{"id":10514,"date":"2016-07-29T09:00:31","date_gmt":"2016-07-29T13:00:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvkids\/worldscreen.com\/"},"modified":"2016-08-01T09:47:20","modified_gmt":"2016-08-01T13:47:20","slug":"serious-lunch-feeds-the-appetite-for-lasting-brands","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvkids\/serious-lunch-feeds-the-appetite-for-lasting-brands\/","title":{"rendered":"Serious Lunch Feeds the Appetite for Lasting Brands"},"content":{"rendered":"

Genevieve Dexter, the founder and CEO of London-based Serious Lunch, talks to\u00a0<\/em>TV Kids\u00a0about her distribution company and the importance of having long-running series that can break into the U.S. market.<\/em><\/p>\n

While Serious Lunch is a relatively new entrant in the children\u2019s entertainment business, Genevieve Dexter, the consultancy and distribution company\u2019s founder and CEO, isn\u2019t a new kid on the block. Dexter\u2019s 20-plus years of experience in television entertainment, specializing in the commercial exploitation of children\u2019s and family programming, informs her strategy for Serious Lunch, which she launched in January 2011. \u201cSerious Lunch is trying to do things that other people aren\u2019t doing,\u201d Dexter says.<\/p>\n

\"***Image***\"Over the years, Dexter has learned the value of having \u201clong-running shows that you can spin into brands.\u201d She explains that a distributor can find success if it has an ongoing program, one that runs four or five seasons, as those titles can help keep a catalog afloat. Double-BAFTA-winning\u00a0Operation Ouch!<\/em>, which was renewed for a fifth season on CBBC in the U.K. in May, falls into that category. Another offering from Serious Lunch that continues to expand is the live-action series\u00a0Art Ninja<\/em>, with season three having been announced recently.<\/p>\n

According to Dexter, another pillar of success is the ability to place properties in the U.S. \u201cWhen you sell into the U.S., the rest of the world wakes up,\u201d she explains. \u201cIt doesn\u2019t matter where the title has come from. At the moment that you announce the sale to the States, everybody else says, \u2018If you can get it in there, it must be good.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Dexter adds: \u201cEverybody still looks to the U.S. as the market leader, and it can break open new markets internationally.\u201d Once a show enters the U.S. and other territories take notice, a property can go from being \u201ca problem child to 90 percent\u00a0\"***Image***\"of [a distributor\u2019s] revenue,\u201d she says. Looking to the future, Dexter aims to bring the properties in Serious Lunch\u2019s catalog stateside.<\/p>\n

Serious Lunch strives to stand out in the crowded kids\u2019 space by offering unique content that suits buyers\u2019 needs. In particular, Dexter points to \u201cSTEM programming for older children, and then formatting those titles overseas.\u201d Dexter believes there is a growing demand for this type of programming, and Serious Lunch\u2019s catalog features two shows that fill this gap:\u00a0Horrible Science<\/em>\u00a0and the aforementioned\u00a0Operation Ouch!<\/em>\u00a0The book-based\u00a0Horrible Science<\/em>\u00a0explores science in amusing ways, while\u00a0Operation Ouch!<\/em>\u00a0sees Doctors Chris and Xand van Tulleken investigate medical mysteries, share facts about the human body and encourage kids not to be afraid of going to the hospital. The two series fill a gap in the kids\u2019 market, as they \u201cbring science into the every day as opposed to it being stuck in an educational corner,\u201d Dexter says.<\/p>\n

In addition to its value as a science-focused program,\u00a0Operation Ouch!<\/em>\u00a0is a key component of the company\u2019s catalog because it \u201chas sold very well internationally,\u201d Dexter says. In addition to its season-five renewal in the U.K., Dexter notes, \u201cWe\u2019ve done a Danish version and we\u2019re now shooting a Dutch version.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video-on-demand platforms are a welcome programming destination for independent kids\u2019 distributors. \u201cThe opening up of the VOD market has been the most significant shift, largely because it creates avenues for programming that otherwise finds it difficult to get a route to market,\u201d Dexter says. In the past, there has been resistance to serials, but \u201cwith the rise of VOD and the change in the way that children watch programming, Studio Ghibli\u2019s\u00a0Ronja, the Robber\u2019s Daughter<\/em>, a 26-part serial that we represent, has proved to be very popular,\u201d she adds. VOD platforms also open up additional doors because they are typically more receptive to family programming, which Dexter says has all but died on linear television.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re a small catalog with large-volume, high-profile brands, which we\u2019re working very hard and very deep,\u201d says Dexter. \u201cWe\u2019re trying to stay small while also looking for new content.\u201d<\/p>\n

While she has her eyes open for new titles, Dexter will \u201ccontinue focusing on\u00a0Operation Ouch!<\/em>,\u00a0Horrible Science<\/em>,\u00a0Art Ninja<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0Ronja, the Robber\u2019s Daughter<\/em>, and going deeper, longer and wider with them. As long as those brands keep producing, then it\u2019s possible to generate revenue in more territories, and your energies get rewarded.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Genevieve Dexter, the founder and CEO, talks about the importance of having long-running series that can break into the U.S. market.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":477,"featured_media":10515,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pmpro_default_level":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,21],"tags":[1581,1024],"class_list":["post-10514","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-profiles","category-top-stories","tag-genevieve-dexter","tag-serious-lunch","pmpro-has-access"],"yoast_head":"\nSerious Lunch Feeds the Appetite for Lasting Brands - TVKIDS<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvkids\/serious-lunch-feeds-the-appetite-for-lasting-brands\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Serious Lunch Feeds the Appetite for Lasting Brands - TVKIDS\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Genevieve Dexter, the founder and CEO, talks about the importance of having long-running series that can break into the U.S. market.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvkids\/serious-lunch-feeds-the-appetite-for-lasting-brands\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"TVKIDS\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-07-29T13:00:31+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2016-08-01T13:47:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvkids\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2015\/09\/2016-07-28-Genevieve-Dexter.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Sara Alessi\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Sara Alessi\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvkids\/serious-lunch-feeds-the-appetite-for-lasting-brands\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvkids\/serious-lunch-feeds-the-appetite-for-lasting-brands\/\",\"name\":\"Serious Lunch Feeds the Appetite for Lasting Brands - TVKIDS\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvkids\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2016-07-29T13:00:31+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2016-08-01T13:47:20+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvkids\/#\/schema\/person\/3a30a856ec6d9cc2372bf054d26a0418\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvkids\/serious-lunch-feeds-the-appetite-for-lasting-brands\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvkids\/serious-lunch-feeds-the-appetite-for-lasting-brands\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvkids\/serious-lunch-feeds-the-appetite-for-lasting-brands\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvkids\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Serious Lunch Feeds the Appetite for Lasting Brands\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvkids\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvkids\/\",\"name\":\"TVKIDS\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvkids\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvkids\/#\/schema\/person\/3a30a856ec6d9cc2372bf054d26a0418\",\"name\":\"Sara Alessi\",\"description\":\"Sara Alessi is the associate editor of World Screen. 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