"Neanderthal: In the Footsteps of Our Ancestors"
TVF International has closed a record-breaking number of new deals across Iberia. From TVF’s history slate, "Castro’s Spies" (1x103 / 1x50), the thrilling story of an elite group of Cuban agents sent undercover to the US in the 1990s, was sold to both RTVE and RTP. RTVE also picked up IFA Media’s award-winning docudrama "Dun Huang: Ancient Frontier Fortress" (2x52 / 5x27), which uncovers the forgotten history of one of the ancient world’s most important cities, along with "Neanderthal: In the Footsteps of Our Ancestors" (1x52), a France TV documentary that sets the historical record straight on the long-extinct and widely-misunderstood relatives.
The indie distributor licensed travel programming to AMC Networks International Southern Europe, RTVE and MSP, including "John Torode’s Asia" (10x23) from Tin Roof Media, and PBS-commissioned series "Music Voyager" (60x30), which explores the culture of a variety of destinations through the lens of music. RTVE licensed new episodes of long-running series "No Luggage" (260x29), whilst Movistar Plus+ reeled in a prize catch with the license of all series of ITV’s "Monster Carp" (28x46 & 4x77) and "The Grand Fishing Adventure" (8x60), which stars ex pro-footballer Bobby Zamora.
Aerial series such as "The World From Above" (156x26) and "Aerial Profiles" (17x52 / 34x26) proved popular, with all three series of the latter title selling to AMC. AMC also licensed a selection of food titles including CNA’s "In Search of Umami" (6x23), which takes viewers on a tour of Asia to discover the truth about the fifth basic flavour, and "That’s Wine" (6x30), from SPM Production, a series travelling through the ancient world to uncover its rich winemaking culture and history.
TVF also saw success in the region with its science and health catalogue. "Space Farmers" (2x48), CNA’s new documentary on how space technology can be used to grow more sustainable foods, sold to Movistar Plus+, as well as Channel 4’s ground-breaking documentary on contraception, "The Pill Revolution" (1x45). TV Canaria licensed more science programming including CBC’s "The New Science of Food" (1x44), "Will a Robot Steal My Job?" (1x53) from Animo TV, and Infield Fly-produced "The Science of Sleep" (1x44), which examines how innovative technologies are uncovering the profound importance of sleep for our brains.
TVF closed a number of deals for world affairs programming in the region with RTP licensing "Curiosity Stream’s Why Do We Even Work?" (1x45) and "When Titans Clash: A New World Order" (3x48). New episodes of CNA’s long-running investigative series, "Undercover Asia", were in demand in Spain. "Nurses Wanted: In Desperate Need Of Nurses During a Pandemic" (1x48), which follows Filipino nurses who were barred from emigrating at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, was licensed by CCMA’s TV3. Meanwhile, RTVE picked up "The Truth About Mukbang" (1x48) which delves into the viral phenomenon of binge-eating in front of an online audience.
In wildlife, RTVE and SIC picked up "The Secret Life of Seals" (1x52), a captivating documentary from SVT that dives into the icy world of the Baltic seal. SIC also licensed "Galapagos: Edge of the World" (3x47), a series from EBS exploring the unique creatures of the remote archipelago, and NHK’s "Animal Instincts", among other wildlife titles.
Deals were brokered by TVF’s Sales Executive for Iberia, Ben Nohr, who commented: “Another fantastic year for TVF in Iberia has really underlined the demand for diverse factual programming in the territory. It has been a pleasure to further develop our existing relationships, as well as forge exciting new ones, with a wide range of esteemed Iberian partners. With the new year already off to a productive start, the future is looking bright for international factual programming in Iberia.”