Family comedies from Russia await in the Middle East

According to the results of the Dubai International Content Market DICM 2022, Russian companies spoke about the demand for family films, historical series, sports dramas, as well as the readiness of Middle Eastern partners to jointly produce animation.

The Dubai International Content Market DICM 2022, which took place at the end of November in the United Arab Emirates, was successful for the Russian film industry. At the Russian Content Worldwide booth organized by ROSKINO, fourteen Russian companies presented more than 60 films, series and animation projects. All Media (a START company), START and KION online cinemas, Sreda production company, NTV television company, Sovteleexport (VGTRK official distributor), Pimanov and Partners, Soyuzmultfilm, Riki Group ”, Parovoz animation studio, Digital Television media holding, Odin Media, X-Media Digital, RUSSIAN film company.

Among the key results of the DICM content market are: negotiations on a remake of the IP Pirogov series in the UAE and the sale of the historical drama Tobol, offers from buyers on the purchase of family films Little Red Riding Hood and Cheburashka, negotiations on the sale of a documentary film about the problem of plastic waste “Invisible Hope” to Saudi Arabia, Oman, UAE, Malaysia, Indonesia and China; agreements on granting rights to a line of VGTRK historical series to be shown in Arabic on the YouTube platform in the UAE; reaching agreements on co-production with Russian animation companies.

ROSKINO General Director Inna Shalyto: “With many projects presented on the DICM market, we got into the trends of the Middle East media industry. For example, “women’s” series are currently among the top popular VOD platforms in the region, and buyers also see potential in our films about strong women. Or, for example, in the UAE, very much attention is paid to environmental issues, and our documentaries on environmental topics are of great interest to content buyers. Interest in co-productions has increased, especially in the animation segment. The MENA region also appreciates the educational component of Russian animation. In general, the demand for content from Russia is growing, buyers note its high quality, but at the same time, for further systemic promotion in the Middle East, more attention should be paid to dubbing. In 2023, industrial events in the MENA region will once again become an important part of ROSKINO’s strategy for working in foreign markets.”

Online cinema START noted that the industry in the MENA region is changing: this year it became clear that the market is more open to experimentation. Bright comedy family formats were in special demand, among the most discussed projects of the company is IP Pirogova, a story about a former housewife who turns her hobby into a business and opens her own confectionery. As START noted, such projects resonate with the region and buyers see potential in them: on one of the largest streaming platforms MENA, the series in which a woman opens her own barbershop has become the second most popular over the past few months. Negotiations are underway on a remake of IP Pirogov in the UAE. The distributors were also interested in the Tobol project: the finished eight-episode drama impressed buyers not only with the storyline, but also with the quality and scale of production. Licensing deals are being negotiated.

The DICM 2022 market was also productive for All Media (a START company): in two days, the company held meetings with buyers from MENA, Iraq, India and other countries. The buyers were interested in family films: in the All Media catalog such content is represented by the films Little Red Riding Hood and Cheburashka. The latter will be released in cinemas in Russia on January 1, 2023. The company has already received several proposals for cooperation and continues negotiations.

The official distributor of VGTRK content, Sovteleexport, has reached an agreement on granting the rights to a line of VGTRK historical series to be shown in Arabic on the YouTube platform in the UAE. A distribution company from Sri Lanka plans to license a selection of the best series produced by VGTRK to be shown in the country. A Moroccan company is considering purchasing melodramas and family dramas. Saudi Arabia’s largest holding ientv, which includes 23 educational channels, intends to purchase an extensive package of documentaries. Thrillers and action genre projects from the VGTRK catalog attracted the attention of Indian distributors. Indian media conglomerate ZEE Entertainment is interested in family-themed serial melodramas and feature films. Representatives of Soveteleexport also noted the general interest in documentaries about culture, nature and science.

The Odin-Media company is actively discussing the sale of a number of films: for example, negotiations on the Invisible Hope project are underway with Saudi Arabia, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, Indonesia and China; the film “The Great Northern Way” is being discussed with the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Morocco. Also, Odin-Media is discussing the sale of the scientific documentary film “Depth Hunters” to the entire territory of the Middle East, including Israel.

The Pimanov & Partners film company noted the interest of representatives of India, Turkey, Spain, France, the United States and the UAE in the sports drama Eleven Silent Men, released in February 2022, as well as in the TV series Pure-hearted Vocation, Glory, Gangs “, “Zhukov”. There was also demand for the company’s documentary projects. Also, the Spanish company Final Frontier and the Turkish company Pixitoon have proposed animation projects for co-production, and negotiations are underway with the Australian company Melodia and Haymillian company from the UK to collaborate on content production.

As part of the participation of the NTV channel in the DICM 2022 market, the attention of international buyers was attracted by the sports drama The Master, the historical detective Bezsonov, and the adventure series about the rescue team Five Minutes of Silence. The company negotiated with representatives of Turkey, India and the Persian Gulf countries.

The Russkoye film company noted interest in multi-part projects (more than 30 episodes), but at the same time, shorter formats, such as the company’s new series, the Cruel World of Men series, also have a chance to get on platforms in the MENA region. In the DICM market, company representatives held meetings with content buyers from Arab countries, as well as Turkey and Africa.

The production company “Sreda” held negotiations with companies from the United Arab Emirates, Hungary, Kazakhstan and other countries. The buyers became interested in the detective drama Frozen, the crime drama Chimera and the action-packed detective The Negotiator.

Online cinema KION presented in Dubai a large-scale historical drama “Union of Salvation. Time of Anger” about the Decembrist uprising of 1825, the comedy drama “The Kidney” and the family comedy “Ivan Semyonov-School Trouble!”. In all these projects, the company noted the interest of content buyers from the MENA region.

For Russian animation producers, the DICM market also turned out to be productive. The Soyuzmultfilm film studio held a number of meetings with the main players in the MENA region and India – representatives of the largest TV channels, independent distributors who purchase content from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Jordan, and Egypt. The animation series “Monsiki”, “Just you wait!”, “Secrets of the honey valley”, as well as the animated feature film “Chink: Tailed Detective” aroused the greatest interest. Representatives of foreign companies highly appreciated the quality of the content offered, as well as the educational component and the promotion of traditional family values ​​in the line of Soyuzmultfilm projects.

As part of DICM-2022, Parovoz Animation Studio held meetings with representatives of various companies from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, China, Korea, India, Iran and Morocco: 2M TV, ABC Marketing and Distribution, TOONZ Media Networks, Noor Play, Al Majd TV Network, Lichi Studios, Taareb localization agency, Al Ghadeer Satellite Channel and others: three of them are from Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia and India. As a result of the negotiations, agreements were reached on the possibility of co-production, an exchange of materials began in order to find projects suitable for both parties.

Riki Group held meetings with representatives of companies from the UAE and Saudi Arabia, as well as with buyers from India, Turkey, the Asian region (Sri Lanka, Vietnam). Within the framework of the market, three projects of the company were headliners: Bodo Borodo, Tim and Toma and Malyshariki. As noted in the company, despite the conservative and religious component of the region, the new Bodo Borodo project was received positively by buyers.

“X-Media Digital” in Dubai presented the animated series “Once upon a time there was a Princess”, “Peak Truck” and “Cars, Cars”. TV channels from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kazakhstan, mobile operators in the MENA region and Indian distributors showed interest in the projects. Preliminary negotiations were held within the framework of the market.

The media holding “Digital Television” noted that the animated series “Fantasy Patrol” and “Kitty-Dogs” aroused the greatest interest. Possible conditions are now being discussed; the company plans to contract several projects in the near future. As part of the market in Dubai, representatives of the media holding met with potential partners from the MENA region, India, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Turkey and other countries – both TV channels and various digital platforms, as well as dubbing studios and technical service companies, music libraries.

Source – online media website artmoskovia.ru.