10 MIPTV takeaways: #8 a quiet drama

MIPDrama Screenings Jury panel

MIPTV’s answer to the international boom in high-end drama was the inaugural MIPDrama Screenings event at the JW Marriot Hotel on the Croisette on April 3, one day before the market proper.

Organiser Reed MIDEM noted 350 buyers (later rounded up to 400) came and saw the twelve projects, which comprised Polish drama Bodo; Finland’s Bordertown; Mediaset Espana’s I Know Who You Are; Germany’s Ku’damm 56; Russia’s Mathilde, Medici: Masters of Florence from Italy; Public Enemy from Belgium; Chile’s Ramona; and UK trio Victoria, The Secret and The A Word (though the latter is based on an Israeli script).

Public Enemy (pictured, below right) walked off with the Buyers’ Choice Award (Coup de Coeur), with jury member and Sky acquisitions chief Sarah Wright (left, middle bottom) calling the dark, suspense drama a “brave”, “fresh” and “innovative” effort.

The 10x60mins show, for pubcaster RTBF, comes from Playtime Films and Entre Chien et Loup and has Zodiak Rights attached as the distributor. The series follows an child killer, whose release from jail coincides with a new wave of murders. A conflicted female cop investigates as the local community plans to take justice into their own hands.

The event was probably the biggest talking drama talking point of the market, which was relatively quiet on the deal front. Monday morning did kick off with the news Netflix, which was reported to have no reps on the ground in Cannes, had acquired international rights to ITV ‘British noir’ Marcella from Cineflix Rights.

The streamer also scored second-window rights to English-language, French-produced period drama Versailles from Zodiak Rights, while Keshet International sold the BBC’s remake of Israeli family drama The A Word to Sweden’s SVT.

Conversely, the BBC, along with Amazon Prime Instant Video, acquired Irish soap Red Rock, and Channel 4’s foreign-language on-demand service Walter Presents bought Keshet scripted pair The Baker and the Beauty and Milk & Honey.

Eastern European broadcaster SPI International bought shows from BBC Worldwide, NTV in Russia ordered a remake of Endemol Shine International’s The Bridge, Zodiak Rights and Arise Pictures announced work on money laundering drama The Cleaners, and Red Arrow Entertainment Group revealed investment in new out Mad Rabbit Entertainment.

With no act of God or major M&A news dominating headlines, the deals caught attention, but it’s fair to say there have been more dramatic weeks on the scripted front in Cannes.

MIPTV takeaways: #1 no Rising Star, but Roots established

MIPTV takeaways: #2 VR now a reality?

MIPTV takeaways: #3 Vivendi puts Europe in the spotlight

MIPTV takeaways: #4 eclectic talent on the Croisette

MIPTV takeaways: #5 where’s the party? 

MIPTV takeaways: #6 the many faces of Vice

MIPTV takeaways: #7 the industry asks ‘how will the market evolve?’

MIPTV takeaways: #8 a quiet drama

MIPTV takeaways: #9 making news, not in the news

MIPTV takeaways: #10 the market in numbers