BANIJAY AND ARCADIA SEAL HISTORY AND SCIENCE DEVELOPMENT PACT

Banijay Rights, the leading distribution arm of Banijay Group, has confirmed a co-development agreement with Canadian indie Arcadia Content. The deal will see both parties co-develop new factual projects, together seeking financing based on pre-sales. 

Halifax-based Arcadia Content specialises in history and science programming and boasts more than 500 hours of premium factual programming including the highly successful “If We Built It Today,” which currently airs on Science.

Banijay Rights and Arcadia Content have already begun discussions on a slate of innovative new projects including “Disaster: If It Happened Today” and CGI history dive series, “Wreck Raisers”.

Andreas Lemos, Commercial Director – Factual at Banijay Rights, said: “Arcadia Content is a real trailblazer in the factual world, producing entertaining and illuminating documentary films and series for leading broadcasters around the globe. We are delighted to be working closely together to co-develop and co-fund new projects, enabling them to create even more intriguing science and history programming for eager viewers”.

John Wesley Chisholm, Creative Director at Arcadia, declared: “Working with Banijay connects us as regional producers in a global market. The new paradigm in producer/distributor developed projects positions us to think beyond our home markets; to develop and finance ideas that give our local broadcast customers the right shows, at the right time and right price, while also creating shows of broad global appeal and long shelflife”.

Banijay Rights has recently entered into a number of successful co-development deals such as Touchdown Films and First Look TV. As a result of pre-sales secured by the distributor, projects such as Touchdown’s “Artist to Icon” and First Look’s “Inside The Mind of a Serial Killer” have been greenlit with broadcasters Ovation and Reelz coming on board.