World Screen Guide 2020

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GUIDE 2020

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Contents A Note from the Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Executives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 Talent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21 Distributors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Publisher Ricardo Seguin Guise Group Editorial Director Anna Carugati

Ricardo Seguin Guise President

Editor Mansha Daswani Executive Editor and Editor, English-Language Guides Kristin Brzoznowski

Anna Carugati Executive VP Mansha Daswani VP of Strategic Development and Associate Publisher

Production and Design Director David Diehl Š 2020 WSN INC. Associate Editors Chelsea Regan Alison Skilton

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Business Affairs Manager Andrea Moreno

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Photo Credit: Patricia Arquette courtesy of Riccardo Vimercati for Marina Rinaldi.

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A Note from the Editor Mansha Daswani

Zenith reported last year that ad spend would rise by 4.7 percent to reach $623 billion in 2019, helped in large part by online video and social media. Internet advertising is forecast to account for 52 percent of global advertising expenditure in 2021. “Online video has boosted the amount of time that consumers spend watching audiovisual content and is amplifying advertisers’ ability to reach consumers with high-impact brand-building ads,” said Matt James, global brand president at Zenith. “The growth in serving ads to consumers via connected television sets will be a huge contributor to the growth of this format in the coming years, and it will help to bring attribution back to TV advertising.”

But as television ad dollars shift online, broadcasters are finding they have to do more with less, leading to uncertainty across the traditional content-distribution landscape. Program distributors have had to change how they do business, finding new ways to land access to content and cobble together the financing required.

Uncertainty seems to be the overall mood of the media business right now. The COVID-19 outbreak has sent stock markets into a tailspin, adding to the political and economic strife that has compounded the seismic shifts in how content is monetized and consumed. Windowing and rights management is trickier than ever. Piracy appears to be getting worse (Parks Associates forecasted in 2019 that OTT and pay-TV companies would see $9.1 billion in lost revenue due to piracy and account sharing, with that number growing to $12.5 billion in 2024).

The constant is consumers’ appetite for content. According to PwC, in 2019, U.S. consumers were spending roughly $76 a month on video content, an increase of $5 per month yearon-year. PwC’s survey found that 33 percent of consumers expect to invest more in new SVOD services, and 21 percent are willing to pay more to gain access to ad-free content.

Whether for streaming or appointment viewing on TV, there’s something for everyone in this edition of the World Screen Guide.

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EXECUTIVES

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Robert Bakish CEO ViacomCBS

WS: What were the advantages of merging Viacom and CBS Corporation?

BAKISH: If you look at consumer demand for content and the increasing ways of accessing it, being a global leader in content production and ownership is a tremendously valuable place to be. We also produce value for distribution and advertising partners through the content we own and produce, and through the platforms we operate. From an asset-family perspective, we have the largest audience share in the U.S., so that makes us extremely important to distributors and advertisers alike. If you look at the combined portfolio, beyond linear television—like Viacom’s leadership in the Advanced Marketing Solutions space—we are a principal partner for any marketer in the U.S. In the direct-to-consumer space, putting the companies together united two growth strategies that were powerful in their own right and even more powerful together. At Viacom, we had been focused principally on the free [advertiser-supported] space where we operate the largest free-TV streaming service in the U.S., Pluto TV. At the same time, CBS had put in place a powerful growth strategy from a subscription or SVOD perspective. Those two strategies are working, and when you bring them together, you have a direct-to-consumer ecosystem that crosses free and pay and allows for the reinforcement and acceleration of both.

WS: Tell us about your studios strategy to produce for third parties.

BAKISH: First, our assets are well-suited to producing hits. They have a track record of doing that across demographics, genres and types of programming. Add to that the fact that there is significant demand for content from companies that either can’t produce by themselves or don’t have sufficient capacity to produce everything they need. Some of those companies are feeding segments of the landscape that we don’t currently reach directly. Therefore, supplying them with original programming and reaching consumers in that way is appealing from a consumer perspective and, of course, from a financial perspective.

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Robert Greenblatt

Chairman WarnerMedia Entertainment & Direct-to-Consumer WS: What are the challenges of finding a standout show?

GREENBLATT: There’s never been more opportunity and the creative community has clearly stepped up, so great ideas are coming from so many people these days. I’ve always been in a fight to find extraordinary or game-changing material. It’s really about trying to find something that breaks through and speaks to people and is emotionally resonant. Finding a way to differentiate yourself is important, especially now, in a world in which there is so much programming.

WS: What factors go into programming a direct-to-consumer service?

GREENBLATT: We are doing things, in some respects, in the oldfashioned way. We believe in the human touch, and whether it’s a linear network or a programming service, scheduling is meaningful. Of course, we know people watch shows when and where they want and they make their own schedules. But we have also extended the meaning of the word scheduling to how things are arranged on our service. Things are going to change monthly and weekly, and when our new original shows come into the ecosystem, what are we going to have as companions to those new shows? How are we going to present the library product that might serve as a companion to a new original? All of those decisions aren’t made by machines or computers. They’re made by people in a room who are clever and creative.

WS: What can WarnerMedia offer talent?

GREENBLATT: We have extraordinary executives that are smart and respectful. We have platforms and networks that are dependent on great content and therefore, we have to be a place that is very responsive to the creative process. And that means in development, in production and in marketing, in the sense that we’re not doing a thousand shows at once, we’re doing a number that is manageable. We call it bespoke or hand-curated.

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Thomas Rabe CEO RTL Group

WS: What is the RTL Group’s strategy for its streaming services?

RABE: We are in the midst of a major transformation of the media industry.

To successfully transform our business, two factors are particularly important: higher reach, in both linear and nonlinear, which requires significant investments in content, marketing and a state-of-the-art tech platform for our streaming services; and better monetization of our reach, through targeting and personalization, which requires investments in advertising technology and data.

RTL Group’s strategy builds upon three pillars: firstly, strengthening our core businesses. Secondly, boosting the growth of our streaming services and global content business, Fremantle. And thirdly, fostering alliances and partnerships in the European media industry. Within this framework, we put a particular focus on becoming national streaming champions in the European countries where RTL Group has leading families of channels. We will continuously expand our streaming services by offering more local, exclusive content across all genres directly to the consumers.

WS: How are the linear channels in the RTL Group remaining relevant to viewers?

RABE: In 2019, our German family of channels increased its audience share in its main target group—viewers aged 14 to 59. This was largely thanks to our main channel, RTL Television, which increased its audience share for the first time since 2011. Live sports, such as the Europa League, drama series and entertainment formats continue to attract large audiences.

In our second-largest market, France, Groupe M6 outperformed the market in advertising sales and audience shares. This was also driven by the acquisition of the children’s channel Gulli in 2019. As in Germany, live sport attracts mass audiences. This is why Groupe M6 also acquired free-to-air broadcasting rights for the UEFA Europa League and the newly established UEFA Europa Conference League, again for a period of three years.

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Gilles Pélisson Chairman & CEO TF1 Group

WS: What programming strategies have led to TF1’s strong performance?

PÉLISSON: We are strong believers, especially as a historical market leader, that content is king and we should provide our audience with unique experiences that we can renew and regenerate through the years. So, we offer a combination of programs that our viewers know and like, which are appointment viewing, and novelties that viewers will discover and [be taken] to different standards in television. Our ability to program several channels as a group is a plus. We work on what we call a multichannel strategy, to make sure that each channel brand is well positioned and differentiated from one another. You should look at us as risktakers, as a group that can anticipate trends and identify new formats. And building on this, we strive to optimize the exposure of those formats and present them to the largest audience possible.

WS: What can advertisers gain from what TF1 Group offers?

PÉLISSON: First of all, we want to offer the best of French television with the power and diversification of our group.

By that, I mean an advertiser’s campaign can get the largest exposure between TF1 and the other channels in the group.

And depending on its target audience, an advertiser can address just about every member of the French population.

Then it can also diversify its campaign on our digital replay platform, MY TF1, in a safe environment. A lot of advertisers have been very disappointed by their experiences, whether on Facebook or YouTube, [given their concerns with] brand safety. [We can also provide] independent measurement of the audience and the performance of a campaign. Advertisers are much more demanding in today’s world, and we can offer both unique content and a very safe environment. We can provide data and analysis about who is going to watch a program. And advertisers can adapt their campaigns and position them for the attributes of the audience that is going to watch it.

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JB Perrette President & CEO Discovery International

WS: Discovery has long made a priority of owning content. How is this strategy paying off in today’s media landscape?

PERRETTE: It’s not only owning content; it’s owning content globally. Those two points are very important and go together because, ultimately, the media business is a scaled business. And being able to have global reach—compared to some of our competitors who are great, but end up being strong in one market or a handful of markets, and don’t have global reach—is a big differentiator.

Very early on, the company believed in ownership of IP, partly because from a business-model standpoint, we’ve been able to exploit it most effectively by controlling it and using it to launch great channels and brands for most of the last three decades. Now, in this new changing world, owning IP gives us huge optionality. It has allowed us to take what was historically mainly a pay-TV business internationally and exploit some of that content in the freeto-air space. Then, in many markets across Europe, where we had a pay-TV and free-to-air business, we were able to exploit content across digital. We have full control of an enormous programming library, which includes more than 300,000 hours of content from the last few decades.

WS: What role do free-TV channels have in your multipronged strategy?

PERRETTE: They provide an enormous amount of scale for ad partners and we see that continuing to grow, but they also serve an [important purpose for viewers], which is how it’s worked in Italy, the Nordics and Spain, and in Germany with Joyn. When you take content in the pay-TV world, and someone’s paying you for that content through a cable or satellite system, and you want to make it available online, there is natural friction. The great thing about free to air is that we don’t have that issue. Not only are we seeing great success on the free-to-air channels in the traditional linear model, but on top of that, free to air is serving as a treasure trove of content to launch our direct-to-consumer business.

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John Hendricks Founder & Chairman CuriosityStream

WS: What is CuriosityStream’s mission?

HENDRICKS: We address the entire category of factual entertainment; we are not a niche service. By doing so, we embrace and encompass all of the many niches under factual. There’s science, nature, history, technology, human interest stories about the human spirit and there’s also a big category that we label as “society,” which covers current-events programming, and we offer that through our short-form feature called Bright Now. We address the full category of factual entertainment, and we think that’s the best way to help satisfy curiosity.

We have noticed that in the streaming business, it’s very perilous if you’re a niche service. We’ve seen several niche movie services that have shut down. We think it’s safer to play the full factual category the way that Netflix has certainly played all the categories of movies; that’s going to have a bigger future than someone who addresses a niche.

WS: Which territories are you focusing on for expansion?

HENDRICKS: Outside of the U.S., we’re focused on Europe. We have an agreement with SKY in New Zealand. We are looking at Africa; we recently launched in South Africa on DStv. We’re looking at all the continents. We started in the United States, but within a few months, we had our service available in over 175 countries.

Our platform is very robust. When we produce original content, we own all the rights worldwide in perpetuity in all forms of media. When we acquire rights from a third party, sometimes it’s partial rights; you’ll only get the rights for say, North America and Europe. If someone logs on to CuriosityStream in Sweden, only the titles that are cleared for Sweden will come up. We have done a great job of clearing most of the rights for a worldwide exhibition. It’s challenging for everybody who wants to be an international streamer, but the rewards are many when you get your service viewed worldwide by families on every continent.

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Hugh Marks CEO Nine Entertainment

WS: What was the rationale behind the Fairfax Media and Nine merger?

MARKS: For us as a business, we need to recognize that media is changing, television is changing, how people define television is changing. We need to take advantage of the assets we have—broad reach, audience scale, the ability to market. But we also need to continue to drive the business to have a greater proportion of its earnings exposed to where audiences are, with higher growth, as opposed to where audiences are slowly fragmenting.

[Before the merger] 85 percent of our earnings were from broadcast and 15 percent from digital. By [this] year 50 percent of our earnings will be from broadcast. That’s not because broadcast will decline in earnings, but because we’ll have these other growth assets: long-form video, subscription video, digital subscriptions for publishing and classified sites. That mix looks a lot better, and that enables us to have the confidence to continue to invest in whatever new [businesses] we’ll add to that mix.

WS: Do Australian shows continue to drive your broadcast television ratings?

MARKS: If I go back to my old days at Southern Star, a distributor created some IP, sold it to a broadcaster, but the money was in the distribution of other rights. As a broadcaster, you made money by building a schedule where you basically moved audiences early in the evening through to later in the evening. That part of the business is getting tougher. We do still get audience flow from one show to the next, but audiences are a lot more mobile. With local content, we can own the rights. As a broadcaster 20 years ago, I could only make money out of linear television. On a show like Married at First Sight, you make money out of linear, but then it has a huge audience on-demand; it translates into a digital publishing environment and drives audiences there, and we can also put it up on social and make some incremental revenue there. So the revenue you can get from a local program, by virtue of controlling the rights, is much greater in today’s environment.

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Brian Walsh Executive Director, Television Foxtel

WS: Foxtel offers programming in many different ways, doesn’t it?

WALSH: Our customers are enjoying Foxtel more than ever. We’ve tracked the changes in how viewers consume content and we’re constantly improving our service to ensure they get the most value out of their subscription.

Foxtel GO on mobile lets customers take their viewing experiences on smartphones, tablets and laptops when they are on the move.

We have also dramatically increased our on-demand library, which means that rather than watching our scheduled shows, customers can binge on a host of complete seasons of the best drama, lifestyle and comedy programs. And we’re [at the forefront] of Australia’s Ultra HD channels, with the Foxtel Movies Ultra HD and a Foxtel Sports Ultra HD services. We are continually evolving and reinventing the product to keep ahead of the technology curve and the portability and mobility of video, which is what customers are demanding these days.

WS: Foxtel recently launched FOX-branded channels. What was the motivation behind that decision?

WALSH: There is so much content available now and it’s becoming a very crowded and cluttered marketplace, so brands now are more critical than ever. Here in Australia, we’ve had the launch of Disney+ and Apple TV+, Netflix and Amazon Prime, of course, so we made a marketing and brand decision to embrace the fact that we are the home of Fox. We have the iconic Fox brand as part of our offering to the Australian market. We made a deliberate decision to associate ourselves more closely with Fox by launching a suite of new FOX-branded channels. We launched six new offerings: FOX One, FOX Funny, FOX Crime, FOX Hits, FOX Sleuth and FOX Sci Fi. We were already known for FOX Sports, FOX8, FOX Showcase and FOX Classics. We made a conscious marketing decision that Fox be iconic when people think of Foxtel.

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Craig Hunegs President Disney Television Studios WS: What are the benefits of ABC Studios, 20th Century Fox Television and Fox 21 Television Studios remaining independent?

HUNEGS: It’s a big advantage to have multiple creative filters and multiple creative teams, each with their own taste, their own talent relationships and their own relationships with agencies and with networks. Our ambition is to do a lot of programming. I think the way to do that most effectively is to have multiple studios. My concern is that if you try to do a very high volume of programming with one studio, you end up setting up an assembly line—and that’s never the best way to create TV. I also like that the three studios give us multiple entry points for talent and creators. Each studio has a somewhat different culture and leadership team. We’re finding that many creators want to be at Disney, but they like having a choice of homes here, and it’s working out very nicely.

WS: How are the three labels balancing serving the needs of the Disney-owned outlets and third-party clients?

HUNEGS: Serving the Disney platforms comes first, and we are very clear about that with our talent, agents, talent reps and the community. There is a home within Disney for almost anything a creator wants to make. But that doesn’t mean that we are living within a walled garden. We will and do produce for third parties.

WS: Are you looking to tap into Disney’s global network to cultivate talent outside the U.S.?

HUNEGS: Our ambition is to be in business with more global talent, and we’re in a very active discussion here about how best to do that. As Hulu and Disney+ expand globally, I don’t want to speak for them, but I would imagine they would want local shows as well as programming from the U.S. How we can help source and create that content is part of the strategy. But also, there are incredible creators all over the world. There are a few hubs we are focused on right now.

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Charlie Collier CEO FOX Entertainment

WS: What is the role of broadcast networks and how can they remain relevant?

COLLIER: There is an interesting moment in the history of so many startups and companies that are looking to go public.

Often, the first thing they do is [advertise on] broadcast TV because they are trying to have mass appeal and cultural impact.

And the medium where that still happens in a timely way is broadcast television.

There is great strength and power in broadcast. In so many ways, we have an impact like no other. Network television is and remains an incredible storefront. Last season, the broadcast networks reached a combined 140-plus million total viewers per week. That reach is not just meaningful but can change businesses and impact popular culture.

WS: How do you plan on building on FOX’s strengths?

COLLIER: The company we’re building is the right size and strategically constructed to be a better partner today for creators, advertisers and, frankly, for people who believe in the power of broadcast. FOX is also the perfect combination of entertainment and sports. It’s accruing value, not just for the viewer, but for creators and those who benefit from the promotional power of one platform to help the other.

WS: What can hit shows on broadcast TV offer advertisers?

COLLIER: At a time when there is so much focus on streaming services and non-advertising-supported services, we are proudly adsupported. We’re one of the few places that are getting more advertiser-friendly, not less. That is because we have such a good combination of sports and entertainment. It’s also because we believe that network television remains the biggest and best storefront window for an event and for weekly events that advertisers support. When you have a reach of 140 million total viewers per week, there is a reason why marketers—and a range of marketers, from tech companies to the streaming platforms themselves—still spend most of their dollars on broadcast television.

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James Farrell Head, International Originals Amazon Studios WS: How are you identifying talent?

FARRELL: The challenge is always, how do you find these folks? Luckily, the first thing we always do is hire good local people. If you hire someone who is well respected in the country and has that network, then right away you start becoming aware of what projects are available. We are going to writers, actors, producers, directors and saying, We’re looking for distinctive, unique content; do you have anything you’re interested in doing? About half the ideas come in that way. The other half are ideas that germinate with us. When we hear ideas they want to do with us, we also say, We’ve got this other project we’re super excited about, but we need somebody to partner with locally that can help us deliver, do you want to get involved?

That’s when the relationships get stronger—when there’s a fun back-and-forth with ideas going in both directions.

WS: What’s the message for the international creative community?

FARRELL: The most common question we get everywhere is, What are you looking for? It’s not a secret: We want something distinctive. If it’s the same type of show that could be on another streaming service or broadcast or YouTube, it’s probably not that interesting [for us]. It could be wacky and different.

It could be something world-building and high-budget. It could just be a well-written drama about a subject that hasn’t been covered before.

WS: How do analytics inform your programming decisions?

FARRELL: The data is much more helpful for season two and beyond than it is for season one. Season one is such a creative decision. We don’t look at data too much when we’re deciding whether to make something. But when it comes to season two, that’s where we look at, Did people like it? Was the completion rate high? Were people watching not only in the home country but around the world? If people are loving it around the world, we’ll probably renew it for seasons two and three at once.

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TALENT

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Christiane Amanpour Host Amanpour

WS: In the age of the tweet and the sound bite, how important is it to provide context and in-depth analysis?

AMANPOUR: The world has become inundated with social media and a certain number of characters defining the entire context of a very complicated world.

Whether it’s violent white nationalism that is becoming domestic terrorism in the United States, the populist and nationalistic policies taking over in many countries or climate change, these are issues that cannot be left to a few characters on Twitter or a few posts on Instagram or Facebook. The role of the reporter to go in depth, to look at things in context and to get the real facts out there for people, is becoming much more important.

WS: What are the dangers of President Trump and other leaders calling legitimate news organizations “fake news”?

AMANPOUR: He has inspired a whole load of leaders and people around the world to now use that term, “fake news,” to fight back at truths that they don’t like. Now with social media, these untruths, conspiracy theories and propaganda are exponentially broadcast and transmitted around the world. People have a responsibility now to go to the proven organizations with track records of telling the truth and fact-checking, legitimate news organizations that have spent decades in the trenches bringing the truth to people. Governments have huge responsibilities. The tech platforms have huge responsibilities.

WS: What do you want to offer viewers with Amanpour?

AMANPOUR: No matter what platform we’re on, my mission is the same, and that is to bring the truth, context, more in-depth reporting and analysis. And I am delighted that this is a successful formula. For me, the most important thing is that it bears out my belief that this is what most people want. They want somewhere where they can go to get more than the sound bite, more than, “on the one hand…” and “on the other hand…,” more than cable news conflict television.

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Patrick Dempsey Actor Devils

WS: What attracted you to Devils and the role of Dominic Morgan?

DEMPSEY: When I read the first episode, I kept turning the page, and I was constantly surprised by the reversals. I got ahead and then thought, Oh, that’s not where it’s going at all! That surprised me.

And then I had a wonderful conversation with Nick [Hurran, the director], and then halfway through I was like, OK, I’m in. We shot in Rome and in London, which was another good reason to go! For me, that was perfect. It had a great international cast, and it was a great opportunity to learn something new about finance that I never really thought about before.

There was a nice openness to the collaborative process. A lot of things were still ongoing, especially the last few episodes as they were in the writing process. And everybody cared deeply and focused on, how do we make the best scene we have today and how do we keep refining it? I really enjoyed the collaborative effort.

WS: Coming from a U.S. network background, is it a different experience working on an international production?

DEMPSEY: Completely. And you had to be patient with the process. There’s a different way of approaching a [U.S.] network show; it’s completely different from what we were doing. It’s also a limited series, which is a unique experience as well. You had a clear beginning, middle and end, which was nice. And ten episodes is different from 24 to 25. And we had the time too. We were shooting 10-, 12-hour days, where a network show you’re shooting 15-, 16-hour days. That in itself was nice. And it was fun just to play a different character, and to go into the relationship, the power struggle, and also the level of subtext. We’re saying one thing, but we mean something else. It was great working with Jan [Michelini, the director] and Nick and getting that balance. And also with [Alessandro Borghi, who stars as Massimo Ruggero], we were on it right away, with very little rehearsal; we would just let it unfold.

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Patricia Arquette Actor The Act

WS: Was the physical transformation you had to undergo to play Dee Dee in The Act difficult for you personally?

ARQUETTE: Dee Dee had rosacea and diabetes; there were certain specific things about the way she looked. I was never going to look like Dee Dee. But I wanted to capture certain aspects of the way she looked because, to me, she looked so innocent and disarming. That was part of her deceptiveness.

WS: What attracted you to the part of Dee Dee, who has Munchausen syndrome by proxy and abuses her daughter by creating phantom illnesses?

ARQUETTE: I was always interested in Munchausen syndrome by proxy because it’s the opposite of all of our instincts as parents; we want to protect our kids from any pain. I didn’t know about this specific story until I got offered [the role of Dee Dee], but my kids had both seen the documentary [Mommy Dead and Dearest] and they said, Don’t play that lady mom! [The character had] so many layers, and after doing research on this condition, I felt that it’s a very disturbing and understudied mental illness.

WS: Do you need to like the characters you play?

ARQUETTE: I don’t know that I have to like the character, and I don’t know that I liked Dee Dee. But I have an understanding that I’ve developed about Dee Dee. I have empathy for her. Even if her behavior was horrendous—and I think it was, it was inexcusable— Dee Dee had a mental illness and she was delusional. She had no sense of self, no healthy self-esteem. She continually had to do things to prove she was worthy of love. Dee Dee also has such a terror of abandonment that she’s trying to convince her daughter never to leave her. She has her excuses. Every person who does something bad, whether it’s cheating on their taxes or cheating on their spouse or killing people, or whatever it is, they all have excuses that make sense to them. As an actor, you have to see what those things are and how we all delude ourselves.

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Damian Lewis Presenter & Executive Producer Spy Wars

WS: Tell us about the genesis of Spy Wars.

How did you become involved?

LEWIS: My brother [executive producer Gareth Lewis] was already involved, he was going to be directing parts of it. He said, Do you want to do this? I said, I don’t really do factual, I’m not a presenter. But I got sucked into these eight spy stories. I came on as a co-producer and tried to get to the bottom of what makes a man or woman do heroic or traitorous things on behalf of their country. It came to me by invitation and my curiosity was tickled.

WS: As you got into the details of these stories, what were some of the things that surprised you?

LEWIS: To be honest, a lot of what happens in the spy world is pretty unscientific. There’s still quite a lot of buccaneering and derring-do, if you like. It’s not risk-averse. It’s pro-risk, and often it can seem a bit chaotic, a bit ramshackle, and even at times a bit amateurish. Exotic words like “dead-drop” and “brush past” and things like that can simply be someone walking into a supermarket with the same plastic bag and putting it down and then each leaving with each other’s bag. It’s not exactly high-tech. While you’re looking for a slightly more sci-fi, James Bond aspect to these stories, they don’t exist. So the challenge for us was how to make the stories gripping and suspenseful. We tried to get into the minds of the individuals and what was at stake for them.

What are the documents in that bag? What happens if that individual is caught? Why is the individual doing it? If the individual is a KGB officer and he’s caught, he’s going to be executed. If he’s a Western intelligence officer, he’s going to be imprisoned for life.

We were trying to find out why these men and women are motivated to do these things. The motivation is often grubby and personal. It can be for simple revenge, a need to be heard, a need to belong to something, to be loved. People turn traitor for all these different reasons. So the surprise was constantly the grubbiness!

And the desperation that’s there. And the extreme risk that these people are prepared to take in order to keep going.

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Paul Giamatti Actor Billions

WS: What are the different creative challenges and opportunities that come with a supporting role versus a lead role?

GIAMATTI: Well, the level of responsibility is different. You have to carry a lot more, and there’s even an expectation of you as a lead actor to be a bit of a team captain.

But the sheer amount of what you have to do is obviously different, so there’s a different stamina thing. You begin to realize how important the supporting actors are because they’re going to come in and help you along and fill in a lot of stuff. You’re inventing it as you go along a lot more. [Supporting roles are] tricky because you’re working in shorter bursts of time. It’s like the difference between a sprinter and a distance athlete. In one, you have to measure yourself more, and there’s a different body and brain chemistry to it. You have a different sense of yourself and way of carrying yourself in front of the camera. I like doing supporting roles better because they tend to be more vivid characters and further away from who you are. Supporting roles tend to be more colorful. Your job is to be more vivid and colorful.

You come in and have a quick burst of something, which I enjoy. The supporting roles I’ve done have been way more varied, and I like that.

WS: How did you prepare for the role of Chuck Rhoades in Billions?

GIAMATTI: I’ve learned it as I’ve gone along. I met some [state’s attorneys] because they were interesting to me, and that was fun and informative. I met Preet [Bharara, former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York] and some of the other guys who worked at the U.S. Attorney’s office. Some of them were on-theline prosecutors who are doing the actual prosecuting in the courts and building the cases, and they’re all incredibly smart. Other than that, everything was in the script. It’s a very complete script; you’ve got everything about the guy. And [the writers] let this character go all over the place, almost more so than the other people.

He’s allowed to go crazy, weird places.

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Rob Lowe Actor 9-1-1: Lone Star

WS: What appealed to you about starring in 9-1-1: Lone Star?

LOWE: Ryan Murphy and I have been trying to find something to do together— there’s nobody like him—since Nip/Tuck.

I’ve never been available. Finally, our schedules coincided. He’s concocted an amazing new version of 9-1-1 [that stands] on its own and [has] the special sauce of 9-1-1, which for me is that amazing sense of adventure and over-the-top rescues. What I love about 9-1-1 is that unlike other shows like that, you get to have the great stuff— you rescue people—and then they’re gone. You don’t have to learn about these characters. You get the adrenaline, and then it’s over and you’re on to the next thing. And I love the way Ryan and Brad Falchuk and Tim Minear are able to then immediately pivot away from hyperrealism to the realism of the relationships in the firehouse, where I’m the fire chief.

WS: How have you seen the quality of TV rise over the years?

LOWE: It’s incredible. I remember when I first signed on to do The West Wing, people were still talking about television being where careers go to die. Now every movie actor wants to come to television or needs to come to television or both. The business has changed so much; the financials have changed so much. It costs so much money to launch a movie now that it has to appeal to every market in every country. So the more specific the story is, the less likely [studios] are to make it. [But] the more specific the story, the better it is, so all of that goes to television. That’s why you have such good writing and such great opportunity in TV. WS: At this point in your career when there are a lot of doors open to you, what roles appeal to you?

LOWE: Something that I can make my mark in, particularly if it’s an ensemble. I want to make sure I have a part I can break out with.

I’ll be looking to do a comedy if I’ve been doing a lot of drama and vice versa. Who am I working with? Is the experience going to be a good one? Is the location going to be good? It all comes together.

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Jason Priestley Actor, Producer & Director Private Eyes

WS: What do you think is the secret sauce that makes Private Eyes work?

PRIESTLEY: What makes our show work is that it’s feel-good television; it’s a bluesky show. It’s easy to watch. Our audience tends to be very broad; it’s a great show for a lot of people. The co-viewing opportunities are great as well. That’s why it’s been able to resonate with audiences all around the world.

WS: Were you inspired by any classic detective-style series?

PRIESTLEY: I was, absolutely. I grew up in the era of The Rockford Files, Magnum, P.I. and Remington Steele; I had a steady diet of those kinds of shows. The detective genre was one that I was not only familiar with but a huge fan of. So, to have the opportunity to develop, star in, direct and executive produce a show like this is a lot of fun for me.

WS: Are there advantages as an actor to the procedural crime-ofthe-week format versus a serialized story?

PRIESTLEY: There is a case of the week, where we follow the procedural format, but we also try to balance that out with comedy and the family stories. It’s a tricky balance that we have to bring to the show every week—between the procedural elements, the comedy and the family, which is the heart of the show—but that’s [the combination] that really makes the show work.

WS: You’re an executive producer on Private Eyes and were involved in optioning the books it’s based on. What are some of the core responsibilities you take on behind the scenes?

PRIESTLEY: I direct episodes, too, so I wear a lot of hats on this show! For me, a lot of the time, it’s about quality control. It’s about making sure that every episode we deliver is the absolute best episode that it can be. Lucky for me, there are a lot of people at work on this show, both in front of and behind the camera, who have that same instinct and are working just as hard as I am to make sure that that’s coming to pass.

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DISTRIBUTORS

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Albatross World Sales ADDRESS: Chopinstr. 8, 04103 Leipzig, Germany TELEPHONE: (49-341) 4428-2450 WEBSITE: www.albatrossworldsales.com MANAGING DIRECTOR: Anne Olzmann SALES MANAGER, EUROPE (EXCEPT EASTERN EUROPE), AMERICAS, AUSTRALIA, NEW ZEALAND: Lisa Anna Schelhas SALES MANAGER, EASTERN EUROPE: Claudia Zell CONTACT: info@albatrossworldsales.com PROGRAMS: The Meadow—Paradise Lost?: 1x44 min./1x90 min., nature & wildlife; Gorillas under Stress: 1x52 min., nature & science; Land of the Far North: 2x52 min., nature & wildlife; Out of Europe—A New Story of Human Evolution?: 1x52 min., science & history; Darwin in Times Square—The Science of Urban Evolution: 1x52 min., nature & science; On Thin Ice: 1x52 min., nature & science; Beasts and Witches: 4x52 min./ 4x43 min., nature & wildlife; The Rhône: 1x52 min., science & travel; Paradise Preserved: 5x52 min., science & travel; Cruising the Baltic Sea—A Summer on the Water: 5x52 min., travel.

“Albatross World Sales is a leading documentary and factual-program distributor and offers a wide range of high-quality content. A large part of our catalog is devoted to bluechip wildlife programs, high-end science titles and inspiring travel and lifestyle series.

We represent a large number of international, award-winning production companies and can, therefore, offer a wide variety of programming with different visual approaches and storytelling.

We are excited to bring to MIPTV the new film by Jan Haft. The Meadow—Paradise Lost? (4K) was a theatrical success and is now available for TV and VOD worldwide.

With Gorillas under Stress (4K) and Darwin in Times Square—The Science of Urban Evolution (4K), we present two brand-new visionary science docs.

We are devoted to diversifying and strengthening our program slate to ensure that we keep bringing highly relevant content to our clients worldwide.”

—Anne Olzmann, Managing Director

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Atlantyca Entertainment ADDRESS: Via Giacomo Leopardi 8, 20123 Milan, Italy TELEPHONE: (39-02) 430-0101 WEBSITE: www.atlantyca.com HEAD, PRODUCTION & DISTRIBUTION; EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Caterina Vacchi DISTRIBUTION MANAGER: Alessandra Dematteis CONTACT: alessandradematteis@atlantyca.it PROGRAMS: Berry Bees: 52x12 min., kids 5-9/spy/action; Bat Pat: 104x11 min., kids 5-9/creepy sitcom; Geronimo Stilton: 78x23 min., kids 6+/adventure; Nutri Ventures: 52x23 min., kids 6+/action; Toy Cop: 52x13 min., kids 3-7/action; Dive Olly Dive: 104x11 min., kids; ZDFE.junior catalog.

“Atlantyca Entertainment has divisions for production and distribution, licensing, publishing, foreign-rights sales and live stage events.

Atlantyca is the producer of three seasons of Geronimo Stilton, which have been sold all over the world, and two seasons of Bat Pat, a spooky animated adventure comedy that proves the supernatural isn’t always evil, just misunderstood. In addition, Atlantyca has just completed the production of the buzz-kicking new animated spy-action series Berry Bees, featuring three extraordinarily talented 10year-old girls named Bobby, Lola and Juliette, who have been selected by the B.I.A. (Bee Intelligence Agency) for those special spy missions in which only child agents can be involved.

Atlantyca’s distribution arm represents a growing library of properties, including Toy Cop and the junior catalog of ZDF Enterprises for Italy (School of Roars, Ziggy and the Zootram, #Likeme, Buck and H20, among others).”

—Caterina Vacchi, Head, Production & Distribution; Executive Producer

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Autentic Distribution ADDRESS: Gruenwalder Weg 28d, 82041 Oberhaching, Germany TELEPHONE: (49-89) 673469-797 WEBSITE: www.autentic-distribution.com MANAGING DIRECTOR: Patrick Hörl HEAD, SALES & ACQUISITIONS: Mirjam Strasser CONTACT: sales@autentic.com PROGRAMS: Claude Monet—In the Light of the Moment: 1x52 min., arts/lifestyle/doc.; Death of Venice: 1x52 min., current affairs/doc.; The Nazis Called Us Heroes: 1x45 min., history/doc.; The Suffering of the Habsburgs: 1x45 min., history/doc.; Berlin 1945: 3x50 min./1x180 min./2x90 min., history/doc.; South Asia—From the Himalayas to the Indian Ocean: 1x52 min., people & places/doc.; The Lost Empires of Turkmenistan: 1x52 min./1x43 min., people & places/doc.; Unknown Carpathians—Hidden Treasures of Romania: 2x52 min., people & places/doc.; Men of Hope: 2x45 min./ 1x95 min., people & places/doc.; Bali Spirit—Island of the Gods: 1x45 min., people & places/doc.

“Autentic Distribution is coming to MIPTV with a varied slate of new factual titles. Our highlight in Cannes, to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the end of World War II, is the cinematic-style series Berlin 1945 by award-winning producer Thomas Kufus and ZeroOne Films. It shows the city of Berlin through the eyes of the German population and personal comments of the Allied forces, using archival footage that has never been seen before, revealing a multilayered transformation of the city and its inhabitants. Other strong history titles that we are launching this market include The Nazis Called Us Heroes and The Suffering of the Habsburgs.

Within our people and places genre, fresh titles include Bali Spirit—Island of the Gods, Unknown Carpathians—Hidden Treasures of Romania and Lost Empires of Turkmenistan.

Our MIPTV slate demonstrates once more our ongoing commitment to bringing premium factual content to TV screens and streamers around the world.”

—Mirjam Strasser, Head, Sales & Acquisitions

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Boat Rocker Studios ADDRESS: 310 King St. E., Toronto, ON M5A 1K6, Canada TELEPHONE: (1-416) 591-0065 WEBSITE: www.boatrocker.com MANAGING DIRECTOR & PRESIDENT, RIGHTS: Jon Rutherford SENIOR VP, GLOBAL SALES, KIDS & FAMILY: Gia DeLaney VP, GLOBAL SALES, FACTUAL: Natalie Vinet CONTACT: sales@boatrocker.com PROGRAMS: Mary’s Kitchen Crush: 30x30 min., factual/ food/lifestyle; Secrets in the Ice: 6x60 min., factual/ history/science; Coded World: 4x60 min., factual/science & technology; Hell in the Heartland: 4x60 min., factual/ docuseries/crime; Secrets of a Psychopath: 3x60 min., factual/ docuseries/crime; Remy & Boo: 52x11 min., preschool 2-5/ adventure; Love Monster: 54x7 min., preschool 2-5/comedy/ adventure; Kingdom Force: 52x11 min., preschool 3-6/action/ adventure; The Next Step: S6-S7 52x30 min., teens/ tweens/scripted; The Strange Chores: 26x11 min., kids 6-11/ comedy/adventure.

“Boat Rocker Studios, the content, distribution and brands arm of Boat Rocker Media, brings great stories to life through global relationships, brand management, creative packaging expertise, financial support and ensuring brand integrity. Our studio consists of the following scripted, unscripted and kids and family content groups: Platform One, Temple Street, Crooked Horse, Proper Television, Insight Productions, Matador Content, Boat Rocker Kids & Family and a partnership with Industrial Brothers. With over 700 employees across its Toronto, New York, Los Angeles, London, Ottawa and Hong Kong offices, 750 half-hours of content produced annually and a distribution library now totaling over 7,500 half-hours, our sales team maintains a boutique style of distribution with the reach of a global media company. Our studio takes a 360degree approach to content. From content creation to sales and brand exploitation, Boat Rocker Studios develops the strategy for, and executes on, global marketing and monetization plans for high-potential entertainment brands.”

—Corporate Communications

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Cyber Group Studios ADDRESS: 44B Quai de Jemmapes, 75010 Paris, France; 9696 Culver Blvd., Suite 208, Culver City, CA 90232, U.S.A. TELEPHONE: (33-1) 5556-3232; (1-424) 341-4911 WEBSITE: www.cybergroupstudios.com PRESIDENT & CEO: Pierre Sissmann SENIOR VP, SALES, ACQUISITIONS & NEW MEDIA: Raphaelle Mathieu CONTACT: rmathieu@cybergroupstudios.com PROGRAMS: Gigantosaurus: 52x11 min., kids 4-6/comedy/ adventure; Taffy: 78x7 min., kids 6-10/comedy/cartoon; Sadie Sparks: 52x11 min., kids 6-11/comedy; Tom Sawyer: 26x22 min., kids 6-12/adventure; Droners: 26x22 min., kids 6-10/ adventure/comedy; Purple Turtle: 52x7 min., kids 3-6/ comedy/edutainment; Orange Moo Cow: 78x7 min., kids 3-6/ comedy; Nefertine on the Nile: 52x11 min., upper preschool/ adventure comedy; Bananimals: 78x7 min., kids 5-8/comedy; Ernest and Rebecca: 52x13 min., kids 5-8/comedy.

“Cyber Group Studios is a French independent multi-awarded producer and distributor specialized in top-quality kids’ programming with strong international appeal. Our rich and varied library boasts 1,000 half-hours of programming targeted at kids and families.

To bring the highest quality entertainment, the company collaborates with the best creative talents around the world and develops breakthrough technology to enhance its productions. Cyber Group Studios is proud to continue the development of partnerships with top producers by bringing them high-value access to key players in the international market.

Following the opening of a subsidiary in Los Angeles (U.S.A.) and Roubaix (Hauts-de-France), Cyber Group Studios has extended its international exposure on digital platforms thanks to key partnerships and new digital specialists. The company has also created an interactive division aimed at developing games and interactive experiences across all digital and traditional platforms.”

—Raphaelle Mathieu, Senior VP, Sales, Acquisitions & New Media

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Gaumont ADDRESS: 30 avenue Charles de Gaulle, 92200 Neuilly-sur-Seine, France TELEPHONE: (33-1) 4643-2000 VICE-CEO: Christophe Riandee EXECUTIVE VP, TV DISTRIBUTION & DEVELOPMENT: Cécilia Rossignol VP, INTERNATIONAL TV DISTRIBUTION, KIDS & FAMILY: Laura Laas CONTACTS: cecilia.rossignol@gaumont.com, laura.laas@gaumont.com PROGRAMS: Narcos: 50x60 min., true-life drama; El Presidente: 8x60 min., true-life drama; El Chapo: 34x60 min., true-life drama; The Art of Crime: 20x60 min., procedural; The Frozen Dead: 6x60 min., thriller; Bionic Max: 52x11 min., kids 6-11/ buddy comedy; Furiki Wheels: 52x11 min., kids 6-11/ slapstick/action/buddy comedy; Belle & Sebastian: 52x11 min., kids 5-9/adventure; The Royal Family: 52x11 min., kids 5-7/comedy.

“Formed in France in 1895, Gaumont was the first film company in the world, celebrating 125 years of history and innovation. With offices in Paris, Los Angeles, London and Berlin, Gaumont remains an industry leader, producing and distributing high-quality TV programming and films.

Specializing in producing local stories with global appeal, Gaumont’s current slate includes talent-driven, diverse, distinctive titles across multiple languages for the world’s leading global streaming platforms and channels.

For MIPTV 2020, we are highlighting the new season of our Netflix flagship series, Narcos: Mexico season two. This latest season topped the weekly Netflix most-watched series list at number two. We are also excited to introduce to the international market our Latin American series for Amazon, El Presidente, which was co-created by award winners Armando Bo and Pablo Larraín, in addition to a new season of our French procedural crime series The Art of Crime for France Télévisions.

From our kids and family slate, we will showcase Bionic Max, our animated buddy comedy with Gulli; Belle & Sebastian; and The Royal Family, based on the book series La Famille Royale

by Christophe Mauri and Aurore Damant.”

—Cécilia Rossignol, Executive VP, TV Distribution & Development

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GMA Network ADDRESS: GMA Network Center, EDSA corner Timog Ave., Diliman, Quezon City 1103, Philippines TELEPHONE: (632) 8333-7633 WEBSITE: www.gmanetwork.com CHAIRMAN & CEO: Felipe L. Gozon PRESIDENT & COO: Gilberto R. Duavit, Jr. VP, GMA WORLDWIDE DIVISION: Roxanne J. Barcelona CONTACT: rjbarcelona@gmanetwork.com PROGRAMS: Descendants of the Sun (Philippine adaptation): 40x45 min., romantic drama; Love of My Life: 30x45 min., family drama; Hidden Lies: 40x45 min., family drama; The Gift: 53x45 min., suspense drama; A Place in Your Heart: 45x45 min., rivalry drama; Broken Faith: 70x45 min., rivalry drama; Prima Donnas: 90x45 min., family drama.

“Celebrating its 70th anniversary, GMA Network is the Philippines’ largest and most trusted media company and the primary source of Filipino content around the world. GMA’s content is currently seen in over 30 countries on four continents. GMA’s titles and artists have been recognized by international award-giving bodies over the last 20 years.

GMA has licensed over 100 titles around the globe through its partner broadcasters and platforms. With the network producing over 26 dramas annually, its clients and partners can expect a consistent stream of well-crafted programs, featuring stories with universal themes and starring the Philippines’ most talented artists.”

—Roxanne J. Barcelona, VP, GMA Worldwide Division

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Inter Medya ADDRESS: Istanbloom Offices, Kore Sehitleri Cad. 16/1 Zincirlikuyu, 34394 Istanbul, Turkey TELEPHONE: (90-212) 231-0102 WEBSITE: www.intermedya.tv FOUNDER & CEO: Can Okan CONTACT: info@intermedya.tv PROGRAMS: The Ambassador’s Daughter: drama; Ramo: drama; The Light of Hope: drama; Bitter Lands: drama; Loved You Once: youth drama; Flames of Desire: 186x45 min., drama; Tainted Love: 30x42 min., drama; The Perfect Couple: 60-90 min. eps., prime-time format; Money Monster: 60 min. eps., prime-time format; The Box Challenge: 60 min. eps., prime-time format.

“Founded in 1992, Inter Medya has established itself as one of the most successful content distributors in Turkey. Specializing in the sales of Turkish TV series and feature films, the company has also recently started to develop and produce entertainment and reality formats, taking important steps to becoming a significant content distributor in the field.

The company managed to earn its clients’ trust and loyalty through a satisfactory and sustained service record and a library that always manages to stay current. Consistently and reliably spreading the Turkish TV, film and format industry to the foreign market, the company is adamant about developing and increasing this contribution in the coming years.”

—Can Okan, Founder & CEO

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MISTCO ADDRESS: Murat Reis Mh. Yeniocak Sk. No: 45 Uskudar, 34664 Istanbul, Turkey TELEPHONE: (90-216) 695-1300 WEBSITE: www.mistco.tv MANAGING DIRECTOR: Aysegul Tuzun HEAD, SALES: Maria Espino CONTACT: info@mistco.tv PROGRAMS: Golden Cage: 100x45 min., romantic drama; Melek “A Mother’s Struggle”: 100x45 min., romantic drama; My Champion: 100x45 min., romantic drama; Hold My Hand: S1 151x45 min./S2, romantic drama; Family Honor: 200x45 min., family drama; Beloved: S1 66x45 min./S2, romantic drama; The Circle: 61x45 min., crime drama; Resurrection: Ertugrul: S1-5 448x45 min., epic drama; The Last Emperor: S1-2 189x45 min./S3 100x45 min./S4, epic drama; Surprise Marriage: 135x45 min., romantic drama.

“MISTCO is an international brand-management and contentdistribution agency serving top titles, brands and channels with drama series. All of them, including library titles, are of high quality and [feature] successful plots.”

—Corporate Communications

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Mondo TV Group ADDRESS: Via Brenta, 11, 00198 Rome, Italy TELEPHONE: (39-06) 8632-3293 WEBSITE: www.mondotvgroup.com PRESIDENT & CEO: Matteo Corradi HEAD, CONTENT SALES: Luana Perrero CONTACT: silvia.darchivio@mondotvgroup.com PROGRAMS: Grisù: 52x11 min., kids/comedy/adventure; MeteoHeroes: 52x7 min., kids/comedy/adventure/educational; Robot Trains 3: 52x11 min., kids/comedy/adventure; Agent 203: 26x22 min., kids/action/comedy; Aliens vs Cavemen: 78x7 min., kids/slapstick comedy; House of Talent: 260x10 min., kids/comedy/ lifestyle; Sissi the Young Empress 3: 26x11 min., kids/comedy/ adventure; Hey Fuzzy Yellow: 52x11 min., kids/edutainment/ emo-tainment; Invention Story: 52x11 min., kids/comedy/ adventure; YooHoo to the Rescue: 52x11 min., kids/ comedy/adventure.

“We have enjoyed a lot of success in coproductions and will continue to pursue international partnerships for new projects. At Mondo TV, we welcome originality and new ideas, notably through our partnership with Toon2Tango. At the same time, we are thrilled to have the opportunity to reimagine classics like Grisù. We also intend to pursue themes relevant to our young audiences; hence our portfolio includes the fight to protect our planet against pollution in MeteoHeroes; then, there are the energy-aware themes of Robot Trains, the environmentally focused YooHoo to the Rescue and the science and learning themes of Invention Story. All these shows tackle current themes with the excitement, fun and great characters that have made our shows so popular for so long internationally.

We are also committed to all platforms—linear, digital, OTT and others—and the opportunities they offer. All our properties communicate across a number of [platforms], reaching a young audience with an anytime, anywhere, any-device approach to viewing.”

—Matteo Corradi, President & CEO

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Grisù: Grisù is a brave, positive and determined youngster—just like the firefighter he wants to be when he grows up. There’s just one problem: he’s a dragon, and when he grows up, he is supposed to be a fire-breathing dragon! His loving dad sees Grisù as a real dragon in the making, even though he only breathes out little sparks at the moment. Grisù proves every day that there’s no dream too big.

MeteoHeroes: The show addresses issues like fighting climate change, ecology and respect for nature through the amazing adventures of six children who transform into superheroes with power over the weather. It’s an important message delivered in a fun, engaging way in a series full of adventure and comedy that helps young viewers understand the issues and learn how they can help the planet through the adventures of six amazing kids who are just like them.

Robot Trains 3: In the first season of Robot Trains, we followed the adventures of Kay and his friends as they embarked on a quest to restore Kay’s lost memory. In season two, the focus was on Rail World and the Rail Watch team who protect four different regions that represent the Earth’s four natural—and essential—energy sources: water, light, wind and fire. In season three, everything turns around as Kay, Victor, Alf, Genie and Maxie not only try to keep the energy sources safe from Family X’s attempts to disrupt or steal them, but the Rail Watch experience new and unexpected adventures and rise to new challenges. As new partnerships are born, former opponents join forces with them—and the bad guys change sides.

Agent 203: Zoe is a 13-year-old girl living with her dad in the suburbs. One day, she meets an alien named Ulav, who drops an outof-this-world secret: Zoe’s mom is a secret intergalactic agent gone MIA. Zoe follows in her mother’s footsteps, pledging to protect the galaxy and find her lost parent. Together with her new alien friend and Quigley and Rock, her two best friends, Zoe’s mission is to protect the planet, protect her bracelet from falling into the wrong hands, save the galaxy and try to have a normal teenage life.

Aliens vs Cavemen: Two best pals, Nump and Berf, are members of a weird crew of technologically-inclined kick-butt aliens who are attempting to capture a troop of unhygienic, seemingly stupid prehistoric cavemen to take back to their planet’s galactic zoo. The problem is that the cavemen, while lazy, filthy and rude, are primitively brilliant at foiling all attempts at capture by the fussy hightech aliens.

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Multicom Entertainment Group ADDRESS: 8530 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 550, Beverly Hills, CA 90039, U.S.A. TELEPHONE: (1-310) 693-8818 WEBSITE: www.multicom.tv CHAIRMAN: Irv Holender PRESIDENT: Darrin Holender HEAD, SALES & DISTRIBUTION: Niloo Badie PROGRAMS: TheArchive: channel/rare, retro & 4K-restored films & series; TheGrapevine: channel/docs, talk & reality; Remarkable Life of John Weld; A Woman Called Moses; Blood 13; Fat Legs; The Great Escape 2.

“Multicom’s ever-growing library of broadcastquality feature film and television programming is growing at a rapid pace. Having recently acquired several hundred hours of content, Multicom’s catalog continues to provide buyers with plenty of choice and depth in all genres.”

—Darrin Holender, President

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ORF-Enterprise ADDRESS: Euro Plaza, Building 1C, Am Europlatz 5, 1120 Vienna, Austria TELEPHONE: (43-1) 878-78-13030 WEBSITE: contentsales.orf.at CFO & MANAGING DIRECTOR: Beatrice Cox-Riesenfelder HEAD, CONTENT SALES INTERNATIONAL: Armin Luttenberger CONTACT: contentsales@orf.at PROGRAMS: Portugal—Wild Land on the Edge: 1x52 min., wildlife; Sardinia—Horses in the Storm: 1x52 min., wildlife; Richard the Lionheart—The Trapped King: 1x52 min./1x45 min., history; Blood Lines in the Sand—The Demarcation of the Borders of Sykes-Picot in the Middle East: 1x52 min., history; Tu, Felix Austria—How Austria Married an Empire: 1x52 min./ 1x45 min., history; Walking on Sunshine: 20x45 min., series; TATORT: 24x90 min., TV movies; Soko Kitzbuehel: 257x45 min., series; Rookie Robot Explores the World: 26x3 min., kids animation; Apollo and Daphne: 1x134 min., music.

“ORF-Enterprise’s Content Sales International serves as the preferred partner for broadcasters and platforms around the world as a one-stop shop for high-quality content offering a wide range of titles from all genres: blue-chip documentaries, TV series and movies, children’s programs and music, as well as scripted and non-scripted formats.

ORF-Enterprise is the exclusive marketer for advertising in all of the Austrian public broadcaster’s (ORF) media. ORF is a market leader in television, radio and online in Austria and operates four national television and twelve radio channels, as well as Austria’s leading website ORF.at and the ondemand service ORF-TVthek, as well as the magazine ORF nachlese and ORF TELETEXT.” —Corporate Communications

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Rive Gauche Television ADDRESS: 15300 Ventura Blvd., Suite 507, Sherman Oaks, CA 91403, U.S.A. TELEPHONE: (1-818) 784-9912 WEBSITE: www.rgitv.com CEO: Jon Kramer SENIOR VP, DISTRIBUTION & DEVELOPMENT: Marine Ksadzhikyan VP, INTERNATIONAL SALES: Tomas Silva CONTACT: marine@rgitv.com PROGRAMS: The Beer Jesus From America: 1x90 min., doc.; Very Scary People: 24x60 min., crime; I Saw the Unknown: 10x60 min., paranormal; Don’t Sleep: format; Bullseye: format; My Misdiagnosis: 26x60 min., doc./medical; Something’s Killing Me: 18x60 min., doc./medical; Homicide’s Elite: 24x60 min., crime; Donal MacIntyre’s Murder Files: 26x60 min., crime; Egg Factor: 10x60 min., docu-reality.

“Rive Gauche Television is dedicated to the development, production, co-production, acquisition and worldwide distribution of television programming and formats. The company has amassed a top-quality portfolio of over 1,700 hours of factual programming and award-winning documentaries, aired by broadcasters in over 130 countries worldwide.

Rive Gauche Television continues to focus on co-production opportunities with prolific producers from all over the world and remains a distributor of high-end brands such as Homicide Hunter, Something’s Killing Me, Dog Whisperer, Operation Repo, My Strange Addiction, Ice Cold Killers and Evil Twins.”

—Corporate Communications

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Superights ADDRESS: 107 Ave. Parmentier, 75011 Paris, France TELEPHONE: (33) 516-500-016 WEBSITE: www.superights.net DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR, SALES & ACQUISITIONS: Nathalie Pinguet SALES MANAGER: Pedro Citaristi SALES MANAGER: Jéromine Ader CONTACT: sales@superights.net PROGRAMS: That’s Joey: 52x13 min., kids/comedy; Maelys’ Mysteries: 52x13 min., kids/adventure/comedy; Pat the Dog: 141x7 min. & 10x1.5 min. & 4x22 min., kids/cartoon/comedy; Helen’s Little School: 52x13 min., preschool/social development/ comedy; Zibilla: 1x26 min., preschool/TV special; Ralph & the Dinosaurs: 26x5 min., preschool/edutainment; Bo Bear: 52x5 min. & 1x60 min., preschool/family; Doopie: 26x7 min., preschool/family; Puffin Rock: 78x7 min., preschool/ecofriendly/comedy; Clay Time: 30x3 min. & 30 live tutorials/S2, preschool/edutainment.

“Superights is a key youth-content provider for the global market with well-established partnerships on all continents from traditional TV to digital and VOD platforms, L&M, theatrical and home video. We distribute kids’ programs from high-quality producers covering all genres and demographics. We are proud to offer a premium, diversified catalog covering all demographics, genres, techniques and lengths from first-class producers around the globe.

Our three highlights for this year are Clay Time season two, Pat the Dog and That’s Joey. These three programs cover all genders and ages—from preschoolers to kids, comedy, emotion and edutainment.”

—Nathalie Pinguet, Deputy Managing Director, Sales & Acquisitions

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TCB Media Rights ADDRESS: Building 7, Chiswick Business Park, 566 Chiswick High Rd., London, W4 5YG, U.K. TELEPHONE: (44-203) 970-5577 WEBSITE: www.tcbmediarights.com CEO: Paul Heaney HEAD, SALES: Simona Argenti CONTACT: simona.argenti@tcbmediarights.com PROGRAMS: Extreme Ice Machines: 10x60 min., science & technology; Hitler’s Supercars: 1x60 min., history; Paranormal Nightshift: 13x60 min., crime & investigation; Puppy School: 10x30 min., animals; Stacey & the Lifers: 1x60 min., doc./crime & investigation; How Did They Build That?: 8x60 min., science & technology; 9/11: Control the Skies: 1x60 min., doc.; Age Gap Love Millionaires: 2x60 min., reality; Ultimate Rides: 20x30 min., auto; Henry VIII: 3x60 min., history.

“TCB Media Rights takes a fresh approach to factual distribution. We work with producers at the earliest possible stage in the contentconception cycle, positioning ourselves as the creative commercial interface between producers and broadcasters. In the last couple of years, we have also developed our own content slate, bringing to life successful TCB original projects such as Egypt’s Unexplained Files (Rare TV) and Making a Monster (Monster Films). With a portfolio of almost 3,000 hours of factual and factual entertainment, we offer an in-depth understanding of the market, insider knowledge of what the global content community wants, an unrivaled international network of contacts and the best service for our customers. Some of our most recent highlights are 9/11: Control the Skies (Bristow Global Media), Maternity 24/7 (Chalkboard TV), Extreme Ice Machines (Architect Films), Stacey & the Lifers (Wild Pictures) and Puppy School (Greenstone TV).”

—Simona Argenti, Head, Sales

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Universal Cinergia Dubbing ADDRESS: 1315 NW 98 Ct., Suite 8, Miami, FL 33172, U.S.A. TELEPHONE: (1-305) 594-4548 WEBSITE: www.universalcinergia.com CEO: Liliam Hernandez COO: Gema Lopez VP, SALES & MARKETING: Elisa Aquino

“Headed by Liliam Hernandez (CEO) and Gema Lopez (COO), business partners with a combined experience of more than 35 years in the audiovisual industry, Universal Cinergia Dubbing provides services in Spanish, Portuguese, English, French and Castilian. The company manages a vast network of voice talents, artistic directors, translators and audio engineers, handling content localization for live-action series, documentaries, telenovelas, feature films and animation.

Committed to impeccable quality and outstanding customer service, the company operates 45 fully owned studios worldwide under high quality standards and a transparent cost structure, ensuring the best possible price performance for each individual project. We are preferred vendors of Deluxe, Iyuno and Lionsgate, and certified by TPN (Trusted Partner Network).

Our processes and procedures follow the MPAA guidelines.”

—Corporate Communications

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WildBrain ADDRESS: 207 Queen’s Quay W., Suite 550, Toronto, ON M5J 1A7, Canada TELEPHONE: (1-416) 363-8034 WEBSITE: www.wildbrain.com CEO & VICE-CHAIR: Eric Ellenbogen EXECUTIVE VP, CONTENT PARTNERSHIPS: Deirdre Brennan CONTACT: sales@wildbrain.com PROGRAMS: Chip & Potato: 80x11 min., preschool; Malory Towers: 13x24 min., kids/live action; My Perfect Landing: 15x30 min., kids/live action.

“I’m thrilled to be attending MIPTV as part of the dynamic team from WildBrain, a company uniquely positioned to respond to the evolving television landscape. Our mission is simple: at WildBrain, we make great content for kids and families. We’ll be at the market looking to expand partnerships, leverage our brand portfolio and forge new relationships across our integrated lines of business. The children’s entertainment industry is changing at breakneck speed, and creative excellence is more important than ever. It’s never been a more exciting time to be in the kids’ content business.”

—Deirdre Brennan, Executive VP, Content Partnerships

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ZDF Enterprises ADDRESS: Erich-Dombrowski-Str. 1, 55127 Mainz, Germany TELEPHONE: (49) 6131-9910 WEBSITE: www.zdf-enterprises.de PRESIDENT & CEO: Fred Burcksen VP, ZDFE.DRAMA: Robert Franke VP, ZDFE.JUNIOR: Peter Lang VP, ZDFE.UNSCRIPTED: Ralf Rückauer VP, MARKETING & CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS: Christine Denilauler CONTACT: info@zdf-enterprises.de PROGRAMS: Freud: 8x45 min., crime & suspense; Top Dog: 8x45 min., crime & suspense; Great Inventions: 35x50 min., science & knowledge; Anthropocene: The Rise of Humans: 3x50 min., science & knowledge; Heirs of the Night: 26x26 min., kids/live action; SimsalaGrimm: 52x25 min., kids/animation; Dunkelstadt: 6x45 min., crime & suspense; Standing Tall: 4x100 min./8x50 min., crime & suspense; Coconut the Little Dragon S2: 104x12 min., kids/animation; Surprise Supervise!

The PRISM IS A DANCER Show: 90 min. eps., unscripted.

“ZDF Enterprises was founded in 1993 as a 100 percent private subsidiary of ZDF, one of the biggest and most renowned television broadcasters in Europe. On behalf of ZDF, ZDF Enterprises is responsible for worldwide program sales, the implementation of international co-productions, license purchasing for quality programs, marketing online rights and the merchandising of strong ZDF program brands. During the course of the process of development and diversification to date, it has been possible to incorporate a large number of business activities within the television and media industry within the ZDF Enterprises group. Consequently, today ZDF Enterprises can offer a comprehensive, full-service offer that covers every step in the process of creation and utilization of successful TV productions, from material development in all genres to production and then on to the marketing of television licenses, merchandising and online rights.”

—Corporate Communications

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