Videoage International October 2019

32 October 2019 V I D E O A G E B etween July 24 and Aug 8, some 600 people from the U.S. — including creatives, actors, journalists, as well as executives from commercial, public TV networks, cable, and streaming services—took to the stage (or appeared via satellite) to participate in 129 sessions of the 42nd annual summer Television Critics Association Press Tour. The TCA Tour was held at the Beverly Hills Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. Immigration, equality, and sexual misconduct were some of the topics discussed, but themain thing on theminds of journalists (who organized the Tour) was when newTV programs being developedwould initially—or subsequently—be seen. Would traditional networks consider a first run on their streaming channels? Would special content be produced for that streaming channel and join that entity’s existing library of content? Would streamers debut on the small screen? In cinemas? In different countries? The difference between traditional networks sticking with shows ( Grey’s Anatomy being a prime example with 15 seasons having already aired and the 350th episode arriving in September) and streamers cancelling a series after one or two seasons was another frequent topic. Raising a smile, let alone a laugh fromcritics can be difficult, but ABC CEO Karey Burke managed it with her summary of the situation: “Sometimes [streaming shows] get a billboard on Sunset and sometimes they disappear into the sunset.” That said, she did admit to reaping the benefits of streaming, courtesy of Hulu, which “delivers millions of additional viewers with every episode of our biggest hits. Hulu gives us a bigger audience and it also gives us a younger one. The median age of viewers watching ABC content on Hulu is 33, decades younger than themedianage of broadcast.” However, she added, still flying the flag for traditional viewing, “Broadcast matters because our programming endures.” Still, she later admitted that “creators are thrilled that they now have this varied partnership of platforms at their fingertips.” It seems that most participants felt similarly — more opportunities from streaming services, in addition to the move to streaming by traditional TV entities, means there will be greater opportunities for more content creation than ever before. That said, one can certainly foresee some outlets choosing to stick mainly with their existing tried-and-true suppliers, while supplementing them with a few newcomers, and being more open to undiscovered talent. Possibly the biggest welcome mat for producers was put out by Jonathan Katz, president of Katz Networks, part of the Scripps media group. His mission, he said, is to “look for gaps in the consumer experience in the marketplace and fill them with a new generation of multiplatform television networks… whenever they want to access that entertainment,” which also meant he would be open to hearing from the creative community in order to fill those “gaps.” Over at FOX Entertainment, CEO Charlie Collier admitted, “We’re leaning into what makes FOX different structurally and how we can be the best home for talent in the industry. And we can now come to market in ways that our competitors, by virtue of their corporate structures, simply can’t, and that’s a distinctionwe know is going to pay off.” He also believes that this structure “gives us the freedom and the flexibility to not only offer creators access to a broadcast network, one with relatively few layers, but rather than lock down talent at FOX Entertainment, we’ll also take the right projects to other platforms when and where it makes themost sense for our creative partners.” The recently announced SideCar from FOX En- tertainment is a “content development accelera- tor,” which should help feed programming to the network and other platforms, as well as create more possibilities for producers. While the Netflix strategy seems to be in the vein of ‘put so much out there that we will get an audience one way or another,’ Jennifer Salke, head of Amazon Studios, said, “we’re not in the volume business. We’re in the curated business of bringing individual shows, show by show by show by show, to our global, diverse audience,” which she wants to keep coming back to the service. “Our goal is to delight them and add to the value of what Prime is all over the world. So, that’s really what the strategy is.” Three years into their originals on the platform, JulieMcNamara, evp of Original Content, CBS All Access, revealed, “We are moving into our next phase with a robust slate of scripted content. At least 12 original shows will launch seasons on our service in 2020. Anchored by tent-poles like our Star Trek series, The Twilight Zone , and The Stand , alongside dramas and comedies that work with our library but are uniquely suited for a premium streaming consumer, we are strategically and aggressively moving into the future.” This strategy certainly seems to be opening doors for producers. One of TCA’s favorite executives, FX CEO John Landgraf, picked up on a promise he made some time ago “to make a permanent change… until we had a network that looked like America, both in front of the camera and behind the camera… We’ve emphasized at the studio, where we make overall deals, deals with women, and people of color… We’re doing everything we possibly can to matriculate from episodic directors and episodic writers to creators as quick as we possibly can. We’ve gone after every creative creator. And more than that, we’re trying to find young people that can grow into creators as fast as possible. Part of the challenge we have in our industry is, because at these levels, nobody has really redressed these issues in a systematic way so that the pipeline is filled with the right number of people. We’re certainly going to try to use this opportunity, when we’re ramping up the amount of programming we make, to create a turnover.” PBS president Paula Kerger didn’t offer much hope for producers, but did reveal a surprise move, aligning with YouTube TV. This would initially be to access local programming, but she hinted that there would be additional partnering possibilities, not just with YouTube, but other outlets as well. Courteney Monroe, president of National Ge- ographic Global TV Networks, has opened the doors to creatives, with news that they’re looking to provide content, “exclusively for Disney Plus, but that in no way is that changing our program- ming strategy, or our commitment to the linear channel business at all. We’re just working really closely with the team at Disney Plus to figure out what are the right projects. We’ve announced two already, two original shows, The World According to Jeff Goldblum , as well as The Magic of Disney’s Animal Kingdom , and we have several more in de- velopment.” While many topics were talked about during sessions, one thing was conspicuously absent, though a couple of network bosses revealed to this reporter that the situation between the WGA, the U.S. writers’ union, and talent agents is already causing unforeseen problems for creatives. Because of back-and-forth negotiations and with no clear pathway carved out for everyone, writers are having difficulties getting their work seen. The most hard-hit, though, are minorities — those currently seeking representation, as well as those who only recently obtained agents. Without representation these writers won’t have their work read, let alone get it on television. However, at least one network, the CW, is addressing the problemand has extended its usual June deadline for script submissions to this October. * Mike Reynolds is a TV producer, documenta- rian, veteran journalist, and broadcaster. He worked in production (in various capacities) for Paramount, HBO, and independent films, including Mistress with Robert DeNiro. His TV and film career began in the U.K. Reynolds has been a Hollywood correspondent for the BBC and is a former city editor for The Hollywood Reporter . He was an on-air reporter for NBC, Mutual, AP, and Westwood One radio. He has frequently covered premier events, including the Academy Awards, and regularly participates at markets, such as NAB, NATPE, MIP-TV, and MIPCOM. By Mike Reynolds* This Time, Producers —Not Viewers — Took TV Outlets’ Center Stage TCA Press Tour Report The NBC panel on Sunnyside