TVF International Inks Crime & Investigation Deals

Factual distributor TVF International has secured a wave of sales for its true-crime titles across North America, Europe, the Asia Pacific and MENA.

The Negotiators, commissioned by Singapore’s CNA and produced by Peddling Pictures, has sold to National Geographic in the U.S., CANAL+ in France, RTBF in Belgium, CCII in Taiwan, SIC in Portugal, RDF Entertainment in Poland and DoxTV. The 8×48-minute series delves into the dangerous world of hostage negotiations.

CANAL+ Poland has acquired a package of crime programming from TVF, including Newsroom New Zealand’s Satanic Panic: The Peter Ellis Story and the Mint Pictures-produced, SBS-commissioned title The Bowraville Murders. For its French stream, CANAL+ licensed three titles commissioned by CNA: Catching a Serial Killer: Death & Injustice in Korea, In Search of the Frogboys and Crime Science. CANAL+ France also licensed Hacked: The Bangladesh Bank Heist.

Czech-based CS Film also acquired a package of crime titles, including Investigation Discovery’s My Brother the Serial Killer, about America’s notorious cross-country serial killer Glen Rogers.

Elsewhere in Europe, Belgian public broadcaster RTBF licensed The Big Boss: A 21st Century Criminal from Mediacorp and The Bitcoin Kid: A Crypto Heist from Veracity Productions. Movistar Plus+ in Spain licensed the Hulu documentary The Reckoning: Hollywood’s Worst Kept Secret, revealing systemic sexual abuse and misconduct in Hollywood.

In the Middle East, Al Jazeera’s Documentary channel has acquired Undercover Asia, Inside Indonesia’s Football Ultras and Tainted Medicine Scandal. The broadcaster also licensed Inside the Exotic Butterfly Trade, which follows exotic butterflies as they pass illegally through changing hands, from hunters and dealers to collectors.

Poppy McAlister, head of TVF International, commented: “Navigating the growing appetite for true-crime narratives and the increasing demand for immersive docudramas has been a key focus for most factual distributors over the last year. TVF is proud to be at the forefront of delivering premium crime and investigation documentaries to audiences around the globe. From award-winning and compelling docudramas like The Negotiators to sensitive investigations like Satanic Panic: The Peter Ellis Story and The Bowraville Murders, our documentaries resonate with audiences, transcending borders and cultures. We look forward to building on our crime and investigation offering at MIPCOM to continue delivering high-quality and thought-provoking unscripted programming to broadcasters around the globe.”