The 14th annual CNEX Chinese Doc Forum (CCDF) just wrapped up in Taipei, Taiwan, where industry veteran Dan Salerno immersed himself in the booming Asian documentary scene. From September 22 to 25, CCDF brought Taiwanese and Chinese documentary filmmakers together with industry professionals for a productive pitching forum that rivals its Western equivalents. Presenting for …
What are the key demand trends in the documentary sector across platforms, and how are the festivals responding? That was the ambitious topic for this morning’s recording of an engaging panel for the upcoming Guangzho International Documentary Film Festival 2021. China had almost fallen off my radar after many years of deep involvement in the …
GZ DOC Panel: Global Factual Content Summit: 2021 VOD Platforms & Festivals Read More »
Who are key documentary buyers worldwide? What programs and series do they want? How can you reach them? 260 decision-makers / 137 companies / 42 countries The expanded and updated Sunny Side of the Doc Guide to Documentary Decision Makers is now available for $99.95. That’s a 33% instant savings of $50 off the regular …
INSIDE WUHAN is a Case Study in how hard times bring out innovation and flexibility from filmmakers. The producer/ director Craig Thompson discusses his 22-minute, short turnaround special, commissioned by CTV-Canada’s W5 and produced by Ballinran Entertainment and White Pine Pictures. Tagline INSIDE WUHAN is an undercover documentary that foreshadows a world under quarantine and …
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 …
Sundance: Buyers Bid $20 Million as the Feature Documentary Category Booms Read More »
China is always on my radar. For the Factual sector, it’s been boom and bust, glimpses of editorial freedom followed by heavy state control, old business models and new ones. Despite many false dawns, I have kept my eyes open for hopeful trends for documentarians who are determined to do business in China. This post …
A colleague writes from China in response to my post that opportunities will be created from China’s addition of 870 million middle class consumers: You miss the point about the growing Chinese middle class and, come to think of it, about SVOD here in China. Where to start? First, let’s talk about the middle class television …
An Expert Challenges The “China’s Booming Middle Class” Theory Read More »
My “Facebook Originals Are Coming!” post was translated by our friends at Content China. China’s documentary sector has been a regular subject of analysis in this newsletter. The promise of the early years of this century were frustrated by an array of regulatory and commercial factors. However, I can see that the pendulum is shifting. China’s VOD services …