Amazon, Nat Geo, PBS, BBC, AMC catch Arctic Drift after Fremantle deals

Arctic Drift: A Year In The Ice will be screened in 170 territories worldwide

MIPCOM: Buyers including Amazon Prime Video, Channel 4 in the UK, France Télévisions and PBS in the US have acquired scientific documentary Arctic Drift: A Year In The Ice from distributor Fremantle.

The documentary, Fremantle’s first high-end factual production, will be shown in the UK,  US and France throughout October and November, coinciding with this year’s UN Climate Change Conference (COP26), which starts on November 1 in Glasgow.

On the eve of Mipcom, the annual TV industry conference in Cannes, Fremantle has confirmed the show will be screened in 170 territories worldwide.

Other international sales include pan-regional deals with National Geographic for Latin America, BBC Earth channels in Africa and Asia, OSN for the Middle East and North Africa, and AMC Networks International-owned Spektrum for Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia.

Elsewhere in Eastern Europe, LTV (Latvia), LRT (Lithuania), Canal+ (Poland) and RTV Slovenija and Czech TV have acquired rights. Nordic pubcasters DR (Denmark), YLE (Finland) and NRK (Norway) have also picked up the show.

The doc will be launched in Spain on free-to-air channel TVE and AMC Networks International’s Odisea/Odisseia channel for Spain and Portugal. In Italy, Rai 4 in Italy has picked up premiere rights, while Sky Italia has acquired the rights for pay TV.

The documentary has also been sold to VRT in Belgium, KBS in South Korea, Gain in Turkey and Cosmote TV in Greece. The film was originally produced for German broadcaster ARD.

Arctic Drift: A Year In The Ice is a collaboration between two Fremantle outfits: German production company UFA Show & Factual and London-based Wild Blue Media.

Jens Richter, CEO of international at Fremantle, said: “The roster of broadcasters that have come on board highlights that there is the appetite for premium documentaries with an urgent message, and this is a film that is uniquely backed up with science, hope and the adventure of spending a year in the Arctic.”