Starzplay licenses 150 hours of Espresso Media documentaries

Pakistan’s streaming platform STARZPLAY will launch a dedicated documentary section in November 2022 that will entirely consist of content from Espresso’s catalogue, with a ‘Magic 100’ titles to kickstart the new venture. The list of 100 titles encompasses a range of topics and genres, from crime and environmental stories to sports and social issues docs.

“We couldn’t be prouder that STARZPLAY has chosen Espresso’s catalogue from which to launch their documentary offering, with 100 titles curated to span multiple genres of our content and birth their factual state, especially given their popularity as Pakistan’s most rapidly growing streaming service,” says Jess Reilly, Head of Sales and Acquisitions.

The 150-hour package includes "Big Sonia" (1x52’), exploring what it means to be a survivor, over 75 years since Sonia’s stay at Auschwitz and later liberation from Bergen-Belsen. "My Beautiful Stutter" (1x52’), executive produced by Paul Rudd, this moving and inspirational film following five kids who stutter. "Eating Up Easter" (1x53’), a character-led documentary exploring how the environment of Rapa Nui (‘Easter Island’) is suffering due to tourism, globalisation and trash and "Swim Team" (1x52’), a multi award-winning festival favourite that sees a diverse range of autistic young people form a competitive swim team.

The package also includes 21 hours of true crime content, 31 hours of educational documentaries, and 23 hours from Espresso’s science and space catalogue.

Arif BaigMohamed, Chairman of Cinepax Cinemas says: “We at STARZPLAY couldn't be more excited to announce this partnership with Espresso. The topics that we have picked for STARZPLAY resonate with the knowledge and entertainment we aim to promote as well. Being the fastest growing and most widely accessible streaming service, we have seen considerable growth in streaming numbers and viewership counts. We expect the documentaries to be a huge hit amongst the viewers and we are proud to have a streaming service that will enable consumers all over Pakistan to experience them.”