Cineflix Rights

Cineflix Rights Banks on Big IP & Returnable Hits

A focus on acquiring proven successful and returnable factual and entertainment brands such as Château DIY from Spark Media Partners and the hit Voltage TV format Tempting Fortune has resulted in significant revenues during the past year for Cineflix Rights. This is a core focus for the coming year, too, according to Richard Life, senior VP of acquisitions and co-productions—“seeking out and securing rights to new returners plus nurturing and building on the international success of these brands.”

Regarding factual, Life says that true crime remains in demand but in different formats for different buyers and slots in the schedule. “The trend is for younger-skewed themes that immerse viewers in the cases and shows that feel modern and stylish and rely less on re-creation and more on actual footage or social media,” he adds. “Our new series Spring Break Murders for A+E Networks (U.K.) and Bell Media (Canada) was greenlit with this demand in mind. It highlights how every year, while millions of students and young adults migrate to holiday resorts and decompress in a first brush with independence, for some, it will be their last great adventure.”

Life also points to returnable aspirational and escapist series such as the established international hit Château DIY. To this end, Cineflix Rights has also acquired international rights to the long-running Channel 4 daytime hit A New Life in the Sun, produced by True North, which it is launching at MIPCOM. “This series has proven a strong pull for audiences looking to be inspired and entertained by people like them who are trying to reinvent their lives, particularly in sunny climes,” he says.

As for scripted, in a time of market contraction and fewer risks being taken, demand is coming through for more tried-and-tested genres such as crime and thrillers “that channels and platforms know how to market effectively to drive big audiences,” says Tom Misselbrook, senior VP of scripted sales and development. “We always seek originality in our scripted slate, so it’s about finding a good balance of series that will excite our buyers but also feel distinct and fresh, and we feel our MIPCOM lineup does just that.”

The scripted slate is led by Virdee, a new crime thriller for BBC One adapted from the book franchise by A.A. Dhand and produced by Magical Society. Staz Nair takes up the title role of Harry Virdee, a Bradford-based detective with a chaotic personal life who must hunt down a serial killer.

Heart Attack, from producers of The Walking Dead and Invincible, is a dystopian thriller for Fuji TV from Skybound Entertainment and ROBOT. Set in a post-pandemic Japan, it follows as a segment of the population develops supernatural abilities and must come together to fight for their existence and freedom against the persecution led by the government.

Cineflix Rights is also launching Wynonna Earp: Vengeance, a spin-off special from the successful franchise in conjunction with Tubi, produced by SEVEN24 Films in association with Cineflix Studios.

These are in addition to So Long, Marianne and the latest seasons of Last King of The Cross, Reginald the Vampire and Whitstable Pearl.

In the way of factual, history is a key part of the company’s slate and “an evergreen genre for buyers all over the world,” says Life. “Titanic: Our Secret Histories, from Afro-Mic Productions, which we’re launching at MIPCOM, is a great example of a series that takes a subject everyone thinks they know about but then delves deeper to discover something new and different. In this case, it’s the emotional stories of the descendants of both survivors and those who perished, many of whom feel they were ignored or reduced to a footnote—especially those who were working class or non-white.”

Cineflix Rights is also bringing to Cannes the latest seasons of the character-driven or precinct-driven observational documentary series Inside Taronga Zoo and The Yorkshire Auction House, including the new spin-off The Derbyshire Auction House. Relatable family-driven series are also in demand, according to Life, including the forthcoming chapter of its hit brand Our Farm Next Door: Amanda, Clive and Kids, which will get a MIPCOM launch.

“On the acquisitions front, we are actively seeking projects that we can invest in at an early stage and bring in financing through co-production partners and presales,” says Life. “The subject matter has to be of genuine international interest but also ‘must-have’ for buyers—a great exclusive or unique approach, strong production team and genuine global stories. A good example of this is our MIPCOM launch Building Bad, from Shark Teeth Films, which combines engineering science and crime to reveal the ingenuity and twisted genius behind notorious drug smugglers, car thieves and others who walk on the dark side of scientific invention.”

Across scripted, Cineflix Rights’ focus is on launching its new series, movies and specials to the wider marketplace at MIPCOM, according to Misselbrook. “Looking beyond that, we’ve got an exciting slate of projects coming through, including Trent O’Donnell’s latest series, Sunny Nights, with Will Forte and D’Arcy Carden and produced by Jungle Entertainment and Echo Lake Entertainment in association with Cineflix Rights for Stan. We also have a hugely exciting development slate based on some big IP, which we’ll be preparing to take out to the market toward the end of the year and into 2025.”

Cineflix Rights Brings Out Expansive, Multi-Genre Offering

The ever-expanding Cineflix Rights catalog has everything from returnable scripted series across drama, comedy, crime, thriller and more, to factual programs covering history, true crime, lifestyle and entertainment.

On the scripted side of the business, the focus “is on limited and returnable series, particularly in the crime and contemporary thriller genres, new episodic procedural series and series with strong appeal to young adults,” says Tom Misselbrook, senior VP of scripted sales and development.

This includes the French-language psychological thriller In Memoriam, which Misselbrook describes as “Succession meets Squid Game.” He adds, “The series hits a lot of the content beats global buyers are looking for, echoing similar themes explored in some of the biggest drama hits of the past few years.”

Other titles on the drama slate are the recently launched series So Long, Marianne, about Leonard Cohen and Marianne Ihlen’s lifelong love, and the millennial comedy Late Bloomer, from YouTuber Jus Reign. The crime drama Virdee is currently in production, and the dark Australian comedy Sunny Nights is set to begin production later this year.

“We also place a high value on projects based on proven IP and with notable writing, directing and/or acting talent already attached,” Misselbrook adds.

On the non-scripted side, “we are always looking for independent producers to bring us great stories and new approaches to our core factual genres—crime, history, documentary, lifestyle and noisy formats,” says Richard Life, senior VP of acquisitions and co-productions. “Our priority is to find new series, particularly those that can return, and we are actively looking for new projects that will deliver over the next 12 months.”

In the history genre, “we are interested in ‘history mystery’ series that investigate the unexplained and our more distant past,” Life notes, before adding that “‘near history’ series that shed new light on more recent events of the ’90s and noughties, particularly those with a pop-culture overlay,” are also of interest.

New titles that fall under Life’s “history mystery” category include Ramses The Great: King of Ancient Egypt and Little Sapiens.

Ramses The Great: King of Ancient Egypt uses cutting-edge science and the latest archaeological discoveries to unveil how the titular pharaoh turned a fallen empire into one of the most powerful of all time. “What we love about this premium docudrama series is that it uses fresh and bold storytelling techniques to bring to life the most famous dynasty of all—that of Ramses II and his ascent to power,” says Sandra Piha, senior VP of sales, pan-regional, for the U.K., Ireland and Scandinavia. “Based on the most recent scientific research into Ramses II and his ascent to power, it also contains revelations of the family’s darkest secrets, all told using cinematic dramatizations filmed in Morocco, coupled with high-end CGI to really bring the story to life.”

Little Sapiens, meanwhile, takes a deep dive into the lives of prehistoric children. Using 20,000-year-old clues and expert analysis, it reveals to viewers how the youngest of our ancestors may have actually been the drivers of human evolution. “When it comes to studying ancient history and, in particular, early man, the demographic that is almost completely overlooked is children,” Piha notes. “There is a reason for this, and it is because archaeological traces of the young from the Paleolithic era are very rare. This special takes viewers on a journey around Europe with experts to uncover these traces and reveals just how important the role of kids was in the evolution of early man. We found this film to have a compelling new take on our most ancient ancestors, with genuine revelation and an approach that we feel will also appeal to the whole family.”

Beyond history, the Cineflix Rights non-scripted catalog features true crime, lifestyle and factual-entertainment formats, as well. In the crowded crime corner, “we look for series that cover themes that appeal to younger audiences, such as social media crime,” Life explains. “We also value new formats and approaches to storytelling and those that lean more into the use of unseen archive or digital media rather than re-creations.”

In lifestyle, Cineflix Rights places priority on home, travel and shows that provide escapism. “We want aspirational and inspirational series that look at home transformation, people following their dreams with real stakes in desirable locations and food content,” Life says.

One such title that hits the mark is Sue Perkins into Alaska, a three-part travelogue that follows U.K. comedian and TV presenter Sue Perkins as she ventures into America’s final frontier and explores Alaska’s history, culture and communities while contemplating whether she has what it takes to survive in such an isolated, challenging environment.

“When we were presented with the opportunity to represent this show, we knew it had built-in global appeal because of Sue,” Piha explains. “What we also liked was the stunning yet challenging terrain of Alaska, which, again, has proven a popular aspirational destination for viewers. Sue’s unique, immersive, yet tongue-in-cheek approach to travelogue was captured perfectly by producer Chalkboard.”

This packed slate of returnable and limited scripted series, as well as informative and entertaining factual titles on offer from Cineflix Rights, comes in direct response to demand in the market.

“The rise of the streamers has upped the game for everyone,” Piha says. “Our linear buyers all have launched VOD services, and their buying needs are being driven by the need to drive eyeballs to these new services. That means premium content—features and miniseries in genres such as true crime, pop-culture history, travel and adventure.”

She continues, “At the same time, linear buyers are looking for volume for their linear scheduled services—series of at least ten episodes or more with returnability to fill the schedules with compelling content that helps retain audiences.”