LONDON TV SCREENINGS: Lisa Perrin, MD of international production, on the technological solutions her company is offering beyond simple hub models to keep some of ITV Studios’ biggest formats affordable and on air for broadcasters facing straightened budgets.
Lisa Perrin
ITV Studios is rolling out the welcome mat for press and buyers alike on the Wednesday at London TV Screenings.
As you’d expect the UK commercial broadcaster is bringing a range of new formats to market including Celebrity Sabotage from the same Lifted Entertainment prodco as Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway, ITV Studios Netherlands social experiment Twin Love which has already been adapted by Prime Video in the US, ABC Australia show Eve of Destruction and S4C’s Little Bird Films eco-format Greenhouse where eight young ‘eco-offenders’ are challenged to live off grid for a week.
That’s of course alongside an existing catalogue of well-known juggernaut shows like The Voice, I’m A Celebrity and Love Island. But in these straightened times, the focus of Lisa Perrin, MD of international production at ITVS, is as much on how they make these big shows affordable to cash-strapped buyers as it is the shows themselves.
The days of every country in the world having money to just pick up a show like Love Island and put their own version on air are, if not completely gone, then certainly more challenged. In a 2025 where one exec has already remarked “content used to be king, now it’s the deal model that’s king” offering practical solutions to buyers is as much a part of a distributor’s job.
New models of financing formats was a topic discussed during the recent January events, but the view at ITV Studios is producers need to adjust their mindsets and work together in a “global economy” to help get shows made. It’s more than just hub models, it’s about technological solutions.
A key question driving their formats business is how they can work with buyers and partners on better economies? In addition to the smart use of locations/production hubs, ITVS wants to bring broadcast partners and licensees together to share best practice and resources. Mike Beale MD, Global Creative Network, ITV Studio is holding a session for buyers about this today at the Odeon Luxe in Leicester Square.
Lisa Perrin, an experienced format exec who moved from the Endemol Shine Group where she oversaw Big Brother among others in 2020, says: “We’re trying to be as flexible as possible for our clients working internally, to get shows commissioned and bring them to air.”
‘Eco-offenders’ are challenged to live off grid for a week in Greenhouse
The Dutch Love Island base in Gran Canaria became a hub for other versions, but Perrin is keen to pitch potential technical solutions to clients as well with Ben Russell, director of production, international, ITV Studios, bringing what he learned from seven years working at ITV Sport to the table.
One example came with the most recent season of Love Island Finland which, Perrin says, would not have been able to go ahead and wouldn’t have been commissioned without solutions such as remote editing being found.
“Love Island Finland, for example, at the end of last year frankly wouldn’t have been commissioned unless we’d been able to do it fully remote,” Perrin says. “So, the villa was in Spain and the rest of the crew were in Helsinki – it was completely remote. We had to find a villa that was close enough to sufficient connectivity, we didn’t do it the other way around. It was the only way we could get the Finnish version made and now other territories are looking at that model. We have done Swedish Love Island where the edit was done in Stockholm but the rest of the crew were in Cyprus.
“We’re looking at that more and more, particularly in the Nordics. The broadcasters are pushing that as a model for sustainability as well because they don’t want to send hundreds of people and increase their carbon footprint. That’s something we’re definitely pushing this week.”
One such push this week will be around The Neighbourhood, which ITV recently commissioned in the UK and involves families and households compete in a street-sized reality game for cash prizes. A big undertaking set wise and prospective clients will have a chance to view potential locations and investigate the possibility of back-to-back filming this week.
“The industry is not going to go back to the way it was before, ever,” Perrin says. “Broadcasters have less money because of the advertising market and that’s everywhere.
“it’s about using AI in logging, translation, face recognition, to make shows and editing and production and post-production of these shows more efficient. That’s one thing that’s happening. Budgets and not where they were five years ago and they’re not going to go back to where they were five years ago. There is definitely a commissioning slow down – I’ve read as much as 75% down.
“It’s our job to be flexible enough to make the shows they want to buy, at the quality we want to give them and the standards they want. It’s about coming up with solutions to make that happen.”
The point has been made the amidst all this talk of deal models, the actual ideas and creativity are getting lost. Perrin points to shows like The Traitors and Destination X which have still cut through but does acknowledge “you’re right, where does the creativity come in?”
“We’re all viewers, we all watch television. If there’s something new and great you’re going to watch it, right? I still think if it’s a great idea broadcasters will look at it and they will take a punt and commission it. I mean you’re seeing the heritage brands I think being commissioned less and less.
“I think it’s about being flexible, working together. I think it’s about using technology smartly and wisely and to make efficiencies in terms of bringing shows to life and really putting the money on the screen, which I think is really important because viewers really notice it. We’ve all watched Netflix, big budget shows and we’ve all been trained to expect that kind of production quality. So it’s how you bring that to life as well.
“Our key points of focus this week are we’re flexible, we’re climate focused and we’re creatively focused.”
