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| Miracle Screenings. April 2008. No.21 | |
Telenovelas in Central and Eastern Europe
Melissa Pillow How are Telemundo Internacional's novelas positioned in the CEE territories? Even though the attention of CEE companies is directed at local production, Telemundo's titles remain so very exportable due to their extremely international qualities, including their high quality production, well-recognized casts and original stories by authors with proven track records.
Currently, our title "Marina", is a hit throughout the region, achieving the top ranking in Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia and Serbia. Another of our most recent titles, "A Chance To Love" (Pecados Ajenos), is generating a 45% share in Bulgaria, while "Grains Of Love" ("Madre Luna") has raised the slot average on the same channel. "Sweet Secret" ("Dame Chocolate") is performing very well in Armenia and Azerbaijan, and will soon be launched in Poland. "Looking For Dad" ("Amarte Asi") and "White's Widow" ("La Viuda de Blanco") are still generating amazing ratings just as they have for the past 18 months currently in Serbia and Poland, where the results are well above the channels'market share. Our co-production with Sony from 2007, "Zorro: The Sword And The Rose" ("El Zorro: la espada y la rosa"), will soon launch in the ex-Yugoslav territories, and our newest release, "Betrayed", starring audiences'favorite Mario Cimmaro ("Hidden Passion", "Second Chance") was sold to the CIS, Bulgaria, Romania and ex-Yugoslavia the very week of its launch on Telemundo. What about fiction formats? How are Telemundo's fiction formats doing in CEE? As our ready-made titles have a firm place in the afternoon programming of channels throughout the CEE, Telemundo Internacional is focusing on formats. Our drama formats have sold very well in the CIS, beginning with the sale of the format of our telenovela "Thief Of Hearts" ("Ladrуn de Corazones") in Russia in 2006, and it has been followed by many other format deals including the local adaptation of our "Telenovela 30" ("Los Treinta") for the CTC network. Most recently, the format of "Decisions" ("Decisiones"), Telemundo's star prime time format for years (over 500 episodes produced) has been sold for the these territories as well. We are working to see adaptations of our formats take place in other areas of the CEE, with concentration above all on the formats "Twisted Love" ("Amor Descarado"), which has been licensed / optioned in the CIS, Portugal, Greece, India, Spain, Cyprus, France, Germany and Italy; "Accomplice To Love" ("Cуmplices") already closed in the CIS, Greece and Colombia, as well as our newest title "Someone Is Watching" ("Alguien te Mira") a mystery/thriller whose format was recently closed for Portugal. In addition, for this year's MIPTV, we have brought back as a format one of our most beloved titles from the producer TVN of Chile, "Aqualarre", a telenovela, in which a prestigious doctor investigates a very strange town in which only females are born. Is Telemundo also offering entertainment formats? Apart from giving an impulse to our catalogue of fiction formats, we are greatly promoting our fantastic catalogue of non-scripted formats from PROMOFILM, which includes a variety of entertainment formats including a dating show called "12 Hearts" ("12 Corazones"). The recent launch of "12 Hearts" in France was so successful that the channel has decided to make it a daily-stripped program, and the show is currently also being produced for Telemundo's primetime. We feel sure these positive results will help catapult the format into the CEE, beginning with Romania where it is currently under negotiation. In addition to our non-scripted Promofilm titles, Telemundo Internacional will give special attention to Eastern Europe for our format "My Teen Dream", an inspiring talent program for the entire family, in which teen girls strive for stardom with their Mothers as their managers. The Indonesian version of this show took the channel from number 5 to number 1 in the 7:00 pm slot. |
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