NATPE Budapest is moving into its third day today, packed with events, announcements and lots of networking, at the INTERCONTINENTAL HOTEL in the Hungarian capital. The CEE region is showing good advantages in the digital era: new channels, TV groups, niche audiences, and a growing market are good assets to attract the international content industry.

Yesterday, one of the rich moments was the panel “Formatting Success: Taking 'the Floor' And 'the 1% Club' Across Europe", where Andre Renaud, VP global formats at BBC Studios, said: "The 1% Club" is not about having knowledge about something specific, it's about how your brain interprets the themes. People are watching the show with the whole family. A good host is crucial. The format came to TV2 Hungary and 1+1 Ukraine. The adaptability of the first edition reached 12 territories'.

Sebastian van Barneveld from Talpa Studios (The Netherlands), added: 'In “The Floor” we achieved 15 adaptations, including the Ukrainian version which was really emotional, because the contestants were almost all women as the men were struggling with a lot of real war stories. The quiz was a way to entertain people during a difficult time'.

Later during the day, Kim Poder, group chief operating officer, Antenna Group Hungary, gave a balance between FTA, pay TV, OTT and radio. ‘The emphasis must be not on the media, but also on the group's assets across all platforms. The digital expansion is key for the future, because the times to come will be essentially digital. We have different strategies to gain media power, part are about content and part about the media game’.

The prestigious Pitch & Play LIVE competition also took place in the IC III hall, where the finalists, Siyah Sekiz Medya ("Celebrity Teacher") from Turkey, Salt&Pepper ("Chef Talent") from Bulgaria, and TV3 Group ("Love Always Wins") from Estonia, presented their projects live in search of partners and investors.

Also, Mirela Nastase, drama director at ZDF Studios (Germany) presented its showcase, with one hour of trailers from "Love Sucks" (8x30'), "Sloborn" third season (6x45'), "Concordia" (6x45'), "White Night" (8x45') second season, and "Legacy first season" (104x45') were shown. The company also showed sequences from: "Dr Nice" (6x90'), "The Zweiflers" (6x45') - best series chosen at Canneseries 2024, We're on it comrades (8x60') and Suplex (4x45').

At the end of the day, the Europa boat party took place, using the same Danube cruise ship that has always hosted the event's epic boat parties in the past. There, we took good testimonials and trends: Masha Panchenko, CCO at Megogo (Ukraine): 'We are looking for animations and documentaries. This market is not focused on the sports we normally buy, but it allows us to reach new territories where we have never worked before like Japan and Latin America'.

Marei Bruckmann, content director from ZDF Studios: ‘I notice there are a couple of budget constraints, from the public broadcasts we normally work with. We're looking for animation, not live action'. Abdullah Terzioglu, format acquisitions manager, from Acun Medya (Turkey): 'A lot of exhibitors have joined this year, especially non-scripted formats, such as Talpa Studios, All3media, Red Arrow. I’d like to meet independent companies and understand the dynamics of the CEE region’.

Today, Antenna Studios will present its showcase, featuring The Witch and Soul Daughters, two of the company's most captivating series. For its part, GoQuest Media will present an exclusive screening of the first images of Kuma, the new Turkish series co-produced with VIP 2000 TV. There will also be a panel "Everyone Wants to be a Millionaire, where Laura St Claire, senior VP of international formats, Sony will talk about the challenges, opportunities and popularity of a format that is celebrating its 25th anniversary. The "Driving Efficiency through Partnerships" panel will examine the nuances of collaborative partnerships, exploring models that extend beyond traditional co-production.

Francisco Ferreyra

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