UK’s BossaNova unveils distribution launch slate & pitching event

L-R: Dina Subhani and Paul Heaney

BossaNova, the UK-based content creation, financing and distribution outfit launched by TCB Media Rights co-founders Paul Heaney and Dina Subhani late last year, has unveiled its initial distribution slate, along with details of its inaugural Development Day pitching event.

BossaNova’s first slate of programming consists of five series and two 90-minute specials, including the first three seasons (30 x 60-minutes) of Stampede Productions’ Borderforce USA, which follows the work of US Customs and Border Protection officers. BossaNova has also deficit financed the third series (10 x 60-minutes) which is currently in production and will air later in the year on UKTV.

Also on the slate are the first two seasons (14 x 30-minutes) of The Car Years, with the second series also deficit financed by BossaNova and broadcasted in the UK by ITV4. The company has also picked up documentary feature Cruising: The Biggest Storm (1 x 90-minutes) from Australia’s CJZ and American 965 (1 x 96-minutes) from Fact Not Fiction Films.

BossaNova is also launching its own Development Day — a pitching concept pioneered by Heaney at TCB Media Rights to bring together buyers and sellers and fast-track the creation of factual projects. The first BossaNova Development Day will take place on 21 January, with 50 buyers and commissioners from 35 channels and platforms signed up to connect with 20 producers pitching around 50 new projects.

Heaney said: “This is the recreation and progression of the hub and community we so successfully created at TCB. We must have stumbled onto something special as the numbers of attendees this year is huge and the quality of projects is very high.”

The company has also announced the hiring of Jasmin Joseph as marketing manager. Joseph will be BossaNova’s first full-time appointment since its 2020 launch and she previously worked with Heaney and Subhani at TCB Media Rights.

BossaNova was founded after Heaney and Subhani’s departure from TCB last year. The company was launched in 2012 and grew quickly before being acquired by the now defunct Kew Media Group in 2017.

Following KMG’s administration last year, TCB was put up for sale. It then became the subject of a shock $2.6m acquisition by Beyond International in a deal that was opposed by Heaney, who had been looking to buy the company back.