Saralo MacGregor

Executive VP, Worldwide Distribution, Fireworks International

What are some of your top properties for MIPTV? 
We will be bringing a number of new drama titles to MIPTV, including two new TV movies from the Shadow Island Mysteries franchise starring Jennifer Finnigan (The Bold and the Beautiful, Close to Home, Crossing Jordan) and a fourth series of Heartland, the award-winning family drama set amidst the stunning Alberta Rocky Mountains.
Highlights from our nonfiction portfolio include the reality series Wildlife Rescue Africa, which offers a combination of dramatic wildlife rescues, compelling characters and breathtaking landscapes as wildlife experts Doctor Douw Grobler and JJ Van Altena risk their lives to save Africa’s most dangerous animals. We will also be speaking to buyers from Canada and the UK about the exciting new docu-series Fly Girls, which follows five beautiful Virgin America flight attendants as they jet from one glamorous location to the next, including Las Vegas, South Beach and New York City, while pursuing good times, great parties, adventure and love. Fly Girls is produced by Collins Avenue for the CW in the U.S.
We will also debut a range of new digital properties, adding to our rapidly growing multi-platform portfolio. These include the critically acclaimed sci-fi fantasy series Riese, which launches alongside an accompanying website, ARG game and iPhone game and Girl Number 9, a dark fast-paced thriller written by James Moran (Doctor Who, Spooks).

Why will these programs appeal to buyers?
We are launching a wide variety of new content at MIPTV which we are confident will meet the diverse tastes and requirements of the range of buyers attending. Fireworks International works with international producers and the global creative community throughout the year to actively develop and acquire content that offers fantastic international appeal. We have built excellent relationships with our broadcast clients throughout the world, so, as a sales team, we know the demands of their viewers and can feed this back into the development and acquisition process. As a result, we are able to build a portfolio of programming that consistently offers internationally relevant themes, very high production values and global appeal.

What are your goals and expectations for MIPTV?
MIPTV offers us a great opportunity to meet with a wide range of international buyers—both seeking out new sales opportunities and continuing to develop our existing buyer relationships. In the current economic climate, we are all conscious that budgets will be reduced and buyers will be even more risk-averse, so it is vital to spend time working with the buying teams from each individual channel to closely assess any shifts in local demand, identify titles that will work for their schedules and audience and see how we can best meet their ongoing requirements. Alongside our new portfolio of programming we continue to represent more than 3000 hours of multi-genre programming, so it is sure to prove a very busy market for the entire Fireworks International team.