Videoage International August-September 2020

I N T E R N A T I O N A L www.V i deoAge.or g THE BUSINESS JOURNAL OF FILM, BROADCASTING, BROADBAND, PRODUCTION, DISTRIBUTION August/September 2020 - VOL. 40 NO. 4 - $9.75 ???? (Continued on Page 12) I t has been widely reported that ABC TV network is A) planning to do away with its pilot season, B) that the U.S. network will only order straight-to-series programs, and C) that the network has started veering toward a streaming produc- tion model. One might say that this ABC strategy of straight-to-series shows that’s being envisioned by the ABC TVNetwork is a good, proven system for drama series with small episode orders, but experience tells us that it doesn’t work for comedies, where the chemistry between (and among) protagonists doesn’t usually pop up from the script pages — it has to be seen onscreen. L.A. Screenings 2020GoVirtual With Four Studios Philosophy cannot interfere with a TV trade journalist’s job 2020-2021 new U.S. series, and pilots still in contention The making of Polanski’s Chinatown and real life dramas Eleonora Andreatta: From RAI Fiction to Netflix fiction Page 26 Page 12 Page 10 Page 6 C an virtual markets also be virtuous? With so many new virtual content trade shows coming out of the woodwork these days, “virtual” might as well be a synonym for “banal.” However, what saves the virtual editions of both DISCOP and NATPE Budapest is that both have their core business The Virtuosity of Virtual NATPE and DISCOP (Continued on Page 18) The Non Sequitur ABC of ABC TV Net’s New Season O n Wednesday, May 20, ViacomCBS Global Distri- bution Group kick-started the Hollywood studios’ virtual L.A. Screenings event with a video presentation introduced by Armando Nuñez, Dan Cohen, and Barry Chamberlain. Two days later, on Friday, May 22, it was ViacomCBS International Studios’ turn. The company showcased its new line-up of productions during two separate virtual presentations. On Monday, May 25, it was Sony Pictures Television’s turn in the spotlight. Then, on July 1, it was time for Disney Media Distribution to take on the Wi-Fi airwaves. (Continued on Page 16) In a Zoom interview, James Norman, co-founder and CEO of Pilotly, an Oakland, California- based research company, ex- plained that if you want to see if a pilot works, it needs to be tested. “We don’t to interfere with the creatives, but simply furnish quality data of the elements people