Red Arrow Reveals MIPCOM Slate with Buying Blind Among Highlights

Red Arrow International is heading to Cannes with a diverse offering of new shows, including Buying Blind, across the formats, factual and scripted categories.

The reality format Buying Blind sees a family who can’t decide what house to buy put their life savings in the hands of experts to purchase them a home without ever having seen it. Other new reality formats include The Spouse House, in which 14 singletons searching for the love of their lives move into a home together with the hopes of leaving married. Pregnant with a Stranger follows single women who have decided to have a baby being given help and support to find the right father for their child.

“Red Arrow’s focus for MIPCOM is to continue to be bold,” said Henrik Pabst, the company’s managing director. The formats are bold and “ask universal questions—and sometimes difficult questions—that challenge the status quo. The formats we are presenting this market are more original and bold than ever before.”

State of Hate, meanwhile, looks to end rivalries between groups of people divided by hate. New entertainment formats include Music of the People, in which music bands from different cultural heritages reinterpret a popular local song, as well as the new cooking competition Shop! Cook! Win! Celebrity chefs secretly observe shoppers in a supermarket, and then cook up a storm in the shopper’s own kitchens.

Red Arrow International’s factual lineup includes A Matter of Life and Debt, which uncovers the real-life stories of people applying for money loans. The series The Story of Toys takes a playful look at some of the world’s most iconic toys. Each self-contained episode is dedicated to one specific toy group, from high-tech toys and dolls to costumes, monsters and miniatures. Strike Carrier is a new three-part documentary about life aboard the largest, most advanced and powerful warship ever constructed in Britain.

Our non-scripted slate at MIPCOM highlights our commitment to working with some of the world’s top creative talent to deliver stand-out programs to broadcasters and platforms,” said Pabst. “We continue to work with a range of talented in-house and third-party producers to deliver a growing slate of factual shows.”

In terms of drama, Red Arrow International is showcasing the neo-noir crime series Stella Blómkvist. Heida Reed (Poldark) stars as a quick-witted lawyer. The company’s slate also features the psychological crime thriller 23 Cases, which sees a tough female detective take on a ruthless serial killer. The story kicks off as the city of Berlin is in a state of panic after a serial killer has just claimed a 23rd victim. Meanwhile, the crime series Einstein is back for a second season with Tom Beck (Alarm for Cobra 11).

“Red Arrow has built a reputation for offering an exciting range of international drama,” added Pabst. He acknowledged that Red Arrow International is continuing “to be open about where to find the new generation of co-producers—perhaps in sectors and industries that don’t currently operate in the scripted space. We are continuing to seek partners who are as passionate about scripted television as we are.

“Our diverse new slate for MIPCOM includes a range of genuinely bold and ambitious shows that do not shy away from tackling difficult questions and challenging the status quo. We are proud to be working with some of the world’s most talented third-party producers, alongside Red Arrow’s hugely creative network of production companies, and are looking forward to taking our new slate out at MIPCOM.”