Film & Picture expands its international slate with new series and tv movies

Film & Picture enters MIPCOM with a robust lineup of new titles, continuing to strengthen its position as a key distributor of French dramas and procedurals. President Marie-Laure Hébrard emphasized the ongoing success of flagship brands such as “The Coroner”, which now totals 19 feature-length episodes, and “Murder In…”, a collection approaching 80 episodes and still resonating with international buyers. “Clients keep acquiring both new installments and earlier episodes,” she noted, underlining the franchise’s long-lasting appeal since its launch in 2014.

Beyond these established hits, Film & Picture is unveiling fresh content, including “Knock”, a six-part dark comedy produced for Calle 13 in Spain and 13ème Rue in France by NBCUniversal. The story follows an ordinary man who becomes unintentionally entangled in a violent crime and is forced into the role of a hitman, balancing “very dark things with comedy,” Hébrard explained. Other returning titles include “Simon Coleman”, “Black as the Snow”, and “Pacific Criminal”, which now boasts 118 episodes.

On the TV movie front, the slate features several high-profile adaptations. “All the Blue in the Sky”, produced for TF1 and Netflix, is based on a bestselling novel by Mélissa Da Costa and tells the emotional story of a man with early Alzheimer’s embarking on a final road trip. “A Special Relationship”, adapted from a Douglas Kennedy novel, portrays the unraveling of a couple’s life after the birth of their child. Additional launches include the Paris-set thriller “Like a Shadow” and “Monsieur”, a period drama investigating the disappearance of a young girl in rural France during the 1960s and 70s.

Reflecting on the market context, Hébrard acknowledged both challenges and resilience. “2024 has been really pretty good for Film & Picture, with extremely strong figures,” she said. While 2025 began more slowly, she noted that the company’s steady revenues from procedural dramas provide stability. However, she raised concerns about the rise of buyers requesting AVOD rights only, without sufficient compensation for producers and creators: “If platforms make money with advertising, we should also get a share for the producers and the authors.”

Looking ahead, Film & Picture is focusing on new international growth opportunities. Hébrard pointed to Africa and Turkey as emerging markets for French drama, alongside maintaining strong relationships in Germany, Spain, Italy, the U.S., French-speaking territories, and Central and Eastern Europe. She also celebrated growing success in Asia: “I’m really pleased we sell to Japan and Southeast Asia because these are not evident markets for French drama, but they buy some and we’re pretty happy with the results.”