DRAMA FOR THE WORLD:

ITV Studios looks for program ideas anywhere and sells its shows everywhere

Ambitious, diverse new series to build on already impressive catalog.

When it comes to scripted drama, ITV Studios’ roster is proving increasingly formidable.

It has moved far beyond its original mission as the distribution arm of the U.K. broadcaster. And in recent years, ITV Studios has helped to facilitate the global success of some of the world’s most popular television shows delivered by its in-house labels and third-party relationships.

ITV Studios amplifies the reach of dramas it is passionate about and proves that great stories come from anywhere.

“It’s really important for us to look at the best content in the world and sell it back around the world,” says Ruth Berry, managing director of global distribution at ITV Studios. “We pride ourselves on that global platform.”

Tomorrow Studios’ “Snowpiercer” is a perfect example. Made for TNT, the U.S. series is based on the iconic graphic novel and director Bong Joon Ho’s subsequent 2019 Academy Awardwinning film adaptation. It debuted in May as the No. 1 new cable entertainment program. Since then, according to Ampere analysis, it was in the top five shows globally in the week it launched on Netflix, and since then has been in the top 10 global shows in both June and July.

“‘Snowpiercer’ is a great mix,” says Berry. “It’s got so many different things that would cause people to engage with it, and that first run on TNT and Netflix has been brilliant for us but there’ll be life beyond that.”

That was the case for “Bodyguard,” the award-winning, Richard Maddenled thriller from World Productions.

World’s CEO and creative director, Simon Heath, says the distributors provided them with a “huge amount of deficit financing” before a single sale on the show had been secured.

“With drama budgets going up, the risk ITV Studios were prepared to take can’t be sniffed at,” Heath says. That risk paid off when the show premiered in 2018 to become the most-watched BBC drama in a decade. It went on to be streamed by more than 23 million households outside the U.K. in the four weeks following its launch on Netflix; it has since been picked up by over 20 international broadcasters and counting.

“What’s been great is [ITV Studios is] happy to let us do what we do, which is produce the shows,” Heath adds. “And we’re happy to let them do what they do, which is sell the

shows internationally.”

ITV Studios has invested in a raft of exciting crime shows from World to add to its arsenal. Tense military thriller “Vigil,” about the investigation of a suspicious suicide on a nuclear submarine, is currently in production as well as Season 6 of the hit cop show “Line of Duty.” “The Pembrokeshire Murders,” starring Luke Evans, has wrapped production, “ITV Studios has already pre sold it to a lot of territories,” says Heath; Berry believes these are prime examples of the dramas they champion.

While buyers crave the long-running, returning hits that are a staple of ITV Studios’ business, she says, “We also look for stories coupled with undeniable talent on and off the screen. We have the agility to get into a specific project and a specific financing need and go and find ways to piece it together.”

Berry says a “wide-ranging portfolio is really important” to ITV Studios, and that includes non-english-language programs as well as comedies from third-party producers, including Not A Real Company’s “Schitt’s Creek” and Calamity Films’ “Brassic.” Both series have performed exceedingly well with both viewers and critics and have also found a wider audience on streaming services.

“Comedy is a slightly more acquired taste internationally than a dead body [in a murder mystery],” Berry says. “But those comedies, particularly in a COVID world, are worthwhile and a real source of light in the dark for our buyers’ schedules.” ɿ