Channel Profile: Ovation

SANTA MONICA: Ovation is home to a slate of shows on art and contemporary culture.

ON THE RECORD: KRIS SLAVA, SENIOR VP, PROGRAMMING & PRODUCTION
How do you schedule the channel from morning through late night, Monday through Sunday?
Weekday mornings are all classical music. Weekday afternoons are a mix of art and culture programming. Jools Holland is stripped across weekdays at 11 a.m., 3 p.m., 7 p.m., and 4 a.m. Weekdays at 8 p.m. is day by day destination viewing. Weekdays 9 p.m. to midnight is multi-week themed event programming, such as Tall Dark & Classic (sexy classic drama); American Revolutionaries (such as black musicians or film directors), Music of the Night (Broadway), Art Out Loud (LGBT theme) and Framed (photography). The 8 p.m. to midnight strip and theme blocks repeat from midnight to 4 a.m. Weekends (day and night) are devoted to themed event programming.

Are you acquiring content from the international market?
We acquire up to half our programming from the international market and are constantly looking for new international content, from one-offs to series.

Are you buying second-run content from within the U.S.?
We always look for premieres, but buy quite a bit of second-run content, especially when it fits our themes and/or has been underexposed.

What is your approach to commissioning new productions from U.S. producers?
We produce a moderate number of originals. A lot of what we do produce is develop in house, but we constantly take pitches, even though we have a very small development staff.

Do you have any blocks or slots you are looking to fill?
We’re always looking for multipart series of all types that are compelling and fit our category. Photography and scripted are especially attractive at this moment.