Michelle Wasserman

Michelle WassermanA notable addition on ABC’s recently announced pilot roster is an as-yet-untitled project based on the Argentine drama Brothers & Detectives. The adaptation, written and executive produced by Daniel Cerone, is about a low-level detective who, after the death of his estranged father, discovers he has a brilliant 11-year-old brother who is adept at helping him solve crimes. This is just one of several formats Telefe International has shopped to U.S. outlets.

Though the Argentine outfit has traditionally been strong across Latin America and Eastern Europe, its distribution business has made gains over the last few years in a number of new territories. Among them is Western Europe, particularly in Spain, Italy and France.

Heading up the efforts of expanding Telefe’s worldwide business is Michelle Wasserman, who has been with the company for most of her career. Wasserman joined the broadcaster’s distribution arm when she was still at university. While she left for a few years to get her master’s degree in the U.S., Wasserman ended up rejoining Telefe, in 2002. After climbing her way through the ranks, she was recently named head of international distribution, programming, formats and production services.

"I have passion for what I do," she explains of what has kept her happy with her job over the years. "One of the things I love the most about what I do is being related with so many and such different cultures. Learning from them their ways of living, religions they profess, learning about the history—at the end, these are necessary elements to understanding the way the cultures behave and therefore where different needs and tastes comes from."

This passion for learning cultural nuances has served Wasserman well in her current post, as she works to give Telefe’s Argentine creations new life across borders. "For me, this process of understanding [different cultures] in order to pitch them the right choices is of course part of my job. But I do not feel like it’s a task, more like a thing I enjoy doing. Life is a school in continuity, every day you learn new things from whatever your environment is—either personal or professional, private or public."

And there’s a whole number of new projects for Wasserman to focus her energy on now. Notably for her, though, is the romantic comedy The Successful Mr and Mrs Pell$. A co-production between Endemol Argentina and Underground, whose credits include the international hit Lalola, the romantic comedy tells the story of a failed actor who is secretly hired to live the life of the most famous TV anchor in the country. "I am totally sure Pells is our next best seller and will, if not repeat, surpass our leading production, which is Muñeca Brava up to now. All the team has lots of expectations for its international performance."