Firebird Pictures’ Elizabeth Kilgarriff

The BBC Studios-backed Firebird Pictures has only been in the TV landscape a few years now—set up in 2019 by former BBC executives Elizabeth Kilgarriff and Craig Holleworth—but it’s already making a name for itself with a focus on character-led contemporary series. The support from BBC Studios and the pedigree of its founders are certainly contributing to its success. Kilgarriff, for one, is an Emmy-nominated producer and former senior commissioning editor for BBC Drama. She previously headed up the BBC’s in-house drama studio, and her portfolio of work includes the Emmy- and Golden Globe-nominated Bodyguard, BAFTA-winning thrillers The Cry and The Victim, Emmy-nominated Luther, International Emmy-winning McMafia and critically acclaimed Thirteen. Kilgarriff, CEO of Firebird Pictures, weighs in on the current state of the drama landscape and what’s trending.

TV DRAMA: How is the drama business faring today relative to the last two years?
KILGARRIFF: Drama is in an exciting, dynamic place as an industry, with the demand for content showing no signs of slowing down. It’s been an incredibly tough two years for crew, and particularly freelancers, but it does now feel that the industry has found its way back to a version of normality and that commissioners are starting to look ahead again.

Two years on from the start of the pandemic, it feels that broadcasters and production companies have clear guidelines and methods in place to be able to keep production moving, but that doesn’t always mitigate inevitable delays, travel issues, cast illness, etc. It’s still adding a significant cost to the budget in terms of extra Covid-19 protocols, as is the increased competition for cast and crew. Although there is no slowdown in the demand for content, another major impact is that shows are being commissioned further into the future, and producers will increasingly need to weather the financial implications of that. But, overall, production is very much back up to speed and is moving ahead with the same ambition and scale as before.

TV DRAMA: How is Firebird positioned in the global drama arena?
KILGARRIFF: Firebird’s focus is on bold, contemporary, character-led stories that use genre to bring high stakes and a distinctive twist to our shows. We want to connect with audiences on a relatable, emotional level while always surprising and entertaining with where the story goes. This year, we will shoot two major new six-part series—Wilderness for Amazon Prime Video and Wahala for the BBC—which showcase these ambitions.

TV DRAMA: What’s trending these days for scripted?
KILGARRIFF: Genres such as crime (both fictional and true) and thriller will always be popular because of their natural in-built story motor, twists and stakes. But still, within these popular genres, the key is to find the specificity and unique perspectives that will make shows stand out. Brilliant characters in all their human messiness and dark comedy (Succession, The White Lotus) feel as if they offer the perfect combination of entertainment and social commentary, while it’s been fantastic to see the success of more female-created, -led and -centered stories across all platforms.

TV DRAMA: Tell me about Firebird’s book-based IP.
KILGARRIFF: Original ideas direct from screenwriters will always drive the majority of our slate, but IP is also very important to us, and both of the shows we will shoot this year come from book adaptations. The beauty of finding the right book is that the world, characters and distinctiveness of the idea are already there, so it’s often a shortcut to securing a writer’s time—and to gaining a commissioner’s attention. From Robert Webb’s brilliant time-traveling ’90s-set rom-com Come Again to Gavanndra Hodge’s powerful memoir The Consequences of Love and first-time novelist Hannah King’s gripping Northern Irish-set crime novel She and I, we have many wonderful book-based projects in the works and are excited to bring them to life on-screen.

TV DRAMA: What other sources do you look to for potential adaptations of known IP?
KILGARRIFF: Podcasts, plays, factual articles, graphic novels and international formats—we look far and wide for different kinds of stories, both fact and fiction, that might spark inspiration.

TV DRAMA: What does the backing of BBC Studios lend to Firebird as a company overall?
KILGARRIFF: Our relationship with BBC Studios is excellent. They completely understand the unique way in which a drama company works, not least in terms of how long everything takes and the often-complex route to greenlight! With the market as it is at the moment, producers have to be fast, decisive and take risks—creatively and financially—and BBC Studios fully supports and enables this. A big part of our current success comes from knowing that we have a backer that is as ambitious for Firebird as we are.