Tag Archive: music

  1. Banijay Tunes in to Family Entertainment

    Comments Off on Banijay Tunes in to Family Entertainment

    Banijay today announces the addition of Name That Tune to its burgeoning 100,000-hour catalogue, having secured the format’s global distribution rights. Given the title’s previous commissions, the deal excludes the USA, Canada, Australia, Russia and Poland.

     

    Born in the 1950s, this long-running, family-friendly show is still an audience favourite, combining music and competition. Battling it out over an assortment of games, two contestants try to prove they possess more musical knowledge than the other. A key element of this format is the band. They perform live resulting in an electric atmosphere within the studio. In truth, the questions will span any decade and any genre, so the contestants must be able to tell their Elvis from their Kanye. However, defeating their opponent is not the sole goal. To be in with a chance of taking home the top cash prize, the victorious contestant has to get to the final round and correctly identify seven songs within 30 seconds.

     

    To date, Name That Tune has been adapted in twenty-six markets including the UK, Australia and Brazil. In line with the format take-up, Banijay Italia has confirmed it will bring the highly-anticipated second series to TV8 this spring. This follows the format’s successful return to Fox in the USA on the 6th January 2021, where it exceeded expectations among 18 – 49-year olds.

     

    Carlotta Rossi Spencer, Head of Format Acquisitions comments: Name That Tune has already proven popular with an international audience and we have no doubt we can extend its reach into new territories given its notoriety in the market as a highly entertaining, relevant, family show. A testament to the power of music and our love of gameshows, this format is perfect especially at a time when we are all after some light-hearted, comforting fun!”

     

    Banijay Rights will handle distribution for those territories outside the existing Banijay footprint.

  2. Banijay Strengthens Commercial with Launch of Banijay Brands

    Comments Off on Banijay Strengthens Commercial with Launch of Banijay Brands

    Banijay today announces the launch of Banijay Brands, a division dedicated to all areas of commercial activity.

     

    Led by newly-appointed Chief Commercial Officer, Owain Walbyoff, Banijay Brands will encompass brand licensing, merchandising, gaming, gambling and music. The operation will represent an extensive and diverse portfolio covering entertainment, scripted, animation, game shows and kids, which offer a wide range of commercial opportunities.

     

    Following the recent acquisition, Jane Smith, Group Director, Brand Licensing will lead the licensing area, overseeing key brands from the world’s largest international content catalogue, comprising of 88,000+ hours of original programming. She will also work with the network of teams in local markets to further expand the business.

     

    Smith joined Endemol Shine in 2018, where she has substantially driven the growth of properties such as MasterChef, Peaky Blinders and Simon’s Cat within licensing and merchandising.

     

    Banijay Brands will launch at next month’s Festival of Licensing with senior executives available for meetings at the virtual conference.

     

    Owain Walbyoff, Chief Commercial Officer at Banijay Brands comments;“Without a doubt we are a market leader in this space, and I look forward to seeing how we bolster the IP even further. Jane is a highly-experienced, strategic executive with vast industry knowledge, and with some of the world’s biggest brands in our portfolio, the possibilities are endless.”

     

    Jane Smith, Group Director, Brand Licensing of Banijay Brands comments;“Banijay Brands represents an incredibly compelling catalogue of globally-renowned, cross-genre brands, which we will be bringing to the Festival of Licensing. By partnering with the very best licensees in the business, we aim to create innovative and impressive products that our audiences and fans will love.”

     

    The Banijay Brands portfolio includes MasterChef, Temptation Island, Peaky Blinders, Survivor, Deal or No Deal, The Inbetweeners, Big Brother, Mister Maker, Operation Triunfo, Eat Well for Less, Simon’s Cat, Mr Bean, Don’t, Sunday Brunch, Tipping Point, The Biggest Loser, Ready Steady Cook, Black Mirror, Miss France, Maddie’s Do You Know?, Wipeout and Crystal Maze.

  3. Stefan Raab and Prosieben Announce Live European Singing Competition

    Comments Off on Stefan Raab and Prosieben Announce Live European Singing Competition

    Brainpool, a Banijay Group company, today announces that following the cancellation of the Eurovision Song Contest 2020, Stefan Raab and ProSieben will now produce and broadcast a new competition – the Free European Song Contest. Airing live on Saturday 16 May, the show will celebrate passion, fun and a love for music.

    Following the cancellation of the Eurovision Song Contest 2020, spectators and fans across the land shared their disappointment. With a gaping hole left in the schedules, Stefan Raab decided to organise a special-edition competition, an idea enthusiastically supported by Raab’s home station, ProSieben.  

    Stefan Raab comments: “Music connects people, especially in difficult times. This marks the birth of a new, and free, European song competition. This marks the birth of the Free European Song Contest. Special challenges need special solutions and this evening will see Europe come together in a special and unique way.” 

    Daniel Rosemann, Managing Director at ProSieben said: “Stefan Raab loves music and he loves Europe. We are happy about the great opportunity to live and celebrate Europe in these times with a new music competition and are really looking forward to the Free European Song Contest.” 

    ProSieben will broadcast the Free European Song Contest live from Cologne on Saturday, 16 May at 8:15pm. The show is produced by Brainpool’s Stefan Raab.  

    N.B. All current legal and health and safety requirements will be met during production. 

    Show hashtag: #FreeESC 

  4. IWC Sets Sail on Yacht Rock

    Comments Off on IWC Sets Sail on Yacht Rock

    IWC, a Banijay Group company, today announces it is producing I Can Go For That: The Smooth World of Yacht Rock, a 2×60’ documentary series for BBC Four. The shows, which are set to air this summer, will explore the smooth sounds of the 70s and 80s.

     

    In I Can Go For That: The Smooth World of Yacht Rock, Katie Puckrik will explore a period of time where Los Angeles studio-based artists like The Doobie Brothers, Steely Dan and Hall & Oates produced smooth R&B and married it to adult themes about longing, aspiration and melancholy, to create a unique brand of soft rock. In its day, this music was never categorised as a genre, but now, in the 21st century, it has be known as Yacht Rock due to its finely crafted nature.

     

    Since Puckrik considers Yacht Rock the soundtrack to her teenage years in America, she argues this critically neglected genre of music is in need of a re-appraisal. The first of this two-part series will focus on the 70s and the second, the 80s, and will feature contributions from John Oats (Hall & Oates), producer Mark Ronson, the writer who popularised the term Yacht Rock JD Ryznar, and elite musician Jay Gradon, who played on tracks by Steely Dan and Hall & Oates. The second episode features members of the band Toto.

     

    Katie Puckrik said: “When I was growing up in the Virginia suburbs in the 70s and 80s, Yacht Rock was the music that sailed out of my girlfriends’ cassette players, the older boys’ muscle cars, and the grown-ups’ cocktail parties. I’ve never stopped loving Steely Dan, Hall & Oates, Michael McDonald, and the rest of those smooth movers, because they twang my bittersweet spot of escapism and melancholy. The magic of Yacht Rock is that just listening to it makes us feel sexy, happy, and rich. I think of it as ‘millionaire’s make-out music’ – the sound of endless summers.”

     

    Executive Producer Franny Moyle said: “Katie Puckrik is perfectly placed to guide us though this underappreciated musical genre, and her knowledge and enthusiasm for the subject has helped us create this fantastic series. This music was written in a sun drenched past, but it feels timeless.”

     

    The series has been commissioned by Emma Cahusac, Commissioning editor BBC Arts and Music and is Executive Produced by Franny Moyle for IWC. Ben Whalley produces and directs. I Can Go For That: The Smooth World of Yacht Rock will be distributed globally by Banijay Rights.