MIPJunior\u2019s pre-opening schedule yesterday featured an insightful discussion between WildBrain\u2019s Deirdre Brennan, Keith Chapman, PBS KIDS\u2019 Sara DeWitt and Blue Spirit\u2019s Olivier Lelardoux, along with the presentation of stark data from Ampere Analysis about the plunge in kids\u2019 commissions over the last year and the crucial role of known IP.<\/p>\n
MIPJunior activities kicked off a day earlier this year with the opening of the screenings library and several conference sessions in Cannes yesterday. The session moderated by Brennan, the COO of WildBrain, called State of the Kids Entertainment Industry: Challenges & Opportunities, began with a presentation by Cyrine Amor, senior analyst at Ampere Analysis, about the realities of the state of the industry, pointing to the fall in commissions, notably from the U.S., the need for ubiquitous distribution and the rising importance of known brands to cut through the clutter.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe world, in case you haven\u2019t noticed, has changed,\u201d Brennan said in her opening remarks. \u201cThe lines between content, marketing and distribution, work and home, are no longer distinct. You layer on the duty of care that we have for children and families, and it\u2019s a really complex landscape to navigate.\u201d<\/p>\n
Commissions have been on the downswing throughout this year, Ampere\u2019s Amor noted, for several reasons, including macroeconomic factors, the shifts at the streamers and pressures on linear broadcasters. Global commissions of kids\u2019 shows are down 48 percent since February 2022. Overall, kids\u2019 titles commissions fell 21 percent\u2014almost double the 11 percent decline seen in all genres.<\/p>\n
The cutbacks have been most significant at the U.S. SVOD and pay-TV services. U.S. public-service broadcast commissions were fairly stable, but pay-TV commissions slumped 53 percent and SVOD 33 percent. In Western Europe, PSB commissioning has taken a hit, falling by 19 percent, while the SVODs and pay TV were fairly stable.<\/p>\n
The pressures on the market are causing commissioners to rely more on known IP, which accounted for more than 50 percent of new commissions in the U.S. and the big European territories. On that front, book adaptations, spin-offs and reboots dominate.<\/p>\n
Amor also highlighted the shifts in distribution strategies and the challenges of discovery. In the big five European territories, as of the first half of this year, there were 1,999 kids\u2019 shows on SVOD, 1,678 on linear, 711 on paid and free streaming and 690 on free streaming. The most popular titles were available on paid and free streaming and linear. The titles available on a non-exclusive basis saw their average popularity increase over a two-year period, while the popularity of exclusives slipped.<\/p>\n
The session then moved to a panel discussion moderated by Brennan with Chapman, the creator of such beloved shows as Bob the Builder<\/em> and PAW Patrol<\/em>; DeWitt, senior VP and general manager of PBS KIDS; and Lelardoux, CEO of the French animation outfit Blue Spirit.<\/p>\n \u201cI see all this incredible change, but fundamentally, I stick to the same principle: it comes from the spark of a great idea,\u201d Chapman said. \u201cIf you start with great characters, everything else will follow.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAt PBS KIDS, we\u2019re seeing so much excitement in the gaming space,\u201d said DeWitt. \u201cIt\u2019s our fastest-growing area. If you think about the ways that you can build out worlds through other types of media, it gets really exciting.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSomething deeper is shifting\u201d in the industry, Lelardoux noted. \u201cChange is exciting. It\u2019s an opportunity to tell stories in a better way, different way.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re in a moment where kids are accessing content in so many different ways and expecting to be able to really play with the characters,\u201d DeWitt said. \u201cThere\u2019s technology now to allow kids to really engage in that play in a new way.\u201d<\/p>\n New technologies are enabling Blue Spirit to tell stories in new ways, Lelardoux noted. \u201cMaking movies and series is so complex. We try to reduce the pressures with AI within the production process.\u201d<\/p>\n On finding partners to get projects off the ground, DeWitt pointed to the importance of \u201clike-mindedness. We\u2019re most focused on the curriculum opportunity, the educational opportunity. And how is it going to make a positive impact? When we\u2019re talking to folks about new properties, we\u2019re thinking about how does this expand into a larger world? Can you tell linear stories about how you can play games with that? How can you think about it as audio storytelling in a podcast?\u201d<\/p>\n Given the challenges in the landscape, experimentation and innovation are still key, Lelardoux noted. \u201cLittle failures can lead to a big hit,\u201d he said. Unreal Engine has become a key tool for animation studios, and embracing it means understanding the culture of the gaming segment. \u201cWhen you mix in your animation flow people from the animation industry and the gaming industry, it\u2019s very interesting. Unreal Engine is a disruptive technology. The technology is amazing. Fortnite is not a game anymore. It\u2019s a medium, it\u2019s a platform, with a very strong creator economy. Same with Roblox. In terms of marketing and communication, they are playgrounds for brands and IPs.\u201d<\/p>\n Keeping an emphasis on the audience is paramount, Brennan said. \u201cIt\u2019s not about following the audience. It\u2019s about meeting them. There\u2019s a sense of active responsibility in doing that. There are communities on these platforms; they\u2019re incredibly loyal to them. We can no longer ignore gaming because that\u2019s where they find their community. It\u2019s based in content and creative expression and connected to the largest and strongest viewing platform: YouTube. We have to understand the mechanics and dynamics of that.\u201d<\/p>\n On how PBS KIDS is meeting its audience, DeWitt said, \u201cWe\u2019re always trying to think about how the latest technologies can offer us really great opportunities to do more with media and kids. Our fastest-growing audience right now is on the PBS KIDS gaming app and the website. Also, podcasts and ways to bring parents and kids together. With AI, we\u2019re doing an experiment with conversational episodes. What we\u2019re learning from the research is that the kids who are engaging with these interactive conversational episodes are more engaged in the show itself, but also coming away with greater learning gains.\u201d<\/p>\n She added, \u201cWe want to experiment with these technologies to see what is the biggest opportunity for learning and for kids for a positive experience. And how we can then come up with some ideas that can be replicable in a commercial space, but maybe already have some guardrails for safety and privacy.\u201d<\/p>\n Brennan asked Chapman about his approach to determining what\u2019s meaningful for kids\u2019 audiences today. Being a parent helps, he quipped. \u201cYou become an expert in child behavior. I try to build little touches into the shows that will appeal to them. I look for gaps. I look to the future. What\u2019s going to be relevant to a child in three to five years\u2019 time?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe origin of everything is telling stories,\u201d said Lelardoux on what moves the team at Blue Spirit. \u201cHow will the audience interact with your stories and characters? Kids now were raised with Roblox and video games and having to interact, create and participate in the universes they like. We are linear, and they are not. We have to find a way to develop an ecosystem of techniques and stories to address that.\u201d<\/p>\n DeWitt added: \u201cWe have to think about the fact that kids are expecting different things from different platforms. There is a big expectation of watching television, being able to lean back and have a story flow over them. Kids still love that. But when they\u2019re on a computer, they\u2019re more likely to want to play a game or create something. On an iPad, they want to sample around. We need to think about how kids come to different platforms expecting a different kind of experience. It means we have to come up with new experiences for lots of different places.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" MIPJunior\u2019s pre-opening schedule yesterday featured an insightful discussion between WildBrain\u2019s Deirdre Brennan, Keith Chapman, PBS KIDS\u2019 Sara DeWitt and Blue Spirit\u2019s Olivier Lelardoux, along with the presentation of stark data from Ampere Analysis about the plunge in kids\u2019 commissions over the last year and the crucial role of known IP.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":290,"featured_media":26097,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pmpro_default_level":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[8563,1929,8564,906,4997,8565,5865,146,8473,1156],"class_list":["post-26096","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-top-stories","tag-ampere-analysis","tag-blue-spirit","tag-cyrine-amor","tag-deirdre-brennan","tag-keith-chapman","tag-mipjunior-2023","tag-olivier-lelardoux","tag-pbs-kids","tag-sara-dewitt","tag-wildbrain","pmpro-has-access"],"yoast_head":"\n