New Series Dominate Fremantle’s Content Offer at NATPE Budapest
Anna Maslowska joined Fremantle as Director of Distribution for Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) in February this year, and is representing the company at NATPE Budapest for the first time. The distributor, which is known for its big entertainment hits in the region, this year is putting a focus on its original scripted productions with up to seven new major titles in the refreshed catalog, as Anna tells Stanislav Kimchev in this interview.
Nightsleeper
Anna, Fremantle is one of the major exhibitors at this year’s NATPE Budapest. What are the main highlights of the company for the market?
Scripted content is a big focus for Fremantle globally, specifically original drama productions from our labels around the world. We’re now producing more mainstream and commercial series with broad themes that appeal to big, global audiences. Key shows we’re highlighting at NATPE Budapest are:
Domino Day which follows the dating life of a young witch, “Buffy for a new generation”.
Nightsleeper – a real time thriller from Euston Films which is BBC One’s major new Fall 2024 launch.
The Listeners – from Academy Award winning producers Element Pictures (Normal People, Poor Things) comes a provocative psychological thriller starring BAFTA Award winning Rebecca Hall (Godzilla vs. Kong, Vicky, Cristina, Barcelona). The Listeners will be a major series for the BBC this Autumn. Adapted from the bestselling novel by Jordan Tannahill, The Listeners follows a mother who is tormented by a sound no one else can hear and the devastating effect it has on her life.
White Lies – an enthralling original crime thriller starring and executive produced by Natalie Dormer (Game of Thrones, Picnic At Hanging Rock). Journalist Edie (Natalie Dormer) is pulled back to her turbulent past when her brother is murdered in his luxury Cape Town home. A classic whodunnit crime series set in stunning Cape Town. White Lies has now been picked up by Sundance Channel (AMC) in the US and Channel 4 in the UK.
Alice and Jack - a fresh new honest love story starring Andrea Riseborough and Domhnall Gleeson for Channel 4.
Costiera – a major new action-packed English language crime thriller from Lux Vide starring Jesse Williams (Grey’s Anatomy, Only Murders In The Building) set in the stunning Amalfi coast for Amazon.
Finally, Herrhausen: The Banker and the Bomb - a new 4-part cold war thriller which recently won best Screenplay at Series Mania.
We are also seeing success with returning series such – BBC One crime thriller The Responder starring Martin Freeman and The CW series Sullivan’s Crossing starring Chad Michael Murray are both major series returning this year for a second season.
What about your documentary portfolio?
We continue to expand our premium documentaries slate which includes more than 20 Fremantle documentary labels, producing in over 12 territories.
Key new launches for us include:
Zuckerberg: King of the Metaverse – a brand-new profile on the origin, rise, success and power and controversy of Mark Zuckerberg for Sky.
A Brief History of the Future – a radical and uplifting six-part series which explores new ways of thinking, science and technology from around the world that will help us face our biggest challenges such as AI and climate change.
Elizabeth Taylor: Rebel Superstar - a new profile on this Hollywood legend featuring and executive produced by Kim Kardashian for the BBC.
House of Kardashian – a major in-depth profile of the origin story of one of the most famous and successful families in the world for Sky from the award winning 72 Films.
We are still seeing true crime sell well and continue to invest in this genre, which goes beyond typical murder stories with documentaries such as Queen of Crypto, which tells the story of Ruja Ignatova, who masterminded a multibillion-dollar crypto-scam, then vanished without a trace. Factual entertainment is also still an important one for us with iconic titles like Grand Designs, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.
Big international streamers are becoming more active in CEE, investing in content for some of the major markets in the region. What is your distribution strategy when it comes to streamers, do you expect additional clients and new deals in this segment, both from local and international services?
We are platform agnostic, and work with all streamers – local, regional, and global – to cater to different audiences. For Fremantle, it’s all about finding the right homes for the right shows and building long term partnerships.
Our strategy does include producing content, which resonates with CEE audiences. For example, Herrhausen: The Banker and the Bomb which tells the incredible true Cold War story of the brutal assassination of visionary German banker, Alfred Herrhausen.
What are the latest trends in the region that you are observing? What are clients looking for in terms of content?
We are seeing a trend for more mainstream and commercial content – people aren’t typically looking to take risks when it comes to buying and watching drama. We’re investing in series with broad commercial appeal that bring in big audiences and work with the best-in-class producers to bring this to life.
This includes talent-driven, returning dramas such as Sullivan’s Crossing. We also produce and distribute a new version of the Australian long-running daily soap Neighbours, which was nominated at the Emmys for the first time in Neighbours’ 39-year history.
Fremantle also has content which appeals to the young adult audience with the newly launched Domino Day, and Wreck, the coming-of-age horror-comedy which is on its second season following its breakout success on the BBC.
FAST channels are slowly starting to gain pace in CEE, especially in bigger markets like Poland. You have a separate business unit at the company, what are your expectations for this segment in CEE?
We have already established a strong FAST (Global Channels) offering in the US with huge popularity for our channels including Buzzr, Jamie Oliver, and Baywatch. We’re continuing this expansion in other territories, and this is an exciting part of our business going forward. We recently expanded the Global Channels team significantly and we are continuing to discuss with our streaming partners to replicate this success with CEE in the future. Fremantle is a true worldwide distributor and expanding our FAST offering in CEE is a real opportunity for us.
Scripted content is a big focus for Fremantle globally, specifically original drama productions from our labels around the world. We’re now producing more mainstream and commercial series with broad themes that appeal to big, global audiences. Key shows we’re highlighting at NATPE Budapest are:
Domino Day which follows the dating life of a young witch, “Buffy for a new generation”.
Nightsleeper – a real time thriller from Euston Films which is BBC One’s major new Fall 2024 launch.
The Listeners – from Academy Award winning producers Element Pictures (Normal People, Poor Things) comes a provocative psychological thriller starring BAFTA Award winning Rebecca Hall (Godzilla vs. Kong, Vicky, Cristina, Barcelona). The Listeners will be a major series for the BBC this Autumn. Adapted from the bestselling novel by Jordan Tannahill, The Listeners follows a mother who is tormented by a sound no one else can hear and the devastating effect it has on her life.
White Lies – an enthralling original crime thriller starring and executive produced by Natalie Dormer (Game of Thrones, Picnic At Hanging Rock). Journalist Edie (Natalie Dormer) is pulled back to her turbulent past when her brother is murdered in his luxury Cape Town home. A classic whodunnit crime series set in stunning Cape Town. White Lies has now been picked up by Sundance Channel (AMC) in the US and Channel 4 in the UK.
Alice and Jack - a fresh new honest love story starring Andrea Riseborough and Domhnall Gleeson for Channel 4.
Costiera – a major new action-packed English language crime thriller from Lux Vide starring Jesse Williams (Grey’s Anatomy, Only Murders In The Building) set in the stunning Amalfi coast for Amazon.
Finally, Herrhausen: The Banker and the Bomb - a new 4-part cold war thriller which recently won best Screenplay at Series Mania.
Domino Day
We are also seeing success with returning series such – BBC One crime thriller The Responder starring Martin Freeman and The CW series Sullivan’s Crossing starring Chad Michael Murray are both major series returning this year for a second season.
What about your documentary portfolio?
We continue to expand our premium documentaries slate which includes more than 20 Fremantle documentary labels, producing in over 12 territories.
Key new launches for us include:
Zuckerberg: King of the Metaverse – a brand-new profile on the origin, rise, success and power and controversy of Mark Zuckerberg for Sky.
A Brief History of the Future – a radical and uplifting six-part series which explores new ways of thinking, science and technology from around the world that will help us face our biggest challenges such as AI and climate change.
Elizabeth Taylor: Rebel Superstar - a new profile on this Hollywood legend featuring and executive produced by Kim Kardashian for the BBC.
House of Kardashian – a major in-depth profile of the origin story of one of the most famous and successful families in the world for Sky from the award winning 72 Films.
We are still seeing true crime sell well and continue to invest in this genre, which goes beyond typical murder stories with documentaries such as Queen of Crypto, which tells the story of Ruja Ignatova, who masterminded a multibillion-dollar crypto-scam, then vanished without a trace. Factual entertainment is also still an important one for us with iconic titles like Grand Designs, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year.
The Responder
Big international streamers are becoming more active in CEE, investing in content for some of the major markets in the region. What is your distribution strategy when it comes to streamers, do you expect additional clients and new deals in this segment, both from local and international services?
We are platform agnostic, and work with all streamers – local, regional, and global – to cater to different audiences. For Fremantle, it’s all about finding the right homes for the right shows and building long term partnerships.
Our strategy does include producing content, which resonates with CEE audiences. For example, Herrhausen: The Banker and the Bomb which tells the incredible true Cold War story of the brutal assassination of visionary German banker, Alfred Herrhausen.
What are the latest trends in the region that you are observing? What are clients looking for in terms of content?
We are seeing a trend for more mainstream and commercial content – people aren’t typically looking to take risks when it comes to buying and watching drama. We’re investing in series with broad commercial appeal that bring in big audiences and work with the best-in-class producers to bring this to life.
This includes talent-driven, returning dramas such as Sullivan’s Crossing. We also produce and distribute a new version of the Australian long-running daily soap Neighbours, which was nominated at the Emmys for the first time in Neighbours’ 39-year history.
Fremantle also has content which appeals to the young adult audience with the newly launched Domino Day, and Wreck, the coming-of-age horror-comedy which is on its second season following its breakout success on the BBC.
Costiera
FAST channels are slowly starting to gain pace in CEE, especially in bigger markets like Poland. You have a separate business unit at the company, what are your expectations for this segment in CEE?
We have already established a strong FAST (Global Channels) offering in the US with huge popularity for our channels including Buzzr, Jamie Oliver, and Baywatch. We’re continuing this expansion in other territories, and this is an exciting part of our business going forward. We recently expanded the Global Channels team significantly and we are continuing to discuss with our streaming partners to replicate this success with CEE in the future. Fremantle is a true worldwide distributor and expanding our FAST offering in CEE is a real opportunity for us.
