Scripted


BBC acquires non-English dramas ‘Señorita 89’ & ‘KaDeWe’ in Fremantle deal

UK pubcaster the BBC has acquired two new non-English language dramas, Señorita 89 and KaDeWe – Our Time Is Now, from distributor Fremantle. Both shows will launch in the UK later this year, with the 8 x 60-minute Señorita 89 delving behind the curtain of Latin America’s beauty pageant culture in the 1980s, where hidden amongst the laughter, […]

Mandeville co-founder forms new prodco, strikes Lionsgate deal

Mandeville Films and Television co-founder and producer Todd Lieberman has formed a new production company and struck a strategic partnership with Lionsgate. Hidden Pictures will produce TV and film projects, beginning with a feature adaption of the Freida McFadden novel The Housemaid, about a struggling woman who starts a new life working for a wealthy […]

Warner Bros Australia’s ex-TV chief launches private equity-backed prodco

Warner Bros Australia’s former head of TV, Shaun Murphy, has launched a new prodco with the backing of US private equity group, Balance Vector. Big Owl Pictures will develop and produce all genres of unscripted content, as well as select scripted and film projects for domestic platforms and the international marketplace. Balance Vector holds an undisclosed stake […]

Netflix loses 970k subs in Q2, plans for slow growth & steady $17bn content spend

Netflix lost roughly 970,000 subscribers in Q2 2022, a lower figure than its own previous estimate of two million, and plans to keep its current $17bn annual content spend steady until at least the end of 2023, predicting a slow return to growth in the next quarter. The streaming giant now has a total 220.67 […]

Candle Media’s Exile Content hires Bese & Mitú alum as chief digital officer

Candle Media-backed Exile Content Studio has hired the former president & COO at Zoe Saldaña’s publishing & production firm Bese as its chief digital officer. Daniel Batista will oversee the podcast and digital content studio arms of Exile, which was acquired by Kevin Mayer and Tom Stagg’s Candle Media in May. Batista was most recently a […]

BAFTA names former Sky Studios content chief Jane Millichip as new CEO

BAFTA has named Sky Studios’ former chief content officer Jane Millichip as its new CEO. She will take up the role in October and replace Amanda Berry, who revealed late last year that she would be stepping down from the role in 2023. BAFTA’s COO Kevin Price confirmed he too would be stepping down, having worked alongside […]

Pact/Bectu impasse spells looming concerns for UK scripted contracts

UK trade body Pact and trade union Bectu are struggling to reach a new deal for scripted TV productions. Last week, Pact proposed new terms for the Bectu/Pact TV Drama Agreement, which covers working terms and conditions for crew in the UK’s independent scripted business and is set to expire in September. However, Bectu boss […]

Windlight Pictures hires Bavaria alum to head up post

ITV Studios-backed Windlight Pictures has appointed Andreas Kohl as head of post-production and development executive. The Munich-based scripted firm, which launched last year and is headed up by former Bavaria Fiction exec Moritz Polter, is focused on German drama that resonates globally. It is currently in production on its first commission, an adaptation of Frank […]

United Talent Agency sells stake to private equity firm EQT

US-based private equity firm EQT has bought an undisclosed stake in LA-based United Talent Agency (UTA). EQT is acquiring the stake from investment firm Investcorp and other parties, with the deal set to make the private equity firm the largest shareholder outside of existing partners. Investcorp bought into UTA in 2018 and said the deal […]