GENRE REPORT
FACTUAL TV
ALF LAWRIE, HEAD OF FACT ENT, CHANNEL 4
“Reality has become a focus, an obsession for the channel and the portfolios,” says Lawrie. There’s a real buzz about upcoming
a roll, having seen success with Married at First Sight and Open House: The Great Sex Experiment. ITV is resuscitating Big Brother and the BBC is bringing back Survivor and Gladiator. Whether it’s formats or documentary, dramatic
narratives are also fundamental. “Everyone is looking for unscripted drama,” says Anstiss. “And that means that documentary has got to work quite hard in terms of revelation, in terms of those dramatic experiences.” Everyone is also looking for talent. In the same
way that reboots bring a legacy audience, talent comes with an in-built fan-base. Wonderhood’s My Grandparents War is one example of a show that brings faces from the world of scripted into factual and promises dramatic experience to boot. The latest series includes Kit Harrington, Toby Jones and – her first foray into unscripted - Keira Knightley. “Big, A-list talent is really helping commissions
over the line,” says Petterle at Pulse, where its own Netflix documentary Stay on Board: The Leo Baker Story, was made in co-production with Drew Barrymore’s Flower Films. The race for talent can, however, have a negative
impact on progress with diversity. “For all that there are lots of good words said about diversity,” says Mansfield. “Until and unless we can break our industry obsession with names, whether it’s a named producer, a named director, a named
“THE NEED FOR NOISE IS GREATER THAN EVER. THERE IS VERY LITTLE ROOM FOR THE SMALL AND GENTLE”
LAURA MANSFIELD, OUTLINE
titles Alone, a version of the US History Channel survival hit, and Studio Lambert’s social experiment show Rise and Fall. “Married at First Sight has had a seismic impact on All 4.” The channel wants to be in a position to launch a new reality show in quarter one of 2024. “We’ve already starting to talk to indies and briefing out for that new show - a volume stripped reality show on the main channel.” Could it be dating? “We absolutely would consider a show about relationships, but it would have to have a huge twist.” He’s looking for “an exciting leap, but it could be in a broad, familiar space.” Earlier in the year the channel made three orders through its Global Format Fund: Curve Media’s The Greatest Auction and Five Mile Films’ The Dog Academy, alongside a re-commission for Open House Great Sex Experiment from Firecracker. “It did incredibly well with young audiences,” says Lawrie. “It was done with great heart and sincerity and felt original.” Currently closed, the fund will be back, but formats are welcome regardless. “There is a relentless focus on young viewers and the emphasis on driving All 4….Young people love premium, they love present tense and story-telling, they love drama and excitement.” He has high hopes for Alone. So, at 9pm, with survival off the table, as well as looking at relationships, C4 is still trying to crack business. “At 9 ideas have to be more premium and intense, we’re looking for things of heft.” There’s also always room for “something stand-out that is very directly speaking to our times but framed in a direct way, emotional story telling.” In the vein of Smuggled or The School That Tried to End Racism. Work with smaller indies normally comes through access. Laurie cites Caroline Flack: Her Life and Death from Curious Films. “It’s not infrequent that a small indie will have great access and if that’s the case, drop me a line.”
Autumn 2022
televisual.com 27
SCOUTING FOR GIRLS: FASHION’S DARKEST SECRET
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