Izzet Pinto, CEO of Global Agency
Izzet, your company was one of the first distributors to confirm their participation at NATPE Budapest 2023. How important is this market to your company?
I think we may be the first Turkish company to attend NATPE Budapest. We have been participating since 2007. We have always cared about the CEE region as an important region.
Budapest means CEE, so it is one of the most important markets held throughout the year. It is a very target-oriented, efficient market.
We think that this year the market will be much more crowded and successful.
Do you remember the first time you attended the market? What are your memories about it?
It is one of the markets I will never forget! We joined in 2007. It was one of the markets where NATPE was also the most popular. Since the market was quite busy, I had to share the suite with another company. At that time, we were a company that only sold formats and we only had one project. Since then, we have attended the Budapest market every year.
Every year there would be a boat party at the market and I remember those parties as one of the highlights there.
What do you expect from this year’s NATPE Budapest? What is your impression of the new owners of the brand?
NATPE Budapest has always been a cozy, warm, mingling, family-like market.
We’ve been working with Brunico for Realscreen markets for many years, so we know how professional they are. We know the NATPE brand is in good hands.
A company like NATPE, which has existed in the industry for many years, will continue on its way, getting stronger with its name. We look forward to this year’s market.
It is no secret that your series 1001 Nights started the Turkish drama fever in CEE which then went on to conquer the world. What role did the NATPE market in Budapest play in this process?
I remember well that I presented 1001 Nights at the 2008 NATPE Market. It had great success after it had been aired in Bulgaria. I was talking about this success to all the clients. At that market, I sold the series to Serbia, and then we sold it to dozens of territories with a domino effect.
1001 Nights and Magnificent Century are by far the most popular drama series that helped our company to grow.
You have a new hit series, tell us more about it. What else will you bring to NATPE Budapest this year?
We can say that One Love is the most talked about, controversial and resounding project this year. Each episode continues to increase its ratings.
The drama explores the conflicts between the conservative and the secular in Turkey so beautifully through two families. It deals openly and courageously with a subject that was never explored before in Turkey.
I think it will continue for a few seasons; Kosovo will air the series for the first time in the CEE region as well.
Other than that, we have two new strong dramas; Vendetta and Lonely Hearts. We are very confident about these series.
Pavel Stanchev, CEO, TV2 Media Group
Pavel, you will be headlining the conference program at NATPE Budapest 2023. What will be the focus of your keynote?
Leading vs. following. For instance, the digital transformation of our industry. But not only. I like one sentence of Ted Turner: „Lead, follow or get out of the way”.
What changes have you observed on the CEE market after the COVID pandemic?
During the pandemic we learnt that our society can’t live without 3 things: food, electricity, and TV. The linear TV audiences have spectacularly increased. Thanks God, at TV2 Media Group we continued our work, including with new shows. It was painful, but the reward came from the viewers: we became the market leader.
What have been the effects of the war in Ukraine on the industry in the region?
The news programs and channels became more watched. Some markets experience an advertising revenue slow-down. That doesn’t affect Hungary so far due to its low prices. TV remains the best marketing investment for every dollar.
Do you believe that events like NATPE Budapest help to promote Hungary as a place to produce content?
Hungary is a leading production hub for more than 100 years. One of our studios was built in 1917, before most of Hollywood’s lots. In 1996 the movie Evita with Madonna was shot in the studio where we produce today Dancing with the Stars. NATPE Budapest is here to continue this tradition.
Dawn McCarthy-Simpson, Managing Director Business & Global Strategy, Pact
Dawn, Pact is attending NATPE Budapest which will be taking place June 19-22 this year. What are your plans for the event?
We are very excited to be attending NATPE Budapest for the first time. We have always had strong export growth in Western European markets with Germany, the Nordics and the Netherlands all reaching near 50% growth in 2022, so now is the time to explore more Eastern opportunities.
Have you attended previous editions of NATPE and what are your expectations for the market in Budapest?
We have never had delegations at NATPE Budapest, but many of our members have attended individually in recent years. We have taken delegations to NATPE Lat-Am market.
What type of partnerships will you be looking for during NATPE Budapest? Will you be also looking for potential co-productions with CEE partners?
Co-production is important to the UK, and we continue to increase these partnerships year on year. Tax incentives and funding is an important part of the success of co-productions, so there will be UK companies attending with their newly developed projects that are ripe for co-production to find local partners and take advantage of the funding incentives available across many of the Central and Eastern European territories.
Exploring new markets such as the CEE is exciting to us. We are after all a creative sector and seeking out new ideas, new partners and new opportunities is what our business is all about and NATPE Budapest is a great destination to make magic happen.
