A Note from the Editors on Our MIPCOM Edition

NEW YORK: World Screen's team of editors offer up a rundown of all the exclusive interviews and insightful trend features you'll see in our MIPCOM edition, which, at 710 pages, is our biggest issue ever.

We often speak to producers who will tell us that when they are deep in the midst of the production process, it’s tough to take a step back and marvel at their creation. Usually it’s only once they’ve seen an episode, or an entire season, that they can pat themselves on the back for a job well done. That’s a lot like what we go through here at World Screen when we’re trying to deliver the best possible MIPCOM edition we can muster up. As we process page after page, magazine after magazine, we usually can’t see the big picture. And then we see the final product and think, Wow, did we really just do that? We’re thinking you’re all going to be saying “wow” over and over again as you thumb through our 710-page—yes, we did, for the first time in our 29-year-history, top the 700-page mark—MIPCOM edition.

Whatever segment of the content business you may be in, this edition has something for you, with features and interviews that cover the issues that everyone is talking about. And everyone is talking about Netflix, so we secured interviews with two of that platform’s biggest stars: Kevin Spacey, of House of Cards, who graces our front cover, and Taylor Schilling, from the binge-worthy Orange Is the New Black. Broadcast TV, however, is not to be ignored, as we feature an exclusive Q&A with Ted Danson, star of one of the world’s biggest drama franchises: CSI.

We have an equally healthy mix of free- and pay-TV shows represented in our main feature, on the new golden age of drama. We sought out the creators, showrunners, directors and executive producers of some of the biggest drama hits across the globe. The result is 14 insightful Q&As on the creative process and what it takes to corral a writers’ room and deal with notes, and talent, in order to produce something that viewers will return to week after week. This special report, accompanied by a feature by Elizabeth Guider on how broadcasters and studios manage talent, includes interviews with Scandal’s Shonda Rhimes, American Horror Story’s Ryan Murphy, The Walking Dead’s Robert Kirkman, Law & Order: SVU’s Dick Wolf, Downton Abbey’s Julian Fellowes, Homeland’s Alex Gansa, The Blacklist’s Jon Bokenkamp, The Strain’s Carlton Cuse, The Americans’ Joe Weisberg and Joel Fields, Broadchurch’s Chris Chibnall, Battle Creek’s David Shore, The Bridge’s Lars Blomgren, Wayward Pines’ M. Night Shyamalan and Person of Interest’s Jonathan Nolan and Greg Plageman.

None of those shows would exist without broadcasters willing to invest in them. In our exclusive interviews with CBS Corporation’s Leslie Moonves, 21st Century Fox’s James Murdoch, BBC’s Tony Hall and Seven West Media’s Tim Worner, we heard over and over again that content has never been better and viewers are flocking to screens of all sizes in unprecedented numbers.

Here’s a full rundown of what else you’ll find in this ambitious edition. Follow the links below to access our digital editions online, or get the Issuu apps for iOS and Android so you can read them on the mobile device of your choice.

World Screen

• An in-depth look at what’s driving the M&A trend in the media business.
• Profiles of this year’s World Screen Content Trendsetter Award honorees.
• Bruce Tuchman discusses the strategy behind making AMC a global brand.
• A spotlight on Mexico, the country of honor at MIPCOM.
• Tandem celebrates its 15th anniversary.
• Music-rights powerhouse ole turns 10.

Read it here.

TV Europe

• A look at Europe’s fast-developing OTT landscape.
• CANAL+ Group’s Bertrand Meheut on how the company, turning 30 this year, continues to drive innovation in France and abroad.
• Anke Schäferkordt reflects on 30 years of RTL in Germany.
• Zodiak Media’s Marc-Antoine d’Halluin on his focus on high-end scripted content and hit formats.
• Tele München’s Herbert L. Kloiber talks drama co-productions.
• Patrick Spence provides an inside look at the big-budget Sky Atlantic drama Fortitude.
• Nadine Nohr discusses Shine International’s expanding drama slate.
• Pau Freixas shares his view on why The Red Band Society has become one of Spain’s biggest exports.

Read it here.

TV Kids

• Top programmers reveal their content wish lists.
• An in-depth profile of the U.K.’s kids’ content market.
• Distributors explore what it takes to make a hit show for girls.
• A look at Rainbow as it marks its 20th anniversary.
• Christina Miller on her new job running Cartoon Network and Boomerang in the U.S.
• DHX’s new CEO Dana Landry talks about that company’s rapid growth trajectory.
• Our BLE report spotlights L&M trends and features an in-depth interview with HIT’s Edward Catchpole.
• Marjorie Cohn on what’s new at DreamWorks Animation.
• JG Quintel on his megahit Regular Show.
• Deborah Forte provides an update on all the new content coming out of Scholastic Media.
• Russell Hicks talks about his programming strategy at Nickelodeon.
• Giles Ridge tells us about what audiences can expect from the much-anticipated Thunderbirds Are Go.
• Elie Dekel and Frederic Soulie discuss Saban Brands’ new in-house distribution unit.
• Andy Heyward on serving audiences across platforms with the Genius Brands slate.

Read it here.

TV Drama
Just launched at MIPTV this year, TV Drama has already become one of our most successful publications. The inaugural MIPCOM edition includes:

• A spotlight on what’s hot in the perennially popular crime-drama genre.
• Ryan Murphy discussing his prolific career of boundary-pushing television, including Glee, Nip/Tuck and American Horror Story.
• Carlton Cuse talks Lost, The Strain and his new projects, including The Returned.
• Actress Julia Stiles tells us about her starring role in the web drama Blue.
• Carmi Zlotnik explains Starz’s original programming strategy, which includes a number of international co-pros.
• Izzet Pinto on why Turkish drama is resonating across the globe.

Read it here.

TV Formats

• A new wave of singing competition formats are taking on established hits.
• Distributors talk about how they are maintaining, and refreshing, long-running legacy formats.
• Profiles of the inaugural World Screen Format Trendsetter Award winners.
• FOX’s Simon Andreae talks about his format acquisition strategy and trends in the unscripted business.
• Chris Chibnall on adapting Broadchurch for the U.S.
• Lars Blomgren discusses The Bridge’s American and French/U.K. versions.
• Armoza Formats’ Avi Armoza on interactivity and innovation.

Read it here.

TV Real

• From blue-chip specials to long-running series, wildlife is a hot commodity.
• A look at some of reality TV’s most successful families.
• Anthony Bourdain talks about traveling the globe in Parts Unknown.
• Ward Platt discusses his priorities for National Geographic Channels International.

Read it here.

TV AsiaPac

• Asia’s top pay-TV channel brands are battling it out on screen with high-profile imports and original programming.
• Katsuto Momii discusses his strategy for Japanese pubcaster NHK.
• Felipe Gozon shares what’s new at Filipino broadcasting group GMA Network.
• Christine Fellowes talks programming initiatives at the Universal Networks International portfolio.
• Rewind Networks’ Avi Himatsinghani on his plans for the new channel HITS.

Read it here.

TV MEA

• Distributors are finding a wave of sales opportunities across the African continent.
• Sam Barnett talks about running the Middle East’s leading broadcasting group, MBC.

Read it here.

TV Latina

• Latin American distributors are expanding into new markets.
• Spotlighting Mexico’s dynamic content sector.
• Eduardo Ruiz on new developments at A+E Networks Latin America.
• Marcel Vinay discusses Comarex’s distribution success.
• Lisette Osorio talks about what’s driving the export of Caracol’s shows.
• Delmar Andrade on Record TV Network’s slate.
• María Lucía Hernández reveals what’s new from RCN Televisión.
• Daniel Otaola provides an update on Telefe’s international business. 

Read it here.

TV Listings

• Comprehensive information and stand numbers for 150 distributors heading to MIPCOM.

Read it here.

We have also published new editions of the TV Kids Distributors Guide and the TV Formats Distributors Guide.

Plus, we had a September/Pre-MIPCOM edition, which featured an in-depth report on international drama co-productions and interviews with The Honourable Woman’s Maggie Gyllenhaal, Crossing Lines’ William Fichtner, Bosch’s Titus Welliver, ITV Studios’ Maria Kyriacou, Endemol’s Cathy Payne, Entertainment One’s Stuart Baxter, Sky Vision’s Jane Millichip and FremantleMedia’s Sarah Doole.

Don’t forget to pick up your copy of World Screen at the Palais, or in a number of hotels in Cannes.