Hulu, Arte bag Oz dramas

US video website Hulu and Franco-German channel Arte have acquired Australian drama series from distributor DCD Rights, which is launching a trio of new shows in Cannes next month.

Hulu has bought dark crime comedy The Straits (10×60′), which last month won a best mini-series gong at the Australian Writers’ Guild Awards last month. It has so far sold in Eastern Europe, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Turkey, France, Benelux and Asia.

Arte has acquired The Slap, which is based on the best-selling book of the same name and comprises eight episodes. It has previously sold to nets such as BBC4 in the UK and Sundance Channel, the latter a global rights deal.

Both shows come from NBCUniversal-owned Matchbox Pictures and broadcast on Australian pubcaster ABC. At Mipcom next month, distributor DCD Rights, part of the UK-based DCD Media group, is launching a further three ABC dramas, all of which debut on ABC1 later this year.

These include FremantleMedia Australia-produced Devil’s Dust (2×90′), a “David and Goliath” story based around a corporate cover-up of an asbestos discovery.

The Mystery of a Hansom Cab (1×100′) is based on a 19th century novel about the consequences of a night in which a pair of men take a hansom cab (horse-drawn carriage) but only one survives the journey. It comes from Burberry Entertainment.

The final programme, The Strange Calls (6×30′), comes from multiplatform prodco Hoodlum and a hapless city cop and a street cleaner that investigate a series of bizarre late night calls that expose paranormal activities in a sleepy town.