HIGH-END DOCUMENTARY
FACTUAL TV
realise that they don’t have to work so hard to get an audience, as there’s already one out there. “ The rising potential for making money out of
documentary has intensified the demand for talent that comes with a ready-made fan-base. Pearlman points to Oscar shortlisted feature Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry where Apple TV + paid $25m for the rights. “It’s the competitive nature of documentary content with a built-in audience, because it comes with IP attached. It’s the biggest game in town.” And it’s those big games that make sense.
“You’ve got to take big swings,” says Pearlman, “there’s not much left in the middle of the market.”
NEW FORMS Keeping creatively current and finding original approaches is also fundamental in such a competitive environment. “It’s always about innovating,” says Root at Nutopia. “If you stand still, you’re dead.” 72 Films launched in 2016, as demand for
premium factual was rising. Co-founder and joint ceo Mark Raphael underlines how important it is to be distinctive. “We bring an approach that’s more up to date,” says Raphael. A contemporary approach, with built-in narrative tension is important, as is an experienced and creative production team. “We try to hire the best people. Everyone is putting their shoulder into making each project as good as possible.” The demand for multi-part stories has been a liberation, says Raphael. “If you look at something
IN THE PIPELINE: A FLAVOUR OF UPCOMING DOCS ON THE SVODS
Netflix: has bought rights to Sundance prize- winner Descendant, from Obama’s Higher Ground. While Tiger King exec Chris Smith has a project on a scheme in New York to launder billions of dollars in stolen cryptocurrency. Hit Formula 1 docuseries Drive to Survive will be joined by tennis and golf versions. And Nutopia is working on docu-drama African Queens with Jada Pinkett Smith at Westbrook. Amazon: All or Nothing: Arsenal from 72 Films is coming up, as is Moto GP docuseries Unlimited through Spanish producer Media Pro. Disney +/ National Geographic: Will be taking the celebrity high ground with Ron Howard’s feature We Feed People about World Central Kitchen. Howard’s Imagine Documentaries is also making travel series Beyond Belief with David Blaine. Nutopia is making Limitless with Chris Hemsworth and working with Westbrook and Darren Aronofsky’s Protozoa on Will Smith’s next docuseries Pole to Pole. Protozoa
is also behind natural history series Sentient. James Cameron is executive producing Secrets of the Elephant, with Oxford Scientific Films and Secrets of the Octopus for SeaLight Pictures. Cameron is also behind Super/Natural, narrated by Benedict Cumberbatch. BBC Studios Natural History Unit will work with Jon Favreau on two series, Lion and Home. And Plimsoll Productions is making Great Migrations. Apple TV +: filmmaker Cary Joji Fukunaga and chef René Redzepi are behind docuseries Omnivore - the story of humanity through eight ingredients. Four-parter The Big Conn will launch in May. In sport, there’s 10-parter The Dynasty on NFL team The New England Patriots. and Apple has its own Box to Box series, with World Surf League Studios. HBO Max: has ordered a three-part documentary series from show-runner Leslie Iwerks on fellow WarnerMedia property DC Comics.
Spring 2022
televisual.com
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