Comedy Market Set for Montreux

PARIS: The Montreux Comedy Market, managed by Basic Lead on behalf of the organizers of the long-running Montreux Comedy Festival, is set to take place December 1 to 5 in Montreux, Switzerland, with a focus on the TV adaptation of international comedy.

The market will be focused on the TV adaptation of international comedy formats, original video content and stand-up routines. The event will feature special sessions that look at the challenges of adapting international comedy concepts; pre-organzied one-on-one meetings between programmers, talent scouts, rights owners and content producers; networking functions; and an awards show. The market will also feature a spotlight on a specific country each year that has a strong comedy culture. The inaugural market will focus on Nigeria.

Gregoire Furrer, the president of the Montreux Comedy Festival, commented, “We are justifiably very proud of our event which is one of the ‘must go’ destinations for comedy. However, mindful of the recent proliferation of new television and web channels, we want to add a relevant marketplace in today’s fast evolving comedy professional space that engages comedy industry insiders and opens doors to even greater co-operation between talent and talent-brokers from all over the world.”

Patrick Jucaud, the general manager of Basic Lead, added, “The Montreux Comedy Festival is one of the most important venues for new and established talent. By extending the reach of the festival to include a marketplace with business participants from around the globe, we will benefit performers, writers and producers by giving them the opportunity to meet the right kind of people to take their careers to the next level. The commercial aspect of the market, which has been missing from the festival until now, will enable programming and production executives to engage with the very best talent in one location in the heart of Europe."