Netflix famously keeps its audience data a deep secret. We lack even high-level measures of its documentary viewing, much less the detailed demographics from the likes of Nielsen and BARB that drive the broadcast and Cab/Sat sectors. That’s a problem for the Unscripted / Documentary eco-system. Producers, schedulers and their funders are shooting in the …
Netflix programming exec Diego Buñuel presented to two standing-room-only audiences last Tuesday at Sunny Side of the Doc in beautiful La Rochelle. It was the ‘event with the event.’ Delegates lined up for an hour beforehand to secure their seats. Netflix is that hot! The generous Diego is a former producer who comes from that great …
This month’s coverage of the documentary and unscripted landscape is curated by your friends at Sunny Side of the Doc and DocumentaryBusiness.com. Fetishizing personalities: “The Inventor: Out For Blood” exposes the celebrity money cult led by Silicon Valley’s Elizabeth Holmes, founder of collapsed medical disrupter Theranos // The Guardian. Misogyny? That’s what a tech writer …
Why do Netflix-type Subscription Video On Demand / Over-The-Top (SVOD/OTT) services succeed? Or fail? My colleague Dr John Morse (Byron Media) shared a very useful presentation / webinar from research firm Parks Associates titled AVOIDING OTT’s TOP FIVE MISTAKES. The key is Subscriber Retention. More than 25% of current SVOD/OTT customers have recently cancelled a …
The MIPDoc International Copro Summit gathered 40+ industry leaders to discuss coproduction trends, challenges and solutions. FORMAT: The Summit kicked off with my mini-presentation on the forces that are shaping how producers and buyers are approaching copro’s in this new, high-pressure ‘Age of Netflix’. A panel discussion analyzed a Case Study: Life of Earth: From …
Ellen Windemuth launched OFF THE FENCE from her basement 25 years ago. In this week’s podcast, Ellen: Looks back at her company’s launch. Reflects on the particular challenges then for women in a male-dominated industry. Explores how Off The Fence grew into an industry-leading independent distributor / producer with a turnover of around $20 million. Describes her …
by Peter Broderick, Paradigm Consulting. The most important change at Sundance this year was the unprecedented success of women. US Dramatic Competition included nine films directed or co-directed by women and eight films directed or co-directed by men. This was a remarkable change from the consistent selection in each of the previous four years of …
The feature documentary is booming. That’s the message from Sundance 2019. Reported bids for rights approach $20 million. Topping the list is Knock Down the House, the Sundance Audience Award winner that captures the run for Congress in 2018 of the “AOC” superstar Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The SVOD giant reportedly bid $10 million for worldwide rights. That’s …