Shayna Waldman and François-Xavier Arguillère
The ATS Team's program slate is well-known for challenge and adventure formats, but the company has been growing in recent years and expanding its global offer. Their catalog now includes one true crime docuseries, a hybrid dating game-show, and a female-focused comedy panel show. "We like to stay true to what we're known for, but we don't want to miss out on any opportunities," said Shayna Waldman, Development and Production Executive at the company.
Strong IPs such as "Ninja Warrior," "Top Dog," and "Million Dollar Fail" allowed The ATS Team to cross borders, produce, and offer production services in many regions. "'Top Dog' has been very successful in Germany for the third year, which means that it should be going global now," commented François-Xavier Arguillère, Head of Production. "We can bring our expertise regarding this show that we've been producing for three years anywhere in the world," he added.
While many countries can't afford the production of large formats, The ATS Team is pushing the idea of creating production hubs in different regions of the world. "We are much aware of the economic situation in each country, so we tried very hard to sell the idea of the hub," Arguillère stated. The executive mentioned that Latin America is a very attractive place to start a hub, and the company is also pushing the initiative in Europe. "One strong example is 'Ninja Warrior,' a big and expensive show, so many smaller countries cannot afford it. We try to bring, for instance, a European hub to Brussels, where we could work with countries from around Europe," he explained.
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Last year, The ATS Team launched its original content production arm, ATS Originals, and its entire production services arm, ATS Productions. "They've all grown; we've done a good job of meshing them together because they all work organically with each other," Waldman said.
Whereas ATS Originals is focused on creating original, non-scripted formats for networks and broadcasters worldwide, the ATS Productions division handles every stage of the upcoming projects, from casting and pre-production to post-production. "We're able to offer something to the table, whether it is creative development, international set up of the production, set design, or even problem-solving for game mechanics or stunts," Waldman said.
Recently, The ATS Team has led the line production of "The Bridge" alongside Workerbee and two seasons of "SAS: Who Dares Wins" from Minnow Films, both in Vietnam. "We have many connections in Asia; it is an attractive market for us. We are continuing to grow our relationships down there and especially understand its climate and culture," Waldman stated. In that direction, Europe and Latin America are attractive markets for The ATS Team. Danny Sanz was promoted to COO of the company and oversees The ATS Team's international expansion, explicitly prioritizing the US, Europe, and Latin America production markets.
By Romina Rodríguez and Karla Flores