TV Real MIPCOM 2021 by World Screen

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MIPCOM/OCTOBER 2021 EDITION

Distribution Trends / Mega-Formats Premiere: Undercover Boss / Curiosity’s Clint Stinchcomb

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CONTENTS

Choice Overload

FEATURES GAME CHANGE

Leading distributors discuss how early-stage investments, smart windowing strategies and a keen focus on market intel are crucial to succeeding in the factual distribution business today.

Is it just me, or has the pandemic left us all having to make way more decisions than usual? Travel or not? I’m home for dinner all the time now; what do I make? And, of course, I have a massive chunk of time this evening—where am I going for my entertainment? Ricardo Seguin Guise Publisher Anna Carugati Group Editorial Director Mansha Daswani Editor Kristin Brzoznowski Executive Editor Chelsea Regan Managing Editor Jamie Stalcup Associate Editor David Diehl Production & Design Director Simon Weaver Online Director Dana Mattison Senior Sales & Marketing Manager Genovick Acevedo 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 ©2021 WSN INC. 1123 Broadway, #1207 New York, NY 10010 Phone: (212) 924-7620 Fax: (212) 924-6940 Website: www.tvreal.ws

Sometimes, it is exhausting as I scroll through endless options on the SVOD services, trying to figure out what I’m in the mood for. A crime drama? Something funny and uplifting? A new true-crime doc? (Ninety-nine percent of the time, that is what I end up going for.) I often wish that, given the 100 other decisions I have to make on an average day, someone could just curate something for me. Please don’t try to tell me that the algorithm is supposed to do that, because really, who on Earth do those things even work for? Not me (and it’s not because I have family members “accidentally” watching shows on my profile and throwing everything off for me). I’ve been thinking about this a lot since my fascinating conversation with Charlie Sextro, a longtime programmer at the Sundance Film Festival who also serves as editor-inchief of Documentary+, a new AVOD platform aimed squarely at passionate fans of factual filmmaking. “Our goal is to be a trusted place for when you’re in that documentary mood and want something good that stands out,” Sextro told me. “You’re trusting the curation and going through and saying, ‘This speaks to my taste.’ I want for there to be a bar of quality but an absolute range of experiences. Stranger than fiction but also meaningful and driven by a cause. To me, in programming, the juxtaposition of different films and different experiences next to each other is special.” I have to admit, I am absolutely charmed by the approach—scrolling through the service’s selections, I wanted to watch everything. And bonus, it’s free! “There’s huge interest in AVOD at the moment, speciﬁcally in FAST channels, because they are lean-back experiences,” Ralf Rückauer, VP ZDFE.unscripted at ZDF Enterprises, told me for a piece in this edition on doc distribution trends. Indeed, AVOD, SVOD and consolidation are upending the traditional factual-sales business, and I heard from a broad cross section of executives about how they are exploiting all available new opportunities. This edition also features a Q&A with Clint Stinchcomb on what’s new at Curiosity, as well as a trend report on mega-formats. —Mansha Daswani

GET DAILY NEWS ON FACTUAL PROGRAMMING

BACK IN STYLE

Mega-formats continue to dominate prime-time grids, and many are being renewed and refreshed to keep audiences engaged.

PREMIERE: UNDERCOVER BOSS Executive producer Mike Cotton and All3Media International’s Caroline Stephenson introduce ITV’s new version of the hit format brand.

INTERVIEW Curiosity’s Clint Stinchcomb

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Albatross World Sales Superbirds—The Secret Life of Tits / Ode to Nature / The White Diamond A pair of nature and wildlife titles lead Albatross World Sales’ MIPCOM highlights, including Superbirds—The Secret Life of Tits, a ﬁlm that takes viewers into the world of the little birds and reveals their secrets. Ode to Nature explores stunning habitats across Central Europe—from the Alps to the Baltic Sea—as well as those who live in them. Director Werner Herzog and airship engineer Dr. Graham Dorrington go on an expedition in Guyana in a helium-powered mini zeppelin in the nature and adventure title The White Diamond. “The production of new programs has slowed down considerably during the pandemic, so we are very happy and feel privileged to present many new one-offs and series in the genres of nature and wildlife, science, sustainability and travel,” says Lisa Anna Schelhas, sales director at Albatross.

Ode to Nature

“We are very excited to ﬁnally present our newest slate of factual programming faceto-face again.” —Lisa Anna Schelhas

Autentic Distribution World’s Most Dangerous Railway Lines / Heroes of the Deep / Berlin—Fateful Years of a Metropolis From Autentic Distribution’s People & Places strand, the three-part docuseries World’s Most Dangerous Railway Lines brings viewers along on a train journey through extreme landscapes. The railway lines “tell the story not only of industrial culture but also of progress and the art of travel,” says Mirjam Strasser, head of sales and acquisitions. “They are truly breathtaking, beautiful and fascinating.” The factual-entertainment series Heroes of the Deep showcases Baltic divers and their discoveries at the bottom of the sea. A history program on Autentic’s slate, Berlin— Fateful Years of a Metropolis chronicles the events in Berlin over six decades—from the building of the Berlin Wall to when the city once again became the capital of a united Germany.

Heroes of the Deep

“We have a great variety of new programs in each genre and are keen to see them travel around the world.” —Mirjam Strasser

Motor MythBusters

Beyond Rights Facing Monsters / Motor MythBusters / Race for the Future From Beyond Rights’ sister company Beyond West, the new documentary Facing Monsters sees free surfer Kerby Brown take on some of the world’s deadliest slab waves. “It is intensely personal, seeing a man on a journey following his dreams, and captures the impact his obsession has not only on his own life but also those close to him,” says Connie Hodson, head of partnerships and business development at Beyond Rights. In the new series Motor MythBusters, produced by Beyond Rights’ sister company Beyond Media Rights, former MythBusters presenter Tory Belleci, mechanic Faye Hadley and engineer Bisi Ezerioha put car-related pop culture under the microscope. James Levelle raises awareness about climate change in Race for the Future by traveling from the U.K. to Chile in a fossil fuel-free way.

“We have crystallized our offer in the marketplace, put partnerships front and center of our business and have successfully grown our catalog.” —Connie Hodson 218 WORLD SCREEN 10/21

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Osprey: Sea Raptor

Blue Ant International Osprey: Sea Raptor / History by the Numbers / Encounter UFO Narrated by Emmy Award-winning actor Sean Bean (Game of Thrones), the one-hour blue-chip documentary Osprey: Sea Raptor that Blue Ant International is offering to the global market tells the story of an osprey couple as they reunite after having traveled separately across continents to raise their young. “The beautifully shot, up-close footage of the osprey family offers a universal story of perseverance, devotion and affection that audiences around the world will love, all brought to life by Sean Bean’s distinctive narration,” says Solange Attwood, executive VP at Blue Ant International. History by the Numbers delves into the digits behind historical milestones and events. Visual evidence and ﬁrsthand accounts detail UFO sightings from around the world in the highlight Encounter UFO.

“Blue Ant International is an industry thoughtleader and is in constant contact with both producers and programmers around the world.” —Solange Attwood

Motorway Patrol

BossaNova Motorway Patrol / Ripper Speaks / Decades That Deﬁned Us BossaNova’s Motorway Patrol is now in its 19th season, with a total of 190 episodes. It is an enduring hit that is still in production. Ripper Speaks is a 90-minute special that gives unparalleled access to one of Britain’s most notorious serial killers, the Yorkshire Ripper. The threepart series Decades That Defined Us highlights the historical, musical and cultural events of the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s. All three programs “have global appeal,” says Paul Heaney, founder and CEO. “There is a special as well as a long-running, high-volume series, and we have a breadth of appeal across these three titles and the rest of the MIPCOM slate.” The company’s catalog also includes The Car Years, Black Panthers of WW2 and Stuck in the Suez.

“BossaNova is very much open for business at our ﬁrst MIPCOM, with a varied selection of programs.” —Paul Heaney

Secrets of the Universe

Curiosity Secrets of the Universe / Engineering the Future / Doug to the Rescue Curiosity’s lineup of original productions includes the new series Secrets of the Universe. Coming in 2022, it will seek answers to some of the universe’s biggest mysteries, including whether there are parallel universes. Engineering the Future explores revolutionary machines that could potentially save the world from ecological disaster. Curiosity recently greenlit a second season. Doug to the Rescue sees drone pilot and aerial cinematographer Doug Thron use cutting-edge technology to rescue pets and wildlife stranded due to natural disasters. “We’re highlighting titles we know appeal to buyers because they cover topics and genres that are globally recognized and have already proven to resonate with our viewers around the world,” says Bakori Davis, managing director and head of international distribution.

“We’re always looking for opportunities to expand distribution to the naturally curious.” —Bakori Davis 220 WORLD SCREEN 10/21

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Match Made in Heaven

Media Ranch Match Made in Heaven / Love Van / All About Animals Media Ranch’s catalog includes two dating formats and a studio game show. The dating format Match Made in Heaven uses astrology to help singles ﬁnd love. From Media Ranch’s Horsepower 3.0 winner, Alexandra Paquin, the new dating format Love Van follows singles on a crosscountry journey in livable converted vans to see if they will stick with the dates they chose to join them or replace them with hitchhikers they meet along the way. The studio game show All About Animals tests celebrities’ animal knowledge. “Media Ranch is all about sharing the best content with the world, and we continue to source from our partners…and work with new producers from all walks of life, as in our Horsepower incubator project,” says Sophie Ferron, founder and CEO.

“Love and the love of animals are universal themes and have always done well everywhere on the globe.” —Sophie Ferron

Off the Fence The Secrets to Civilisation / Wolverine: One Tough Mother / Italy Made with Love Featuring visual techniques and CGI, the Off the Fence highlight The Secrets to Civilisation brings empires and cities of history back to life for viewers. “What we know about our past is constantly being examined by data and science, and what we ﬁnd out is that the climate could have played a key role in the creation and extinction of some of these early civilizations,” says Loren Baxter, head of acquisitions at Off the Fence. Wolverine: One Tough Mother centers on 3-year-old wolverine Freya as she navigates the challenging wilderness between Russia and Finland with her two newborn cubs. Taking viewers into the world of artisans and traditions, the travel series Italy Made with Love showcases glassblowing in Venice and making olive oil in Tuscany.

“Our sales team is ready to present our new slate of over 150 new hours to our clients.” —Loren Baxter

Italy Made with Love

Red Arrow Studios International Who Is the Phantom? / Stealing the Show! / #OfﬂineintheWild Topping Red Arrow Studios International’s unscripted slate, the entertainment format Who Is the Phantom? is produced by Constantin Television for ProSieben in Germany. It features celebrities trying to guess the identity of a mysterious famous face hidden behind a mask. From Florida Entertainment for ProSieben, Stealing the Show! is a quiz show in Red Arrow’s catalog. “Stealing the Show! is a truly original game-show concept that turns the traditional quiz-show format on its head,” says Tim Gerhartz, president and managing director at Red Arrow Studios International. “In each episode, contestants have the chance to literally steal the show from the host.” In the reality format #OfflineintheWild, from Redseven Entertainment for Germany’s Joyn, social media stars see who can best survive offline and off the grid.

Stealing the Show!

“From prime-time entertainment hits and reality competitions to game shows and quiz shows with ﬂexible scheduling opportunities, we have a slate of compelling new formats for every schedule and platform.” —Tim Gerhartz 222 WORLD SCREEN 10/21

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Terra Mater Factual Studios Secrets of the Unsaid—The Science of Animal Poo / Great Lakes Untamed / Horse Power: American Legacies The Terra Mater Factual Studios highlight Secrets of the Unsaid—The Science of Animal Poo takes audiences on a trip around the world with scientist Dr. Scott Burnett, a.k.a. “Scat Man,” who spends months at a time in the ﬁeld looking for clues in wildlife excrement. “Wombats, whales, krill and rhinos—join him and us as we journey to far-ﬂung places, looking for facts in feces,” says Sabine Holzer, head of specialist factual. A three-part series about North America’s Great Lakes, Great Lakes Untamed delves into the natural history of the largest freshwater ecosystem on Earth. Horse Power—American Legacies traces the emergence of American horse breeds over time. “We are happy to talk about presale options regarding each of these projects,” says Holzer.

Horse Power: American Legacies

“We not only want to inspire with our ﬁlms but also with our way of making ﬁlms: a green and sustainable path to enjoy nature frame by frame.” —Sabine Holzer

Down for Love

TVF International Untold Arctic Wars / Down for Love / Carbon TVF International (TVFI) is highlighting Untold Arctic Wars, a six-part series from NTRNZ media that centers on the least-known events of World War II—those that occurred north of the Arctic Circle. It will feature new research from historians and never-before-seen footage. Down for Love, produced by Attitude Pictures, has diversity at its heart as it aims to help people with Down syndrome ﬁnd love. From Genepool Productions, Carbon provides a biography of carbon, the most talked-about but least understood element on Earth. The documentary traces its beginning from the death of a star to its impact on today’s world. “This story of life’s core element promises to transform how we think of carbon, from a maligned destroyer toward a powerful enabler,” says Will Stapley, head of acquisitions.

“TVFI’s aim for MIPCOM and the rest of 2021 is to double down on our efforts to support fellow independents.” —Will Stapley

ZDF Enterprises Rescued Chimpanzees of the Congo with Jane Goodall / Ancient Superstructures / Ancient Engineering Leading ZDF Enterprises’ factual catalog, Rescued Chimpanzees of the Congo with Jane Goodall was ﬁlmed over 30 years to follow the creation of the largest chimp sanctuary in Africa, which gives orphaned chimpanzees a chance to recover and eventually return to the wild. Ancient Superstructures’ second season will continue to reveal the secrets behind the world’s most famous monuments, such as the Louvre, Angkor Wat and the Hagia Sophia. Ancient Engineering explores the most intriguing feats of engineering from the ancient world, including the Egyptian pyramids, Stonehenge and the Great Wall of China. “We shed new light on the techniques, materials and innovative thinking behind each ancient engineering feat and offer a new perspective on their fascinating and important histories,” says Fred Burcksen, president and CEO.

Ancient Engineering

“Let’s all join forces to get our industry up and running again.” —Fred Burcksen 224 WORLD SCREEN 10/21

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GAME Mansha Daswani hears from leading distributors about how early-stage investments, smart windowing strategies and a keen focus on market intel are crucial to succeeding in the factual distribution business today.

rom the sector’s biggest players to boutique independents, changes are afoot in the business of selling factual content. Whether restructuring business models, altering rollout plans, launching FAST channels or pioneering new narrative techniques, companies are aware that the landscape is changing quickly—and evolution can’t stop, pandemic or not. Of note, smack in the middle of Covid-19, longtime factual content executive Paul Heaney decided to embark on a brand-new startup. Having built TCB Media Rights into a thriving outﬁt that could feed the needs of numerous outlets— from straight library acquisitions to co-pros, development partnerships and more—Heaney knew all too well the demanding and rapidly evolving nature of the business. Following the downfall of Kew Media Group and TCB’s subsequent sale to Beyond International, Heaney opted to build his new venture, BossaNova—which recently received an investment from Herbert L. Kloiber’s Night Train Media—as one that was “leaner and meaner” than his last one. “You learned during parts of Covid that you can make these businesses work with fewer people,” Heaney observes. “We had a lot of people at TCB. It was lean, but now you have to

look at it again and say, this can be leaner still. It focuses you on what partners to choose. Eight years ago, I was obsessed with picking up hours and hours of content because I felt that was the right thing to do. Now, I’ve turned away so much because I’m not interested in that strategy as much. What’s the point if it slows you down? I want to bring content in that is going to do a job and has an appeal.” Heaney is not the only executive course-correcting amid a rapidly transforming world. Bo Stehmeier, who returned to Off the Fence at the start of this year to become CEO, put it like this when discussing the new strategy he has implemented at the company: “The macro system has changed massively. It’s unprecedented times. As we navigate new waters, we have to prepare for something—and we don’t know what it looks like or what it will be like.”

FINDING THE HOURS Among the most significant shifts has been in simply securing access to a steady supply of quality content. Driven by vertical integration and streamers retaining global rights, just getting ahold of shows to sell can be a considerable challenge. “The old days of meeting a Canadian producer with hundreds of hours of completed shows in

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BossaNova inked a volume deal with CJZ and Greenstone covering hundreds of hours, including Dog Patrol.

the catalog are gone,” Stehmeier told TV Real recently. And that means coming on board projects as early as possible. “We sometimes even encourage producers to come up with ideas and then we can discuss them,” reports Ralf Rückauer, VP ZDFE.unscripted at ZDF Enterprises. “Sometimes we do development funding so we can help the producer create a sizzle to present to potential partners. We do that two or three times a year. In addition, we do selfcommissioning. We have Great Inventions, for example, a 35part series we completely ﬁnanced on our own, without any partners attached. We really do early-stage commitments.”

FAMILY TIES ZDF Enterprises has another preeminent factual distributor in its family, Off the Fence, which it took control of in 2019. “Most people say merger and think 50 percent of the staff will get fired,” Rückauer quips. “We had plans to merge the teams, specifically in distribution, but then Ellen Windemuth [the founder of Off the Fence] and I sat down and said, ‘Maybe we should keep them separate. It’s a different culture, different personnel, different structures, different partners.’ So we chose not to. ZDF Enterprises owns the company, and we have a lot of exchanges about the market. Sometimes we get approached by a production company and they offer us a program, and I’ll say it’s not for my catalog, but it might be something for Off the Fence. And vice versa. Sometimes we do deals together. Off the Fence has strengths in certain territories. We’re not competing. It’s very comfortable.” Like ZDF Enterprises, Off the Fence takes a flexible approach to securing content to license. “We can come on board at any stage, from early development to finished programs,” says Stefanie Fischer, the company’s managing director of sales. “What sets us apart is that we are a distributor with our own production arm, which means we can bring in our expertise at any point. We are acquiring a lot more content than we produce, and our production knowledge is always an advantage when working with third-party producers, as we can share feedback. While we don’t fund whole productions, we do offer advances, and we can help bring in partners at an early stage to raise the financing for a production.” ARTE Distribution, similarly, looks to engage with producers early on in the process, “sometimes the project is not even sold

to the French broadcaster” ARTE yet, says Florence Sala, head of international distribution. “We discuss the angle with them and sometimes advise them on the international version.”

TRUSTED PARTNERS Albatross World Sales has established a network of producers it partners with frequently, according to Anne Olzmann, the company’s managing director. “Our philosophy is to always establish long-term relationships with our producing partners and give honest feedback. Until recently, we took on almost only fully financed projects. Now we are expanding our activities to projects in the earlier stages of production. We want to use our experience and market insights to get exciting productions off the ground and get them ready for the international market.” Since its inception, Escapade Media made early alliances with producers a priority. “The development side of the business has always sought to take content on even if the idea is just an idea,” says Natalie Lawley, managing director. “If it is the right project for Escapade, we will offer our executiveproducer services to develop, finance and distribute. With the experience of working with buyers, commissioning editors and completed sales for over 20 years, we feel we can ensure that each project is carefully crafted to maximize its appeal to the global audience.” Of course, that approach to boarding projects early does not come cheap. As Heaney puts it, “You have to have a war chest to spend on content…. Any distributor that has the same setup or size they did in 2013-14 is probably going to be struggling now. You’re not going to be able to get content without putting in a decent deficit. That’s just the way it is. Nine, ten years ago, 90 percent of shows were fully funded. Now it’s probably the opposite. Or it’s fully funded, but there are no rights for those shows coming out of the streamers. Content that is available for distribution, most of it will need a deficit, and that deficit won’t be small.” That means being far more selective about what to take on—and having the proper market intel to make those informed decisions. For Heaney, that translated into resurrecting “Development Day,” an initiative he had started at TCB connecting producers with broadcasters. This year’s virtual

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edition hosted 55 buyers perusing 77 projects from 29 producers. “Distributors can work at an even earlier stage if you’ve gathered enough market intelligence and are useful for [the producers],” Heaney explains. The key is “going where the opportunities are,” Heaney says. “The streamers are still co-producing; they don’t want to fully fund everything. The linear broadcasters don’t want to co-produce everything; they want to fully fund some things. There is room for collaboration, especially if people know you can access money and you’re willing to take a risk, or you have market intelligence and you can bring partners in.” Mirjam Strasser, head of sales and acquisitions at Autentic Distribution, makes a similar point about being able to work across multiple models, noting, “We are not only including finished projects in our catalog, but also helping to realize projects in early stages through co-financing, presales or other forms of financing. In addition, we have our own production department that delivers high-quality productions every year. This combination puts us in a very good position in the market, where a battle for the best content is in full swing, fueled by the emerging streaming services.” Indeed, the SVOD and AVOD platforms are upending the doc business in the same manner they changed the game in drama and kids. The opportunities created have been significant, both commercially and creatively.

rollout strategies to make sure all opportunities are maximized, from linear to SVOD to AVOD. There are several factors to consider when weighing up deals. “It depends on the status of each project,” observes Olzmann at Albatross. “When a project is still in the financing phase, then the approach could be different from a project that is more or less finished without a finance gap. The chances to get significant funds from a streamer remain limited at that point—though I am confident that this will change in the near future. So when it comes to financing films that are still in development or in production, we’re generally approaching our main—mostly public—broadcasters and a few selected streamers first. We also work closely with our producers to reflect their vision for the project, especially in terms of a possible audience. There is a difference in audience numbers comparing VOD and pay TV versus public broadcasters. Public broadcasters still have the bigger audience share—this may be more important to some producers. In addition, more broadcasters are asking for full exclusivity or a VOD holdback, so we have to be careful in licensing to the right partner at the right time. It has become quite a rights jungle to navigate now, but for me, that is the fun part of being a distributor: finding individual solutions to make

Wildlife is a key part of the ZDFE.unscripted slate, including the new offering The Leopardess.

STREAM ON “AVOD and SVOD services have been an everincreasing source of revenue stream for us and we expect that to continue,” says Hud Woodle, executive VP of international sales and operations at GRB Studios. “Over the last year, we’ve increased our focus on finding and selling programs to these sectors. GRB is known for providing premium unscripted content, and we are glad to see a trend in streaming services gravitating to factual content.” The streamers are generally “more flexible in terms of editorial,” notes Fischer at Off the Fence. “They do not have such stringent audience profiles to satisfy and can therefore be far more curious exploring hybrid genres.” Of course, streamers angling for global rights to shows has caused some windowing headaches, leaving distributors to craft careful and considered

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One of Albatross’s new launches for MIPCOM is the travel series Beautiful Italia.

all sides smile and get the stories out there in the best possible way.”

THE RIGHT MATCH Off the Fence’s Fischer agrees, noting, “Streamers are often looking for content that cannot be seen anywhere else—they are looking for that edge and USP that a traditional player wouldn’t include in their prime slot. Therefore, we first and foremost need to ask ourselves where we could see the content fit best. It’s about finding the right match for each project. We want to ensure that we capture the sensitivities around the program’s needs. We look at the return on investment, from profit to impact, eyeballs, campaigning, etc. Sometimes it is worth keeping more control over a title and flexibility to place it with different players in different markets across the different exploitation forms.” Acknowledging the increasingly complicated nature of rights management, Autentic’s Strasser observes, “We simply have to pay attention to which rights are sold to whom. Strictly speaking, it has always been like that. In addition, productions that may have already completed their life cycle on TV can find new homes with streamers.

ARTE Distribution is offering up the music doc Damon Albarn: A Modern British Tale.

We see the different offers more as a complementary cycle than as competing rights-exploitation options.” For the high-end projects and original commissions, the factual streaming business is being driven by the SVOD players, but the AVOD market should not be discounted. “There’s huge interest in AVOD at the moment, specifically in FAST channels, because they are lean-back experiences,” says ZDFE.unscripted’s Rückauer. “It’s an exciting area. You can’t make a lot of money, but you can collect money. We’ve always been very active on all platforms. We were a launch partner for iTunes in Germany 15 years ago. We started collaborating with Google and YouTube. And we have plans to launch FAST channels.” “AVOD, and in particular FAST channels, are gaining relevance,” agrees Fischer. “A global streamer SVOD deal for a premium title is, of course, a very different business model to AVOD and FAST, although we are seeing SVOD starting to mimic FAST channels in certain parts of the world. As FAST is growing from strength to strength, we are in serious presales negotiations with those channels that have harnessed their core audiences.” Strasser is upbeat about the YouTube opportunity, with the company having entered a content partnership with Little Dot Studios Germany, “where we exploit content from our distribution catalog on their YouTube channel. We also have similar partnerships with international companies.” As for narrative trends within factual, the competition for the most compelling personalities, the latest cutting-edge technology and deep insider access is intense. “Clients are asking for more than the classic blue-chip title, and there is a need for a real USP in access, talent and story, with authentic emotional narrative arcs,” says Fischer. “We also ﬁnd the growing appetite for content exploring diversity and diverse storytelling very encouraging.” Albatross’s Olzmann says that natural history and science are both in high demand at the moment. “Many buyers who used to only buy the feel-good, plain nature-portrait shows are now looking for more in-depth, captivating stories to go along with astonishing nature footage,” she notes. History is also on a lot of buyers’ wish lists, says Strasser at Autentic, “especially ancient and contemporary history. Wildlife is evergreen. However, there is a noticeable shift

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toward conservation programs and the relationship between humankind and nature.”

THE NEXT WAVE “People are thinking about climate change,” agrees ZDFE.unscripted’s Rückauer. “My impression is, what is the next step? What will happen after that wave? You don’t want to just watch a climate change doc; you want something different. People are thinking about Covid and what it says about us and our relationship to nature. We’re trying to bring green thinking to the next level. That’s one of my biggest interests. And many clients are asking us for dinosaurs! It’s been years since you saw the big landmark Walking with Dinosaurs. Now we have better CGI technology. What would happen if you transferred that technology into a really good dinosaur story? I would love to build up a classic co-production model with three or four partners, maybe public broadcaster-led but not necessarily, possibly in combination with a streamer, to tell the dinosaur story from A to Z again.” True crime remains a top-seller in the factual business, according to GRB’s Woodle. Still, Rückauer reports that while stories of American misdeeds fare well worldwide, local broadcasters are generally more interested in domestic tales.

“Everyone wants true crime, but it needs to be very local and speciﬁc, which doesn’t sell internationally,” he says. Both Lawley at Escapade and Sala at ARTE Distribution reference the clear demand for escapism amid pan demic woes (and travel challenges), while Autentic’s Strasser says that male-driven factual entertainment is “selling like hotcakes.” At BossaNova, Heaney has set out to craft a curated slate that builds upon the close to 1,000 hours he has from the CJZ and Greenstone catalogs. “That was a big win for us,” he says. “I don’t obsess about hours; I obsess about returning brands and new brands. They have lots of those, which gives a value beyond the number of hours. There are two poles [in the BossaNova slate]: the returnable, repeatable, scalable—it doesn’t matter what genre it’s in—and then the one- to four-part premium. In terms of subjects, it’s true crime, history, adventure, paranormal, hidden-world docs, blue light, ob-doc series, engineering, mysteries, quick turnaround [and more]. We’ll go where we think the demand is. We’re not going to just build up a catalog. We’re not saying, ‘Brilliant, that adds 120 hours,’ because that’s boring and a waste of time. We’re picking up projects we think are going to at least wash their faces—and maybe do a little more.”

GRB Studios is filling clients’ needs for paranormal shows with highlights such as Death Walker.

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Banijay Rights’ MasterChef on FOX.

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BACK

Style

Mega-formats continue to dominate prime-time grids, and many are being renewed and refreshed to keep audiences engaged. By Kristin Brzoznowski

he reality entertainment boom at the start of the 2000s gave way to a slew of megahit format brands—Survivor, Big Brother and Idols among them—and 20 years on, many of these shows are still going strong. There’s a bevy of big-name formats that have held onto their prime-time slots with an iron grip. Some have been given a rest period to return with full force, while others have undergone carefully executed refreshes.

STAND-OUT BRANDS In today’s TV landscape, mega-formats “are not just remaining strong; they are in the middle of a new boom,” says Lucas Green, global head of content operations at Banijay. He points to two recent global phenomena: the Covid-19 pandemic and the rise of streaming platforms. “Those two factors have created an environment where the linear broadcasters and schedulers are under pressure to deliver big hits,” Green says. “People are staying at home, watching more TV and signing up for more streaming subscriptions, and the broadcasters—linear and nonlinear—have been facing ﬁnancial pressures due to the drop in advertising revenue, so they need shows that are going to deliver. And if they’re looking very carefully at where they spend their budgets, they want to make sure that they have a couple of

really big mega-brands that they can get behind, market, support in their schedules and have lots of complementary programming around.” “The importance and power of mega-formats are increasing,” agrees Tim Gerhartz, president and managing director of Red Arrow Studios International. “We’ve seen that speciﬁcally throughout the recent months, as broadcasters are sticking to what worked prior to Covid and during Covid. So, having a mega-format in place is helpful these days.” The company has in its catalog the über-successful Married at First Sight format, which has traveled to more than 30 countries and become a channel-deﬁning brand in many markets. “That’s the beauty of a mega-format; you don’t only have a successful show, you turn it into a brand,” says Gerhartz. “You reach a point that when people talk about the show, they immediately have the platform in mind and vice versa.” In the case of Married at First Sight, successful examples include Nine Network in Australia, Lifetime in the U.S. and Channel 4 in the U.K. “The channels not only show the local version on the main channel, but they also offer the audience spin-offs and add-ons that are based on the original format on secondary channels,” Gerhartz says. “And then, to push their VOD services and extend their catch-up

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Red Arrow Studios International’s Married at First Sight has been adapted in numerous markets, including Australia, with eight seasons on Nine Network.

platforms, they acquire foreign tapes to offer even more of the brand to the audience.” With Married at First Sight in the U.S., the main show has stayed true to the original version, but spin-offs and addons have offered the audience new content. Married at First Sight: Unmatchables picks up on protagonists and participants who weren’t matched for the original show, while Married at First Sight: Couples’ Cam is a self-shot series following fan-favorite pairs. “There are many ways to do it, and we see that trend of coming up with spin-offs and add-ons just starting,” Gerhartz says. There has also been a slew of revivals for mega-formats as of late, with big-name brands being recommissioned after a hiatus. All3Media International and Studio Lambert’s Undercover Boss is back on ITV in prime time as Undercover Big Boss, seven years after it last aired on Channel 4. “Undercover Boss launched after the global recession, so it felt fitting for the format to come back to the U.K. following the impacts of Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic,” says Nick Smith, executive VP of formats at All3Media International.

Gogglebox returned in Norway as a celebrity version on TV2, a different channel from its original home. “It was always a ratings success on the public-service broadcaster, so it made sense for it to have been commissioned by a commercial broadcaster,” Smith adds. There have been lots of subtle tweaks to Gogglebox to keep the format fresh over the years. “In the earlier series, we would never have reviewed shows from SVOD platforms, but it is important to reﬂect how viewing experiences have changed,” Smith notes. “We also didn’t review ﬁlms and dramas until discovering that they work well, and so many of us do talk in the middle of the most dramatic of programs. “Most controversially, stars of Gogglebox were dropped from the cast after they became too famous and started appearing in reality shows,” he continues. “This seems counterintuitive, but Gogglebox is all about having a cast of ordinary people who are just like the viewers. It proved to be the right decision.”

A FRESH SPIN Tweaks and subtle twists from international versions can also make their way back into the format bible, Smith says, helping to inform broadcasters about what’s worked elsewhere—and what hasn’t. Adaptations of the game show The Cube in the U.S. and Australia allowed The Cube to speak and have a personality. It worked so well that for season 11 in the U.K. this year, The Cube has had an update and can now talk. From ViacomCBS International Studios’ (VIS) reality format slate, Ex on the Beach has proven quite versatile, with a wide range of tweaks and changes over the years across the various local versions, explains Laura Burrell, VP of international formats. There have been location variations, such as a winter-themed version (Ex on the

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Beach: Peak of Love) produced in the U.S. and the Nordics, and a standalone spin-off to the original U.K. version (Celeb Ex in the City) set in the city rather than beachside.

FRESH FACES Casting is another way to add freshness to a longrunning format like Ex on the Beach, Burrell notes. “We’ve had either full celebrity versions (such as the most recent season in the U.K.) or diversiﬁed the cast to include gay or bisexual contestants; we’ve even had a cougar in one local series! There have also been some new format beats added, always subject to approval and always carefully worked through to ensure that they enhance the creative. In the U.S. version, an elimination process was added in for the ﬁrst time.” The key, according to Burrell, is to stay current. “You have to grow with your audience, and you can’t do that without moving the dial from time to time. You also want to attract new viewers from season to season. With reality TV particularly, if a format becomes too familiar, the audience knows what to expect and potential cast members know how to play the game. The result is that it becomes boring to watch and loses its authenticity factor. Regularly refreshing the format helps to avoid such pitfalls.” It is crucial, though, to have a format with durable pillars at the outset to ensure its longevity. So, what are the keys to creating a long-running mega-format?

FUTURE-PROOFING “Big or small, simple is best,” says Paul Gilbert, senior VP of international formats for ViacomCBS Global Distribution Group. “If a game show has a gimmick, it seems to work in the short term but not in the long term. Shows like Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy! are free of gimmicks, and their success speaks for itself. Play-along for the viewers is always a plus. That’s not to say that a game show that is purely entertaining can’t be successful, because many have been. In the reality format world, cringe-worthy for me is a must. It’s the OMG moments in a show. Also, the David-versus-Goliath moments when we cheer for the underdog.” Banijay’s Green shares a similar view: “The way that we champion longevity is that at their heart, these shows have very simple, clear premises. Survivor is ‘Outwit, Outplay, Outlast’—it is about who the last one will be. It’s clearly a strategy game with loads of drama, and it’s very well cast. Big Brother is the ultimate reality show; it’s a popularity contest. Who is the most popular housemate? MasterChef is one of our biggest and best, and the very simple premise is, it’s really good cooking. It’s high-quality food, and it has a lot of ﬁlmic qualities; it’s beautifully made and at the heart of it are great chefs.” As long as mega-formats continue to deliver in their ratings for broadcasters and brand potential for distributors and producers, their future as staples in prime-time schedules seems certain. “While they’re successful, there’s no reason why [broadcasters] would want to rest them,” Green

says. “It’s up to us to keep the quality high. The viewers have shown that they like them and will keep coming to them. “Looking into the future, the landscape is changing,” he continues. “There is a real battle going on between the streaming platforms for viewers, subscribers and top-quality content. I think we will see them start to enter the market and identify some of these mega-brands as a great way to launch their service in a new territory. Then, straight out of the block, you’ve got a show that people are familiar with and, even better, you know works.” Even with the established megahits continuing to ﬂourish, there’s always room for brand-new concepts, says Red Arrow’s Gerhartz—if they’re compelling. “At the moment, it’s key for broadcasters to work with what does well for them. It’s important for them to extend on that success, but then again, they need to come up with something fresh.” He believes that Stealing the Show! could be the next big thing. In a spin on the classic quiz show, the format sees the contestant who wins in one episode host the next. “That’s something we haven’t seen before,” says Gerhartz. “It’s a megahit! It’s a huge success on ProSieben in Germany and ratings are building in season two, even better than season one. Proof of concept with a fresh twist gets people excited.”

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All3Media International’s The Cube was adapted for TBS in the U.S., hosted by Dwyane Wade.

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Undercover Boss

rom Studio Lambert and All3Media International, Undercover Boss follows high-level corporate executives as they covertly step into the role of a worker at their own organizations. The bosses slip anonymously into the lowest level jobs within their companies, get their hands dirty and ﬁnd out what their employees really think of them and how smoothly their organizations are really run. Undercover Boss debuted in 2009, a time of ﬁnancial crisis and big changes in the business world. Fast-forward to today—with the Covid-19 pandemic, Brexit, the Black Lives Matter movement and a greater emphasis on mental health—and the business world is yet again experiencing challenges and undergoing changes.

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This set the stage for ITV in the U.K. to recommission the show with a prime-time edition, airing as Undercover Big Boss. “Although there had been international versions airing in the U.K., it hadn’t had its own version for a number of years,” says Mike Cotton, executive producer of Undercover Boss. “We felt there would never be a better time to bring it back; it’s such a relevant time for Undercover Boss to be relaunched.” Along with a successful U.S. version going strong on CBS, the format has been adapted in a slew of markets, big and small. “It resonates with audiences because of the universal themes,” says Caroline Stephenson, senior VP for EMEA at

“It’s such a relevant time for Undercover Boss to be relaunched.” —Mike Cotton

All3Media International. “The hierarchies in the workplace mean that bosses don’t often have much of a clue about the challenges faced by their workforce. Similarly, employees would like an opportunity to tell how it is to the bosses. The beauty of this format is that when each boss goes undercover, the employees are unwittingly telling it like it is. It has such a positive resolution in that there’s recognition for the employees and all their hard work that is appreciated and rewarded, and quite often, changes are made within those businesses. It ends on a high.”

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STINCHCOMB: Nebula has been a tremendous marketing channel for us for more than a year, so our enhanced partnership and investment are based on the success we’ve already seen working together. It’s the world’s largest creator-owned streaming and technology platform, and they have 140-plus active creators in the “education-y” space who together have over 120 million collective YouTube subscribers. There is natural alignment on our core propositions, and we’re just excited to get more active in what is arguably the most exciting area of media right now with the creator economy. TV REAL: And what about One Day University? STINCHCOMB: Similar to Nebula, we’d also had a successful commercial relationship with One Day University, so they were a proven partner for us. One Day University focuses on providing engaging and informative content, so again you see clear strategic alignment, and it expands our factual content proposition. It has many of the same attributes as MasterClass—but our instructors are better. Overall, our strategy for deals like One Day University and Nebula is fairly simple: will it grow our revenue, subscribers and/or our content proposition? These deals also tie back to how we’re thinking about “Curiosity” as a diverse and dynamic brand proposition. TV REAL: It’s been quite a year for SVOD services! What gains did you see amid lockdowns, and how are you looking to maintain those increases?

Clint Stinchcomb Curiosity By Mansha Daswani

t has been a transformative year for Curiosity. The recently rebranded outfit founded by cable pioneer John Hendricks has seen usage gains on its flagship Curiosity Stream SVOD service, inked new carriage deals for its linear channel, expanded Curiosity Studios’ originals slate and increased its portfolio of assets as it positions itself for further success in a competitive, and fragmented, media landscape. TV Real caught up with Clint Stinchcomb, president and CEO of Curiosity, to discuss the company’s accelerating growth trajectory. TV REAL: Tell us about the rebrand and what that means for the broader company outside of your SVOD service. STINCHCOMB: The elevation of “Curiosity” is a recognition of the dynamic and diverse company we have grown to become over the past six years. We are the global entertainment brand for people who want to know more, and our SVOD service, Curiosity Stream, is still the flagship and the foundation of our business. But we provide myriad ways for both viewers and partners to engage with our content—we’re producing more original content than ever—and the time is right to showcase our full suite of offerings. TV REAL: What led to the Nebula investment, and what does that bring to the company?

STINCHCOMB: Like most streamers, we saw an uptick at the beginning of the pandemic. But what’s more encouraging for us is that, after a full year, our retention rate for the 13 months ended May 2021 was 72 percent—which is higher than every other streamer of consequence. We believe this is due to our quality, uniqueness, value and indispensability. Many consumers consider the spending decision on Curiosity Stream to be outside of their traditional entertainment budget. The content itself and the experience is high-quality, enlightening, family-friendly and offers a great price-value relationship. We’re also not reliant on single shows or series to drive acquisition and retention—people may join us for a particular program or series, but they stay for the breadth and depth of our content. TV REAL: What are the core subscriber retention tools you use for Curiosity Stream? STINCHCOMB: Due to the nature of our service, we have an audience that in some cases wants immense breadth and in others wants to be able to dive deep into speciﬁc topics. Therefore, we need reﬂexive strategies that ensure we are serving up what an individual is looking for each time they open up our apps. We initially serve a new user some of our best content across all of our genres and categories that we know

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Curiosity Stream’s lineup of originals includes Rescued Chimpanzees of the Congo with Jane Goodall, produced by Off the Fence and distributed by ZDF Enterprises.

performed well and see what resonates. From there, we can get an idea of what sort of content they are interested in and begin to build a reflexive experience. At a high level, all of this data informs our programming strategy to make sure we have a continuous flow of new content to the platform that we know will feed all these different tastes and appetites. If we’re doing that correctly, we will see high retention from people who are most active on our apps. We also have to make sure that we reach people outside of our owned-and-operated [platforms]. We have a variety of ways we do that. Our CRM and engagement team uses off-platform content recommendations, retargeted ads and a variety of other mediums to make sure that people are not missing content we think they’re going to be interested in if they have not logged in recently. We are also building out a strong front-of-the-wall content strategy that will keep our audience engaged with us even as they consume content on other platforms beyond Curiosity Stream (like YouTube, FAST platforms and social media). All of this works together to give us industry-leading retention that we expect to continue to build upon as we focus on driving ever-growing engagement and share of our audience’s watch time. TV REAL: What’s new at Curiosity Studios? How vital are originals to the service? STINCHCOMB: I’m excited that we’re producing and releasing more originals this year than we ever have before. Our fall slate is packed, including our first original featurelength film, Heval, which premiered in September. We also have the second season of our original series Beyond the Spotlight—this time featuring some intriguing names in the cultural zeitgeist right now. And of course, we’re always guaranteed to deliver the epic, brand-defining science, history and natural-history titles our viewers love, including the dramatic story of the titans who built Wall Street, a fascinating exploration of biomimicry and a wild tour down the Humboldt Current.

TV REAL: How is your channel doing? What growth do you still see within that pay-TV channel ecosystem? STINCHCOMB: The channels are doing well and generating more viewership every day. We see considerable growth in the pay-TV ecosystem. It won’t always be in historically traditional forms, but as distributors more aggressively embrace the streaming revolution, we are partnering with them in win-win constructs. TV REAL: How important are partnerships with telcos and other players as you build out Curiosity Stream’s global SVOD footprint? STINCHCOMB: These types of partnerships are extremely important to building our global footprint. We view thoughtful bundled partnerships with distributors of scale as key to maximizing our growth; they are clearly key to the growth of any content service. TV REAL: Amid a market that seems to shift daily, how are you and your team plotting the next stage of Curiosity’s growth? STINCHCOMB: As a team, we are focused on the day in, day out deliberate and accountable work necessary to build a great company. The ﬁeld-of-dreams approach, which some large players have tried, doesn’t work. We will showcase more and better original programming in the third and fourth quarters of this year than at any time in the company’s history. We are building a premium factual library of programming that will exceed 10,000 episodes. We are prioritizing certain international markets, like German-speaking Europe. We are making considerable foundational improvements to our tech and engagement enhancements to our UI and UX. And we are complementing our teams with bar-raising performers. As we execute on these initiatives, we will be well-positioned to take advantage of the many growth opportunities in front of us.

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