Friday round-up: Latest news, deals & hires

ZDF among buyers of Capa’s Pelicot doc

Germany’s ZDF and PTS in Taiwan are among buyers of Drugged and Abused: No More Shame, the hard-hitting documentary from European producer and distributor Studio TF1 about the crimes committed against Gisèle Pelicot and other women.

The doc has also sold into Central and Eastern Europe (Viasat), France (LCP), Portugal (SIC), Sweden (SVT), French-speaking Switzerland (RTS) and German-speaking Switzerland (SRF), amongst others.

Earlier deals saw the show picked up by Movistar in Spain, meaning it has now been acquired in more than 100 countries. 

The 1 x 90-minute special was commissioned by France 2 and produced by Studio TF1’s Capa. 

BBC expands Once Upon a Time

The BBC has ordered a slate of five documentaries, including the next iteration of its Once Upon a Time… strand, based on the conflict in the Middle East.

The 5 x 60-minute Once Upon a Time in the Middle East, produced by Keo Films for BBC2, will examine the political and military fallout since 7 October, in Gaza and across the region, as well as the roots of a decades-long conflict between Israelis and Palestinians.

It follows 2023 Bafta-winner Once Upon A Time in Northern Ireland and the upcoming Once Upon a Time in Space, which is expected to air this year. James Bluemel, who directs, said the new iteration would be his “most ambitious project yet”.

C4 preps Oobah Butler docs

The UK’s Channel 4 has joined forces with documentarian Oobah Butler for two new documentaries about getting rich quick and getting on the property ladder

How I Made a Million in 90 Days and How to Trick Your Way onto the Property Ladder are both produced by Expectation.

The former tells the story of how Butler became a millioniare, while in How to Trick Your Way onto the Property Ladder, Oobah masterminds a range of stunts and tricks designed to get two young first time buyers onto the increasingly elusive first rung of the property ladder. Read more

Salla Kozma launches Pig & Horse Prods

Filmmaker Salla Kozma has launched Monaco and Finland-based Pig & Horse Productions, which has unveiled its inaugural slate of documentaries and unscripted formats.

The prodco will focus on developing socially impactful documentaries and innovative non-scripted TV formats for global distribution, with the first doc projects titled Reflections of Gaugin. It is being produced with Fremantle Finland’s former head of development, Anssi Rimpelä.

The launch has be timed with the production company’s debut at Sheffield Doc Fest and Sunny Side of the Doc, both taking place this month.

Sister exec joins ITV

UK broadcaster ITV has added Sister development executive Louise Ogunnaike to its scripted commissioning team, Broadcast can reveal.

Ogunnaike takes up the assistant commissioner role vacated by Callum Dziedzic, who was promoted earlier this year to commissioner for drama after two years in the role.

Reporting to director of drama Polly Hill, Ogunnaike will work across drama and comedy with an overview of the submissions and ideas sent from producers, playing a vital role in identifying projects of interest and assisting the commissioning team in developing and producing a broad range of projects.

She joins from Sister, where she had been a development executive for four years, working across a slate of drama and comedy projects including most recently The Dream Lands for the BBC. Read more