The BFI has upped Melanie Hoyes to Director of Inclusion.
Hoyes joined the BFI in 2016 to lead the Black Star season. Developing a new data methodology, she was able to map historic ethnic diversity in onscreen representation in UK films. Hoyes then joined the BFI’s Inclusion Team, becoming Head of Inclusion in 2022.
While at the BFI, Hoyes has led efforts to modernize the BFI Diversity Standards, which have been adopted by both BAFTA and AMPAS. The BFI said Hoyes has also developed a series of programs that have opened up opportunities for Black and global majority filmmakers to build their careers in the UK and internationally, championed the organization’s ongoing anti-racism work, and refocused how the inclusion team supports colleagues and activity across the organization.
Alongside her work at the BFI, Hoyes also sits on various Boards and committees (Ewa and The Film and Television Charity’s Inclusivity...
Hoyes joined the BFI in 2016 to lead the Black Star season. Developing a new data methodology, she was able to map historic ethnic diversity in onscreen representation in UK films. Hoyes then joined the BFI’s Inclusion Team, becoming Head of Inclusion in 2022.
While at the BFI, Hoyes has led efforts to modernize the BFI Diversity Standards, which have been adopted by both BAFTA and AMPAS. The BFI said Hoyes has also developed a series of programs that have opened up opportunities for Black and global majority filmmakers to build their careers in the UK and internationally, championed the organization’s ongoing anti-racism work, and refocused how the inclusion team supports colleagues and activity across the organization.
Alongside her work at the BFI, Hoyes also sits on various Boards and committees (Ewa and The Film and Television Charity’s Inclusivity...
- 3/28/2024
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
The AppleTV+ exec is emerging as the frontrunner to take over from Tim Richards.
Jay Hunt is the name doing the industry rounds as the frontrunner to succeed Tim Richards as the next chair of the British Film Institute (BFI).
Screen understands that Hunt, Apple TV+’s creative director for Europe, is in pole position to replace Vue CEO Richards when he steps down next year.
The BFI chair is appointed by the UK government’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Dcms) and ratified by culture secretary Lucy Frazer. Interviews are understood to have taken place in November, with...
Jay Hunt is the name doing the industry rounds as the frontrunner to succeed Tim Richards as the next chair of the British Film Institute (BFI).
Screen understands that Hunt, Apple TV+’s creative director for Europe, is in pole position to replace Vue CEO Richards when he steps down next year.
The BFI chair is appointed by the UK government’s Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Dcms) and ratified by culture secretary Lucy Frazer. Interviews are understood to have taken place in November, with...
- 12/15/2023
- by Mona Tabbara
- ScreenDaily
Apple TV+ Europe boss Jay Hunt, who has commissioned the likes of Slow Horses, Bad Sisters and Tiny World, is being lined up as the next chair of the BFI, according to a Sky News report.
Sky News said UK TV veteran Hunt is frontrunner of three candidates vying to succeed Tim Richards.
The UK’s Culture, Media & Sport (Cms) department, which appoints BFI Chairs, will likely make the decision over the next few weeks, with Richards’ replacement set to be announced in the spring. The deadline for applications was in September and interviews took place last month. The Cms decides on a number of crucial media industry Chair roles including at the BBC and Ofcom.
The role takes around two part time days of work per month and, like Vue CEO Richards, Hunt could continue working for Apple were she to take it on. The job description called for...
Sky News said UK TV veteran Hunt is frontrunner of three candidates vying to succeed Tim Richards.
The UK’s Culture, Media & Sport (Cms) department, which appoints BFI Chairs, will likely make the decision over the next few weeks, with Richards’ replacement set to be announced in the spring. The deadline for applications was in September and interviews took place last month. The Cms decides on a number of crucial media industry Chair roles including at the BBC and Ofcom.
The role takes around two part time days of work per month and, like Vue CEO Richards, Hunt could continue working for Apple were she to take it on. The job description called for...
- 12/15/2023
- by Max Goldbart
- Deadline Film + TV
After a dearth of new releases worth discussing in the few months since Barbenheimer, it’s been refreshing to see the response to Martin Scorsese’s epic Killers of the Flower Moon as it enters a wide release. While we’ll have our own extensive discussion coming soon on The Film Stage Show, the director himself has now provided some welcome homework as he’s highlighted six key films to watch that influenced the making of his David Grann adaptation.
Courtesy of TCM and Letterboxd, the director has joined the latter platform and provided nearly 60 companion films that he studied in preparation for making all of his features. While that entire list is well worth checking out, particularly the accompanying notes the director has provided, we’re keying in on the influences for Killers of the Flower Moon. Find the list below, including where to watch each film, as well as Scorsese’s full commentary.
Courtesy of TCM and Letterboxd, the director has joined the latter platform and provided nearly 60 companion films that he studied in preparation for making all of his features. While that entire list is well worth checking out, particularly the accompanying notes the director has provided, we’re keying in on the influences for Killers of the Flower Moon. Find the list below, including where to watch each film, as well as Scorsese’s full commentary.
- 10/27/2023
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Apple TV+ has greenlit its first project out of Germany.
Darkly comic TV series Where’s Wanda? answers the question of how far a person would go to save their child. Produced by Fremantle-backed Moonage Daydream-maker UFA Fiction, Where’s Wanda? tells the story of Dedo (Axel Stein) and Carlotta Klatt (Heike Makatsch), who are desperate to locate their missing daughter months after her disappearance. When the police fail to find her, they take matters into their own hands and discover that behind closed doors, none of their neighbors are who they pretend to be.
Where’s Wanda features an ensemble German cast including multiple award-winning actress Lea Drinda (The Gryphon), newcomer Leo Simon, presenter and actress Palina Rojinski (Welcome to Germany) and entrepreneur, actress and author Nikeata Thompson (How to Dad). It is directed by Christian Ditter (How to be Single) and Tobi Baumann (Faking Hitler) and written...
Darkly comic TV series Where’s Wanda? answers the question of how far a person would go to save their child. Produced by Fremantle-backed Moonage Daydream-maker UFA Fiction, Where’s Wanda? tells the story of Dedo (Axel Stein) and Carlotta Klatt (Heike Makatsch), who are desperate to locate their missing daughter months after her disappearance. When the police fail to find her, they take matters into their own hands and discover that behind closed doors, none of their neighbors are who they pretend to be.
Where’s Wanda features an ensemble German cast including multiple award-winning actress Lea Drinda (The Gryphon), newcomer Leo Simon, presenter and actress Palina Rojinski (Welcome to Germany) and entrepreneur, actress and author Nikeata Thompson (How to Dad). It is directed by Christian Ditter (How to be Single) and Tobi Baumann (Faking Hitler) and written...
- 9/7/2023
- by Max Goldbart
- Deadline Film + TV
Ben Frow, the man who has spent the past decade turning around the fortunes of Paramount-owned Channel 5, has labelled some shows on BBC One, BBC Two, ITV and Channel 4 “lazy,” “second-rate” and “mediocre.”
In a typically candid Royal Television Society Q&a session with Apple Europe Video boss Jay Hunt, who has run programing for BBC One, Channel 4 and Channel 5 in the past, Frow urged the UK’s Public Service Broadcasters to “ensure we do our very best to keep our viewers watching us” in the face of mega competition and rising budgets.
Including his own channel in this analysis, Frow said he “sometimes looks across the schedules and thinks ‘Is this the best we can really be?’.”
He went on to call some competitors’ shows “lazy,” “second-rate” and “mediocre” and said “99 out of 100 times I can tell when they won’t work.”
“Viewers aren’t stupid...
In a typically candid Royal Television Society Q&a session with Apple Europe Video boss Jay Hunt, who has run programing for BBC One, Channel 4 and Channel 5 in the past, Frow urged the UK’s Public Service Broadcasters to “ensure we do our very best to keep our viewers watching us” in the face of mega competition and rising budgets.
Including his own channel in this analysis, Frow said he “sometimes looks across the schedules and thinks ‘Is this the best we can really be?’.”
He went on to call some competitors’ shows “lazy,” “second-rate” and “mediocre” and said “99 out of 100 times I can tell when they won’t work.”
“Viewers aren’t stupid...
- 6/8/2022
- by Max Goldbart
- Deadline Film + TV
British TV executive Jay Hunt was once a formidable voice in the chorus of the U.K. TV industry. But since departing as Channel 4’s chief creative officer in 2017 to join Apple TV+ as its European originals chief, her voice, at least publicly, is seldom — if ever — heard.
It’s this sad reality, that one of the U.K.’s most brilliant thought leaders should be locked away under strict Apple media protocols, that was put in sharp relief on Tuesday evening during a rare public appearance by Hunt, who interviewed another mad genius, Channel 5 boss Ben Frow, as part of a Royal Television Society event in London.
Hunt, who once eviscerated then Vice Media boss Shane Smith during their 2016 interview at the Edinburgh TV Festival, seemed to recognize the unique nature of her circumstance, telling the audience of around 80 people at Fitzrovia’s Cavendish Convention Centre that...
It’s this sad reality, that one of the U.K.’s most brilliant thought leaders should be locked away under strict Apple media protocols, that was put in sharp relief on Tuesday evening during a rare public appearance by Hunt, who interviewed another mad genius, Channel 5 boss Ben Frow, as part of a Royal Television Society event in London.
Hunt, who once eviscerated then Vice Media boss Shane Smith during their 2016 interview at the Edinburgh TV Festival, seemed to recognize the unique nature of her circumstance, telling the audience of around 80 people at Fitzrovia’s Cavendish Convention Centre that...
- 6/7/2022
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
The Apple drama series “The Essex Serpent” has added four actors to its cast.
Frank Dillane, Hayley Squires, Clémence Poésy, and Jamael Westman will join series leads Claire Danes and Tom Hiddleston in the show, which is an adaptation of the Sarah Perry novel of the same name.
The one-hour drama series follows newly widowed Cora (Danes) who, having being released from an abusive marriage, relocates from Victorian London to the small village of Aldwinter in Essex, intrigued by a local superstition that a mythical creature known as the Essex Serpent has returned to the area. Hiddleston will star as Will Ransome, the trusted leader of a small rural community.
Dillane will play Luke Garrett, a pioneering young surgeon. Some call him a genius, others a liability. He’s headstrong and ambitious, and he meets his intellectual match in Cora.
Squires will star as Martha. More than just a servant in Cora’s household,...
Frank Dillane, Hayley Squires, Clémence Poésy, and Jamael Westman will join series leads Claire Danes and Tom Hiddleston in the show, which is an adaptation of the Sarah Perry novel of the same name.
The one-hour drama series follows newly widowed Cora (Danes) who, having being released from an abusive marriage, relocates from Victorian London to the small village of Aldwinter in Essex, intrigued by a local superstition that a mythical creature known as the Essex Serpent has returned to the area. Hiddleston will star as Will Ransome, the trusted leader of a small rural community.
Dillane will play Luke Garrett, a pioneering young surgeon. Some call him a genius, others a liability. He’s headstrong and ambitious, and he meets his intellectual match in Cora.
Squires will star as Martha. More than just a servant in Cora’s household,...
- 4/7/2021
- by Joe Otterson
- Variety Film + TV
Former Spotify exec Erika Clarke and ex-Lifetime exec Colleen Grogan have joined Apple TV+ as the streamer ramps up its non-scripted efforts.
The two hires are the first U.S.-based unscripted executives hired by Molly Thompson since the A& IndieFilms founder Molly Thompson joined as Head of Documentaries and Unscripted in 2019.
Both join as Unscripted Creative Executives reporting to Thompson.
Clarke, who joined in January, was previously exec producer at Spotify Studios, where she co-ran the company’s podcast studio division. Before that, she spent ten years at MTV, part of the team behind Cribs, and was also a producer and director of shows such as The Real Housewives of New Jersey, Travel Channel’s Follow Your Past and CNN Heroes. She was also nominated for an Emmy for her work on White People, a documentary for MTV’s Look Different strand. She will be based in LA.
Grogan,...
The two hires are the first U.S.-based unscripted executives hired by Molly Thompson since the A& IndieFilms founder Molly Thompson joined as Head of Documentaries and Unscripted in 2019.
Both join as Unscripted Creative Executives reporting to Thompson.
Clarke, who joined in January, was previously exec producer at Spotify Studios, where she co-ran the company’s podcast studio division. Before that, she spent ten years at MTV, part of the team behind Cribs, and was also a producer and director of shows such as The Real Housewives of New Jersey, Travel Channel’s Follow Your Past and CNN Heroes. She was also nominated for an Emmy for her work on White People, a documentary for MTV’s Look Different strand. She will be based in LA.
Grogan,...
- 4/5/2021
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Green Door will produce features and series for Apple TV+.
Apple has struck a first-look deal with UK actor and producer Idris Elba.
Under the agreement, the Luther star will produce series and feature films for SVoD service Apple TV+ through his independent company Green Door Pictures.
Apple has struck several such agreements as it competes with the likes of Amazon, HBO Max and Netflix. It has been keen on British talent, signing an exclusive deal with Sharon Horgan in December 2019 and another with Us-based filmmaker Simon Kinberg earlier in the year.
It recently hired BBC docs chief Alison Kirkham...
Apple has struck a first-look deal with UK actor and producer Idris Elba.
Under the agreement, the Luther star will produce series and feature films for SVoD service Apple TV+ through his independent company Green Door Pictures.
Apple has struck several such agreements as it competes with the likes of Amazon, HBO Max and Netflix. It has been keen on British talent, signing an exclusive deal with Sharon Horgan in December 2019 and another with Us-based filmmaker Simon Kinberg earlier in the year.
It recently hired BBC docs chief Alison Kirkham...
- 7/13/2020
- by 1101334¦Jesse Whittock Broadcast¦0¦
- ScreenDaily
Idris Elba and his Green Door Pictures production company have signed a first-look deal at Apple, Variety has learned. Under the deal, Elba and Green Door will produce both series and features for Apple’s streaming platform, Apple TV Plus.
Elba is an actor, producer, director, and musician. He is known for his starring roles in films like “Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw,” “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom,” “Beasts of No Nation,” and multiple films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the character Heimdall. He also starred in the critically-acclaimed BBC series “Luther,” which earned him a Golden Globe Award and multiple Emmy nominations, as well as HBO’s “The Wire.”
Elba founded Green Door in 2013. The company’s credits include the comedy “In The Long Run,” created by and featuring Elba as part of an ensemble cast. The company also produced Elba’s Netflix comedy series “Turn Up Charlie.
Elba is an actor, producer, director, and musician. He is known for his starring roles in films like “Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw,” “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom,” “Beasts of No Nation,” and multiple films in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the character Heimdall. He also starred in the critically-acclaimed BBC series “Luther,” which earned him a Golden Globe Award and multiple Emmy nominations, as well as HBO’s “The Wire.”
Elba founded Green Door in 2013. The company’s credits include the comedy “In The Long Run,” created by and featuring Elba as part of an ensemble cast. The company also produced Elba’s Netflix comedy series “Turn Up Charlie.
- 7/13/2020
- by Joe Otterson
- Variety Film + TV
Luther star Idris Elba will produce series and films for Apple TV+ after striking a first-look deal with the streaming service.
The actor and producer will produce global series and features for the service via his Green Door Pictures production company.
Elba, who broke through as Stringer Bell in The Wire, has been ramping up his production activities in recent years. He recently completed production on Ricky Staub’s Concrete Cowboy, for which he and Green Door serve as executive producers, and produced comedy In The Long Run, which he created and stars in, for Sky as well as Elba vs Block for Quibi.
Green Door and Elba also produced, in association with Brown Eyed Boy, DJ comedy Turn Up Charlie, which was recently canceled at Netflix.
Recent on-screen turns include Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, Avengers: Infinity War and Molly’s Game and he will be in Suicide Squad 2.
The actor and producer will produce global series and features for the service via his Green Door Pictures production company.
Elba, who broke through as Stringer Bell in The Wire, has been ramping up his production activities in recent years. He recently completed production on Ricky Staub’s Concrete Cowboy, for which he and Green Door serve as executive producers, and produced comedy In The Long Run, which he created and stars in, for Sky as well as Elba vs Block for Quibi.
Green Door and Elba also produced, in association with Brown Eyed Boy, DJ comedy Turn Up Charlie, which was recently canceled at Netflix.
Recent on-screen turns include Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, Avengers: Infinity War and Molly’s Game and he will be in Suicide Squad 2.
- 7/13/2020
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: BBC Studios CEO Tim Davie is increasingly being talked about as the candidate to beat in the race to replace Tony Hall as director general of the BBC.
Deadline has spoken to several sources familiar with the recruitment process and a consensus is emerging around Davie as the frontrunner, even though the BBC is some way off crowning a successor to Hall.
Deadline hears that BBC chairman Sir David Clementi is yet to begin formal interviews for the role, but sources say the field of candidates has narrowed further in recent days and Davie is confident in his credentials.
Three other...
Deadline has spoken to several sources familiar with the recruitment process and a consensus is emerging around Davie as the frontrunner, even though the BBC is some way off crowning a successor to Hall.
Deadline hears that BBC chairman Sir David Clementi is yet to begin formal interviews for the role, but sources say the field of candidates has narrowed further in recent days and Davie is confident in his credentials.
Three other...
- 4/9/2020
- by Jake Kanter
- Deadline Film + TV
Apple has ordered a new drama series, titled ‘Suspicion’, starring Academy Award-nominated actress Uma Thurman.
The series is said to be a high-paced thriller about the kidnapping of the son of a prominent American businesswoman, played by Uma Thurman. Twenty-one-year-old Leo’s abduction from a large, upmarket hotel in central New York is captured on video and goes viral. Swiftly, four British citizens staying at the hotel become the prime suspects. But are they guilty of any more than being in the wrong place at the wrong time?
The series is directed by Golden Globe-winner Chris Long and will also star Kunal Nayyar (The Big Bang Theory), Noah Emmerich (The Americans), Georgina Campbell (Black Mirror), Elyes Gabel (Scorpion), Elizabeth Henstridge (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) and Angel Coulby (Dancing On The Edge).
Also in news – Woody Harrelson replaces Jason Statham in The Man from Toronto
Darin McLeod will produce while Rob Williams serves as showrunner.
The series is said to be a high-paced thriller about the kidnapping of the son of a prominent American businesswoman, played by Uma Thurman. Twenty-one-year-old Leo’s abduction from a large, upmarket hotel in central New York is captured on video and goes viral. Swiftly, four British citizens staying at the hotel become the prime suspects. But are they guilty of any more than being in the wrong place at the wrong time?
The series is directed by Golden Globe-winner Chris Long and will also star Kunal Nayyar (The Big Bang Theory), Noah Emmerich (The Americans), Georgina Campbell (Black Mirror), Elyes Gabel (Scorpion), Elizabeth Henstridge (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) and Angel Coulby (Dancing On The Edge).
Also in news – Woody Harrelson replaces Jason Statham in The Man from Toronto
Darin McLeod will produce while Rob Williams serves as showrunner.
- 3/12/2020
- by Zehra Phelan
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
The series is an adaptation of 2015 Israeli title ‘False Flag’.
Uma Thurman is set to star in Suspicion, a UK thriller series remake from Apple’s UK-based production division Keshet Productions.
Apple’s creative director for Europe worldwide video Jay Hunt has ordered the series, an adaptation of 2015 Israeli title False Flag.
The high-paced thriller centres on the kidnapping of the son of a prominent Us businesswoman (Thurman), with four possibly-innocent British citizens as the prime suspects.
Black Mirror’s Georgia Campbell will also star, with The Man In The High Castle writer Rob Williams as showrunner.
Golden Globe-winning The...
Uma Thurman is set to star in Suspicion, a UK thriller series remake from Apple’s UK-based production division Keshet Productions.
Apple’s creative director for Europe worldwide video Jay Hunt has ordered the series, an adaptation of 2015 Israeli title False Flag.
The high-paced thriller centres on the kidnapping of the son of a prominent Us businesswoman (Thurman), with four possibly-innocent British citizens as the prime suspects.
Black Mirror’s Georgia Campbell will also star, with The Man In The High Castle writer Rob Williams as showrunner.
Golden Globe-winning The...
- 3/11/2020
- by 1101315¦Max Goldbart Broadcast¦0¦¬1101321¦Ben Dalton¦26¦
- ScreenDaily
The door slams shut today on applications for one of the biggest jobs in global broadcasting: running the BBC. Resumes have been dusted off and the BBC’s headhunters have been courting interest as the corporation seeks to replace Tony Hall as director general after he announced his departure in January.
It’s not been the most electrifying of races to date, with a number of industry insiders observing that the recruitment process has been quiet. There have been no shock candidates, no big pitches for the job. But that could all change in an instant as the BBC chairman Sir David Clementi edges closer to a decision.
Hall’s successor faces a gargantuan task. The to-do list includes, but is not limited to: Grappling with a government that seems determined to undermine the BBC’s funding, slashing costs, securing the success of commercial arm BBC Studios, cleaning up a rumbling equal pay dispute,...
It’s not been the most electrifying of races to date, with a number of industry insiders observing that the recruitment process has been quiet. There have been no shock candidates, no big pitches for the job. But that could all change in an instant as the BBC chairman Sir David Clementi edges closer to a decision.
Hall’s successor faces a gargantuan task. The to-do list includes, but is not limited to: Grappling with a government that seems determined to undermine the BBC’s funding, slashing costs, securing the success of commercial arm BBC Studios, cleaning up a rumbling equal pay dispute,...
- 3/11/2020
- by Jake Kanter
- Deadline Film + TV
Exclusive: Uma Thurman is to star in a remake of Israeli drama False Flag for AppleTV+.
The Kill Bill and Pulp Fiction star will front Suspicion, a high-paced thriller about the kidnapping of the son of a prominent American businesswoman, played by Thurman.
Twenty-one year-old Leo’s abduction from a large, upmarket hotel in central New York is captured on video and goes viral. Swiftly, four British citizens staying at the hotel become the prime suspects. But are they guilty of anymore than being in the wrong place at the wrong time?
Thurman, whose last TV role was in Netflix supernatural series Chambers, is joined in the series by Kunal Nayyar (The Big Bang Theory), Noah Emmerich (The Americans), Georgina Campbell (Black Mirror), Elyes Gabel (Scorpion), Elizabeth Henstridge (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) and Angel Coulby (Dancing On The Edge).
The series is produced by Keshet Productions, the UK-based arm of the Israeli broadcaster,...
The Kill Bill and Pulp Fiction star will front Suspicion, a high-paced thriller about the kidnapping of the son of a prominent American businesswoman, played by Thurman.
Twenty-one year-old Leo’s abduction from a large, upmarket hotel in central New York is captured on video and goes viral. Swiftly, four British citizens staying at the hotel become the prime suspects. But are they guilty of anymore than being in the wrong place at the wrong time?
Thurman, whose last TV role was in Netflix supernatural series Chambers, is joined in the series by Kunal Nayyar (The Big Bang Theory), Noah Emmerich (The Americans), Georgina Campbell (Black Mirror), Elyes Gabel (Scorpion), Elizabeth Henstridge (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) and Angel Coulby (Dancing On The Edge).
The series is produced by Keshet Productions, the UK-based arm of the Israeli broadcaster,...
- 3/11/2020
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Apple has officially unveiled its first British scripted original, a relationship comedy starring Harry Potter’s Imelda Staunton and Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom’s Rafe Spall.
The Svod service is set to globally premiere the eight-part series on Friday May 1.
The half-hour comedy has been rumored in the UK for over six months and has regularly been referred to by its working title of Alabama.
Spall plays Jason, while Cuckoo star Esther Smith, best known for starring in the Harry Potter and the Cursed Child play, stars as his partner Nikki. The pair want a baby. But it’s the one thing they just can’t have. Staunton also stars in the series, which was written by new writer Andy Wolton, whose credits include animated series The Amazing World of Gumball and Channel 4’s Lookalikes.
It is produced by BBC Studios, which has previously produced The Office and The Thick Of It...
The Svod service is set to globally premiere the eight-part series on Friday May 1.
The half-hour comedy has been rumored in the UK for over six months and has regularly been referred to by its working title of Alabama.
Spall plays Jason, while Cuckoo star Esther Smith, best known for starring in the Harry Potter and the Cursed Child play, stars as his partner Nikki. The pair want a baby. But it’s the one thing they just can’t have. Staunton also stars in the series, which was written by new writer Andy Wolton, whose credits include animated series The Amazing World of Gumball and Channel 4’s Lookalikes.
It is produced by BBC Studios, which has previously produced The Office and The Thick Of It...
- 1/19/2020
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Several shows announced at TCA tour in Los Angeles.
Apple TV+ has given a title and premiere date to the Rafe Spall relationship comedy series it commissioned last year from BBC Studios.
Trying, in which Spall and Esther Smith playing a young couple attempting to have a baby, will debut worldwide – in its entirety – on Apple TV+ on May 1, marking the first appearance of an original series from the UK on the tech giant’s fledgling streaming service. The eight half-hour episodes also star Imelda Staunton and were written by Andy Wolton.
The comedy was first revealed last spring as...
Apple TV+ has given a title and premiere date to the Rafe Spall relationship comedy series it commissioned last year from BBC Studios.
Trying, in which Spall and Esther Smith playing a young couple attempting to have a baby, will debut worldwide – in its entirety – on Apple TV+ on May 1, marking the first appearance of an original series from the UK on the tech giant’s fledgling streaming service. The eight half-hour episodes also star Imelda Staunton and were written by Andy Wolton.
The comedy was first revealed last spring as...
- 1/19/2020
- by 31¦John Hazelton¦0¦
- ScreenDaily
“Catastrophe” creator Sharon Horgan is getting into business with Apple. The actor and writer has inked an exclusive first-look deal with the company, which replaces one she previously had with Amazon and which has lapsed.
Horgan is in demand, having been behind “Catastrophe” and “Divorce,” among other shows. She also starred in “Catastrophe” with Rob Delaney, and her on-screen credits include “How to Build a Girl,” “Army Wives,” and “Women on the Verge.” She will be in the upcoming film adaptation of “Everybody’s Talking About Jamie.”
Multi-hyphenate Horgan also has a BAFTA Award-winning production company, Merman, which she runs with Clelia Mountford. The firm recently inked a development deal with Sky’s new content unit, Sky Studios. That agreement sits outside of the Apple first-look deal. Merman’s shows include “Motherland,” a comedy series about a fraught mum and her social circle, which has fared well on the BBC in the U.
Horgan is in demand, having been behind “Catastrophe” and “Divorce,” among other shows. She also starred in “Catastrophe” with Rob Delaney, and her on-screen credits include “How to Build a Girl,” “Army Wives,” and “Women on the Verge.” She will be in the upcoming film adaptation of “Everybody’s Talking About Jamie.”
Multi-hyphenate Horgan also has a BAFTA Award-winning production company, Merman, which she runs with Clelia Mountford. The firm recently inked a development deal with Sky’s new content unit, Sky Studios. That agreement sits outside of the Apple first-look deal. Merman’s shows include “Motherland,” a comedy series about a fraught mum and her social circle, which has fared well on the BBC in the U.
- 12/19/2019
- by Stewart Clarke
- Variety Film + TV
Catastrophe creator and star Sharon Horgan is headed to Apple.
The multihyphenate has signed an exclusive first-look deal with the tech giant. Any future projects she creates will get a first look at the iPhone maker's Apple TV+ streaming platform. She's moving from another huge tech company with a streaming service, Amazon, where Catastrophe had its streaming home.
Horgan's deal with Apple reunites her with Jay Hunt, Apple's creative director in Europe who first commissioned Catastrophe for Channel 4 in the U.K.
Horgan's company, Merman, has a separate deal with Sky in the U.K. that includes a ...
The multihyphenate has signed an exclusive first-look deal with the tech giant. Any future projects she creates will get a first look at the iPhone maker's Apple TV+ streaming platform. She's moving from another huge tech company with a streaming service, Amazon, where Catastrophe had its streaming home.
Horgan's deal with Apple reunites her with Jay Hunt, Apple's creative director in Europe who first commissioned Catastrophe for Channel 4 in the U.K.
Horgan's company, Merman, has a separate deal with Sky in the U.K. that includes a ...
- 12/19/2019
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
At the BBC’s Christmas drinks earlier this month, I gatecrashed an animated conversation between two senior figures from the UK production sector. After a sheepish glance at each other, they revealed that the subject of their discussion was a certain Ian Katz, the director of programs at Channel 4. They are far from alone. Sit down with producers, commissioners, or current and former Channel 4 employees and you can play a game I call the Katz countdown: how long does it take before his name is mentioned?
There are two reasons for this phenomenon. The first, and more routine reason, is a matter of history. Channel 4 was the clever creation of former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher in 1982. It was established with a remit to take unparalleled creative risks and foster growth in the UK production sector by only commissioning independent producers. This means Channel 4 has a unique place in...
There are two reasons for this phenomenon. The first, and more routine reason, is a matter of history. Channel 4 was the clever creation of former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher in 1982. It was established with a remit to take unparalleled creative risks and foster growth in the UK production sector by only commissioning independent producers. This means Channel 4 has a unique place in...
- 12/17/2019
- by Jake Kanter
- Deadline Film + TV
The way that high-end drama is produced in the UK, including on shows such as The Crown and Game of Thrones, is set to change after the British Parliament made a number of recommendations in a wide-ranging review of the television business.
The House of Lords, the upper chamber of the British Parliament, has recommended changes to high-end TV tax relief, which subsidises big-budget dramas filmed in the UK as part of a review on public service broadcasting from its Select Committee on Communications and Digital.
The committee has also made a number of recommendations about the terms of trade – the framework that allows British producers to keep hold of IP and rights – and listed sports rights but has avoided plans to introduce a levy on global Svod services including Amazon, Apple and Netflix operating in the UK.
The committee’s report – Public Service Broadcasting: As Vital As Ever...
The House of Lords, the upper chamber of the British Parliament, has recommended changes to high-end TV tax relief, which subsidises big-budget dramas filmed in the UK as part of a review on public service broadcasting from its Select Committee on Communications and Digital.
The committee has also made a number of recommendations about the terms of trade – the framework that allows British producers to keep hold of IP and rights – and listed sports rights but has avoided plans to introduce a levy on global Svod services including Amazon, Apple and Netflix operating in the UK.
The committee’s report – Public Service Broadcasting: As Vital As Ever...
- 11/5/2019
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Programming chief has discussed an ‘array’ of funding models with producers and broadcasters.
Apple is open to striking co-production deals for original content, accordint to Jay Hunt.
Speaking in the House of Lords yesterday, Apple’s creative director, Europe worldwide video said she has spent the past 18 months talking to indies and broadcasters about an array of different rights models, including co-pros.
“We are not averse to co-productions at all,” she told the inquiry into safeguarding the PSBs (public service broadcasters).
“The priority is to find innovative content and I’ve been struck by the openness of producers to discuss an array of models.
Apple is open to striking co-production deals for original content, accordint to Jay Hunt.
Speaking in the House of Lords yesterday, Apple’s creative director, Europe worldwide video said she has spent the past 18 months talking to indies and broadcasters about an array of different rights models, including co-pros.
“We are not averse to co-productions at all,” she told the inquiry into safeguarding the PSBs (public service broadcasters).
“The priority is to find innovative content and I’ve been struck by the openness of producers to discuss an array of models.
- 6/26/2019
- by Max Goldbart Broadcast
- ScreenDaily
"The Jungle Book" director Jon Favreau will produce a dinosaur documentary series for Apple.
Favreau has teamed up with BBC Studios' Natural History Unit on "Prehistoric Planet", which will use CGI to tell the story of the last days of the dinosaurs 66 million years ago, reports deadline.com.
The Natural History Unit is the division behind "Planet Earth" and "Blue Planet".
The upcoming series will be executive produced by Favreau and "Planet Earth II" executive producer Mike Gunton with series producer Tim Walker and Andrew R. Jones.
It comes as Favreau is writing and executive producing "The Mandalorian", the first live-action "Star Wars" television series for Disney+.
It is the latest big-budget natural history deal for BBC Studios. The series has been ordered by Jay Hunt, Apple's Creative Director, Europe, Worldwide Video.
-By Ians...
Favreau has teamed up with BBC Studios' Natural History Unit on "Prehistoric Planet", which will use CGI to tell the story of the last days of the dinosaurs 66 million years ago, reports deadline.com.
The Natural History Unit is the division behind "Planet Earth" and "Blue Planet".
The upcoming series will be executive produced by Favreau and "Planet Earth II" executive producer Mike Gunton with series producer Tim Walker and Andrew R. Jones.
It comes as Favreau is writing and executive producing "The Mandalorian", the first live-action "Star Wars" television series for Disney+.
It is the latest big-budget natural history deal for BBC Studios. The series has been ordered by Jay Hunt, Apple's Creative Director, Europe, Worldwide Video.
-By Ians...
- 5/8/2019
- GlamSham
Apple has greenlit “Prehistoric Planet,” a natural-history series that will use CGI to recreate the last days of the dinosaurs. Jon Favreau and “Planet Earth II” producer Mike Gunton are teaming on the series for Apple’s soon-to-launch streaming service. It will be produced by BBC Studios’ Natural History Unit.
Confirming the series order, BBC Studios said the show will use “breathtaking CGI to take us back to the last days of the dinosaurs, experiencing the unique wonders of planet Earth 66 million years ago.”
Double Academy Award winner Andrew R. Jones (“Avatar”) is also on the production team, as is producer Tim Walker.
The big-ticket natural history order comes after Apple unveiled a starry slate for its upcoming Apple TV Plus streaming service, which launches this fall. News of its international plans, however, has been thin on the ground. Former Channel 4 programming boss Jay Hunt is spearheading the international lineup from London,...
Confirming the series order, BBC Studios said the show will use “breathtaking CGI to take us back to the last days of the dinosaurs, experiencing the unique wonders of planet Earth 66 million years ago.”
Double Academy Award winner Andrew R. Jones (“Avatar”) is also on the production team, as is producer Tim Walker.
The big-ticket natural history order comes after Apple unveiled a starry slate for its upcoming Apple TV Plus streaming service, which launches this fall. News of its international plans, however, has been thin on the ground. Former Channel 4 programming boss Jay Hunt is spearheading the international lineup from London,...
- 5/8/2019
- by Stewart Clarke
- Variety Film + TV
Iron Man and The Jungle Book director Jon Favreau is to produce a dinosaur documentary series for Apple.
Favreau has teamed up with BBC Studios’ Natural History Unit on Prehistoric Planet, which will use CGI to tell the story of the last days of the dinosaurs 66M years ago.
The Natural History Unit is the division behind Planet Earth and Blue Planet.
The series will be exec produced by Favreau and Planet Earth II exec producer Mike Gunton with series producer Tim Walker and Andrew R. Jones.
It comes as Favreau is writing and exec producing The Mandalorian, the first live-action Star Wars television series for Disney+.
It is the latest big-budget natural history deal for BBC Studios, which recently struck a long-term deal with Discovery.
The series has been ordered by Jay Hunt, Apple’s Creative Director, Europe, Worldwide Video.
Favreau has teamed up with BBC Studios’ Natural History Unit on Prehistoric Planet, which will use CGI to tell the story of the last days of the dinosaurs 66M years ago.
The Natural History Unit is the division behind Planet Earth and Blue Planet.
The series will be exec produced by Favreau and Planet Earth II exec producer Mike Gunton with series producer Tim Walker and Andrew R. Jones.
It comes as Favreau is writing and exec producing The Mandalorian, the first live-action Star Wars television series for Disney+.
It is the latest big-budget natural history deal for BBC Studios, which recently struck a long-term deal with Discovery.
The series has been ordered by Jay Hunt, Apple’s Creative Director, Europe, Worldwide Video.
- 5/8/2019
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Company is expected to unveil its long-awaited streaming service in California on March 25.
Tech giant Apple is expected to unveil its long-awaited streaming service at an event held at its Cupertino campus in California on March 25.
The company sent out a cryptic note yesterday stating “it’s showtime”, a message widely read as indicating that it will be the launch of the SVoD platform, for which Apple has been investing heavily in content over the last year.
TV on the slate to date include a reboot of Terry Gilliam’s Time Bandits, of which Taika Waititi will direct a pilot,...
Tech giant Apple is expected to unveil its long-awaited streaming service at an event held at its Cupertino campus in California on March 25.
The company sent out a cryptic note yesterday stating “it’s showtime”, a message widely read as indicating that it will be the launch of the SVoD platform, for which Apple has been investing heavily in content over the last year.
TV on the slate to date include a reboot of Terry Gilliam’s Time Bandits, of which Taika Waititi will direct a pilot,...
- 3/12/2019
- by Tom Grater
- ScreenDaily
Former Channel 4 content chief Ralph Lee has been appointed Director of Content at BBC Studios.
This comes after the production and distribution division of the British public broadcaster revealed last month that Chief Creative Officer Mark Linsey was handed a new role to oversee its portfolio of production company relationships.
Lee, who reports to BBC Studios CEO Tim Davie, will take up the new role in October, and will sit on BBC Studios’ Executive Committee.
He has spent the past 15 years in UK commissioning roles, principally at Channel 4, and the previous decade in a range of factual production roles. He was most recently interim Chief Creative Officer at C4, following the departure of Jay Hunt to Apple, and Deputy Cco.
Lee said, “I am thrilled to be joining BBC Studios at such a key point in its journey, off the back of its commercial debut and recent merger. With...
This comes after the production and distribution division of the British public broadcaster revealed last month that Chief Creative Officer Mark Linsey was handed a new role to oversee its portfolio of production company relationships.
Lee, who reports to BBC Studios CEO Tim Davie, will take up the new role in October, and will sit on BBC Studios’ Executive Committee.
He has spent the past 15 years in UK commissioning roles, principally at Channel 4, and the previous decade in a range of factual production roles. He was most recently interim Chief Creative Officer at C4, following the departure of Jay Hunt to Apple, and Deputy Cco.
Lee said, “I am thrilled to be joining BBC Studios at such a key point in its journey, off the back of its commercial debut and recent merger. With...
- 8/9/2018
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
Netflix is sending executive Diego Bunuel to the U.K. to oversee original factual programming out of its soon-to-open new London office, part of the the streaming giant’s increased emphasis on localizing its lineup of shows. Bunuel, who will relocate from Los Angeles, will commission original documentaries for Europe.
Netflix makes most of its programming decisions from L.A., but is expected to install content executives in its regional bases as part of its ramped-up localization effort. Bunuel, who has been with Netflix for about three months, was previously head of factual producer Explorer and is a former head of documentary at French pay-tv operator Canal Plus. A Netflix spokesman confirmed that Bunuel would be based in the British capital as director of original documentaries.
Netflix will move into a new Central London headquarters near Oxford Circus in the next few months, and Bunuel will work from there as part of the existing team.
Netflix makes most of its programming decisions from L.A., but is expected to install content executives in its regional bases as part of its ramped-up localization effort. Bunuel, who has been with Netflix for about three months, was previously head of factual producer Explorer and is a former head of documentary at French pay-tv operator Canal Plus. A Netflix spokesman confirmed that Bunuel would be based in the British capital as director of original documentaries.
Netflix will move into a new Central London headquarters near Oxford Circus in the next few months, and Bunuel will work from there as part of the existing team.
- 6/12/2018
- by Stewart Clarke
- Variety Film + TV
Des Moines, Ia -- Every Presidential election year since 1824 has produced a biography of a candidate who has set his or her sights on the White House. The 2011 election is no different. But a combination of fewer print journalists on the trail, a heavy reliance up to the minute information provided via social media, particularly Twitter, and an overall sense of disillusionment with government and politicians could perhaps signal an end to this tradition.
"The books I am selling the most of these days have to do more with government corruption and budgetary restraint," said John Heitzman on Tuesday.
Heitzman, who spoke by phone from his business, is the owner of The Book Store, a small independent book store just yards from most of the hotels that candidates, campaign staff and media members call home when they make the quadrennial pilgrimage to the state in the lead up to the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses.
"The books I am selling the most of these days have to do more with government corruption and budgetary restraint," said John Heitzman on Tuesday.
Heitzman, who spoke by phone from his business, is the owner of The Book Store, a small independent book store just yards from most of the hotels that candidates, campaign staff and media members call home when they make the quadrennial pilgrimage to the state in the lead up to the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses.
- 1/4/2012
- by Michael J. Hunt
- Aol TV.
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