‘The Salisbury Poisonings’ Producer Dancing Ledge Sets ‘Platform 7’ at ITVX – Global Bulletin
COMMISSION
U.K. broadcaster ITV has commissioned 4×60′ psychological thriller drama series “Platform 7” from Dancing Ledge Productions (“The Responder,” “The Salisbury Poisonings”). It is adapted by BAFTA and International Emmy winning screenwriter Paula Milne (“The Politician’s Wife”) from the bestselling novel of the same name by Louise Doughty. If follows central character Lisa who, after witnessing a cataclysmic event on platform 7 of a railway station, finds her own fragmented memory jogged to reveal a connection between her own life and that of the event she has just witnessed.
The drama was commissioned by UTV head of drama Polly Hill. “Platform 7” will be an ITVX premiere, exclusive to ITV’s new free streaming service, several months ahead of linear transmission on ITV’s main TV channel. Dancing Ledge Productions MD Chris Carey will executive produce alongside company CEO Laurence Bowen and BAFTA winning executive producer Kate Triggs (“A Very British Scandal”). It is produced by Rosalie Carew (“Three Pines”) and will be directed by Sarah Walker (“Warrior Nun”).
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Channel 4
Meanwhile, Channel 4 has commissioned one-hour documentary, “Myanmar: The Forgotten Revolution,” which investigates three major mass killings, with exclusive video footage and eye-witness accounts and investigates why the international community has completely failed to meet the call for intervention made by protestors soon after the 2021 coup. Evan Williams Productions is handling production for Channel 4. It is produced and directed by Katie Arnold and executive produced by Evan Williams. It was commissioned for Channel 4 by Nevine Mabro.
EXTENSION
The application period for the Hypewriter international series pitch forum has been extended to July 20. As in previous years, several entries have been received so far this year, but the organizers have pushed back the deadline to offer a chance to late applicants. The purpose of the pitch forum is to find new, compelling ideas. There are no restrictions in genre, and Hypewriter encourages ideas from anyone, anywhere in the world. The prize is €10,000 ($10,057) and the production of a pilot show (presented on air by RTL Hungary) based on their idea.
“The Butcher,” the winner of the first Hypewriter, has been released and can be seen on RTL Most+, while “Golden Age,” the winner of the second Hypewriter skipped the pilot phase and went directly into production and is currently being shot in cooperation with Paprika Studios and RTL Hungary. The idea that won last year’s pitching forum is being directed by Ildikó Enyedi, director of the Oscar-nominated, Golden Bear winning film “On Body and Soul” (2017).
CLASSIFICATION
The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) has published its annual report and accounts for 2021, which reveals that it classified 5,431 video submissions; 1,891 online submissions; 659 theatrical films and 104 music videos. At the close of 2021, 27 Video on Demand (VOD) platforms were licensed to display BBFC age ratings in the U.K. on a voluntary, best practice basis. For these industry, the BBFC provided age ratings for over 17,673 pieces of VOD content, equating to 811,178 minutes. This included issuing new in-house classifications for packaged media that can be used online and for digital-only content, as well as the self-rating partnership with Netflix. Other streaming services and platforms working with the BBFC are Prime Video, Apple TV+, Sky Store, StarzPlay, Pluto TV, YouTube Movies, Rakuten TV, among others.
The long-term agreement between the BBFC and Netflix means that U.K. families will continue to see BBFC age ratings on all Netflix content for years to come. In addition, the increase in online age ratings showed that 91% of parents and 95% of teens want to see the same age ratings that they know from cinema and DVD/Blu-ray packaging applied on VOD and streaming platforms.
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