother is a spin-off of Property Brothers where each brother buys a house and renovates it and whoever can sell it for the most wins, and the winnings go to charity. So we find different ways to take something that people love and give them a new reason to tune in.
Holiday-related content is key to Food Network with properties like Ultimate Thanksgiving Showdown.
audiences what they like. We hold them through the commercial breaks with short-form content. We create a lot of compelling interstitial content. And we also spin off a lot of shows. Something like 90 Day Fiancé on TLC works well, and we’ve announced our fourth spin-off of that show. The behemoth of them all is House Hunters on HGTV, and we have a hundred spin-offs of that title! If we find content that holds a viewer, we might do a three-hour stack, but then we’ll also make spin-offs because we know the audience is there. Unlike a lot of cable networks that only do premieres one or two nights a week, we have a premiere every single night of the week all year long, particularly on ID and HGTV. Our viewers keep coming back because they know that we’ll give them new content. That’s something we work very hard to do. We make sure our viewers know that if they tune in on a Tuesday, they’re going to get something new, just like if they tune in on a Wednesday. It keeps people coming back on a very consistent basis. TV REAL: You have a lot of franchises that have been on the air for a long time. How do you maintain their momentum season after season? FINCH: We’ll do a lot of things to juice it up a little bit. For instance, one of the longest-running shows on Food Network is Chopped, where we just introduced Martha Stewart as a judge. So even though the show has been doing well, suddenly we got this influx of curiosity seekers— “Martha Stewart, that’ll be interesting to watch!” We’ll find something and spin it off to give it a new twist. We came up with the 90 Day spinoffs. We have a lot of titles with [Jonathan and Drew Scott from] Property Brothers. We’re fortunate in that they are twins so we can work
TV REAL: Do lifestyle and factual channels fare better in a linear channel environment than perhaps a scripted-content service where viewers could instead search out those shows to binge online? FINCH: It is true that our networks have much more live viewing than typical networks. That’s because we stay true to our brand. When people tune in and get sucked in, they’re probably not going for a specific show. That’s our secret. You’re in the mood to watch a mystery get solved, you’re in the mood to learn about food, you’re in the mood to learn about home renovation, so you turn our networks on and you stay for a long time because we consistently give you that experience over and over. It might be with different titles and different talent, but the reason you turned it on is always satisfied. That’s what makes us sticky and very relevant in a more fractured world, as opposed to a network that is all full of off-net or scripted programming. You can get that in other places. You can’t get a 24/7 home-renovation show someplace else. You come to HGTV because you know you will get satisfied every night, you come to ID because you know you will get satisfied every night. It’s really about being loyal to our brand and our audience. TV REAL: You mentioned the cross-network brainstorming sessions. Will there be more of that kind of collaboration between the different programming teams? If one team gets a pitch that isn’t suitable, can they share it with another channel?
Martha Stewart joined Food Network’s Chopped as a recurring judge this year. 514 WORLD SCREEN 10/18
REAL_1018__Layout 1 9/24/18 8:45 AM Page 1
REAL_1018_FINCH_ALT_WSN_1207_IN THE NEWS 9/26/18 2:09 PM Page 4
46
TV REAL
FINCH: One of the things we’re all seeing is a very talent-forward focus. It used to be there were a lot of formats out there that were plug-and-play—you put a person in as host and have everybody compete. We’re now seeing more talent-led ideas, which is great. That’s what we excel at. And other people are trying to do things like that, trying to find the next Ina Garten or Joe Kenda. That’s not easy to do, but we know how to do it and we’re good at it. That’s replacing the big, shiny, overly formatted shows.
Jonathan and Drew Scott are the hosts of the popular series Property Brothers on HGTV.
FINCH: Now we’re one family, we’re absolutely doing that. If a food pitch comes in that isn’t quite right for Food Network, it might go to Travel Channel, or if a wedding pitch comes in that’s not quite right for TLC, then maybe we can put a spin on it to make it about wedding cakes for Food Network. We’re doing a lot of sharing. TLC made the really smart decision to bring back Trading Spaces and it did great. It was the highest rated Saturday night on TLC in I don’t know how many years. So we’re doing a second season. We’re going to find a way to incorporate some of the HGTV talent and the HGTV audience to make Trading Spaces even bigger. We’re leaning across the aisle to find ways to work together. On any given night, over 20 percent of the female audience is watching one of our nets. So our goal is to build a big moat around them and keep them within the portfolio. We’re finding ways to cross-promote, to co-produce big events, we’re cross-pollinating talent when it makes sense. The idea is, we have this 20-plus percent of women [watching our channels] and we’re going to hang on to them by super-serving them on all of our networks. You’re in the mood for weddings, go to TLC, you’re tired of that, try Food Network. We’re being very strategic about cross-promoting big events on our networks to keep the core audience from leaving.
TV REAL: What programming highlights are you particularly excited about? FINCH: I’m super excited about rolling out 90 Day Fiancé’s fourth franchise. That show is insane in its popularity. We are number one on Sunday nights, repeatedly. I’m also really excited about a huge slate of holiday programming that’s coming up on Food Network. Holidays are huge at Food Network. And we’ve got some really good documentaries on ID. The team has done a great job of working with skilled documentarians and filmmakers and we have some important stories that are coming to light. TV REAL: I saw 90 Day Fiancé trending on Twitter over the weekend. What does that social media engagement mean for you and your programming teams? FINCH: We love it! It says that young people are paying attention, which is what everyone wants. And it means we have watercooler television, which is every programmer’s goal. The fact that on a Sunday night, millions of fans are not only watching it but are engaging in social media about it, it’s great. We do look at that very carefully because it gives us a lot of good insights. It’s trended for a few Sundays in a row. That says that people care about the characters, about the outcome, and they like the idea of, I might be sitting alone in my living room watching, but there are millions of other fans on Twitter enjoying it with me.
TV REAL: Are you collaborating with your international counterparts on programming initiatives or sourcing talent? FINCH: We have regular meetings with them. They’ll show us talent, we’ll show them talent. Because we own so many of our formats, we’ve produced [versions of] some of the U.S. shows internationally. Now that the legacy Scripps brands are part of Discovery, we see a huge amount of opportunity. Just imagine House Hunters all over the world, in different languages, shot in different places. There are so many opportunities with all the formats we own. TV REAL: What innovations are you excited to see in the factual space?
Food blogger Molly Yeh fronts Food Network’s new series Girl Meets Farm.
516 WORLD SCREEN 10/18
REAL_1018__Layout 1 9/20/18 1:10 PM Page 1
REAL_1018__Layout 1 9/18/18 9:19 AM Page 1