Leading UK-based distributor Banijay Rights has sold a raft of new dramas into international territories, it was announced today by Tim Mutimer, CEO Banijay Rights.
Atmospheric thriller Black Lake has been acquired by the UK’s BBC Four. The 8 x 45’ Swedish drama is produced by Jarowskij and sees a group of friends head to a remote hotel with very dark consequences.
Two French language dramas Public Enemy and The Disappearance have recently been acquired by SBS Australia for its AVOD platform SBS on Demand, where both dramas have been extremely well received by Australian viewers. Belgian drama series Public Enemy, which won the inaugural MIP Drama Screenings Award in 2016, is produced by Entre Chien et Loup and Playtime Films for public broadcaster RTBF in Belgium, has already been sold to TF1 France, Sky Atlantic UK and Germany, Movistar Spain, C More Scandinavia and Ale Kino Channel Poland.
Single dramas including Damilola, Our Loved Boy and award-winning Ellen have been sold to HBO Europe and will air across 14 territories.
Caroline Torrance, Head of Scripted, Banijay Rights commented, “This demonstrates that good drama from any source can have global appeal. It‘s very exciting to see a raft of our high-end, international dramas finding a place in primetime schedules on diverse platforms and in so many different territories.”
Brand new scripted programming launching at MIPTV from Banijay Rights includes Rebecka Martinsson, a 4 x 90’ / 8 x 45’ drama series produced by Yellowbird for TV4 Sweden. This riveting new drama series based on the acclaimed author Åsa Larsson’s best-selling crime novels is set in the remote and spectacular landscape of northern Sweden. The series revolves around lawyer Rebecka Martinsson, who despite a great career with a law firm in Stockholm has not really found peace with herself. When a close childhood friend suddenly passes away Rebecka reluctantly returns to Kiruna, the place where she grew up. On investigation Martinsson soon discovers that her friend was actually murdered and she refuses to leave until she has uncovered the truth. Rebecka is pulled into a thrilling hunt for the murderer who may kill again. As she homes in on the truth, Rebecka is forced to confront a traumatic past event which still haunts her and caused her to abandon the very place she lived as a child.
Also new from Banijay Rights at MIPTV is 6 x 60’ comedy series Baroness von Sketch Show, produced by Frantic Films for CBC Canada. A critically-acclaimed comedy series which takes a fresh look at our narcissistic contemporary culture, Baroness von Sketch Show is fast paced and irreverent, satirizing our daily lives, celebrating the absurd and highlighting the down-right embarrassing. The hilarious all-female cast draws upon 15 years of comedy experience and multiple collaborations to present an insightful, emotionally grounded series capturing the banalities and absurdities of just trying to get along in the world. Offering a witty take on everyday concerns from the pretentiousness of ordering a fancy coffee to office and sexual politics, this satirical sketch show holds a fun mirror up to modern life.
Dear Murderer is a 5 x 60’ Screentime New Zealand production for TVNZ. Filled with wit, lust and moral dilemmas, this five-part mini-series tells the amazing true story of notorious criminal barrister, Mike Bungay. In a high-profile career spanning decades, hard-drinking man of the law Mike Bungay represents defendants in New Zealand’s most controversial murder trials. A loveable rogue with a flamboyant, daring style, the legal establishment are dismayed at his meteoric rise, his penchant for fast cars, married women and whisky, and his run-ins with the police. Bungay’s messy personal life is a revealing counterpoint to his professional success. His notion of justice requires him to give his all for his clients, whether they’re suspected spies, gang leaders or child killers. He bends the rules to the limit, accepting the occasional slap in the face, but there’s no escaping his own inner demons.