Show of the Week: Rio: The Great Saga

Following the success of Paris: The Great Saga, French producer Gédéon has a factual format on its hands.

The Paris project looked at the how the French capital evolved with Dassault Systemes developing CGI elements that tell how it was built and the key events in its history.

A Rio project is now in production, Rio: The Great Saga (it has also been known as Rio over the Ages at different stages). Gédéon founder Stephane Millière tells TBI that the company is already working on a Moscow edition of the format and has plans for Beijing and Geneva-based versions.

New York and Berlin have also been mooted with shows planned to coincide with key anniversaries. In Rio’s case the film will mark the 450th anniversary of the creation of the city in 2015.

Franco German factual channel Arte will launch the one-off in France and Germany and the Planete channel has the series. The Brazilian broadcaster is Globo and the producers are already planning a launch party on the iconic Copacabana beach.

For the Brazilian film and series, Gedeon has teamed with Rio-based producer Conspiraçao.

“Having seen Paris, Conspiricao came to us at MIPCOM in 2012 and said we want to do Rio,” says Millière. “Ricardo Rangel, Conspiraçao’s COO, then went out and raised €3 million in Brazil for the project.”

With its contribution Conspiraçao will cover about half of the €6 million budget.

France-based distributor Terranoa will sell the new show internationally and hopes to repeat the success it had with Paris: The Great Saga, which it shopped into 25 countries. The Paris project spawned an interactive coffee table book and DVD and the same is expected from Rio.

The Rio project is one of two Gédéon is working on. It is also making The Coasts of Brazil from Above.

The 5x52mins series follows a similar series about the French coasts that Gédéon made for France Télévisions’ France 3. It is making the Brazilian show, about the country’s 8,000km of coast line, with Sao Paolo-based Brazilian producer Gullane Filmes. Terranoa is distributing.

The show: Rio over the Ages

The producers: Gédéon Programmes, Dassault Systemes, Conspiraçao, Rio Filme

The distributor: Terranoa

Concept: Blue-chip documentary one-off and series about the Brazilian city, following on from Paris: The Great Saga and part of an ongoing series profiles of iconic cities

Airing: Arte (France, Germany), Planete (France), Globo (Brazil)