BossaNova


London TV Screenings Insights: Paul Heaney, CEO, BossaNova

As buyers flock to the UK for London TV Screenings and BBC Studios Showcase this week, TBI talks to the bosses of more than 25 distribution companies to test the temperature of the global content industry and to find out how the next 12 months are shaping up. Here, Paul Heaney, CEO of UK distributor […]

News round-up: Be-Entertainment recruits ITVS exec; ‘Great Songwriters’ sales; History Channel Iberia buys museum doc

Be-Entertainment recruits ITVS exec Martijn Plaizier Belgian format distributor Be-Entertainment has hired ITV Studios Global Entertainment exec Martijn Plaizier He will work as an international sales manager on non-scripted formats as well as scripted sales, with a focus on the Eastern European territories. Be-Entertainment MD Gepke Nederlof said: “We are very happy to welcome Martijn […]

BossaNova hires Beyond Rights exec Claire Runham as head of acquisitions

Night Train Media-backed financier and distributor BossaNova has hired former Beyond Rights exec Claire Runham as its new head of acquisitions, in a move that sees her reuniting with ex-TCB Media Rights CEO Paul Heaney and other former colleagues. Runham was most recently SVP of acquisitions at Beyond, which was acquired by Banijay in 2022. […]

Show of the week: Con Girl

This 4 x 60-minute documentary series tells the stranger-than-fiction story of con artist Samantha Azzopardi, who has amassed at least 70 false identities since she embarked upon her career of deception as a 14-year-old girl from Brisbane. On the surface, Azzopardi seemed innocence personified, but behind the sweet facade was a brazen and sophisticated confidence […]

News round-up: BossaNova preps development days, sells to Bell; Quintus launches True Crime channel; Global snags Sky deal

BossaNova preps development days, sells to Bell Canada’s Bell Media has acquired feature documentary, Siegfried and Roy: The Original Tiger Kings, following a deal with distributor BossaNova Media, which has also unveiled detsails of its next Development Days. The show was produced by AMS Pictures for Reelz and was first pitched to the international market […]

UK’s C4 partners with BossaNova on Egypt & Cambodia history shows

UK pubcaster Channel 4 has partnered with Paul Heaney’s BossaNova Media to co-finance two history series. Ancient Egypt By Train is being produced by Spark Media (Chateau DIY) and fronted by author Alice Roberts. The 4 x 60-minute series follows Roberts as she uses one of the world’s oldest rail networks to explore one of the […]

BossaNova snags Beyond alum as new head of sales

UK-based Searching For Michael Jackson’s Zoo distributor BossaNova has appointed Beyond Rights’ Holly Cowdery as head of sales. In her new role, Cowdery takes responsibility for the company’s distribution into the UK, North America, France, Italy and Asia. She will work alongside senior sales manager Tatjana Kostovski, who is in charge of sales to Germany, Nordics, […]

Sales Talk: BossaNova’s Paul Heaney on surging content & ‘The Tinder Swindler’

Buyers, hungry for new content, are in the UK capital for meetings, presentations and drinks – or logging on from across the globe – for London TV Screenings all this week. With so many new productions being showcased, TBI has been checking in with execs from international distributors of all sizes as they share the […]

Show of the week: Black Panthers of World War II

This one-hour special tells the story of the US’s first African American armoured unit to enter combat during World War Two – the 761st Tank Battalion. Known as the Black Panthers, the unit proved more than capable of living up to their motto of ‘Come Out Fighting’, but as this one-off programme reveals, they had […]

UK’s BossaNova unveils second pitching event plans

UK-based distribution firm Bossanova has put out an open call to factual indies interested in taking part its second Development Day event. The two-day hybrid event will take place on 11-12 January 2022 and mix in-person and virtual pitches and buyer participation. It will comprise of two strands – one dedicated to true crime and […]