It’s always a pleasure to share my semi-annual report card on the top-rated UK documentary and lifestyle programs. I enjoy the compelling diversity and quality of the UK industry. SIZZLING SIXTY Here are the Top 60 Documentaries, Lifestyle & Current Affairs programs for UK through June 30, 2017 (in thousands). Channel Programme ‘000 1 BBC 1 Countryfile 7,670 …
A 10-year ratings snapshot shows that U.S. factual networks are far from falling off a cliff. And Europe has increased potential as a co-production partner. That’s the message that I shared over and over in my panels and meetings at last week’s productive and enjoyable Sunny Side of the Doc. Chart Nielsen kindly shared a …
What happened with UK punters in 2016? It was the year when Britain charged headlong out of the ‘hood and into a free trade agreement with nifty New Zealand. Factual TV audiences didn’t behave as oddly as UK voters. But 2016’s hits revealed lots of homely ‘Brexit-predictors.’ Olde Englande: Four of the Top 6 shows …
Is the archive on the way back? We think so, and we explored the factors driving changes in the archive landscape with Footage.net‘s David Seevers in an interview with myself and Peabody Award-winning producer Tom Jennings. DocumentaryTelevision.com’s coverage of the archive is sponsored by ITN Source. FN: In a recent edition of DocumentaryTelevision.com, you noted that “History channel’s …
Who are the BIG GUNS in the Wild West of Social Media Video? Video is the fastest growing segment of the social media industry. Facebook has 1.57 billion mobile Monthly Active Users, and dominates video: Over 7.9 million videos were uploaded directly to FB last month. They generated over 208 billion views… For 1.1 million +/- …
Unscripted producers are agitated by a legal conflict between Discovery and an established production company. The key underlying issue relates to production accounting practices. Variety‘s Cynthia Littleton covers the story thoroughly here. It’s an excellent must-read. Here is the opening and the link to the entire article. by Cynthia Littleton A legal battle over accounting practices that …
Last week marked a historic tipping point in the public’s ability to both use and respond to live video. Facebook Live’s video stream of the immediate, devastating aftermath of a fatal shooting in Minnesota has either dominated or framed both the news cycle and the public conversation since. We haven’t digested the implications of Facebook’s broadcast, …
Here are my quick, top seven Takeaways from the very rewarding and compatible Sunny Side of the Doc: 1. BREXIT Several UK agents and producers reported that their fast-track projects were recently stranded due to BREXIT uncertainty. Trump wasn’t helping either. They said that many UK broadcast and satellite channels were in an “unofficial buying freeze.” …