TVF International has reached a raft of new deals across France and Germany ahead of its participation at Sunny Side of the Doc. In Germany, TVF brokered a deal with ZDFinfo for "China’s Dragon Emperor" (2x45) from Smithsonian and EBS. The pubcaster also acquired cutting-edge science series, "Infinity" (3x60), which investigates some of science’s most significant unanswered questions, for the same strand.
Elsewhere in Germany, Deutsche Welle acquired three investigative specials from Mediacorp: "Lombok’s Poisoned Gold" (1x48) about the dangerous human and environmental effects of gold mining in Indonesia, "Inside the Exotic Butterfly Trade" (1x48), and "From North Korea with Love" (1x60), which follows a wave of celebrity defectors from North to South Korea.
RTL acquired WWII history doc, "Prosecuting Evil" (1x83), and for A+E Networks Germany, who took the BBC’s long-running archaeology programme, "Digging for Britain" (12x59) for The History Channel. The History Channel also acquired the WWI aviation series, "Wings of the Great War" (5x48) from Gullwing Productions.
Histoire TV in France picked up "Jesus’ Female Disciples: The New Evidence" (1x47) which reveals the forgotten history of women during the birth of Christianity. TVF also licensed landmark series, "The Asian Century" (4x48), from Mediacorp, and "Fake News: A True Story" (1x60) made for BBC by Wingspan Productions, which looks back at the last 200 years of fake news.
Also in France, Mediawan acquired aviation mystery doc, "MH370: A Decade On" (1x48) from Singaporean prodco, Mediacorp, and cutting-edge science and technology doc "AI & You" (1x52) from RTÉ. Mediawan also took two wildlife titles, "Bear: Koala Hero" (1x48) and "Saving the Wild" (4x52) filmed on the frontlines of Africa’s fight to save its last wild animals. France TV picked up a package of ‘From Above’ travelogues from TVF, the leading aerial distributor, including "Portugal From Above" (1x52), "Japanese Islands From Above" (1x52), "Oman From Above" (1x52) and "Finland From Above" (1x52).
Museum TV acquired "Jack B. Yeats: The Man Who Painted Ireland" (1x50) from RTÉ, and French-speaking Swiss pubcaster RTS acquired BAFTA-winning BBC biopic, "Basquiat: Rage to Riches" (1x52), which profiles the legendary artist, Jean-Michel Basquiat. RTS also acquired investigative documentary produced for City TV, "Make Me Pretty: Illegal Home Surgery" (1x44).
Senior Sales and Acquisitions Executive, Hannah Cesarani, and Sales Manager, Daniyal Bari, who commented: "TVF’s diverse range of titles has allowed us to collaborate with a variety of slots in France and Germany. We have seen particular success with premium history titles that offer new perspectives, as well as topical current affairs documentaries with unique access and balanced perspectives. Our broadcast partners continue to recognise the strength of our ‘From Above’ catalogue which continues to perform well in France and Germany, as well as globally."