World Screen Video Interview: Global Agency’s Izzet Pinto

NEW YORK: Izzet Pinto, the CEO of Global Agency, discusses the company’s growth path—as its catalogue is expanding beyond formats into telenovelas and feature films—among other topics, in this video interview.

The presence of a bevy of beautiful models sporting pregnancy baby-bumps caused much chatter throughout the Palais at MIPTV. And this was exactly what Global Agency had hoped for in promoting its newest controversial format, Rent a Mama. The Turkish outfit, whose mantra is "Formats that create buzzz!," pulled a similar stunt last MIPCOM, when actors dressed up as heads of various religious sects were seen strolling through Cannes, drawing attention to the format Choosing My Religion. "We represent probably the most controversial formats in the TV industry," acknowledges Izzet Pinto, the CEO of Global Agency. "In order to stand out, you have to be different."

Further titles in Global Agency’s format portfolio include The Perfect Bride, My EX is My Witness!, Who’s Got 10 Talents? and The Big Challenge. The company also recently signed a deal with Miditech for the production of formats for the Indian market. Miditech—which has localized global format hits such as Pop Idol, Deal or No Deal and Extreme Makeover in India—will produce shows for Indian broadcasters using the formats developed by Global Agency and, in turn, Global Agency will distribute Miditech’s formats to the international market.

A relatively young company, Global Agency made its debut about four years ago at MIPCOM with just one format. Today, the company has 18 titles to offer, and the catalogue has expanded into other genres as well. While format distribution remains Global Agency’s main business, the company has branched out into representing telenovelas and feature films. In the way of telenovelas, Global Agency represents the finished episodes of 1001 Nights, Secrets of Eden and Valley of the Wolves, along with the format rights to Forbidden Love, which has been one of the most talked about series in Turkish television history. Among the feature films in its slate are Love in a Different Language, The Goal of My Life and Gravity Zero. Global Agency even attended the Cannes film festival this year for the first time as a seller.