Turkish drama series have been creating quite a buzz in the industry as of late. These high-quality productions are in demand globally, and Sparks Network has found strong interest from several countries for adapting these scripted shows for local markets. Among them, Ezel from Ay Yapim has been a breakout success for Sparks. Fredrik af Malmborg, Sparks’ managing director, sat down with World Screen to discuss the elements that go into adapting Turkish dramas for other countries.

Malmborg also talks about the overall appetite for scripted formats and the value in these productions compared to non-scripted shows. He shares with us some of the new developments happening within the company, and also discusses where he sees as being the current hubs for creativity in the marketplace.

It’s been nearly four years since Shaftesbury acquired Smokebomb Entertainment, forming what is now the company’s digital media division. The digital efforts started with websites and cross-platform games and expanded into original online series as well as companion web experiences for top titles such as The Listener.

Christina Jennings, the chairman and CEO of Shaftesbury, tells World Screen Weekly about the company’s prowess in the digital arena and plans for continued growth in that space. Jennings also discusses the current landscape for international co-productions, which is an area that Shaftesbury has become quite adept at navigating.

Currently the president of worldwide entertainment at FremantleMedia, Trish Kinane has overseen the global rollout of the Idols, Got Talent and X Factor franchises. Kinane recently announced that she is transitioning to a new role at the company this fall. Starting in August, Kinane will be responsible for the U.S. reality juggernauts American Idol, The X Factor and America’s Got Talent in her new post as president of entertainment programming at FremantleMedia North America.

In this video interview, Kinane shares with us her view on some of the global trends in the format market. She also talks about what shows she’s particularly excited about in the catalogue and the importance of being able to offer broadcasters flexibility with formats.

Based on the novels by Australian author Kerry Greenwood, Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries is a 1920s-set detective drama following the seductive lady sleuth Phryne Fisher. The show is from Every Cloud Productions for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) and ALL3MEDIA International has taken it out to the international market.

Fiona Eagger and Deb Cox, co-founders of Every Cloud Productions, have been very much involved in crafting the overall look, feel and tone of the series. Eagger and Cox are both producers on the show, and Cox also leads the writing team. They share with us the process of developing a character like Phryne, bringing a modern attitude to the period piece.

It has been more than two years now since ProSiebenSat.1’s Red Arrow Entertainment Group struck up a development agreement with Israeli entertainment producer Omri Marcus. Red Arrow has exclusive access to Marcus’s formats and development projects across all platforms on a worldwide basis, with SevenOne International managing the distribution. Currently, Marcus is developing projects with Red Arrow’s partners such as Mark Burnett Productions and Kinetic Content in the U.S., CPL Productions from the U.K. and July August Productions in Israel.

Marcus has been a senior writer on Israel’s top comedy shows and has consulted for a number of Israeli production companies in scouting formats and eyeing global trends. He created the reality format Buzz Off, and has been involved in the writing of a number of comedy and entertainment shows. He is also behind Red Arrow’s Pop Quiz, a format that combines trivia with arcade-style gameplay.

In this video interview, Marcus sits down with TV Formats Weekly to talk about his creative partnership with Red Arrow and about what’s creating buzz in the format market nowadays. He also shares his insights into what types of comedy can travel globally.

Ed Bernero, who was the showrunner and executive producer of the hit series Criminal Minds and co-created Third Watch, is behind the new prime-time drama Crossing Lines. Tandem Communications and Bernero Productions have teamed up on the one-hour English-language series, which is about a broken New York detective who joins an elite unit of younger cops to track down Europe’s most brutal criminals.

In this video interview, World Screen Weekly sits down with Bernero and Rola Bauer, president and partner at Tandem who is also executive producing Crossing Lines, to discuss details of the new production.

A relatively young player in the kids’ market, PGS Entertainment was founded in 2008 with the focus of supporting the distribution and financing for leading independent animation producers. The company has been selective with its slate, representing a smaller number of titles, including iconic brands such as The Little Prince, Iron Man: Armored Adventures and Chaplin & Co. PGS is firmly focused on the distribution and brand management of third-party shows, rather than on producing its own content.

Philippe Soutter, co-founder and president of PGS, talks with TV Kids Weekly about this business model. He also shares examples of how the company helps the producers that it represents get around some of the financing issues in the market to get their shows to the screen.

Greed, power, money and astrology are the themes that run through the new drama series Signs. An XII Tribes Entertainment production distributed by Panini Media, the series was conceived by Michel Zgarka, who serves as producer alongside, among others, Randy Bradshaw, who is also the main director of the series. Ysé Brisson is the lead actress, head of the writing team and co-executive producer on the project.

Brisson plays Natacha De La Tour, who is the head of a 12-company conglomerate owned by the mysterious William Manchester. Manchester is unwillingly influenced by the powers of a gifted astrologer with ulterior motives. Each of his 12 companies are led by a powerful and bright female executive, who were all handpicked for their impressive résumé and also according to their Zodiac sign.

Brisson, Zgarka and Bradshaw sat down with World Screen to discuss the series and how it's different from the typical drama.

Having made a name for himself in the documentary film business, Morgan Spurlock has since brought his talents to the small screen. He parlayed the success of his hit 2004 doc Super Size Me into a TV series for FX, 30 Days, which debuted the following year. Exploring yet another new platform, Spurlock teamed up with Hulu for A Day in the Life. The series helped jumpstart Hulu’s move into long-form original content. FremantleMedia Enterprises (FME) signed a global first-look deal for Hulu original programming, and A Day in the Life was the first title it took out to the international market under the pact.

FME and Spurlock have since continued their relationship. The company entered into a first-look agreement with Spurlock’s production company, Warrior Poets. The deal sees FME representing the Sky Atlantic HD commission New Britannia, in which Spurlock dissects the eccentricities of British culture. The pact also includes Failure Club, originally produced for Yahoo! in the U.S.

In this video interview, Spurlock talks to TV Real Weekly about his experience with producing for digital platforms, and also let’s us in on what new projects he’s working on.

A slew of deals have been secured by SevenOne International within the last month. This includes selling the game-show format Family Showdown to RAI1 in Italy, Lilyhammer scoring a slot in Israel and My Man Can being adapted in South Africa, for pay-TV station kykNET, and in the U.K., for ITV1. Just in this short list of sales, the breadth of the SevenOne slate is evident, ranging from non-scripted to scripted, from formats to TV movies and more.

Jens Richter, the managing director of SevenOne, talks in this video interview about the company’s aim of bulking up its English-language productions. He also discusses the company’s growth and the priorities for continued expansion.