Banijay Rights Spotlighting Survivor Format & More at MIPCOM

Banijay Rights is heading to Cannes with an offering that includes formats such as Survivor and The Crystal Maze.

Banijay Rights recently acquired the reality hit Survivor from Castaway Television Productions, as well as the revival of The Crystal Maze, both of which have been added to its formats catalog. A team of five contestants journey through four fantastical time zones in the adventure game show The Crystal Maze. “The Crystal Maze is one of the most distinctive and enduring formats ever to have been produced in the U.K. Updated for 2017 by Fizz, part of RDF Television, for Channel 4, the format has quickly established itself as a favorite among younger viewers. We’re thrilled that RDF/Fizz have been able to faithfully update it for 2017,” said Andrew Sime, the VP of formats at Banijay Rights. “We expected the new production to delight those viewers who were already familiar with the show, but it’s been really exciting to see such engagement among younger viewers, too.”

He added: “Survivor is one of the strongest brands in television. One of the first reality formats, it continues to play around the world in major territories such as the U.S., France and Australia, and has recently found new audiences in Greece and New Zealand.”

Additional format highlights include Street Food Battle from DRY (Italy) and Celebrity School from Brainpool (Germany), as well as Fort Boyard, Temptation Island, 71 Degrees North and The Bravest. Celebrity School is a new prime-time entertainment format that pits a panel of famous personalities against groups of school-aged children.

“Banijay has consolidated its position as the world’s leading producer of adventure reality shows,” Sime remarked.

Banijay Rights is also presenting a number of dramas. Taking place at the end of World War II, The Restaurant is “an impassioned family saga about love, conflict and betrayal,” according to Caroline Torrance, the head of scripted at Banijay Rights. “We are very pleased that The Restaurant has already been commissioned for a second season.” Juda, meanwhile, centers on a low-life gambler who is robbed and bitten by a seductive vampire. Also on offer is the second installment of Occupied, which “kicks off with an armed conflict between the Norwegian Coast Guard and a Russian security company guarding the oil installation of Melkøya in northern Norway,” says Torrance. “Occupied 2 is a very strong continuation of this engrossing thriller.” The company is additionally launching sophomore seasons of the hit Australian dramas Wolf Creek and Secret Daughter at MIPCOM.

“Banijay Group has built a second-to-none fiction lineup with high-end productions being created and co-produced in all parts of the globe,” Torrance added.