TELENOVELA BLOCK.pages 24 - 30: - Discop

usa & cee
Sandrine Pechels de Saint Sardos
3rd Annual Legacy Award Recipients, Marc Cherry, Pat Mitchell,
Steven Bochco
will content producers enjoy many more ways of getting
their content seen, but over that same time frame we will, I
believe, see an increasing amount of content made specifically
for these new platforms driving new revenue streams
for content creators both large and small.”
Nor are these the only grounds Feldman sees for optimism.
“The big development in terms of the future of companies
from North and South America,” he predicts, “will
be the overseas sales of Telenovelas.” South-American
countries, historically the world’s powerhouse of
Telenovelas, have now started selling these, effectively, as
formats giving the purchasing station the right to adapt the
characters and storylines to their own culture. In the US,
Fox is about to start running a Telenovela strand, DESIRE,
which will feature three or four Telenovelas over a thirteen
week period, and, says Feldman, “I believe these will be successful.
If they are, and, especially if the Anglo audience
buys into them, then I think this will presage an era of
unprecedented opportunity for Latin American companies
in the US.”
Of course, Telenovelas are already well established in
the CEE as a hugely popular form of entertainment, and
many pounding the floor at NATPE will be in Budapest in
June for DISCOP; and with good reason.
One of those is Amanda Cordner,
Director, International Television
Sales, Lionsgate Entertainment, who
views Central and Eastern Europe as,
“probably one of the fastest growing
international entertainment markets.”
Cordner attributes this to a number of
factors. Firstly, “new platforms are
popping up all the time, and panregional
operators are expanding at
an incredible rate, also, the population
is consuming more and more entertainment.”
And that’s not all. Ac cor d -
ing to Cordner, not only is the population
of the CEE consuming more and more entertainment,
but also, “its tastes are closer to American tastes, meaning
that, in this region, the programming needs are a little
easier to meet than say some emerging Asian markets.”
These are points echoed by Lise Romanoff, Managing
Director of Vision Films. “DISCOP,” says Romanoff, “is a
great market to focus on strengthening relationships with
Eastern European buyers.” Romanoff reveals that, “in the
past we used to sell to just one distributor for the whole of
the CIS or Yugoslavia, but now,” she enthuses, “we are
meeting buyers from across the region who want
American product from companies like ours.”
Underlining the point NATPE’s Feldman made that the
audio-visual market in the CEE is nascent, but growing,
many of the companies working the floor in both Las Vegas
and Budapest are just starting out in Central and Eastern
Europe.
Classic Media attended the market for the first time in
2005, and, says Vice-President, Programme Distribution,
Sandrine Pechels De Sardos, “ we made sales in Hungary,
Poland, Georgia and Ukraine, as well as entering into a
development deal in Russia.” Consequently, she plans to
develop Classic’s business in the region, “principally be visiting
DISCOP,” where in 2006 she plans to, “introduce two
new titles, THE LEGEND OF FROSTY THE SNOWMAN, and
PETER COTTON TAIL THE MOVIE, while also building on and
developing the relationships I made at DISCOP 2005.”
Also in the early stages of, “making a foot print in the
CEE market,” is Sesame Workshop, says Vice-President,
International Television Distribution, Rene Mascara.
Although Sesame Workshop already has ULITSA SEZARN
well established in Russia, where season
10 is due to launch in September,
Mascara is looking forward to the
April launch of a SESAME block, on
Poland’s Canal+ MiniMini, which will
include PLAY WITH ME SESAME,
ELMO’S WORLD, GLOBAL GROVER
and SESAME ENGLISH. This, she
hopes will, “eventually lead to a local
co-production of SESAME STREET featuring
Polish Muppets and storylines
reflecting the everyday life of a Polish
child.” If this should happen Mascara
reveals, “our goal is to replicate this
programming strategy in other Central and Eastern
European countries,” adding, “we hope to grow as the CEE
grows, and to be an integral part of the evolution of children’s
programming in the region.”
This is an aspiration shared by Canadian kids outfit,
Cookie Jar. “The CEE,” says Sam Ewing, Senior Vice-
President, Sales and Distribution, “is experiencing an
incredible rate of growth, and we want to grow with it.” DIS-
COP is an important part of that ambition because, as
Ewing puts it, “DISCOP gives us the opportunity to personally
meet many of the buyers from the region and to present
them with both our exciting new series such as DOODLE-
BOPS and GERALD MC BOING BOING, and also many old
favourites from our library such as MONA THE VAMPIRE
and PADDINGTON BEAR.”
Echoing Rick Feldman’s earlier point that the CEE is
jumping ahead of the game when it comes to new digital
platforms, Mainline Releasing’s Senior Vice-President
International Sales, Tannaz Anisi, finds the CEE, “a fast
growing market, embracing new technologies and delivery
systems,” adding, “I find it a pleasure to continue to explore
new relationships with new buyers, while continuing to
strengthen those with my existing client base.” }
discop link 03 www.discop.com march 2006 15