Petra Schneider

Director, Distribution, Deutsche Welle/DW-Transtel

What are some of your top properties for MIPTV?

This year we have some great new shows highlighting the brilliance of everyday occurrences and the specifics behind science. With How Nature Heals we present a series that diagnoses traditional forms of natural medicine from four different continents. We open nature’s medicine cabinet to see what can be used to speed up the healing process.

We have another new show called Know It! that brings magazine-length reports packed full of information on science, technology and everyday phenomena. Know It! lets you in on the latest developments and discoveries from all over the world.

Science of the Seven Seas highlights the last great unknown of our planet, with research projects delving into the mysteries of the deep. It gets down to the bottom of the concerns facing oceans—like the safety of global shipping traffic, the protection of marine plants and animals, and the search for natural resources.

We have also created a second series of The Art of Space, where we look at innovations such as floating cities and underwater settlements, intelligent buildings and new ideas for the living and working spaces of the future.

Why will these programs appeal to buyers?

More and more viewers are interested in how and why things around the planet and within their environment happen. Humans are naturally inquisitive. With these new productions we have tried to go out and get the answers to some interesting questions.

What are your goals and expectations for MIPTV?

We are expecting the television market to bounce back and we hope to gain some new partners. We also think there is a lot of potential for expansion in the area of new media. We have been working with mobile, Internet and IPTV providers to make sure our programming palette reflects the changing needs of our customers. One size doesn’t fit all. We want to ensure that there are no technological boundaries between us and our viewers. Over the past few years, we have also worked to create tailored packages for different regions and we will continue to do so in the future.