As we head towards autumn, when TV viewing traditionally increases, producers and distributors are showcasing several new scripted and unscripted shows on C21 Digital Screenings.

Crime-related content has been hugely popular over the past year, and the presence of several such shows on August’s Hot Properties playlist proves this trend isn’t going away anytime soon.

First up is Red Election, a Nordic noir series coproduced by Scandinavian streamer Viaplay in collaboration with global media company A+E Networks. The latter’s international distribution arm, A+E Global Content Sales, is handling sales of the show, which features one Danish and one British intelligence agent trying to stop a London-based terrorist plot. As they dig deeper, they find the conspiracy may go further than the UK capital.

Another crime drama sure to get pulses racing is Wolfsland, a German series about a detective who thinks she has the chance to start again in a quiet town – until her abusive ex-husband follows her. Produced by Germany’s Molina Film and sold by Studio Hamburg Enterprises, the show comprises two 90-minute episodes per season, with four seasons having aired since 2016.

Italy is also getting in on the action with Masantonio, a crime drama that addresses the 20,000 people that go missing in Italy every year. It follows a detective who heads up a missing persons unit and is haunted by his past. Set in Genoa and produced by Italian prodco Cattleya, the show is on offer from UK distributor ITV Studios.

The next crime/thriller series that is sure to shock is Flesh & Blood, the fourth season of horror anthology series Slasher. In this eight-episode run, yet to be released, a wealthy family gathers on a private island before discovering they are all to be pitted against one another while they are stalked by an unknown killer.

Jack Irish: Hell Bent (4×60’) is the latest season of the crime drama made for Australian pubcaster the ABC. This time out, protagonist Jack is driven on an intense hunt to track down his wife’s killer. Australian prodco Easy Tiger has made the show and UK-based distributor DCD Rights handles international sales.

The final scripted crime title on the list puts a twist on the genre. Falk: Compulsive, Savant, Flair is a German series from Bavaria Media International that combines legal drama with comedy. The protagonist is an eccentric lawyer who uses unconventional, and sometimes surreal, tactics to win his cases. Bavaria Fiction is the producer.

A true crime series also makes it onto the list: The Disappearance of William Tyrrell, which chronicles the still-unsolved abduction of a three-year-old Australian boy from his foster grandmother’s house in 2014. Available as a 4×60’ or 2×90’ series, the show is made by Australia’s EQ Media Group and sold by UK distributor Abacus Media Rights.

Elsewhere on this month’s Hot Properties are several light-hearted, youth-oriented titles. Coffee & Vanilla is a drama from Japan that was released in 2019. On sale from Mainichi Broadcasting System, the show centres on a beautiful college student who has never had a real relationship because of a lack of experience.

Also from Japan is Harassment Game, an eight-parter that debuted in 2018. Made by and aired on TV Tokyo, the series sees corporate employees of a supermarket chain come up with schemes to resolve the various harassment issues at the company.

ZDF Enterprises, the distribution arm of German public broadcaster ZDF, is currently selling A Table in Provence. The 4×90’ drama mixes medical themes with family saga as a French nurse returns to her family home in Provence for her father’s funeral. The show is coproduced by Germany’s Fernsehgesellschaft and Polyphon.

An unusual eight-part comedy drama has come out of France from production studio and distributor StudioCanal. Narvalo, or About Last Night, sees a different group of young people sit down each episode to discuss their antics the night before. The series was originally made for Canal+, and its French name comes from the term for someone who regularly embarrasses themselves and provides a great anecdote.

The final drama on this month’s Hot Properties playlist is forthcoming Australian series The Newsreader, which is being distributed by Entertainment One. Set in 1986, the show is about the bond formed between two newsreaders who have to report on some devastating world events, from the Challenger shuttle crash to the AIDS epidemic. The show is made by Melbourne-based Werner Film Productions.

In entertainment formats, one of the most iconic such shows of all time is on sale from Sony Pictures Television Formats. The Dating Game began in the US in 1965 and aims to pair people together via the famous dividing wall and some innuendo-laden questions. The format now has been adapted in 34 countries, with the revamped US version, presented by Zooey Deschanel and Michael Bolton, premiering on ABC in June this year.

Next up in formats is Aussie Snake Wranglers (16×30’), which follows a crack team of animal experts as they go around Australia to trap and relocate dangerous snakes. The show was originally made by US prodco Breakout for global factual broadcaster National Geographic.

Staying down under, the seventh season of Beauty & The Geek Australia is on sale from global distributor Banijay Rights. Based on the US format from the noughties created by Ashton Kutcher, the show sees 10 women described as ‘beauties’ and 10 ‘geek’ men pair up to survive each episode and avoid elimination. The best couple wins A$100,000 (US$73,500). The Aussie version ended in 2014 before coming back this year for season seven.

Moving to factual content, Through the Seasons: China (3×60’) is on sale from Singapore’s Bomanbridge Media. The docuseries takes a look at the changing landscape and human makeup of China over the space of a year.

There are four historical shows on the list. The Wedding of the Century marks the 40th anniversary of the marriage of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer in 1981. Originally made for BBC Studios and ITV Studios’ joint-venture streaming platform BritBox, the programme is on sale from the UK’s Passion Distribution.

The Nazi Whaling Squadron, from Germany’s Autentic Distribution, is a one-off 45-minute doc about how the Nazis built the third largest whaling fleet in the world to try to solve the Germany’s fat supply issues at the end of the 1930s. The show is available in English, German and French.

The final historical title, Behind History, is a 6×60’ series from Australia’s Wildbear Entertainment. Sold by global distributor Red Arrow Studios International, the show takes a closer look behind some of the biggest world events ever, like Mandela’s walk to freedom, the Hindenburg disaster and Queen Elizabeth II’s wedding to Prince Philip. Titles for the episodes are Icons, Breakthroughs, War, Leaders, Catastrophe and Fame.

Elswhere in factual, Billion Pound Bond Street is an aspirational look into the wares sold on one of the most expensive streets in the world – London’s Bond Street. Narrated by The Serpent star Jenna Coleman, the one-hour doc is made by the UK’s Finestripe Productions and originally aired on UK broadcaster ITV. UK distributor Cineflix Rights is handling sales.

Finally, two kids’ shows make it onto the list. The second season of Australian series Hardball is up for sale by the Australian Children’s Television Foundation. The show is about a New Zealand kid who moves to Sydney and becomes wrapped up in the school sport, handball, giving him the opportunity to go from zero to hero.

Finally, children’s distributor Cake has picked up Brazilian animation Jorel’s Brother, which premiered on Cartoon Network in Latin America in 2014. The series actually focuses on an unnamed boy who is completely eclipsed by his good-looking and popular brother, Jorel, and has to find his own identity. The series was made by Rio de Janeiro’s Copa Studio and has had three seasons to date.

Enjoy the Hot Properties playlist for August 2021!

As we head towards autumn, when TV viewing traditionally increases, producers and distributors are showcasing several new scripted and unscripted shows on C21 Digital Screenings.

Crime-related content has been hugely popular over the past year, and the presence of several such shows on August’s Hot Properties playlist proves this trend isn’t going away anytime soon.

First up is Red Election, a Nordic noir series coproduced by Scandinavian streamer Viaplay in collaboration with global media company A+E Networks. The latter’s international distribution arm, A+E Global Content Sales, is handling sales of the show, which features one Danish and one British intelligence agent trying to stop a London-based terrorist plot. As they dig deeper, they find the conspiracy may go further than the UK capital.

Another crime drama sure to get pulses racing is Wolfsland, a German series about a detective who thinks she has the chance to start again in a quiet town – until her abusive ex-husband follows her. Produced by Germany’s Molina Film and sold by Studio Hamburg Enterprises, the show comprises two 90-minute episodes per season, with four seasons having aired since 2016.
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