Cathy Payne is aware of the distribution market in addition to any exec within the worldwide enterprise.
She headed up Southern Star Worldwide, which was purchased by Endemol in 2009. It merged with Shine in 2015 earlier than Banijay acquired Endemol Shine in 2020. Payne is now CEO Banijay Rights, the distribution arm of that massive enterprise, which has a catalog of greater than 200,000 hours together with Black Mirror, Massive Brother and Survivor.
“We’re large, however we wish to preserve that feeling we all the time had once we had been small,” she says. “I’ve all the time labored in firms the place manufacturing and distribution had been built-in. After we began off in Australia, we all the time had to consider how we had been going to get something funded, we all the time needed to discover a manner.”
Payne has been a part of the evolution of the worldwide TV enterprise and has seen seismic M&A offers from the within. She speaks to Deadline throughout a visit to her native Australia, earlier than heading again in time for the London TV Screenings.
“We’ve gone by means of the recalibration of the streamers however we’re nonetheless working by means of plenty of large company consolidation,” Payne says when requested about what’s shaping the worldwide business. She notes that distributors are ready to see the implications, at a shopping for stage, of the Skydance and Paramount World merger, and the influence of NBCUniversal and others separating linear and non-linear belongings.
Banijay Rights response to the business change? “It’s been a really difficult market. It turns into about your energy as a corporation to provide you with artistic options that may assist make issues occur that won’t have occurred in any other case.”
Drama’s New Actuality
With cash tight and commissions skinny on the bottom in lots of locations, making issues occur in high-end scripted TV is a puzzle. The UK particularly is feeling the pinch. Many tasks are in limbo; they’ve been commissioned however can not sq. off their funding.
Payne acknowledges it’s powerful on the market however spies some inexperienced shoots. The query, she says, turns into tips on how to make exhibits with the cash that’s out there.
“It’s about how do you discover a completely different manufacturing mannequin. Not each present has to break the bank to achieve success. I used to be actually happy to see a present like Child Reindeer, placing apart any controversy. It wasn’t costly, it was only a actually good present. It spoke to the viewers.
“We simply need to discover a option to make issues work as a result of we will’t complain about what we had. The market is what it’s.”
Damien Molony as Jim Bergerac
Banijay/UKTV
Banijay prodco Mam Tor is making Half Man, Child Reindeer author and star Richard Gadd’s new present for the BBC and HBO. Payne’s crew will take it to market. With the London Screenings kicking off, the distributor’s key scripted titles embrace a up to date tackle detective basic Maigret, and a brand new model of classic British sequence Bergerac. Banijay purchased Caryn Mandabach Productions final yr and Banijay Rights outlets Steven Knight’s ever-popular Peaky Blinders internationally.
“There’ll all the time be these exhibits that individuals actually need, however I don’t assume there’ll be a giant inflow of latest cash for co-productions,” Payne says of the broader drama scene. “I don’t assume we’re going to get up and discover it’s 2021 once more.”
Distributors are being requested to fill larger funding gaps in return for rights, however in the end, the numbers must stack up.
“There are specific exhibits the place you may take a longer-term view, however on the finish of the day you possibly can solely make investments what you assume you may make again,” is Payne’s take. “I actually like content material; I wish to learn it and I’m very keen about it. I additionally just like the gross sales course of, and the gross sales course of is subtle and inventive.
“Distribution can’t make investments to fill the gaps after which lose cash.”
Scripted Gloom, Unscripted Growth?
Survivor
BBC/Exceptional
The swings and roundabouts of the worldwide enterprise imply that when drama manufacturing is challenged it might probably imply an uptick in unscripted. However that a part of the enterprise is going through its personal exams.
“There hasn’t been as a lot of that mid-price-point factual leisure commissioned from the UK, however there have been extra codecs commissioned,” the Banijay distribution boss says. “For us, the leisure codecs, particularly the well-known titles and the franchises proceed to do nicely; our MasterChefs and Survivors.
“How they’re rejuvenated is a part of their success, how you’re employed out completely different manufacturing fashions that imply you may make Survivor for a market like Hungary and likewise make it for a market like Australia. We’ve bought some MasterChef offers the place we’ve by no means bought it earlier than, there are nonetheless new markets being damaged.”
Payne says the Discovery channels are ordering much less, which is a matter. “There was plenty of factual programming commissioned from there, particularly from plenty of UK producers, the place a distributor like us would put up the remainder of the cash. Quite a lot of that commissioning has simply stopped. It’s been very troublesome for a few of these producers. They’re actually reliant on royalties from catalog offers to assist them maintain.”
With a deal for Mythbusters outfit Past Worldwide, Banijay Rights added 8,000 hours to its personal catalog and Payne says measurement issues. “In distribution, it’s both the massive or the boutique, however the center is dear. If you happen to’re boutique, you possibly can have actually low overheads. When you begin entering into that mid vary, the overheads between an organization turning over 250 million and 150 million usually are not that a lot completely different.”
Mr Bean
Banijay
Having an unlimited library additionally opens up direct-to-consumer alternatives for distributors, similar to rolling out FAST channels. It’s an space Banijay Rights has been shifting into. Essentially the most attention-grabbing launch has been a Mr Bean: The Animated Collection channel.
The London Look
Banijay was one of many quartet of distribs behind London TV Screenings. What began as a second to capitalize on BBC Studios bringing patrons to city for its Showcase occasion has grown right into a must-attend fixture within the calendar.
Banijay rolls into the Screenings with the aforementioned Maigret, a doc on the 7/7 London Bombings and a brand new relationship format, 30 Dates 30 Nights, amongst its key priorities throughout drama, factual, leisure.
For Payne, the February get-together with patrons “is greater than a commerce market.” She provides: “Individuals come and sit and take time. Just like the LA screenings, you’re truly watching exhibits.”
Signing off, Payne boss displays on her roles atop the distribution biz and working Banijay Rights. “I wish to guarantee that it’s arrange for good succession, another person will lead the enterprise sooner or later.” That’s one thing for her to ponder, however not for some time but, she is fast so as to add: “Not that I’m desiring to go anyplace proper now.”
