Videoage International - 2020: A Year in Review

10 January 2021 V I D E O A G E New U.S. TV Season Quarantined O n March 29, the Los Angeles Times ran a front cover story titled: “How COVID-19 changes landscape of TV pilot season.” This is a very timely and informative topic. In fact, VideoAge ’s L.A. contributor, producer Mike Reynolds, was already working on a piece on that very theme for the magazine’s weekly Water Cooler feature. The story in the Times offered a mostly gloomy outlook, but managed to sprinkle in some hints of hope. Reynolds’ take was similar. The coronavirus caused the shutdown of a number of pilots for the new U.S. TV season — a production period that typically runs from late February to early May— that injects an estimated $500 million in annual spending into the L.A. entertainment economy. For the 2020-2021 TV season, the five major U.S. broadcast networks have commissioned 32 dramas and 28 comedies from the studios. The networkswill need to replace at least 20 series that have already been canceled or were scheduled to end this year. The networks have thus far ordered nine straight-to-series shows, and might even give a second look at pilots originally refused a greenlight as there will soon be a higher demand for new content. The Times reported that networks have be- gun asking show producers to submit scripts for possible second episodes so they can better evaluate a show’s prospects, and network executives can narrow the field without shooting any video, thus saving time and money. Plus, if a show is picked up, the process will put producers further ahead as they will have a second episode ready to go when they are able to resume production. In addition, wrote the Times , series that were on the verge of being canceled might actually get renewed since networks consider them a safer bet as they already have casts, crews, and writers’ rooms assembled, as well as viewing audiences. The Times ’ story alsomade the important point that the upfront process is not anachronistic, but is a functioning market that brings in around $7 billion in advertising commitments in just a few weeks. The paper quoted Gary Newman, a former co-CEO of the FOX network, as saying, “It would be chaos if you were to lose that process.” On March 12, reps for each of the networks announced that although the live Upfronts were canceled, some form of streaming presentation would take place. Dermot Horan: A Buyer’s Home Story W orking from home has become the norm for so many people these days, and TV acquisitions executives are no exception. Those of us who work for public service media organizations have colleagues, particularly in news and current affairs, who still bravely travel to the studios, as broadcasting is considered an ‘essential service’ by the Irish government. That being said, Ireland’s RTE officials have told staff members who do not need to be based in the office to work from home. Our technology team has given us access to all of our systems remotely. Once a deal is done files can be sent into RTE electronically, and compliance and preparation for transmission is also done at home. Our department has a team meeting every morning at 9:30 a.m. Work has been really busy as large amounts of both Irish and international programming have stopped production, and there are large gaps to fill in the schedules. We have been re-licensing lots of Irish comedies and dramas from independent Irish producers. We have also been running classic movies, which we are running as afternoon matinees and are proving really popular with our audiences. We have also licensed adaptations of all the Shakespeare plays, which are on the public examination curriculum. I have worked from home on the odd occasion in the past, but doing so all week has been new to me. Like many other people have stated, putting a structure on the day is key. I take an early brisk walk down to the sea every morning and that sets me up for the day. I also take a short lunch break, which is a great thing as I can share that with my wife, and two of my children who are also at home. My eldest son is in London and caught the virus, but thankfully recovered after a couple of unpleasant days. Dermot Horan (pictured) is director of Acqui- sitions and Co-Production, RTE, Ireland’s public service broadcaster. Dorothy Crompton: Hollywood Lockdown I am a single person living alone in Los Angeles, California and I have been in isolation now for three-plus weeks prior to it becoming mandatory. I am also one of the many 20th Century Fox employees who were let go over the last year. Early on I stocked up on groceries and house- hold items and I now depend on the local markets near my house versus the bigger grocery stores. Cleaning supplies and toilet paper are still hard to find but there are no shortages on food. Most recently we have all been ordered to wear face masks when entering any places of business. I stay active connecting with industry col- leagues, reading media publications, joining Zoommeeting for personal and professional calls, enjoying web music performances, and of course using social media. I have also spent more time with my parents who live in Pennsylvania via video. I take long walks or bicycle rides and I also join a daily Spin class via Zoom every morning. There are a handful of friends I know who have the virus and two are now in recovery. One friend is from Europe and was hospitalized for 16 days, but is thankfully now home. I have another friend in New York who was infected early on and was unable to get tested for days even though it was obvious he had COVID-19. A third friend is in Los Angeles and has been advised by his doctor not to leave his house for testing as he might infect others in the process. I am seeing a new city without any traffic on the freeways or local streets. Our air is smog free; we have crystal clear views of the city and ocean. Dorothy Crompton is a former VP of 20th Cen- tury Fox Television Distribution. Asian TV Schedules A sia TV Forum (ATF) organizers released a survey conducted with 130 TV content buyersacrossAsiatofindoutprogramming strategies during COVID-19 disruptions. ATF officials have learned that dramas, kids’ animation, and formats have been taking the top three spots on the schedules,withdocumentaries/ factual ranked fourth. Drama leads the pack for 85.4 percent of respondents, followed by kids’ animation (61.5 percent), formats (41.5 percent), and documentaries (31.5 percent). With only 16.9 percent preference, reruns did not fare well, and movies did even worse, being popular with just 5.4 percent of respondents. The way that Asian programmers dealt with the task of replacing canceled shows indicated some interesting results. For example, even though reruns were one of the least favorite genres, 41.5 percent of respondents reported that they were scheduled. And movies were even less favored as replacements, garnering just 1.5 percent of the vote. Also interesting is the criteria used when hunting for urgent content. According to the ATF survey, price is the main criteria for 82.3 percent of respondents. In Other News April 1: Jason Kilar was appointed CEOof Warner Media. April 7: NATPE Budapest was postponed to August 25-27 from June 30-July 3 (On July 10, it was declared an online-only event). April 7: Pluto became available in 17 LATAM countries. April 9: Starz promoted Alison Hoffman to president, Domestic Networks. April 17: DISCOP announced two virtual markets in Africa. April 23: Cathy Payne became CEO of Banijay Rights. Apri l 2020 Review