Banijay is the world's largest independent content creation Group for television and multimedia platforms. Banijay is present in 16 territories.
Banijay is the world's largest independent content creation Group for television and multimedia platforms. Banijay is present in 16 territories.

Tag Archive: Banijay @ BAFTA.

  1. Screentime New Zealand Solves Murder Mystery Drama with ZDF, Acorn TV and TVNZ

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    Media and entertainment powerhouse Banijay, today announces a new international co-production set in Queenstown, New Zealand – A Remarkable Place to Die. The 4 x 90’ murder mystery was created by Screentime New Zealand and is co-produced with Real Film Berlin in association with Banijay Rights.  It will air across Germany, the US, and New Zealand with commissioning broadcasters ZDF, Acorn TV, and TVNZ and will be distributed globally by Banijay Rights. The title will be showcased at Banijay @ BAFTA today (The London TV Screenings).

    Smart and savvy detective Anais Mallory (Chelsie Preston-Crayford) returns to her hometown, Queenstown, to be met with a series of startlingly different and intriguing homicides amidst the backdrop of past ghosts. Among them are her ex-fiancé Luke (Charles Jazz Terrier), now married to her ex-best friend (Indiana Evans), her brittle, volatile but loving mother (Rebecca Gibney), and a handsome pathologist, alongside a mixed, wildly eclectic, and ever-changing population of tourists and locals that makes challenging investigations even more of a test. However, it’s the secrets surrounding her father and sister’s deaths that truly draw her back, and, as she sets about unravelling these most personal of mysteries, she will set in motion an even more desperate cover up – one that will ultimately threaten the only family she has left…

    Philly de Lacey, CEO of Screentime New Zealand says: “Queenstown’s stunning landscape paired with its tapestry of unconventional characters, provide the perfect backdrop for this gripping murder mystery. Viewers will be drawn into the world of Detective Anais Mallory as she uncovers intriguing secrets, and we’ve elevated the show for international audiences by collaborating with Real Film Berlin and Banijay Rights.”

    Simon Cox, EVP Content & Acquisitions, Banijay Rights, said: “With the global appetite for broad audience and crime drama growing, we see potential for this series, which will charm audiences with vibrant characters and mysterious crimes, all underpinned by a gripping detective, a breathtakingly scenic setting and whole host of intrigue and suspense.”

    Nevak Rogers, Director of Content, at TVNZ, said: “TVNZ is thrilled to showcase yet another epic murder mystery shot on the ground here in Aotearoa, with such a star-studded cast against the spectacular backdrop of the gorgeous South Island.”

    A Remarkable Place to Die builds on Screentime New Zealand’s international scripted expertise. The series was created by Philly de Lacey with writer John Banas. Directors are Peter Burger, Josh Frizzell, Caroline Bell-Booth, and Charlie Haskell. Philly de Lacey, Henning Kamm, and Sibylle Stellbrink serve as Executive Producers.

    Recent international series from Screentime New Zealand include The Gulf, a co-production between Screentime New Zealand, Lippy Pictures and Letterbox Filmproduktion for TV3 and ZDF,and Straight Forward, a co-production between Screentime New Zealand, Yellow Bird Mastiff, and TVNZ and Viaplay.

    Real Film Berlin is well-known for its quality, artistic productions which consistently deliver impressive ratings. The company stands as a trusted partner for exceptional talent, broadcasters, and streamers. Its notable works include the cinema adaptation of the ARD cult series Berlin, Berlin, and the Netflix miniseries Unorthodox, which garnered global acclaim, with nominations for eight Emmys and two Golden Globes, among other accolades.

  2. Zeppelin’s Dance If You Can Takes Centre Stage

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    Media and entertainment powerhouse, Banijay, today announces Zeppelin, part of Banijay Iberia, is set to launch original talent show Baila Como Puedas (international W/T: Dance If You Can). Airing on La 1, the show, created by Zeppelin (Banijay Iberia) and produced in collaboration with RTVE, will be hosted by Anne Igartiburu, and promises to redefine entertainment, as dancers face the ultimate challenge of their careers.

    Baila Como Puedas forms part of the Banijay @ BAFTA London TV Screenings event later this week. It follows sixteen accomplished professionals showcasing their skills as versatile dancers and choreographers. Forming couples, they will instruct eight celebrities without dance experience, in all types of dance disciplines, such as contemporary, house, jazz and more. For 10 weeks, the professional dancers will fully immerse themselves in the competition, living together at the Baila Como Puedas Academy.

    The excitement kicks off in the first episode, where each celebrity (Álvaro Muñoz Escassi, Ana Guerra, Fabiola Martínez, Jaime Astrain, Lydia Lozano, Maestro Joao, Nicolás Vallejo-Nágera and Sabrina Salerno) selects a professional dancer to form a dynamic duo with. The dancers can accept the proposition or reject it and remain in the reserve waiting to be chosen by another celebrity. Professionals who were not matched in the initial round are then placed on reserve, eagerly awaiting their chance to shine.

    The dancers will have to prepare choreography and teach the amateur celebrity to deliver a spectacular performance. As an additional challenge, celebrities and dancers will also be divided into teams and perform outdoors group choreography, with only 48 hours to prepare!

    A panel of judges (Beatriz Luengo, Norma Duval, Rafa Méndez and Yolanda Ramos) will critique and evaluate each couple’s performance weekly, determining the fate of the professional dancers. After working together, the bond between celebrities and contestants is strong, taking them on an emotional journey, as the celebrities are responsible for their partners progress in the competition.

    The twist? Eliminated dancers can switch celebrity partners and return stronger than ever thanks to a repechage. At the halfway point of the series, the couples will begin to be eliminated together, and only the finalists will perform in the grand finale, where the professional contestant of the winning couple will receive €50,000.

    Miguel Martín, Managing Director of Zeppelin says: “Building on Zeppelin’s experience and success as creators of reality, competition and entertainment programmes like The Bridge and TimeZone, Baila Como Puedas is a fun and original series never seen before on television, that represents an authentic evolution in dance programmes. It is an entertainment blockbuster in which every week the contestants coexist and compete. We have turned the focus: those who take the risk, the real contestants, are the professional dancers, and subsequently, we will see celebrities like we have never seen them.”

    James Townley, Chief Content Officer, Development at Banijay adds: “Zeppelin is renowned for genre-defining entertainment, and this latest format is no different. Bringing this new and original show to market demonstrates the continued strength of our IP pipeline and I’m looking forward to sharing the format with our teams around the world.”

    Zeppelin is behind huge shows such as Big Brother Spain, Floor Filler, LOL: Last One Laughing or All Against One, and is also the creator of original formats like TimeZone and The Bridge (El Puente), which has now sold internationally to territories including the UK, Australia, and Brazil, where it was awarded an International Emmy.

  3. Banijay Unveils Compelling Slate Ahead of London TV Screenings

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    Media and entertainment powerhouse, Banijay, today announces a compelling offering for its dedicated London TV Screenings event – Banijay @ BAFTA.

    Hitting the 2024 line-up is the highly-anticipated high-end scripted series Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light; and premium documentary Front Row. Elsewhere, the powerhouse will also be celebrating travelling formats with adventure reality, The Summit; and spin-off, Deal or No Deal Island. Packed with distinct, high-quality programming across all genres, the group’s event will span three sessions on Wednesday 28 February.

    On the scripted front, Banijay’s premium offering includes UK dramas Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light for the BBC and Masterpiece PBS, based on the final novel of Hilary Mantel’s multi award-winning trilogy; The Hardacres for Channel 5; Steven Knight’s This Town for the BBC; Welsh drama The One That Got Away (Cleddau) for S4C; and Invisible Boys for Stan. Buyers can also expect a preview of eagerly-awaited second seasons of Marie Antoinette for Canal+ and the BBC, and Rogue Heroes for the BBC and MGM+.

    Supercharging its documentary offering, Front Row takes centre stage with Anatomy of a Murder and Four Kings for Prime Video.

    To complement the scripted and documentary offering, Banijay will showcase a blend of fresh and highly-entertaining formats including adrenaline-fuelled travelling success The Summit for Nine Network; new spin-off, Deal or No Deal Island created for NBC; adventure reality format and ratings winner Shaolin Heroes for TV2; recent Channel 4 factual reality VOD hit Banged Up; innovative game show Upside Down for RTL4 and The Fortune Hotel for ITV1 and ITVX. A light will also be shone on global superbrands and prized returning formats like Survivor, Big Brother, Star Academy, and reality formats Love Triangle and The Fifty.

    Cathy Payne, CEO at Banijay Rights says: “This year’s line-up for Banijay @ BAFTA truly illuminates the breadth of our catalogue and ability to showcase outstanding content across multiple genres. From high-end dramas to acclaimed factual series, we look forward to coming together later this month to celebrate great talent, captivating storytelling and stand-out IP. We really do have something for everyone…”

    James Townley, Chief Content Officer, Development and Lucas Green, Chief Content Officer, Operations at Banijay comment: “The London TV Screenings provides an incredible opportunity for Banijay to demonstrate its commitment to delivering exciting emerging IP as well as tried and tested formats and reboots, which continue to compel audiences globally. From Shaolin Heroes to The Summit, and iconic format Deal or No Deal, we are sure to enthral buyers seeking fresh, innovative, and proven formats.”

    For its scripted slate, Banijay Rights is highlighting Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light, a Playground and Company Pictures co-production directed by Peter Kosminsky, and adapted for television by Peter Straughan, which follows Thomas Cromwell as he navigates the moral complexities of the Tudor court following the execution of Anne Boleyn. Another period drama from Playground in association with Screen Ireland, Red Berry Productions and Newgrange Pictures is new returnable six-part series –The Hardacres- based on CL Skelton’s novel series, The Hardacre Saga.

    Meanwhile, from Kudos and Nebulastar, and co-produced with Mercury Studios, in association with Kudos North, Stigma Films, and Nick Angel for the BBC, the much-anticipated This Town tells the story of an extended family and four young people who are drawn into the world of the ska movement and two-tone music.

    BlackLight Television (a Banijay UK company), in collaboration with Banijay Rights and Creative Wales for S4C, are delving into Welsh drama with The One That Got Away (Cleddau), which combines a gripping murder mystery with an electrifying love story.

    Crossing over to Australia, Invisible Boys from Feisty Dame Productions, Screenwest and Lotterywest, WA Regional Film Fund, Screen Australia, and Banijay Rights for Stan Originals, is a powerful drama created for television by director Nicholas Verso on the challenges faced by a group of gay teens in the remote coastal town of Geraldton.

    In factual, the feature-length premium documentary from Scenery and Pretty Matches, Front Row, Executive Produced by award-winning actor and producer Sarah Jessica Parker, and directed by Miriam Guttmann (Sundance Film Festival selection Seeds of Deceit), highlights the resilience of Ukrainian ballet dancers during wartime, where an unlikely friendship forms between a dancer and a front-line soldier.

    From Workerbee comes two gripping documentaries, Anatomy of a Murder, a feature length true-crime story centring around the daughter of an Iranian family, who has spent over thirty years and millions of her fortune to try and find her mother’s killer; and Four Kings for Prime Video, exploring the history of British boxing through four men coming from the same London neighbourhood who heralded a golden era and changed the way Britain viewed its black athletes.

    Meanwhile, on the reality competition front, The Summit, a 9Network and Endemol Shine Australia original series, produced by Endemol Shine Australia, continues to climb through the ranks with a second season in the works, and a first international adaptation for CBS by Endemol Shine North America with more to come soon.

    From Endemol Shine North America, Deal or No Deal Island completely reimagines the iconic game show as an epic adventure. This new spin-off series for NBC is set on the Banker’s private island as he searches for his ultimate opponent in a high stakes competition with over $200,000,000 up for grabs.

    From Metronome is Shaolin Heroes for TV2 Denmark, where celebrities undertake the ultimate test by embarking on a transformational journey alongside world-class Shaolin Masters.

    Joining Banijay’s factual offering is Banged Up, created by Shine TV for Channel 4. In this fact-ent format social experiment, which veers into the documentary space, six male celebrity inmates are incarcerated in a UK prison environment alongside their reformed criminal cellmates. The series explores the question, ‘does prison work’?

    From EndemolShine Nederland, Upside Down sees two celebrity teams undertake all kinds of topsy turvy challenges and Q&A games unlike anything they have seen before, because everything in this innovative format, is upside down.

    Highly-anticipated reality series The Fortune Hotel from Tuesday’s Child for ITV1 and ITVX invites viewers into a luxury Caribbean resort filled with glamour, opulence and deception. Contestants are paired up and compete to win a briefcase, one holding the ultimate cash prize and another an Early Checkout Card.