DISCOVERY KIDS – MORENA – MUNDOLOCO FORGE AN ALLIANCE
In a top – of – their – class animation alliance, Discovery Kids, Argentina’s Cris Morena Group and MundoLoco CGI, co – founded by Juan Jose Campanella, are partnering to co – develop 3 English language kids toon series: ‘Floribella’, ‘Underdogs’ & ‘Baby Rockers’. Oscar winner Campanella & Gaston Gorali, director & exec producer of ‘Foosball’, will serve as series’ show – runners. Discovery Kids will air the series exclusively in Latin America. “This unique partnership with Cris Morena Group & MundoLoco CGI reiterates Discovery Kids commitment to expand its pipeline of original content, both with well -established hit franchises such as ‘Floribella’ & ‘Underdogs’, as well as new content, such as ‘Baby Rockers,’” commented Carolina Lightcap, EVP & CCO of Discovery Latin America / US Hispanic & Global Lead for Discovery Kids & Family.
CANAL 13 PUTS TV DRAMAS IN COMAREX’S HANDS
Highlighting once again the significant interest of international market players in Chilean TV fiction, Comarex, the Mexico City based global distrib, has signed a strategic, exclusive distribution deal with Chilean network Canal 13 to handle the broadcaster’s finished TV series & formats worldwide. Inked with Canal 13’s international sales subsid, Canal 13 Sudmedia, the pact gives Comarex distribution rights to hit shows, including ‘Machos’, ‘Papi Ricky’, ‘Witches’, ‘Primera Dama’, ‘The Vega’s’, ‘The 80s’ & ‘Neighborhood Kings’, plus upcoming releases, such as teleseries ‘Veinteañero A Los 40’, which is scheduled to launch on Canal 13’s 2 pm TV primetime slot. “This is a highly important alliance for us because we are linking to one of the biggest distributors of Latin American TV content around the world,” Marina Del Canto, VP of International Sales at Canal 13 Sudmedia, told.
WOOD UNVEILS ‘COLONIA’
Andres Woodone of Chile’s most distinguished helmer & producers, has unveiled at Mipcom his new TV project ‘Colonia’, now in development. Awood Producciones will produce the skein, an 8 seg 1 hour drama. Wood & Julio Jorquera, director of ‘My Last Round’, and the Chilean version of ‘Red Band Society’, will direct. Budgeted at $2 million, the project was presented at Mipcom under the umbrella of promo org CinemaChile TV. Inspired by true events, series follows two men, Tobias Muller & Salo Luna, who escape from the clutches of Paul Schafer, a former Nazi hidden in Southern Chile. Pic criss – crosses 2 different time periods: the 1st beginning in 1976, when 5 year old Tobias suffered abuse from Schafer, and the 2nd, showing the escape from Colonia Dignidad, now Villa Baviera, a Chilean city founded by German immigrants in the early 60’s, located 200 miles South of Santiago De Chile.
distribution partners in each market. The company said it will continue to offer HBO Go to pay – TV subscribers for no additional charge in the region, as it does in US, it didn’t specify how many countries it plans to launch the standalone service in. “We have seen changes in content & consumption habits and are launching this new HBO Go platform as an a la carte service in response to those trends,” HBO Latin America CEO Emilio Rubio said in announcing the plans.
ZFF WINNERS INCLUDE ‘RAMS’
Films from Iceland, Mexico & Austria were among the countries picking up awards at the 11th Zurich Film Festival, which ran 24th Sept, 2015 to 4th Oct, 2015. Iceland’s ‘Rams’, directed by Grimur Hakonarson, taking the Golden Eye for international feature film, ‘Los Reyes Del Pueblo Que No Existe’ by Betzabe Garcia from Mexico winning the prize for international documentary and the Focus trophy awarded to ‘Thank You for Bombing’ by Barbara Eder from Austria. ‘The Miracle Of Tekir’ by Ruxandra Zenide won the Emerging Swiss Talent Award while the Critics’ Choice Award went to ‘Pikadero’ by Ben Sharrock of Spain. The audience award went to Niklaus Hilber’s ‘Amateur Teens’ and the audience award in the ZFF for Kids section was taken home by Margus Paju’s ‘Supilinna Salaselts’. The festival honored Arnold Schwarzenegger with the Golden Icon Award.
‘NIGHTCRAWLER’ INSPIRED XRC
Reality Show ‘XRC’ Gets 2nd Season, Spinoff ‘XRC’ (Extreme Reality Clips), infotainment at its most intense, is a global hit for Venezuela’s Cisneros Media Distribution, which has ordered a 2nd season and spinoff. Inspired by helmer & scribe Dan Gilroy’s crime drama feature ‘Nightcrawler’ which earned him a 2014 Best Screenplay Oscar nom and critical acclaim for lead Jake Gyllenhaal, the co -production with RMG News is a hit in Asia, Africa & America, including US, where it airs on Univision sister network UniMas. Ben Silverman’s Electus has clinched exclusive rep rights to the reality series for Europe & Oz. “This powerful series, comprised of real news footage that is completely shocking & electrifying, has audiences glued to the screen, not wanting to miss any of its intriguing scenes,” said Marcello Coltro, EVP of content distribution at Cisneros Media, who has ordered another 26 episodes from producer RMG News.
NEVINS & NUNEZ AIM TO TAKE SHOWTIME
Showtime & CBS Studios International aim to take Showtime’s sales worldwide to a whole new level, Showtime Networks’ David Nevins & Armando Nuñez at CBS Global Distribution Group said at a Mipcom keynote recently. That will come about, they argued, by their pushing “addictive TV.” The new bar was set by Canada’s Bell Media in a landmark deal this Jan, in an upgrade of its SVOD offer. Via the pact, Bell Media committed to air Showtime owned 1st run series programming, as well as almost its entire catalog of scripted & unscripted series, documentaries & specials, on its premium TV streaming service, CraveTV, as well as its leading pay television service, The Movie Network (TMN). “All of our shows have tended to be in different places in each territory. And the brand strength of Showtime in the US has been at an all – time high. Canada, being just over the border, is the 1st place where there was very high awareness of Showtime, and it was very valuable to Bell Media to upgrade its SVOD service saying: We are the home of Showtime,’” said Nevins. “The next phase of our growth is to put those shows together and make Showtime start to mean something around the world in the same way it means something in North America” he added. 3 factors may well help Showtime’s move into what Nuñez called “portfolio” deals: Showtime’s drive into original production, the power of its line – up, international markets craving for what Nevins & Nuñez called “addictive TV.” Built up by Nevins over the last 5 years, 75% of Showtime’s content is now made up of own – content original shows, said Nuñez. Showtime launched its HBO Now – like broadband service this Jul, via a standalone app, available for iPhone, iPad & Apple TV and online. It also started selling subscriptions over the Internet. “Our base business has never been stronger in US, but I think a lot of our growth in the coming years is going to come through the broadband only homes,” Nevins said. As for the state of the market, Nuñez was asked whether the demand for great content was growing.
