I N T E R N A T I O N A L www.V i deoAge.org BUSINESS JOURNAL OF FILM, BROADCASTING, BROADBAND, PRODUCTION, DISTRIBUTION February 2014 - VOL. 34 NO. 2 - $9.75 (Continued on Page 12) “Turkey has grown to become the world’s second most prolific drama producer after the U.S.,” said U.S.-Turkey TV industry veteran Deniz Ziya Temeltas. “And now that Turkish dramas are winning the attention of Western and Northern Europe, the U.S., Russia and Latin America itself, Turkish drama producers are eying the international market for coproductions and remakes to create a U.S.$1 billion-a-year TV content and formats export industry.” DISCOP’s New Venue Spurs New Business My 2¢ deals with the difficulties of making predictions Calendar of events. Checking on airports’ pre-check service Granddaughter reviews a book about Hollywood legend Hollywood loses cache and cash to other film Meccas Page 18 Page 16 Page 6 Page 4 Even though much of the U.S. was caught in a deep freeze, the weather in the Miami area was perfect during NATPE — in the high 70s and low 80s. In fact, rain showers only showed up on the last day. The heat was definitely a hit with NATPE attendees, matching the hectic nature of the market, with participants juggling full schedules. Miami Beach Sun Heats Up NATPE Show (Continued on Page 10) Middle East’s Viewers Reject Boycott of Turkish TV Series The controversial politics of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan are stodgy to some Middle Eastern countries, like Egypt. So, in retaliation they boycott…Turkish TV drama series. Apparently, this tactic is considered more of a punishment than the traditional move of recalling each other’s ambassadors. However, Arab audiences are not taking restrictions on their favorite TV shows lightly, and so only a few Egyptian TV channels have completely pulled Turkish soaps off the air, such as Al-Hayat, Al-Nahar, Al-Kahera Wal Nas and the UAEbased Dubai-TV and Abu Dhabi TV, after Egyptian Radio and Television Union spearheaded the boycott last summer. In addition, Egypt’s Cinema Syndicate and the Egyptian Creativity Front, a group of writers, poets, artists, filmmakers, journalists and scientists, all urged their country’s broadcasters to stop airing Turkish TV series. (Continued on Page 14)
4 Headline_ Small_1 Column (Continued on Page #) Manolo Cardona and Mexican Ana Claudia Talancón. Among the most outstanding developments for FOX Life, Fiure highlightedEl Mejor de los Peores, to be released in March. In that series, Venezuelan chef Lorena Garcia will train eight kitchen debutants to cater for a huge event with demanding diners. As for other FOX channels, NAT GEO will be releasing two neworiginal series, Arrepentidos in February, and Cosmos in March. The former is a series based on real stories of Latin American men and women who were victims of bad choices and now regret the consequences. Cosmos, hosted by astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, aims to arouse viewers’ curiosity about the wonders of the universe. By Omar Méndez, CEO of The Daily Television Hollywood Loses Cache and Cash Only two live-action movies were filmed in Los Angeles last year, and half as many feature films were produced in the City of Angels last year as compared to 1996, according to a recent article inThe Economist. Interestingly, television drama is 39 percent below its 2008 peak, the magazine reported. The reason? Incentives (in the form of tax credits and interest-free loans) from other states and countries that make shooting outside the supposed entertainment capital of the world much cheaper. States that offer incentives include New York, New Mexico, Louisiana and Georgia. But according to The Economist, tax breaks and incentives are becoming less popular. “Most independent research finds that tax credits for filmmakers serve mainly to help…filmmakers. A study in Louisiana found that for every dollar the state received in revenue from film production, it spent $7.29 in credits. Jobs created by productions often do not last. States bid against each other (and foreign governments) to offer bigger bribes. In many states producers can sell their credits on; independent markets, brokers and lawyers have sprung up to service them.” February 2014 World VideoAge Will Tell Buyers About Your New Shows Before, During and After MIP .... To Reach You, Buyers Read VideoAge To Reach Buyers, VideoAge Is Everywhere With Its Monthly and Daily VideoAge Will Tell Buyers About Your New Shows Before, During and After MIP .... end of message One of the challenges that Argentina-based Fox International Channels Latin America will face in 2014 is consolidating its two new channels introduced last year: MundoFox, in its pan-regional version, and FOX Life, born from the fusion of Utilísima and FOX Life. “It’s the first time that Fox launched two new channels simultaneously in Latin America. It is a very demanding task. So far, we have had a good response from the audience,” said Gonzalo Fiure, who is responsible for programming and production of FOX International Channels in the region. And he has several original productions currently in development on a tight deadline. Fiure’s list of productions includes Dos Lunas, a series starring Argentinean Leonardo Sbaraglia and Uruguayan Barbara Mori. The third season of El Capo— based on drug dealer Pedro Pablo León Jaramillo’s life — is about to be completed. It was filmed in the U.S., Mexico, Colombia and Europe, and is produced by Fox Telecolombia. Metástasis, the Latin American version of Breaking Bad, adapted by Sony Pictures, is being filmed in Colombia and will air on MundoFOX during the second half of the year. FOX Telecolombia, the group’s drama series producer, is filming a series in Bogotá. It is a co-production between FIC Latin America and Colombia’s public TV station that consists of 13 one-hour episodes, featuring Colombian Fox LATAM Ch.’s Original Shows
February 2014 6 Book Review Margaret Talbot’s book The Entertainer: Movies, Magic and My Father’s Twentieth Century (Riverhead, 432 pages, $28.95) transports us to the early days of Hollywoodland. We become immersed in the provincial town covered in bougainvillea, adorned with Spanish bungalows that lined wideopen streets ready for the arrival of ambitious young actors, including my grandfather, Lyle Talbot. The author, my aunt Margaret, traces her father Lyle’s long career to reveal how Hollywood and the entertainment industry evolved from an early 20th century of circuses and traveling tent shows. Before cinema enraptured the country, American entertainment was brought on wheels, from town to town, by barnstorming actors. Most of these entertainers, including my paternal grandpa Lyle, were honest-to-God humble working people looking to make their way through the Great Depression on a smile and a shoestring. By the time my grandfather made it to Hollywood (after years working in regional theater) he had hardly a penny in his pocket and a pending audition with Warner Brothers Studios. The Los Angeles studios in the early part of the 20th century were much like Repertory Theater Companies: If you were hired as a contracted actor you were basically set — assuming you did what you were told and didn’t do anything to upset the heads of the studio. InThe Entertainer, Talbot recounts the story of her father’s make-orbreak audition at Warner Brothers in which Lyle, a naïve young fellow from the Nebraskan prairie, chose to perform a monologue from a play he’d recently performed at a theater in Dallas titled Louder Please. Unbeknownst to Lyle, the character he plays in this scene is fighting with a scoundrel of a man who happened to be based on the head of production at Warner Brothers himself, Darryl Zanuck. Lucky for my grandpa, when Zanuck saw this audition he respondedwith a laugh, evidently impressed with the ballsy nature of my grandpa’s audition selection. He decided to put Lyle under contract. When I thinkofmygrandfather, I thinkof a story box that, when opened, would endlessly relay the detailed accounts of his life as an actor from start to finish. He took every role that came his way, from Humphrey Bogart and Shirley Temple films toPlan 9 From Outer Space — arguably the worst movie ever made. When I was a young girl, my grandfather would sit on his sofa chair retelling detailed memories of his past. He would show me his elaborate collection of scrapbooks and I remember being dumbstruck by the endless black-and-white portraits of him with hundreds of different chorus girls and actresses whose legs seemed to go on forever. While my grandpa did eventually find the love of his life and have four children, he was definitely a ladies’ man who, my aunt discovered, had been married some five times. We tend to assume it was much easier for actors in early Hollywood, when there was less competition for roles. Yet Talbot’s research concludes that while there were fewer actors in number, competition was just as rough: Unless you were hired as a contracted actor by one of the studios you were basically at a loss in terms of building a film career. This was not the day of Kickstarter or Indiegogo or other means of self-producing your own projects through the Internet. My grandfather was lucky to catch the wave of an emerging technological development — movies that talked! — and he used his good fortune to benefit all actors by helping found the first actor’s union in Hollywood, The Screen Actors Guild. Talbot’s research into the history of Hollywood is also a personal exploration of her father, who was almost 60 when she was born and a bit of an enigma to her. As she uncovers his past, she brings him to life and delivers a visceral sense of living in Hollywood in the 1930s. You almost feel you are watching the films she describes, experiencing the parties on Sunset Boulevard and the Coconut Grove, or on set on a pre-code film likeThree On A Match. As a child, I got to see my grandfather relive his glory days when films of his screened at art houses in San Francisco, such as the Castro Theatre. While his old-fashioned films were sometimes lost on me as a child, my grandfather never missed an opportunity to see me perform in plays, including a self-produced version of Jack & The Beanstalk staged in my parents’ garage, complete with tickets and a consignment store, “Jack’s Snacks.” Reading about his past as a magician’s assistant and tent-show trouper, I can see why Lyle took to the let’s-put-on-a-show spirit of my early plays. Considering the hundreds of films and TV shows my grandfather acted in (his IMDb page reads like an endless scroll) — from Barbara Stanwyck andMaeWestmovies toThe Adventures of Ozzie & Harriet — I’ve also gained respect for his durability and stamina and the satisfaction he received from his life as a working actor. My grandfather, who lived to the age of 94, was an orderly man and I assumed as a child that all older people were neat by nature. Now I see that his dedication to crossword puzzles, neatly stacked magazines, a carefully arranged wardrobe closet and structured eating habits were all indicative of his disciplined life as a professional actor. While he experienced serious bouts with drinking and an early family tragedy — his mother died shortly after his birth — Lyle’s commitment to staying mentally alert, organized and ready to work at a moment’s notice allowed him to survive and endure. He was a talented and handsome actor, a dedicated craftsman and a loving granddad. In The Entertainer, Margaret Talbot uses her own skill as a gifted writer and interpreter of history to illuminate the father she knew only much later in his colorful life. She is graced with the same commitment to craft, dedication to her work and love for family that he exhibited himself. By Caitlin Talbot Granddaughter Reviews Her Aunt’s Book About Hollywood Legend and Pioneer Lyle Talbot
MIP-TV PLANNER Make airline reservations (ask for upgrade), hotel reservations (morning arrival). Arrange for car pick-up at the airport (ask for Jacques as driver). Get PR rep to set up interviews, especially with VideoAge. Find out about parties. Call Russ to get list. Make sure to advertise in VideoAgeMonthly. See if “Le Maschou” has a table for six on Tuesday at 8:30 p.m. Ask VideoAge Daily to come take a photo at the booth. Call VideoAge to arrange for editorial coverage on a different day than when our ads run. Remind Francis to shipVideoAgemagazine and dailies back to the of ce. Need to see Nick and Arthur to go over collection. Work on avoiding morning meetings with Italians at the L.A. Screenings. While in Cannes, send owers to Rose. Set up meeting with Paul and/or Laurine.
February 2014 DISCOP I stanbu l Hi gh l i ghts 8 Televisa’s Got Telenovelas, Formats From drama to comedy, Televisa Internacional’s got it all. InWhat Life Took FromMe, Montserrat is in lovewith Jose Luis, a Navy Corporal with whom she has a secret romance. But thanks to her mother’s ambition and greed, she’s sold to Alejandro Almonte, a bastard child with a big fortune. Her mother also accuses Jose Luis of a crime he didn’t commit to keep him away from Montserrat. Over time, she falls in love with Alejandro, though Jose Luis returns searching for what life took from them. In Loving You Is All I Want (pictured), Mauro is the owner of a coffee plantation that he inherited from his dead wife. As time goes by, he falls in love with Florencia, the young owner of some coffee lands next door. However, the love between Mauro and Florencia cannot be, because when they are about to marry, Mauro discovers that Lucrecia, an old friend of his, is pregnant with his child. Mauro and Florencia must separate despite the fact that they are in love. Thirty years pass, and Florencia and Mauro’s past is brought back to life when Mauro’s son falls in love with Amaya, Florencia’s daughter. Arturo De La Riva has been happily married to Eugenia for 10 years and they have a daughter named Aranza in Forever Yours. But Sonia, Eugenia’s cousin, is consumed with an obsessive love for Arturo. Meanwhile, Isabel LopezCerdanspent twoyearsbelievingshewasmarried to Fernando Cordova, who she discovers is a con man. After Eugenia dies, Isabel and Arturo embark on a romance that will have to overcome the obstacles of Sonia’s manipulation and Fernando’s hunger for revenge. A typical family trying to survive a crisis and hidden cameras come together in Los Gonzalez, a format that mixes fiction and reality thanks to a fictional family that take to the street to perpetrate their hidden camera pranks on real victims. Inentertainment formatSing It, Sell It, anyobject canbesoldbysinging, imagination and sympathy. Themain attraction is the video-sales. In comedy format Everybody and Their Brother, a group of 100 people put acts together like a flashmob. All 100 of them find their victims on the street, pranking them in all kinds of original and hilarious situations. Parodying is a format in which two well-known comedy personalities form teams to compete and try to find the best contestants with the most outstanding abilities in the art of comedy and parody. Contestants are judged by a panel of acclaimed comedy and show business stars. www.televisainternacional.tv Stand S-21 Spend20Minutes(Or More) with ITV ITV — Inter Medya has series filled with drama, lies, crime and love stories. After Ebru’s husband dies, she discovers that he gave their first son (who she thought was dead) away to be raised by his brother. She is left to make a life for herself in a world of lies without any money in dramaBlack Rose. Through she has never before left the walls of her home, Ebru will fight for the son she lost and begin a new life in a new place. After the many years and dedication Ali put into finding and marrying the woman he loves and building a successful personal and professional life, 20 Minutes is all it takes for that life to unravel. When the police arrive at their home and arrest Melek for attempted murder, ultimately sentencing her to life in prison, Ali vows to do everything he can to help his wife escape from prison (pictured). Neriman’s mother died when she was young, so she lives a traditional life with her father and aunt. Yet, Neriman has big dreams and becomes caught In Between the chance to live a traditional life or pursue a more modern life. When Asiye and Ilyas meet, it’s love at first sight in drama Red Scarf. But Ilyas wants to pursue his passion for motocross, and that gets in the way of their love. The pair separates for two months, but when Ilyas discovers Asiye is pregnant, he brings her to his parents’ house and marries her. Now, Ilyas is lost between two worlds — that of motocross and family. www.itv-intermedya.com ITV Pavilion There’s an Impostor at Telemundo Telemundo Internacional’s got lots of love stories. According to the Legend of the Kiss of Eternal Love, there’s a place where a kiss between two strangers at midnight on New Year’s leads to everlasting love. When Blanca kisses Eduardo in La Impostora (The Impostor) (pictured), she is unaware that he is the son of Raquel Altamira, a ruthless businesswoman who committed a terrible injustice against her father. Blanca will pose as a millionaire named Victoria San Marino to get closer to Eduardo’s mother in an attempt for revenge. But then Eduardo will fall in love with Victoria, unaware that she and Blanca are, in fact, the same person. Twowomen share a tragic and supernatural destiny that brings themtogether after death in telenovela En Otra Piel (Part of Me). Monica Serrano, a world-renowned and wealthy pianist, dies when she is betrayed by her niece and the man she loves. But Monica’s soul then occupies the body of Adriana Aguilar, a waitress who is killed by a dangerous gangster. In Adriana’s body, Monica’s soul will defend her children and seek justice, while Adriana’s soul wanders the earth. Though Adriana decides to recover her body, Monica resists until she has accomplished her goal. In Santa Diabla (Broken Angel), the happy lives of Santa Martinez and Willy Delgado are turned upside down when Willy is hired as the music instructor for Daniela Cano, the granddaughter of the town’s most powerful lawyer. When Willy finds out that Daniela is using illegal substances and that her mother, Barbara, is obsessed with him, he rejects Barbara’s seduction, and she and her daughter accuse Willy of sexual harassment. He is sentenced to 30 years of prison. Meanwhile, Santa disguises herself as Amanda Braun to avenge Willy’s imprisonment. But Santa never expected to fall in love with Santiago Cano, the youngest brother of the family. In Marido en Alquiler (My Dear Handyman), Griselda Carrasco is a simple woman with strong morals. She provides for her three children and her grandson throughherworkas ahandyman. But soon Griselda wins the lottery and becomes a millionaire overnight and is forced to confront Teresa Cristina Palmer and her scoundrel ex-husband, whom she thought was dead. To top it all off, Teresa Cristina’s kind-hearted husband, Reinaldo, is hopelessly in love with Griselda. In entertainment format Locos por el Baile (Mad About Dance), two groups of celebrities compete in teams. The contest tests the abilities of 12 artists, who are not professional dancers, in weekly solo, pair and group performances. They compete to winacashprizeforthecharityoftheirchoice — and of course they want to avoid giving an embarrassing penalty performance. www.telemundointernacional.com Stand S-11 (Continued on Page 14)
10 February 2014 Sun Heats Up NATPE Canadian Media Production Association and the Alliance of Canadian Cinema Television and Radio Artists all participated. Entertainment One’s (eOne) Valerie Cabrera said this edition was “twice as successful as last year. We had a bigger presence this year, a great programming slate, and we announced an exclusive multi-year international distribution with El Rey Network in which eOne will handle the network’s growing slate of original scripted programming.” Cabrera also noted that eOne “closed a few deals with some Latin American territories on titles such as The Red Road and Panic Button.” While in Miami, she met with buyers from pan-regional territories, as well as key territories such as Uruguay, Brazil, Argentina, Nicaragua and Mexico, among others. Turkey-based Kanal D attended NATPE for the first time this year, and the company was enthusiastic about participating because, according to Kerim Emrah Turna, “It is important for us to present our Turkish drama to the Latin world and build relationships with clients in Latin America.” Gene George of Starz Worldwide Distribution said his team saw buyers from all over Latin America, “especially the pan-Latin American pay-TV providers and free-TV stations frommajor territories such as Mexico, Colombia and Brazil. We also had activity fromless populated countries such as Nicaragua, Panama and Bolivia.” His team was “extremely busy” this year, with many buyers showing great interest in Starz’s new series Black Sails, which launched in the U.S. on STARZ the weekend before NATPE. “Even though the free-TV window in Latin America is not available until well into 2015, we began discussions…based on the successful U.S. launch,” said George. Plus, he also noted that the company already has a number of longterm partnerships in place in Latin America. “We are just beginning to initiate discussions about extending those deals,” he added. GRB Entertainment’s Benn Watson noted that “NATPE delivered fantastic opportunities to meet with our existing clients and explore new opportunities with broadcasters and producers from not only Latin America, but from around the world.” He added, “we have strong relationships across the Latin America region [and] it was great to establish new business with countries such as Nicaragua, PanamaandColombia.NATPEgaveus theopportunity tomeetwithmanyproducerswho presented some fantastic ideas, many of which our development team at GRB are finalizing, so we’re looking forward to announcing some of these opportunities in the near future,” Watson said. “We also announced several Latin America deals: ESPN Brazil (My Beautiful Game), National Geographic Channel (Hurricane Hunters) and Discovery Latin America (FBI: Criminal Pursuit, Wicked AttractionandUntold Stories of the ER).” This year, talk about problems — like long elevator lines and high prices at the Fontainebleau Hotel (the market’s exhibition venue) — was mostly an afterthought, with some exhibitors vowing to move from the elevator-challenged Tresor to other less congested hotel towers, like the Sorrento, next year. Plus, prices at the Fontainebleau are so high (a small bottled water cost $6.55) that this year, crowds seemed to gather in the main entrance of the rotunda rather than at the bar area, as they did last year. The boats docked across the street from the Fontainebleau still represented a bane to NATPE organizers, with one content distributor renting a boat after inquiring about exhibiting—a practice highly discouraged by NATPE. What is unclear is how the organizers viewed the Argentinean Consulate in Miami’s decision to rent a boat for Argentina’s NATPE participants to wine and dine their clients. Finally, NATPE Miami is still strictly viewed as a LATAM event (even though there were some Scandinavian and French buyers), which limits the U.S. studios’ and mini-majors’ involvement. On the plus side, some glamour returned to the marketwith15partiesandthepresenceofmorethan 22 celebrities, including TV stars and personalities. Philip Levine, the new mayor of Miami Beach, made a presentation at Sunday night’s Welcome Party, which preceded the Opening Night Party on Monday night. Telemundo held a press conference to announce its deal with Reset TV to jointly own, develop, produce and distribute El Artista (working title), slated to premiere in the 2014-15 TV season. Viacom International Media Networks The Americas held a press conference to announce the expansion of its production targeting millennials across multiple platforms in key markets, greenlighting original content such as Nickelodeon’s first-ever Portuguese-language novela in Brazil, Dani Who?, the Kids Choice Awards ColombiaandCatfish Colombia. They also announced that MTV Latin America has Mexican formats of MTV’s Jersey Shore andRidiculousness in development. The event culminated with all journalists in attendance receiving iPad Minis (complete with a Nickelodeon app) as gifts. The Tarikoff Legacy Award honored Televisa’s Emilio Azcárraga Jean, Lionsgate’s Jon Feltheimer, producer/writer James L. Brooks and LZ Sunday Paper founder Lauren Zalaznick (who was with NBCUniversal when NATPE first announced she would receive the award). International buyer attendance increased this year, as did the contingent of Canadians, who mostly exhibited on the market floor (some Canadian participants were there without stands). In addition, NATPE sponsored a Spotlight on Canada initiative with a co-production session in which Telefilm Canada, Canada Media Fund, “Many of the Latin American buyers I met with were from the pan-regional channels,” said Content Television & Digital’s Diana Zakis. “But NATPE also offered a great opportunity to meet with buyers from a range of free-TV channels and digital platforms who were in attendance from countries such as Mexico, Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, Uruguay and others,” she added. Content concludeda “major salewithapremium pay-TV broadcaster in Latin America for [its] latest drama series Serangoon Road.” Zakis also said the company “struck deals for…new seasons of the British primetime drama seriesLine of Duty andThe Bletchley Circle, which were available at the market for the first time.” Thus, Zakis found that this edition was “equally as busy and successful as last year, with all our sales team in back-to-back meetings for the entire market. We were able to meet people from new channels who had not attended in the past, which is a positive indication for the future of the market.” Perhaps because the market was so busy, the overall consensus was that it was too short. Many exhibitors felt that with the market lasting only three days (and with the difficulties many buyers have maneuvering from tower to tower, and in some cases just from one floor to another in the same tower), they simply don’t have enough time to devote to each client. In fact, the long lines at the elevator banks in the Tresor Tower continued until Wednesday afternoon, January 29, the last day of the market. Attendance figures were once again not available since NATPE no longer releases them. Next year, NATPE will return to the Fontainebleau, but it will be held a week earlier, from January 20-22, starting on a Tuesday rather than the traditional Monday so as not to coincide with the Martin Luther King, Jr. national holiday in the U.S. The date change was made due to Fontainebleau’s availability. Additionally NATPE will not conflict with the increasingly successful Realscreen Summit, held in Washington, D.C. SA (Continued from Cover) Artear’s Luciana Egurrola GRB’s Benn Watson Telefilms’ Alejandro Carballo, Alfredo Andreotti, Humberto Delmas France M6’s Bernard Majani, NPN Media’s John Cuddihy
www.VideoAgeDaily.com Throughout Cannes, content buyers read the printed version of VideoAgeDaily. Around the world film and TV executives read the online edition of VideoAgeDaily. No matter where, when or how, your buyers will see your ad.
February 2014 12 DISCOP Expands Considering that Turkey is at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, the territory is a strategic market for a growing number of audiovisual companies and Temeltas’s estimate could be a reachable target. One TV trade show that will benefit from this growth is DISCOP Istanbul, a B2B content market that stimulates the TV business across Central and Eastern Europe, West and Central Asia, the Middle East and the Gulf territories. The fourth edition of the three-day DISCOP Istanbul market kicks off March 4 at the International Convention and Exhibition Center (ICEC) in Istanbul, Turkey. Patrick Zuchowicki, CEO of Los Angeles and Johannesburg-based DISCOP organizer Basic Lead, noted that one significant change compared to last year is that the event has moved to a “major convention center, so we have more exhibitors, more exhibiting space and we are expecting more participants.” ICEC is a 12-minute walk from the Intercontinental Ceylan Hotel, where the event was held last year. Organizers expect 1,000 delegates representing over 500 companies from over 90 countries, including more than 400 buyers and over 200 exhibitors. “We have more buyers and TV station representatives than we’ve had in the past,” since DISCOP’s new Middle East specialist traveled to countries such as Iraq, Afghanistan, Jordan, Dubai and others to encourage them to participate. According to Zuchowicki, “We’ve gone into the region to bring as many new TV stations and other players as possible to DISCOP Istanbul.” While attendance is up this year, Basic Lead is in full compliance with its obligation to respect the embargo imposed by the United Nations against Iran, and has not invited the country to DISCOP Istanbul. There will be seven national pavilions this year — China, France, the U.K., Iraq, the Ukraine, South Africa and Malaysia. “We’ll have huge attendance from buyers from the Middle East, up 20 percent over last year,” Zuchowicki said. Every major buyer from Turkey, including broadcasters, pay-TV, OTT, satellite, etc. will attend. Plus, there will be buyers from Central Asia, and Iraq will attend for the first time with an Iraqi pavilion. Zuchowicki said that though there is political tension in the region, “it doesn’t impact DISCOP.” “The overall presence of Turkish broadcasters is great as far as I can see from the participants list, keyMiddle Easternbroadcasters are still planning to attend this market.” The tension doesn’t seem to be keeping participants away. Kanal D’s Emrah Turna added, “Istanbul is easy to reach from all around the world and is becoming more important and we are actually seeing a decrease in markets that take place close to it.” As far as content that sells well at DISCOP Istanbul, eOne’s Charman said that “Turkish soap operas are hugely popular, commanding huge license fees. U.S. features are also equally important.” In addition to meetings between exhibitors and buyers, participants will be kept busy with a full conference schedule running throughout the three-day market. Conferences will cover a wide range of topics, including trends in Turkish dramas, how to create successful formats, digital TV in Turkey and Central Asia and more. Participants will have the opportunity to relax and network at the Welcoming Cocktail Party on March 4. By Sara Alessi There are two specific issues concerning the entertainment business, and both are related to the controversial policies of Islamist Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The first is the boycott of Turkish content imposed by countries such as Egypt and the UAE (see related front cover story). The second is the law that allows authorities to block access to websites without court rulings. Yet, exhibitors are looking forward to a busy, successful market this year, especially since “last year it was a very goodmarket and it was crowded until the last day,” according to Kanal D’s Kerim Emrah Turna. “We don’t believe turmoil in theMiddle Eastwill affect program sales whatsoever,” said Marielle Zuccarelli of A+E Networks. “This year we are actually seeing more broadcasters registered for DISCOP Istanbul from the MENA region than in 2013.” Zuccarelli is confident that “this is going to be a very busy DISCOP, as there are newly registered visitors reaching out to us each week.” The company’s schedule is “rapidly filling up, and we are still adding additional meetings as we approach the market,” she said at the end of February. A+E has found that content with crime, magic and action themes does well in the region, as do familydramas, so theywill be on-hand with TV movie Flowers in the Attic and the new magic-themed revenge series Don’t Trust Andrew Mayne. “The region is very resilient in times of political strife,” said eOne’s Tess Charman, “and interestingly pay-TV revenues are set to climb by more than 83 percent between 2010 and 2020… with satellite expected to remain the dominant TV platform. New and upcoming SVoD providers will also be actively pursuing new content,” she said. eOne’sCristinaSalasaid, ITV’s booth last year The new ICEC venue Considering that Turkey is at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, the territory is a strategic market for a growing number of audiovisual companies. Basic Lead’s Patrick Zuchowicki C M Y CM MY CY CMY K (Continued from Cover)
February 2014 14 Middle East’s Viewers But the threat of a region-wide boycott is still real since countries such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have been displeased with Erdogan’s support of Egypt’s former Islamist Government of Mohammed Morsi. According to Turkish-American TV veteran Deniz Ziya Temeltas, Erdogan’s policies have antagonized not only Egypt but almost the entire MENA region, including Israel, Gaza and Lebanon. Another country threatening to boycott Turkish companies is Iraq, but that’s over oil exports from its Kurdish region and it is all-encompassing, not affecting TV companies alone. Even though the Turkish TV series are produced independently without the involvement of the Turkish government, Egypt hopes that such a boycott could put some pressure on Ankara. Reportedly, Turkish soaps have brought more Egyptian tourists to the country and the boycott could result in the loss of some tourism business. Recently, Syrian actor Abed Fahd went public about his rejection of Turkish dramas and expressed regret that Syrian actors dubbed those dramas into Arabic. Conversely, Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan has been vociferous against the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad. Deniz Ziya Temeltas reported that so far the boycott has not resulted in canceled sales contracts, but it has created delayed payments. However, he added, “even though the boycott is bound to hurt Turkish producers in the short run, in the long run it will sharpen the appetite of Arab viewers for Turkish drama,” considering that people tend to crave desirable product in short supply. One issue that remains unclear is the definition of what constitutes a “Turkish production.” Content distributors that VideoAge contacted in Istanbul have not yet received any official note or a description of what is subject to embargo. One aspect that particularly troubles Turkish content distributors is the sublicensing issue, since in some cases, Middle Eastern broadcasters who licensed Turkish TV series retained the right to sell them to other territories. However, because of the embargo, these sublicensing sales have now stopped, further depriving Turkish producers of additional shared revenues. However, one distributor in Istanbul who is preparing to attend DISCOP predicted that this situation will force them to develop their own local sales structure that will cover every MENA territory. Many of the Turkish content distributors VideoAge contacted for this story were freely willing to provide information, but asked not to be quoted by name for fear of potential retaliation or simply to avoid creating further tension for an issue that is considered temporary. By Dom Serafini In addition, not all Turkish series are affected, rendering the embargo more of a case-by-case situation, rather than a blanket requirement. In effect, if a Turkish distributor sold to a MENA territory a series that was dubbed in Spanish with some post-production done in Lebanon and re-edited by a person in Germany who takes the producer’s credit, technically it might not constitute a Turkish TV show. In a sense this loose description of what constitutes Turkish content could represent an opening to quickly resolve the issue, and it is considered one of the loopholes utilized by such organizations as the Dubai-based free-to-air satellite service Middle Eastern Broadcasting Company (MBC), to continue showing Turkish drama. MBC first introduced Turkish TV shows to the Arab world, and for many years now Turkish dramas have been among the most-watched and popular TV hits in the region. A MBC spokesperson was quoted in Today’s Zaman, one of three English-language dailies based in Turkey, as saying, “We have not felt the need to make any change in our broadcasting strategy for Turkish drama because Arab audiences still want to watch them.” Caracol’s Complicated Women Caracol Television is bringing strong — and slightly scary — women to DISCOP Istanbul. The Dark Widow (La Viuda) (pictured) tells the tale of Griselda Blanco, a scary but beautiful woman who has killed off her former lovers and serves time in jail for drug trafficking. But when her son is kidnapped, Griselda escapes from prison on the day of her execution. She overcomes the many hardships life throws her way until the day she dies on a street in Medellin. Thanks to mounting debt, Martin Guerrero must quit the racetrack and take a job driving Natalia Toledo, an important executive. Despite her countless demands and his habit of breaking the rules, the two discover they are perfect for each other inThe Sweetest Love (Dulce Amor). After her U.S. talk show falls prey to a scandal, Victoria Maldonado returns to her native country to work on her successful wedding gown company. But she quickly discovers that the company has been ruined and that her lover is now dating her best friend. To win back her love and her power, she forces everyone to live under one roof inThe Mother In Law (La Suegra). Football Dreams: A World of Passion (La Selección) provides a peek into the hectic and exciting lives (both on and off the field) of four players from the Colombian National Football Team: Carlos Valderrama, Freddy Rincón, René Higuita and Faustino Asprilla. The Voice of Freedom, Helenita Vargas (La Ronca de Oro) tells the story of a Colombian singer who longed to be free during the 1950s, when women were expected to be only wives and mothers. Helena found that her music was a way to express her deep desire for freedom, overcoming all obstacles in a prejudiced society. She understood that during times of violence, her unsurpassable voice would be capable of uniting an entire nation. Aurelio Casillas’s goal was to become the leading — and only — drug lord in Mexico in the 1990s, taking Pablo Escobar’s place in the region. After the appearance of his picture in the press, Casillas, whose fleet of 27 aircrafts earns him the nicknameThe Lord of the Skies(El Señor de los Cielos), decides to undergo risky plastic surgery to change his face and disappear without a trace. An original Caracol Television format, The Dance Floor (La Pista) is a revolutionary dance talent competition in which 16 dance groups led by 16 experienced Colombian singers will make the audience dance to well known choreographies belonging to favorite and memorable songs. It’s a mega production with more than 200 people working on a stage where more than 180 original shows will be presented for audiences to enjoy. www.caracolinternacional.com Stand S-25 (Continued from Cover) (Continued from Page 8) Can the 78-episode TV series that Turkish filmmakers Muharrem Gülmez and Serdar Akar produced at Nu Boyana, the largest film production studio in Bulgaria, shown above, be subject to the boycott? Istanbul: East meets West
February 2014 Calendar 16 CheckingonPre-Check In some 100 U.S. airports Americans now have access to precheck services. Theoretically this means that “special” passengers can go through the luggage and body scanners without taking out their laptop computers and while keeping their shoes, belts and coats on. In practice, however, in many airports this service just consists of going to a shorter line for the usual strip-down requirements. Even in airportssuchasMiamiInternational, where the service works well, it is only offered at peakperiods (due to its high costs). At LaGuardia, inNew York City, for example, the service varies: at terminal Done can expect the “special” pre-check service, at C the usual service. In order to become “special” passengers, travelers have to be American citizens, be part of a frequent-flyer program or pay an $85 fee to the Transportation Security Administration using the form found at: www.tsa.gov/tsaprecheck/application-program. SPORTELASIA MARCH 3 - 5 Shanghai, China Tel: (377) 9330 2032 Fax: (377) 9330 2033 www.sportelasia.com DISCOP WEST ASIA MARCH 4 - 6 Istanbul, Turkey Tel: (323) 782-1300 www.discopistanbul.com VideoAge bonus distribution IMPACT MEDIA SUMMIT MARCH 1 2-14 Turin, Italy Tel: (888) 287-2279 Fax: (416) 921-9878 www.impactmediasummit.com SPORTELRIO MARCH 1 2-14 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Tel: (377) 9330 2032 Fax: (377) 9330 2033 www.riocontentmarket.com NAB SHOW APR I L 5 -1 0 Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. Tel: (202) 595-2052 Fax: (202) 775-2145 www.nabshow.com MIP-TV APR I L 7-1 0 Cannes, France Tel: (212) 370-7470 Fax: (212) 370-7471 www.miptv.com VideoAge bonus distribution CARTOONS ON THE BAY APR I L 1 0 -1 2 Venice, Italy Tel: (39 06) 37498 315 Fax: (39 06) 37515 631 www.cartoonsbay.com THE CABLE SHOW APR I L 29 – MAY 1 Los Angeles, CA, U.S. Tel: (202) 222-2430 Fax: (202) 222-2431 www.thecableshow.com L.A. SCREENINGS MAY 1 3 -2 3 Los Angeles, CA, U.S. Tel: (212) 288-3833 Fax: (212) 288-3424 www.videoage.org VideoAge bonus distribution CANNES FILM FESTIVAL MAY 14 -2 5 Cannes, France Tel: (33 1) 5359 6100 Fax: (33 1) 5359 6110 www.festival-cannes.com NEW EUROPE MARKET JUNE 1 0 -1 3 Dubrovnik, Croatia Tel: (385 1) 4636 252 Fax: (385 1) 6418 623 www.mediavision.hr
www.neweumarket.com + 385 1 641 8621 nem@neweumarket.com Join us for NEM 2014! A market with a breathtaking view for global media industry experts
18 February 2014 My 2¢ As Yogi Berra would say, nowadays, predicting the future is not like it used to be. Predicting the digital era was easy, after all the binary 1 and the 0 have been around for 83 years. The challenge is to predict the post-digital world. Alan Greenspan, the former chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, recently published a book with the subtitle, “The Future of Forecasting.” Unfortunately, for the master of deregulations and the father of the 2008 global financial crisis, his predictions did not come to fruition. Indeed, as Yogi Berra would say, nowadays, predicting the future is not like it used to be. Granted, economics is not a science (even though degrees in economics are called “bachelors of science”), but if there were formulas, in the form of rules and regulations to be strictly enforced, economics could be a science. Greenspan, however, expected a stellar economy under a “market knows best” irrational and volatile philosophy otherwise known as “chaotic system” (I call it anarchic), which allowed Australian economist Steve Keen to predict the 2008 global financial collapse way back in 1995. But how accurate can general predictions be? Most of us don’t believe in fortune tellers, however we follow the stock market, the weather and are constantly waiting for the “big one” (earthquake) inCalifornia. People also like to make predictions (fromthemundane, “wait till mother comes home,” to the more worrisome global warming). Plus, we like to read about general predictions, like George Orwell’s 1949 book, 1984. But, there are books written as early as 1879 that predicted print-on-demand (The Senator’s Daughter by Edward Page Mitchell) and even credit cards (Looking Backwardby Edward Bellamy). Movies introduced futuristic concepts as early as 1927 with Metropolis, while in the U.S. television started to explore the future starting with a cartoon, The Jetsons, in 1962 followed by the BBC’s Doctor Who in 1963, 20th Century Fox’s Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea in 1964, and Paramount’s Star Trek in 1966. In the case of 1984, some predictions, like mind control, the Ministry of Truth and perpetual war, did not really materialize, but it’s scary how accurate Orwellian government surveillance actually is in view of the recent NSA scandal in which the U.S. spy agency boldly monitored even German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s communications. The Ministry of Truth, on the other hand, came close to fruition under former president George W. Bush’s misled Iraqi War, when he said if one was not with America (meaning him), he or she was against America. Other predictions not yet realized are flying automobiles (first conceptualized in 1917 by Glenn Curtiss) and robot servants or personal robots — an idea that dates as far back as the fourth century B.C. even though the term “robot” as a humanoid was first introduced in 1921 by Czech writer Karel Capek. We are close to getting a wrist TV phone like the one envisioned in 1964 by the creator of the cartoon character Dick Tracy, and of course we’re right in the middle of the digital media revolution predicted by Arthur C. Clark in 1948. Speaking of digital media, I’m proud of the prediction made in my first book, published in Italy in 1975, in which one chapter titled The Future of TV predicted a two-way television (interactivity) and flat-screen TV. Also, in another book, Television Via Internet: A New Frontier. Webcasting For Broadcasting, published in Italy in 1999, I envisioned exactly the type of television delivery we are getting today, even though I realize that other people made the same predictions (and perhaps earlier than me). Dom Serafini “Well, so much for my gut feelings!” MAIN OFFICES 216 EAST 75TH STREET NEW YORK, NY 10021 TEL: (212) 288-3933 FAX: (212) 288-3424 WWW.VIDEOAGE.ORG WWW.VIDEOAGELATINO.COM WWW.VIDEOAGE.IT P.O. BOX 25282 LOS ANGELES, CA 90025 VIALE ABRUZZI 30 20123 MILAN, ITALY YUKARI MEDIA YMI BLDG. 3-3-4, UCHIHIRANOMACHI CHUO-KU, OSAKA JAPAN TEL: (816) 4790-2222 EDITOR DOM SERAFINI ASSISTANT EDITOR SARA ALESSI EDITORIAL CONTRIBUTORS ISME BENNIE (CANADA) ENZO CHIARULLO (ITALY) LUCY COHEN BLATTER CARLOS GUROVICH LEAH HOCHBAUM ROSNER BOB JENKINS (U.K.) AKIKO KOBAYACHI (JAPAN) DAVID SHORT (AFRICA) MARIA ZUPPELLO (BRAZIL) PUBLISHER MONICA GORGHETTO BUSINESS OFFICE LEN FINKEL LEGAL OFFICE ROBERT ACKERMANN, STEVE SCHIFFMAN WEBMANAGER MIKE FAIVRE DESIGN/LAYOUT CARMINE RASPAOLO ILLUSTRATIONS BOB SHOCHET
FOUR DAYS. 4,000 BUYERS. ONE INTERNATIONAL MARKET FOR ALL GENRES. ALL SCREENS. mi p t v. c om FEED YOUR PASS I ON FOR FRESH CONTENT MIPTV welcomes more international buyers across all programme genres than any other entertainment market in the world. The most buyers (4,000 to be exact) from 100 countries gather in Cannes to acquire the latest Dramas and freshest Formats, Factual, Documentary and Kids programming for every screen. And new for 2014, MIPTV is building the world’s first international digital content marketplace. We are proud to announce that YouTube will present the inaugural MIP DIGITAL FRONTS, the NEW international screenings showcase for original online video and multiplatform content. So take a fresh look at MIPTV for all of your international content development and distribution deals. Register now and get a head start on 2014. 30% Early Bird savings ends 21 January. 7-10 April 2014 Palais des Festivals, Cannes, France To participate, exhibit, advertise or sponsor please contact José Luis Sanchez, jose-luis.sanchez@reedmidem.com Don’t forget to register for and , the weekend before . Together, they form the world’s largest gathering for the non-fiction community. Enter and enjoy the whole experience.
DISCOP ISTANBUL 2014 March 4 - 6 Stand S 11 International Convention & Exhibition Center Istanbul, Turkey Distributed by www.telemundointernacional.tv The Impostor Telenovela HD 120 x 1 Hr
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