In an interview with ttvnews from NEM Dubrovnik, Rocío Cachero, International Sales Executive for Mediterráneo Mediaset España, highlighted the strategic importance of the CEE region for the company, and presented titles such as Olivia, Pura Sangre, and Punto Nemo, which lead its diverse offering of productions for the international market.
Produced by Luis Cabrera, from Croatia
Mediterráneo Mediaset España’s content has successfully carved out a niche for itself and reached multiple international destinations, thanks to its captivating stories and high production quality. Central and Eastern Europe is no exception, where the group has successfully secured agreements for both the distribution of finished content and the adaptation of formats.
The group was present this week at NEM Dubrovnik to further strengthen its relationships in this region, showcasing a vast catalog of new programs with the potential to conquer new screens.
In an interview with ttvnews from the event in Croatia, Rocío Cachero, International Sales Executive at Mediterráneo Mediaset España, analyzes consumption trends in the CEE region, reviews the main titles the company is presenting in Dubrovnik, and previews the new additions to its catalog in the coming months.
How important is the CEE region to Mediterráneo’s strategy?
For us, Eastern Europe has always been a key region. We are fortunate to have very strong and long-lasting relationships with many clients in different territories, and also with a wide variety of clients in very diverse territories. We have closed deals in Poland, Romania, Croatia, Slovenia, Slovakia, Serbia… really throughout the region.
What type of content is most in demand in the region?
Free TV has been very dominant in Eastern Europe. Therefore, we work a lot with free-to-air channels. But also with platforms, increasingly so now. In fact, we just closed a deal with a platform in the region. Then the content depends somewhat on the needs of each channel and each region. It’s true that some are more open to Spanish content than others.
Is the sale of formats something that’s becoming increasingly common these days? How do you see it today compared to previous years?
I think it’s following a similar evolution. Aside from selling syndicated content, we’ve also done a lot of work in the region thanks to formats. We’ve optioned some, and others have actually been produced. In Hungary, for example, where selling syndicated content is perhaps more complicated, we produced a version of Chiringuito de Pepe. That same series is currently optioned by RTL in Croatia, and we also had a version in Greece.
Our catalog allows us to work both ways. There are territories where syndicated content has more potential, and in others where we have the opportunity to explore options thanks to formats.
What content are you presenting at this NEM Dubrovnik market?
At this market, we’re presenting a series called Olivia. It’s a Disney+ series, produced in Spain. It’s produced by Womack Studios and Studio60, and Mediterráneo handles international distribution, both of the finished content and the format. We see that the format has a lot of potential because it’s a series with universal values. It’s about family, about reconciliation. And it’s for a very broad audience. It’s designed to connect with a family audience. Plus, it’s set in a magical environment, so it has this element that’s very characteristic of the series, which makes it stand out from any other family drama. It’s the literal description of feel-good content; it’s a series that makes you feel good, that you watch and it fills your soul.
It’s six 40-minute episodes, so it’s very easy to watch. And I think it’s going to be very popular. It’s very different from other titles we have in our catalog, but it’s a genre with a large audience and high demand. Right now there are tons of thriller and crime series, and so on, but it’s difficult to find a family series that hits all the right notes, that can be appreciated by different audiences. And then the production values of the series as a finished product are wonderful. It has a fantastic cast. So we have a lot of confidence in both the final product and the format.
What other content are you presenting?
We continue with Pura Sangre, which we did indeed present at Series Mania. This is a family drama, but more in the style of a saga. It blends inter-family relationships with a crime and investigation element, which makes it very appealing to audiences because it creates that element of mystery that hooks you. It begins with a poisoned horse belonging to a super-wealthy aristocratic family that breeds Thoroughbred horses. From there, an investigation begins that ultimately uncovers many family secrets that have been hidden for years. It has that element of mystery that really captivates the audience.
We have closed several deals that we can’t announce yet. We believe it has potential. In fact, we’ve received interest from several buyers in this market in the region, so we expect to confirm even more deals.
We are also offering Punto Nemo, which is a Prime Video series with two seasons. The second season premiered a couple of months ago, continuing the first season to bring the series to a close. It has finished airing. It’s performed very well on the platform, and we’ve also closed several deals, one already in the territory, another in the Middle East. We believe it rounds out our offering for this year because it’s a pure platform series, or a very premium Pay TV series, with a lot of action, a bit more masculine, even a bit more for a younger audience. It has a very well-known cast and brilliant creatives behind the series. And it makes our catalog and our offerings appealing to all audiences, as we like to say, giving us different options for different clients and their needs.
What does Mediterráneo have in store for the rest of the year?
We have several series that will premiere soon. Among them is Ella, maldita alma, a drama series starring Max Iglesias and Martiño Rivas. We think it will do well. It will premiere soon on Telecinco.
We also have a series produced by Unicorn Content called Marusía: Vientos de honor. It’s a series set at the naval academy, which appeals to a broad audience because it follows the new students, the cadets who enter the school. It’s a drama with a touch of investigation. When these cadets arrive, a suicide had occurred the previous year, so the entire investigation revolves around what happened. There’s a very youthful perspective on military values and honor. This series will likely premiere next year.
What will be your next international destination?
The next market will be Iberseries in Madrid. Then we’ll go to MIPCOM in Cannes, and to Asia for ATF.
