Go places with a universal story – and marquee talent: co-pro panel

International co-productions can be a boon to producers looking for capital, but Canadians should pick their partners with care if funding is a top priority. That was the consensus among members of a panel at the Banff World Television Festival last month. "Why would someone want to do a co-production? The short answer is, there’s more money coming to the table when there’s more than one producer involved," said Peter Simpson, chairman and CEO of Toronto’s Norstar Filmed Entertainment Inc. The session – titled "Co-Productions: Fostering International Relationships" – focused on any productions where partners from two or more nations are involved, rather than just international treaty co-productions. After a multi-year increase peaking in 2000, international treaty television co-production have slumped below 1996-1997 levels – the previous low point in the past 10 years – according to figures from Telefilm Canada. But export sales of non-treaty co-productions haven’t fared any better, falling by 56% between 1999 and 2005, according to the Canadian Film and Television Production Association. Due to research costs, rights clearances and other expenses, Nick Witkowski of the UK’s Alchemy Television Group Ltd. said his firm’s productions "cannot be made without the involvement of more than one broadcaster – the numbers just don’t stack up." And while US broadcasters generally aren’t willing to put up more than $10 to $15 million for their part of an international co-production, he added, "British broadcasters are the worst co-production partners in the world." CanWest MediaWorks Inc. VP of original programming Christine Shipton said one reason for entering into such an arrangement is "to bring those big, big stories to Canadians – I don’t have enough money to commission and generate the kind of productions I want to see on the airwaves." However, there are drawbacks to international co-productions as well, she added: "If I had my druthers I wouldn’t do co-productions in drama – you want to give free rein." Norstar’s Simpson also said producers shouldn’t go down-market and create "popcorn with B-movie actors" in the hope of attracting a wider audience. That drew a nod of agreement from fellow panelist Fred Fuchs, executive director of arts and entertainment programming at the CBC. "I don’t think the assumption should be that that’s what broadcasters want," he said, pointing to the public broadcaster’s recent commissioning of a UK-Canadian co-production based on England’s Tudor dynasty. When asked by moderator and Heenan Blaikie LLP lawyer Ken Dhaliwal for thoughts on what makes Canada a desirable partner for foreign producers, Witkowski lauded Canadians for their enthusiasm to work with new partners and take chances. Meanwhile, Oliver Bachert, VP of international acquisitions and productions at German distributor BetaFilm, said that Canadian producers appear somewhat exotic to Europeans. With language barriers, regional in-jokes and other potentially foreign-audience-killing obstacles to surmount, Canadian producers with a yen for international co-production need all the help they can get to ensure the success of their product. One reliable method is star power. "I think the question is, in the international market do you need a face on the poster?" Shipton opined. "I think the answer is yes." Fuchs concurred, adding that the CBC had picked William Shatner for a role in its upcoming miniseries on Mount Everest, Everest 82, because of his profile. "It’s just good business sense, not selling out," he said.

Go places with a universal story – and marquee talent: co-pro panel

Broadcast | July 4, 2006

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