France tv distribution arrives at MIP Cancun with three big drama blocks

France tv Distribution is a multi-genre distributor but is participating at MIP Cancun with a focus on its three drama block: Light crime shows; young adult shows, and big and ambitious miniseries. "First of all we are interested in strong and character driven stories", stated Julia Schulte, SVP International Sales of the company to Señal News. Currently, the company is boosting light crime shows as “Captain Marleau” (31x90') or “Bright Minds,” that it's coming into the fourth season and tells the story of the commander Raphaëlle Coste and the brilliant but unsettling young Astrid who is autistic and, the two realize that their perfectly complementary skills are the key to solving criminal cases, despite or even because of their differences.

This series is one of the typical examples of the successful light crime shows in France, it reached around 5 – 6 million viewers each episode", pointed out Schulte. The executive also affirmed that light crime are travel a lot into different European countries, but also international markets. "For example, 'Bright Minds' was one of the very big successes in Japan, first of all on Sony's AXN Channel, for this reason the series was then programmed on NHK international drama slot, which is great news for us," she said.

France tv Distribution has also a slot of young adult shows, which are much more niche and are often broadcasted on France TV digital platform Slash. Some of them are the comedy “Derby Girl” (two seasons) or the drama “Stalk” (two seasons) that have been sold to Warner Media for HBO Max in Latin America. Another young adult show is the drama "About Sasha” (10x26') that was picked up by Disney+ for EMEA markets, and it's about an intersex person who decides to live as a girl, when she was born as a boy. "It's a very touching story about the characters' personal life, about friendships, about falling in love, and all the complications that goes along with it", Schulte explained.

The SVP International Sales of France tv Distribution also mentioned the musical series "Sisters" (10x20'), about a homosexual couple and the sister of one of them who starts defending her brother and the acquisition of the comedy “The Aerobics Project” (10x26'), produced for OCS Orange in France and is an offbeat pop show about female empowerment and spies. "There is a high demand for the young adult shows around the globe", added the executive. "We have had very big successes with these series that have strong and new concepts and appeal to international audiences", she expressed.

France tv Distribution also released some outstanding event shows with important budgets; that aim global broadcasters and platforms. One example is the near future and crime drama “Vortex” (6x52'). Ludovic is the police captain for the French city of Brest. Twenty-seven years prior, he lost the love of his life, Mélanie, in what looked like a tragic mundane accident. But while studying a reconstructed VR crime scene, he stumbles upon a time warp that turns his life upside down: thanks to a glitch, he’s able to communicate with Mélanie, just a few days before her death, in 1998.

Another important title, “The King’s Favorite”, historical series. This high-end period drama directed by Josée Dayan boasts an exceptional cast: Isabelle Adjani, Hugo Becker, Samuel Labarthe, Virginie Ledoyen, Gaia Girace, Gérard Depardieu, Olivier Gourmet, Jeanne Balibar, Joeystarr, Julie Depardieu, Guillaume Galienne. For more than twenty years, Diane de Poitiers was King Henri II’s favorite. Despite her strong character and her legendary beauty, Diane is just another courtesan and her position remains fragile. And Henri’s upcoming marriage to Catherine de Medici may jeopardize her dreams of domination. Diane will do anything to maintain her influence. But can her passion with Henri, twenty years younger than her, which is key to her power, really last forever?. “Concerning ambitious productions like ‘Kings Favorite’ or ‘Vortex’, we are working hand in hand with the producer to help to close the budget gaps early stage and to find financing partners, like the global streamers, or regional broadcasters and platforms”, she added.