The event presented its official selection for the different competitions, which includes titles from Spain, Mexico, Argentina and Uruguay.
This Wednesday, the organization of Series Mania revealed new details of its event this year, which will take place from March 17 to 24 in Lille, France.
Regarding the official competitions, the arrival of productions from regions never before included and a greater participation than ever in terms of numbers stand out.
“Each edition of Series Mania comes with its fair share of evolution that brings into question the way we look at international creation. In 2023, we are paying particular attention to series originating from territories outside of the more established Anglo-Saxon/European countries. Out of the 396 series sent in from 63 countries, we’ve held on to 54 of them, representing 24 different nationalities. Some come from territories we don’t hear from very often, such as Greece, Pakistan, Benin, Uruguay, and Iran,” said Laurence Herszberg, General Director and Frédéric Lavigne, Artistic Director.
As part of the international competition, the standout from the Hispanic world is Mentiras pasajeras, the Spanish series by Paramount+. It’s competing against Grace of Heaven (France-Belgique); Drops of Gold (France, USA, Japan), Milky Way (Greece), Red Skies (Israel), The Actor (Iran), The Fortress (Norway), and The Power (USA).
In the International Panorama category, the standouts are Apagón (Spain, Movistar+), La ruta (Spain, Atresplayer Premium) and Tengo que morir todas las noches (Mexico, Paramount+). They’re competing against A Body that Works (Israel), A Thin Line (Germany), Lomboland (India, Pakistan), Blackwater (Sweden), Disobey (Canada), Funny Woman (USA), Innermost (Israel), Little Bird (Canada), Nordland (Denmark).
Lastly, in the Short Formats Competition, the standout is Autodefensa from Spain, which is competing against A Strange Summer (Finland), Canis Familiaris (France), El universo conspira (Argentina, Uruguay, UN3), Five Years (Czech Republic), Latecomers (Australia), Nichole (Canada), One of the Boys (Denmark).
You can find the full list of titles and tech specs for all the categories, here.
New in Series Mania Forum 2023
This year the event will feature the traditional Co-Pro Pitching Sessions (which will announce its selection later this month), along with new workshops and programs such as the new Canada-France Series Lab, Seriesmakers, Going European, DEENTAL Series Workshop, Drama Co-Writing Residency Israel-France, Writers Campus, and more.
In addition, the Series Mania Forum features showcases of series from all over the world, round table discussions and impactful masterclasses that question the world of series from the point of view of those who make them, as well as those who watch them.
This year the event will launch the first annual “Series Mania’s Creative Campaign Award”, a prize awarded by Series Mania to a series’ promotion for the viewing audiences. This new initiative responds to the need for broadcasters and platforms, faced with the dizzying number of series available each week, to create innovative and unique marketing campaigns so that the series are noticed and have every chance of gaining audience attention. What is the point of making great series if they go unnoticed by their target audiences?
Lastly, the event is introducing five strands of focus including Sourcing Talent & Stories, Content Showcases, Creative Business Inspiration, Marketing of Series & Innovation and Lille Dialogues. Programme highlights include Series and Gaming: Mutual Fascination, Inexorable Convergence?; Stand Up For European IP!; Watch out! Amazing Communication Campaigns for Series; The Fight for Attention on Content: How Series Can Better Leverage Social Media?; and Stories That Change The World: How To Tell Desirable Futures?
Last but not least, Lille Dialogues, the international decision-makers summit, comes back on March 23 with this year’s theme: “Shaping the Future with the Audiovisual Sector – a sustainable and Imaginative industry,” in presence of Cyril Dion as Ambassador of the 2023 edition.
